College buddy from Alaska had a cousin mauled by a Grizzly back in 1984, I believe. He and a bunch of other people were hiking, making a bunch of noise to ward off bears, and damn if one did not pop up right over a small rise in the trail.
Everyone scattered, making like a fleur de lis, and the beer chased down Doug's cousin, who fell to the ground in a face-down, back arched position. The beer sniffed around, then started batting him around like a cat will sock a ball around the carpet. It was playing with him, and his friends, though shouting and trying to distract the animal, could still hear the occasional sound of fracturing bones with each paw strike.
The bear eventually got the young man's head in its mounth. He soiled himself, but amazingly, he was still conscious. He told Doug that he would never forget the heat and the smell of the Grizzly's breath.
The bear let him go, or more accurately, spit him out, then sauntered down the trail. Besides several fractures in various places, Doug's cousin had his scalp laid open and had to have it stitched back into place. Still has a few bald spots.
I was going to visit Doug that summer and go backpacking. Didn't go due to $$$ concerns and keeping my job, but I still have the Rem 700 BDL in .458 Win Mag that I purchased for the trip.
Then I heard about a Grizzly almost beating a quarter horse in a 100-yd dash. Bad day to be riding, and The_Macallan is right...if you don't have the weapon ready to go, Mr. Griz will overwhelm with stunning velocity.
v/r, Cruzado