Hiker uses martial arts to fight off grizzly bear
May 30, 2005

(CP)

Luckily, the bear didn’t have his black belt.

An Alberta man on a Bible retreat successfully used his Brazilian martial arts training on the weekend to fend off a charging grizzly.

Lyle Simpson was hiking through the bush with friends west of Calgary on Saturday when the bruin started chasing him, he said.

“It just burst out of the bush, charging right away. There wasn’t much time to think,” said Simpson, 32, who added there was a cub nearby.

The hikers quickly ran in different directions, but as Simpson was trying to escape, he tripped and landed on his back.

“I put my arm up as the bear was coming on down towards me. The bear tried to bite my arm.”

That’s when Simpson’s training instincts took over and he kicked the bear in the face.

“I think I stunned it just enough. I really think it saved me from a mauling.”

The friends quickly re-grouped and made the 15-minute trek back to Whispering Pines Bible camp.

Simpson needed six stitches to close the wound from the bear’s bite and has a painful gash on his hip.

“My shorts look like they’ve been cut with scissors.,” he said.