Where Do Brown Bears Live?

Brown bears can be found in forests and woodlands, sub alpine mountain areas, scrub, shrub and brushlands, lakes, ponds, rivers & streams to name a few. and across the tundra region. They can be found in Rocky Mountains, Southwest, Northwest, Western Canada, Alaska. In some areas their appearance and color depends on their habitat, diet and season.

And did you know that the Grizzly Bear that lives in the contiguous U.S. is on the U.S. Endangered Species List. It is classified as threatened in the lower 48 states, although its current range extends only into Idaho, Montana, Washington (rarely), and Wyoming. (It has not been recorded in Colorado in many years.) It is said that 50,000 Grizzlies roamed the western U.S. in 1800 from the Canadian border to Mexico, as far east as the middle of the Great Plains. However, the settlement and development of the West meant changes to and destruction of the Grizzly's habitat, competition with humans for game such as White-tailed Deer, and clashes between bears and humans.

For many, grizzlies have always been seen as a threat to humans and livestock, and were hunted, trapped, and poisoned extensively, both for food and fur and to eliminate them from areas where humans lived. In 1975, when the Grizzly Bear came under the protection of the U.S. Endangered Species Act, only about 1,000 remained in the lower 48 states.

Warning All North American bears can be dangerous in the following situations:

·      When accompanied by cubs

·      When surprised by the sudden appearance of humans

·      When approached while feeding, guarding a kill, fishing, hungry, injured, or breeding

·      When conditioned to human foods, as has occurred in some Canadian and U.S. parks

If you are camping, you must firmly seal up food and place it out of reach. Bears will break into unattended vehicles if they smell food. The Grizzly is the most dangerous of all bears. Do not feed, approach, surprise at close range, or get between a Grizzly Bear and its food or cubs. While Grizzlies normally avoid humans, they will attack and have been known to seriously injure and even kill humans. Grizzlies can outrun humans, and can climb trees. If charged by a Grizzly, stand your ground; if attacked, lie flat on your stomach and play dead.

To get your UDAP Bear Spray, please visit us online today!

Cross Country Skiing and UDAP Bear Spray

Winter is upon us and for those of us who enjoy cross country skiing, at time we tend to forget that there is danger out there. But the fact is, grizzly bears are out there and grizzly bears do attack. They attack anyone or anything they feel threatened by. Spend enough time cross country skiing in the backcountry, and one day that threat might be you. So don’t forget to take along your UDAPBear Spray!

Bear spray has been proven effective on black bears, grizzly bears, moose, and mountain lions. UDAP also makes bear spray holsters, pepper sprays to guard against human attacks, and law enforcement pepper products.

The #3P Jogger Fogger is UDAP's most popular all-around self-defense unit. It is designed to fit easily in the palm of your hand with a stretch-band to hold it securely in place. For bear sprays the chest holster is the most effective because it leaves your hands free while cross country skiing, yet places the can right where you need it in the event of an attack.

UDAP bear spray has a three-year shelf life for peak performance. We recommend that you practice holding the can before you head out cross country skiing; what's in that can could very well save your life. Knowing exactly what you have and how to use it could be your best defense. Make sure that you understand the bear itself, you are after all intruding on their turf!

Real Estate Agents Placed in Danger

How many real estate agents have been placed in danger, because of the nature of their job? While I am not a realtor, there have been a few times in my life, and I suspect in yours as well, that something has happened where your life was placed in danger but you managed to avoid a catastrophe by sheer luck.  Either you realized what was about to happen and changed course or someone came to your rescue. These are the “near-misses” in our lives that we all experience from time-to-time, situations that we seldom hear about but situations that we could learn a lot from if we were made aware of the details.  Sometimes someone else causes the incident that leads to a “near miss” and there’s probably little that we can do about that except to be as observant as we can and then react quickly enough to avoid a problem.

For example, a real estate agent showing a prospective client a house after dark and he/she is robbed. Wouldn’t a stun gun or pepper spray come in handy? UDAP Stun Guns can double as a flashlight, so you have it ready in your handy and you can use it to show clients those dark crawl spaces or under sinks. Make that would be robber think twice. Don’t depend on luck to keep you safe, be prepared whether it’s carrying UDAP Pepper Spray or a UDAP Stun Gun, detect the precursors of life endangering situations and avoid them! Always be prepared for those dangerous situations.

Recreationists gather at Helena Outdoor Fest

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By MARGA LINCOLN, Independent Record

Adventure | Event gives attendees a chance to get hands-on experience with various outdoor activities

 

Stopping a charging bear with a blast of pepper spray, driving a four-wheeler and trap shooting were just some of the fun simulation activities kids got to try at this year’s Outdoors Fest on Saturday.
Now in its fifth year, the event at Montana Wild Education Center and Spring Meadow Lake State Park,  gives kids and families an array of fun outdoor activities to try out, said Laurie Evarts, Montana Wild education program manager.

Activities ranged from kayaking, rafting and archery to trap shooting with a laser gun, mountain biking and fishing. Altogether 70 volunteers and some 200 to 300 kids and their parents got to play in the outdoors and try out some new adventures.

The Off Highway Vehicle simulator is a fun way to get kids to think about safety, said Tom Reilly, a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks assistant administrator. “Always wear a helmet,” he said, as he helped yet another excited child into the driver’s seat of the OHV. Soon it would be bucking down a back road as the child’s eyes grew larger and larger and their hands tightened on the steering wheel. “Always wear boots,” Reilly advised, “and always wear protective gloves.”

Across the parking lot, another popular simulator was going full bore. Mark Matheny, a grizzly bear attack survivor and the president of UDAP, which makes bear spray, was demonstrating a new piece of protective equipment and also his charging-bear simulator.

“We’re celebrating 20 years of being in business,” he said. “I was mauled Sept. 25, 1992, just outside of Big Sky when I was bow hunting.”  His hunting partner happened to be a physician and EMT, who got him to an emergency room and closed his wounds with more than 200 stitches.

Matheny was mauled by a female grizzly with three cubs, he said. “When my head was in her mouth, I had an out-of-body experience. I was going down a white bright tunnel.”

But it turned out to not be his time to die. “I got a message to go back and serve others,” he said, and he began to make products to make people safer.

The latest product he showed off Saturday is a bear spray pack that attaches to the back of a backpack and can be deployed if a person is attacked from behind and has a bear on their back. A push of a button on the backpack shoulder strap releases a burst of pepper spray into the bear’s face.
His new charging-bear simulator machine gives people an opportunity to practice using bear spray on a “bear” racing at them at 25 miles per hour.

“It gives you an idea of the actual speed bears can move,” said Matheny. “They are faster than a race horse. People can be stunned because of their quickness.”

For the younger set, like 4-year-old Savannah Crumley, there were some calmer activities to try out such as fish tattoos, the Wildlife Olympics, making leaf sun catchers and the oh-so-fascinating tornado in a bottle.

Meanwhile, indoors at the Montana Wild Center, the laser-shooting simulator was a hit, drawing a line of enthusiasts.

 Kids and some moms tried out laser trap shooting under the watchful eye of volunteers who showed them the correct way to hold the rifle.

The simulator is also used for hunter education classes across the state, where students learn about safe shots to take in the field and which ones to pass up.

“It’s a way to teach shooting skills and technique and it’s a confidence builder,” said Wayde Cooperider, FWP outdoor skills and safety supervisor. “This is a safe environment to work on shooting skills.”

Six-year-old Cheyenne Prater had just scored six hits. “It’s a perfect score for a 6-year-old,” she said, smiling at her mom, Kristy Brown.

“They’ve liked it all,” said Brown of the activities the family had tried. “But bear spray practice was the favorite.”

Original Article here

Hunting in Bear Country

Seeing a bear while hunting can be thrilling which can be good or bad depending on if you’re hunting for bears or if you’ve stumbled upon a bear and weren’t expecting it. Bears are valuable hunting trophies but many people are afraid of bears. They’ve heard stories of bear attacks and worry that a bear might attack them. If hunters learn to follow a few simple safeguards, the chance that a bear will cause problems is very small.

#1 rule, always carry UDAP Bear Spray and never hunt alone! Learn to recognize bear signs. Avoid areas with fresh tracks, torn logs, flipped rocks, scats or clawed trees. Be extra careful on windy days; with the wind blowing it becomes more difficult for bears to hear and smell a person. Be careful in areas where it’s hard to hear or see well, such as deep brush, along stream sides and at bends in a trail. Avoid late evening trips and returning to camp in the dark. It’s also a good idea to leave dogs at home or on a leash. A dog chasing a bear or barking at it can cause real problems when hunting in bear country.

Carrying bear UDAP Bear Spray in a holster or a vest can be more accessible and is really your best defense if you encounter a bear while hunting.

