ProRodeo Sports News - March 18, 2022

CRAZY Days COWBOY STORIES Nathan Jestes’ close encounter with a bear

BY TANNER BARTH N athan Jestes has been fighting bulls in the PRCA for nearly 10 years now, with four trips to the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo under his belt. But it’s an encounter with an animal outside the arena that he remembers like it was yesterday. In July of 2018, Jestes and his wife Bridget planned their morning out, breakfast then a hike near the Tetons in Jackson Hole, Wyo. Little did they know they would come across one of the world’s most intimidating animals. “We were trying to find some good trails to go on around the Tetons,” said Jestes. “We found this one, it was going

just told my wife ‘let’s just start slowly backing down the hill, just stay behind me, we are going to try to ease out of here

and hopefully nothing happens.’ “Well, she starts trotting at us and stops about 10 feet from us and I mean every hair on her back was standing up. “Her front legs were bowed out. She was chomping at us and angry. “She was right there about 10 feet from us for about a minute and a half just chomping at us. “Finally, she must have realized we weren’t going to be a threat. So, she wheeled around, grabbed the cub, and headed out. That was probably the longest minute and a half of my life if I’m being honest.” He said while everyone thinks they would be able to stay calm in that situation, you never know until it’s put in front of you. “I didn’t ever know how I would react in that situation honestly. Luckily, I had the instincts to stay calm and not run,” Jestes said. “My first thought was obviously to try

With as many miles and hours that ProRodeo cowboys spend throughout their careers,

to be like three miles up to this lake. It was going to be a quick and easy hike. Once we got there we were up to the lake in no time. “I said that was pretty quick and easy let’s keep going. We are walking up this little side hill and we get up to the top of this ridge. We were standing

they’re bound to stumble across some interesting sights. ProRodeo Sports News is bringing you some of those wild tales told by PRCA members.

up on top of the ridge looking at the view on the other side and suddenly, we hear this thing making noise behind us. “We both turn around and here is this sow bear standing on this rock probably 30 feet from us. In a flash it jumps off the rock and headed right to us.” In that moment Jestes said his instincts kicked in. He has spent many years as an outdoorsman, hunting and hiking in the mountains all his life. But for a split second he wasn’t sure what was going to happen next. “The first thing that goes through my mind you know is does it have a cub on it,” he said. “About that time here’s a little cub that pokes his head out behind this log and I’m like ‘oh boy here we go’. I

to keep my wife safe. I could tell she wasn’t a big bear. She would’ve definitely chewed me up pretty good, but she wasn’t going to carry me off. I just told Bridget if it gets me down ‘get out of here and go get some help.’” And even if it was just for a moment, he thought back to what he would do if it was a bull instead of a bear, a situation he has been in a thousand times throughout his life. “Honestly yeah, it (bullfighting) was something that popped into my head at that moment,” he said. “(Dusty) Tuckness is a big outdoorsman too and there’s a group of us bullfighters that enjoy hunting. We’ve always joked around and said I wonder if a bear would take a fake like a bull does. “When I was standing there, I was thinking this might be the day that we find out if a bear would take a fake or not, but the only problem was if I would’ve thrown a fake on the bear, I would’ve thrown a fake right into my wife. So, I decided at that time it probably wasn’t something I should do.”

Photo courtesy Nathan Jestes Jestes and his wife Bridget share a photo together just minutes before coming across a bear in Jackson Hole, Wyo.

ProRodeo Sports News 3/18/2022

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