Medal for fight with bear

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33096, 11 December 1972, Page 1

Medal for fight with bear

fN.Z Press Assn.—Copyright) VANCOUVER, Dec. 9.

A battle with a mother grizzly bear almost cost Malcolm Aspeslet his life—but he says he would not hesitate to tackle the angry animal again under the same circumstances.

The 20-year-old Vancouver) man challenged the bear armed only with a knife when it attacked his fiance, Barbara Beck, in the autumn of 1971, while they were; working at a tourist lodge in) east Central British Colum-) bia.

The couple plan to be married next July after Mr As-

peslet makes several more trips to hospital for corrective surgery to the injuries he suffered. The one-sided battle cost Mr Aspeslet the sight of one eye, his scalp, 'his right ear, and the top of his left ear. He has now no facial nerve on his right side, "no feeling whatsoever.”

"I’d do it all over again,” Mr Aspeslet said in an interview yesterday, after learning that he had been awarded the Stanhope gold medal for 1972. given annually by the Royal Humane Society for the bravest, deed reported in the British Commonwealth.

Mr Aspeslet had earlier been awarded a Carnegie medal from the United States institution for "an outstandiing act of heroism.”

Mr Aspeslet said his en-i counter with the bear occur-' red on October 1. 1971, when! he and Miss Beck were on al hiking trip into the high country during their time at; the tourist lodge. “I was walking in front of; Barb when I saw two cubs down in a gully,” he said/ “Then all of a sudden, I saw' the mother bear coming' straight for me. “I just turned Barb round? pushed her to the ground ■ and fell on top of her. The ; bear threw me off and went after her. So I got my knife out, a hunting knife with an Bin blade. "The bear left Barb when I started stabbing, and came: after me. We went rolling down the hill and right there at the end I gave my-i

■I self up for dead. Then all of la sudden she left me.” Miss Beck said: “I just lay! ithere. I was too scared to ! breathe or anything. Malcolm kept screaming to me to shut; I up. i “When I looked up—once ; —the bear was swatting Mai-! j colm round like a kitten with a ball of wool.” When the bear had gone to! I rejoin her cubs. Miss Beck ■ ran back to the lodge and telephoned the police for' j help. Mr Aspeslet was flown iby helicopter to hospital at: Reveistoke, British Columbia. "Eve got some real nasty: | scars.” Mr Aspeslet said. “Clawmarks and teethmarks : underneath my arm where 'she chewed me. I got a big chunk taken out just above imy knee.”