Bear Spray for Hunters

With hunting season upon us, don’t forget to carry UDAP Bear Spray on all of your hunting trips!

"Hunters and other people who spend time in grizzly country need to take steps to reduce encounters with grizzlies, including carrying pepper spray, keeping clean camps and following proper food storage procedures. The future of grizzly bears depends upon it." Greater Yellowstone Report Fall 1997 - Grizz Mortality Alarming and Avoidable by Tim Stevens

Hunters credit repellent with saving their lives "The two men have this advice for hunters. Take enough deterrent." Bozeman Daily Chronicle September 27, 1992 - Bear spray works by Joan Haines


Good luck to all of the hunters out there this season and please, don’t forget your UDAP Bear Spray!

Tips for Using Your UDAP Bear Spray

So you purchased your UDAP Bear Spray and not you want to know how to use it. fter purchasing your bear spray, please read all directions and warnings on label. There is a package insert that provides detail information, but here are a few useful tips as well:

•    Test fire - downwind - outside - pointed safely away from people and pets
•    Contents may travel and/or linger longer than expected. Using a quick half-second burst will increase safety and confidence with this product.
•    To prevent loss of safety clip, we tie the safety clip to the handle. (Please leave attached)
•    The holster keeps UDAP Pepper Power® safe and reliable.
•    DO NOT carry UDAP Pepper Power® in your pocket, fanny pack, or backpack. For quick silent access in a close encounter attack it is best to carry Pepper Power®, in one of our unique holsters.
•    Keep loose clothing out of the way.

In any kind of attack situation you have to react under pressure. Attacks can be fast, often leaving you no time to think, only time to react. We strongly recommend you take time to familiarize yourself with this product's operation.

Bear Spray Works on Moose

With everyone heading to the mountains to get that last hike in before the snow flies, don’t forget your UDAP Bear Spray! UDAP Bear Spray works on all kinds of animals including moose, not just bears! Read what one of our customers had to say!

You just never know how a moose will react....

Last year I was working near the Continental Divide just south of Glacier National Park. Over the course of about two months I saw this cow moose, never saw a calf, at least a half a dozen times, in the same area. I came with-in a hundred yards of her each time and she never displayed any aggression.

Then one morning I'm in the same area and see the cow moose again. This time, at about a hundred yards or so, she lays her ears back, with the hair standing up on the back of her neck, and trots in my direction. I thought, "what the hell's up with her?" and stepped back in the timber behind the largest tree I could find. She came charging in, reared and started striking with her front feet around either side of the tree. I'm ducking and dodging and thinking this old girl is pretty serious.

The can of UDAP, that is ALWAYS in the right-hand leg pocket of pants when I'm in the backcountry, comes to hand and I give her about a two or three second burst at about three feet distance. The effect is immediate and dramatic. The cow moose almost goes down, regains her feet and ricochets off about three trees on her way out of the timber. It worked very well and I didn't have "moose tracks" all over me! I have been treed by moose on one occasion and respect them as much as grizzly bears. Under certain circumstances they are more unpredictable than bears. You just never know how a moose will react and I was very glad to have your product in my pocket on that day. Thanks again for "saving my bacon!"

Sincerely, Ross Buckingham

So enjoy your hike before the snow falls, take some great photos and don’t forget your UDAP Bear Spray!

Tips to Protect Yourself When Jogging/Walking in Your Neighborhood

It’s beautiful early fall outdoors and most people enjoy a walk or around the neighbor enjoying all of the fall colors. But with street crimes increasing in most large U.S. cities, it’s more important than ever that you protect yourself when jogging/walking in your neighborhood.




A few tips:

•    Be alert for loiterers and do not interact with them.
•    Don't carry large sums of money in your wallet, if you're a man, or a purse, if you're a woman.
•    If possible, stay out of bad parts of town and if you have to, travel with another person. This is especially true after dark.
•    Never hitchhike or accept rides from strangers. Believe it or not, the majority of women who are raped by strangers were hitchhiking at the time.
•    Walk on the side of the street nearest to oncoming traffic. If accosted by someone in a car, run in the direction opposite the way the car is headed.
•    Beware of people who approach asking directions; keep a safe distance. Just say "Sorry" and keep moving if you are in an unsafe area or simply don't like the guys looks. You have no obligation to be friendly or helpful to strangers on the street.
•    If you think someone might be following you, speed up. If they speed up also, cross the street in mid-block. If they do also, start running and yelling loud. Create a scene. Make a spectacle of yourself. Get out in the middle of the street and try to wave down a car. Much better to make a fool of yourself in front of a bunch of strangers than to end up in a hospital or morgue.







