An avid runner, Donny Stone was out for an evening jog on a trail near Grande Prairie when he saw two cougars cross in front of him. He was intrigued but cautious – he’d always wanted to see a cougar.
His intrigue quickly turned to panic when he heard the cougar charge him from behind. Luckily for Stone, he had just switched the safety off the bottle of bear spray mace he had. He quickly turned and sprayed the cougars – it may have saved his life.
Had he not readied his bear spray when he did, this would’ve ended very differently for Stone.
Matt’s still excited he had the chance to see the cougars, he’s just thankful it ended how it did.
When dealing with cougars (or any other predatory animal) running is about the last thing you want to do. Since he had been running when they saw him, it more than likely made them chase after him in the first place.
Stone also has a message for any runners who go into the woods:
“On a side note. Please if you run in the woods like I do pack bear spray and have it ready. I packed it tonight but didn’t have the safety off until I saw them cross in front of me. Had I not seen them and they attacked as I went by I wouldn’t have had time to get the safety off. It was an eye opener and I’m grateful it didn’t turn out worse.”
Watch below for a news report of the incident:
