Non-Harmful Animal/Human Backcountry Safety Device Interest?

Hey Folks, I'm working on a product to help people keep safe from predators (and humans) in the backcountry. I'm interested in hearing the last time you went camping, hiking, or ventured into the outdoors and felt unsafe. Is this something that altered your mood for the worse the last several times that you went out? Is this a real, on-going problem, and have you actually invested either time or money into figuring out a solution? Or is this a non-issue? Or perhaps, is this an issue, but not a big one such that you would spend your precious hard-earned money to solve? Or is this a problem, which you did not know could be solved, and so now you would like to be updated on the product development since you know of the effort to solve such problem? I would appreciate the feedback because it may sway me either for or against continuing on with product development! Cheers! :) 

This is a non-issue, unless you are in grizzly territory.

A non-issue

Alex Shapirowrote:

Hey Folks, I'm working on a product to help people keep safe from predators (and humans) in the backcountry....

The chance of an adverse outcome (for me) from an encounter with a predator or human in the backcountry in the US isvanishingly small. I'm more likely to be injured from hitting a deer while driving, having a domestic dog bite me, or an insect or reptile bite.

And there's bear spray for grizzly country.

Thought I was being approached by a black bear while belaying my partner, had to lower them to get my bear spray and then realized it was a very noisy porcupine climbing an alder. Everytime I've encountered a bear outside it's ran away or found something more interesting than me to go play with.

I climb and run exclusively alone. Mountain lions are the only thing that really gets my attention. Bears are all about mind games, cats just want dinner. 

Turns out the predator is a virus.  Humans are problematic too as noted above.

Moose Taser 

so.... a handgun?

Moose are much scarier than bears In my area.  Costco bear spray seems to work.  I also keep a can of wasp spray in the bag in summer as a less than lethal 2legged or 4 legged repellant.  It also works on pesky wasps.  ;)

I'm not usually worried about animal encounters and even welcome them whether or not I have my ice tools handy 

Bear spray all the way, for two and four-legged threats

Nope. No new products needed.

In Wyoming, works fine. YMMV in your state. Deep in the Absaroka, Teton National Forest, etc, standard gear at times. Nothing quite like passing a boar griz in a narrow canyon with no easy exit.

Near Ogden, I once had two guys pop open my camper shell while I was inside. The windows were tinted. I could see out, they couldn't see in. They got a surprise. Car alarms might help at busy trailheads but smash and grabs are too easy at other places especially near metro areas where more criminals reside. One can of bear spray feels like too little sometimes.

Teton Climberwrote:

 They got a surprise. 

Please tell me you bear-sprayed those sonsabitches in the face at point-blank range. That would make my day!

OP, you should focus your creative efforts elsewhere. The only animal that really worries me is a mother moose, and our defenses can't repel firepower of that magnitude. 

What would happen if you tazzed a moose or a bear?

I’d feel terrible if it was a black bear because you’d scare it even more then it would have to be to attack. They’re like a giant raccoon, so misunderstood. 

Mycull Gwrote:

What would happen if you tazzed a moose or a bear?

I’d feel terrible if it was a black bear because you’d scare it even more then it would have to be to attack. They’re like a giant raccoon, so misunderstood. 

Definitely. Just need a social worker out there, really. 

I secretly want to get in a fight with Mt Lion.... but only on a day when I have some quality instruments with me. Definitely need something to go after the parking lot trash that smash and grab. Red Rocks has been absolutely devastated by those thieves... they have theres coming though, a few things are in the works and karma is coming.   

Mycull Gwrote:

What would happen if you tazzed a moose or a bear?

Don’t know, but it’d be a good fight 

Or did you mean Tased? (As in Taser).   Personally I’d go with the Taz  

I’d feel terrible if it was a black bear because you’d scare it even more then it would have to be to attack. They’re like a giant raccoon, so misunderstood. 

Yeah, misunderstood by you.  If a Black bear is up on you close enough to Tase, it’s not being a big raccoon.  It’s likely being a predatory black bear (unless you stumbled on a sow with cubs)

Ive encountered black bear and they did not run off or act scared, they just continued what they were doing. I think the stories of them being terrified of humans are exaggerated. I also dont think that spray would do anything to a brown bear that was intent on getting you. You are pretty much dead meat unless you have a shotgun with slugs and know how to shoot. I think there is a much bigger market for these defense products than are actually useful or needed just to calm peoples fear. 

J W wrote:

Or it’s just grazing and isn’t interested at all.

Of course, in which case anyone would shoot, mace, or Tase it right?  (being facetious)

Don’t confuse a bear getting up on you, with you being up on a bear minding its own business.  

YOU should be giving a bear more than 10 feet.  But If the BEAR isn’t giving you 10 feet and is closing on you, it’s time to start thinking about plan B.  

If you’re inside of 10 feet to a bear, one of you has some explaining to do.  

Camping out west this summer, on a family trip, bears were certainly a consideration. We were not in some remote backcountry, we were at campgrounds with designated bear-safe storage at every campsite. But having to put everything away after every meal had been mildly annoying. I’m not the one to leave food and trash strewn about, regardless of bears, but I would have liked to be able to leave my stove set up on the table for the duration of our stay. 

I also have had mice, squirrels, or raccoons chew through closed Rubbermaid bins on some occasions over the past many years. 

So yes, on those occasions I would have liked to have an animal deterrent. And no, guns, tasers, and bear spray were not the kind of deterrent I would have liked. I don’t want something to scare/kill the animals once they are attracted to my location. I just want them to stay away in the first place.

In the vast majority of my climbing-related travels, the only animals I’m worried about are the two-legged kind.