But more importantly carry UDAP Bear Spray or a UDAP Stun Gun! You can purchase both online at UDAP.COM today! So go on your walk and jog, enjoy the great fall colors and be SAFE!

Outdoor Safety

It's summer time and most of us are enjoying the great outdoors! Camping, fishing, hiking, biking and many other outdoor activities. But I want to encourage you, while you are having fun outside, don’t forget to remember outdoor safety!

There are lots of bugs, so don’t forget the bug spray. Don’t forget your UDAP Bear Spray-it works on more than just bears! If you run into a moose who charges, a mountain lion that wants to attack, a charging buffalo or any animal who is going to attack-you can use UDAP Bear Spray to protect yourself and your family!


Enjoy the great outdoors this summer with your family! And don’t forget to bathe/shower and check yourself and family members for ticks when you get home.

Bear Attacks

In the past decade, there have been 27 fatal incidences of bear attacks in North America, resulting in 29 deaths. 15 were in Canada, three were in Alaska, two were in Tennessee, and single fatal bear attacks happened in New York, New Mexico, California, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Utah and Montana. 17 of those fatal bear attacks were inflicted by black bears, and 10 by grizzlies.

Bear attacks happen as fast as lightning!!! Most situations where you will need to use bear pepper spray will be in a close surprise encounter. When people are injured by bears in most cases it is due to the fact that the person and the bear were unaware of each others close proximity. In a surprise encounter as this, a person usually has less than 2 seconds to react. UDAP Pepper Power's® belief is to get as much bear pepper spray as possible between you and the bear in that 2 seconds.

Bear Spray Time or Volume; What Would You Prefer?

A marketing ploy often used in the bear spray/pepper spray world is that a minimum of 6 seconds of continuous spray is required in order for the spray to be effective. How can anyone make that assertion, when many factors dictate whether or not pepper spray will be effective?

Wind direction and velocity, distance of spray vs. distance of bear at the time of spray, volume of spray per second, concentration of pepper in the spray, and area covered by the spray are all important factors as to whether or not a particular brand of bear pepper spray will be effective.

Unlike other brands that spray a slower forming narrow fog of bear pepper spray, UDAP Pepper Power® Bear Spray deploys a high volume powerful blast of highly concentrated pepper spray in a dense fog – covering a broader area in a much shorter period of time.

If an angry grizzly charged at you, which type of pepper spray would you want?  One that emits a thick high volume fog of pepper spray in a powerful blast, or one that advertises it has over 6 seconds of spray time?

Now, play the video of an actual bear charge. Then ask yourself the following: How many seconds did the attack take?  How many seconds would I need to defend myself against such an attack?

Now answer this question: “How much bear pepper spray would you want to put between you and an attacking grizzly; how quickly would you want to put it there?”

Get the facts…don’t believe the hype and misleading charts! We have never seen any data to backup this marketing ploy.

UDAP Bear Spray Works!

Personal Defense-Bear Spray and Electric Stun Guns

If you haven’t read the recent news in Billings, there is a serial rapist on the loose and it is leaving women scrambling to learn more about personal defense. While Billings is getting the headlines right now, colleges and other cities have crime rates that leave us all searching for ways to protect ourselves or find new avenues for personal defense!

At UDAP Pepper Power  we believe in not only women’s safety but everyone’s safety. Pepper spray can also stop an attacker. We also have a new product, electric stun guns. We have various sizes including compact in both pepper bear spray and stun guns so that you won’t have any problem carrying them when your walking, hiking or jogging to assist you in Personal Defense! These products also come in pink for women!

Personal Defense is something that we all should be thinking about and we should be proactive. While we don’t want to believe that these terrible things can happen to us, they can happen to anyone and you are better off being prepared!

Bear Deterrent Spray Volume

 UDAP Pepper Power has a different philosophy than the competition when it comes to how our bear spray is made. Our bear spray has the highest amount of spray volume possible to stop an attacking bear. Mark Matheny the president and grizzly bear attack survivor knows firsthand how fast a bear can charge and how quickly a bear can reach you.  In fact, most cases when a bear attacks it is because its personal space has been invaded. Usually within 30 yards, the average time for the bear to reach you in an attack situation is about 2 seconds.  We feel you want to get as much bear pepper spray out in front of you as quickly as possible hitting the bear hard in those 2 seconds.  This is why we designed our holsters in a way that the bear spray can be shot without drawing the canister. You can actually shoot from the holster. This is great if you are on the river fly fishing, you can shoot the bear spray directly from your holster!

Think of a bear attack as a fire starting. All bear sprays use a fire extinguisher style trigger mechanism. In fact that is what the bear spray firing mechanism is designed for. When a fire starts or a bear attacks, wouldn’t you rather put the fire our right away before it has a chance to reach further? UDAP’s belief to put the bear's fire out instantly stopping the bear's aggressive behavior in the quickest time possible not allowing the aggressive behavior to progress.

Why higher spray volume helps

Wind: A more forceful spray can reach further in windy conditions. This is an observation in a study done by Tom S. Smith, Stephen Herrero, Terry D. Debruyn and James M. Wilder.  This is what they found. “High exit velocities of spray from cans likely compensate for cross-wind effects and may account for the low incidence of wind-related effects reported in Alaska.”

Rain: Like a strong wind, hard rain requires a forceful spray to compensate for the elements. the higher volume helps the concentration of pepper remain in the air longer. UDAP bear spray can reach further in the rain.

Sight and Sound: It was reported in the study mentioned above that in 14% of bear spray instances the sight and sound associated with spray release were reported as key factors in changing bear behavior. A more forceful spray has a much louder sound and a larger visible cloud as observed in the video below.

Bear Spray Recycling Information

We’d like to encourage everyone to RECYCLE their bear spray canisters! There is a bear spray recycling machine located in the greater Yellowstone area. Bear Spray recycling is a fantastic concept and in May of 2011 the first ever fully functioning machine was built. If you recreate in and around Yellowstone, you can drop off your bear spray at many Forest Service and Fish and Wildlife Parks locations. If you are traveling, you may drop off your bear spray to be recycled at any of the park entrances, many hotels, and some airports prior to leaving. Also, if you wish to send us your canister directly we will recycle it for you.

To send a canister to UDAP, please use this address.

UDAP Industries, Inc.
Recycling Dept.
1703 Waterline Road
Butte , MT 59701

Expired cans can also be used for training you and your family. Be sure to practice with it away from people, buildings and pets. Make sure it is in an area where the spray will not return to you and your family causing the uncomfortable effects of the product.

You can also give your spray to a friend or relative if it has not been used. We would never recommend using a canister from someone that has sprayed it before. You can even give it to a ranger in the park. Many rangers will take the product as they or their coworkers use it frequently for practice.

The recycling process is significantly efficient. It has the capability to actually separate the active ingredient from the inert contents through a coalescing filter process. Then the separated ingredients can be reused. Early on in development UDAP mentioned that the propellant could possibly be used to recharge air conditioners in vehicles. It is our understanding that this is what’s being done. Also we introduced the idea of the pepper being used in paints for the bottom of boats. Pepper deters barnacles from attaching to surfaces that have been pepper treated. Also pepper is used in creams in pharmaceuticals for arthritis pain relief.  The aluminum canister is sold to a recycling business.



Should you wasp spray instead of bear spray?

I recently heard a self-defense teacher tell her students that they should keep a can of wasp spray by their bed if they couldn’t afford bear spray and they could also carry a can of wasp spray with them to help with self-defense.

But we’d like to discourage you from doing this for 2 very important reasons.

The active ingredient in most sprays are derived from plants and intended to penetrate the nervous systems of insects and kill them. Wasp sprays have not been formulated to work as self-defense on humans has not been tested and it could make a human sick, but may not stop a person who is trying to attack you. The main ingredient in wasp spray is pyrethrin and its toxic, it may make your assailant sick, but it won’t stop them from attacking you.

And using wasp spray on a bear is going to have the same reaction. It might make the bear more angry, but it isn’t going to stop him.
The other reason is that if you read on the can of wasp spray, you will see that it is illegal in most states to use wasp spray for self-defense. It is also a federal crime as well, “It is a violation of federal law to use this product in a manner inconsistent with its labeling.”

The biggest train of thought was that wasp spray could spray and go shoot farther than bear spray, but that isn’t true either. Read the package insert on your bear spray or visit our website and you will see that UDAP Bear Spray is very effective and can spray up to 35 feet. So no more wasp spray!