I do need a side arm. My family and I ride moutain bikes on the same road I saw the bear on yesterday.

I figure the minimum should be a .357 Mag but a .44 would be more desirable. Even a 1911 Army Colt .45 auto would work. I am pretty good with the pistol but I have been in Alaska and have seen up close how fast a bear can run. You would be lucky to get 1 or 2 shots off with the best modern firearm before you were bear chow. I figure with the .357 I could get six shots off without the gun raising too high between shots. With the .44 mag it bends the elbows a bit and takes longer to get the gun in position for the next shot. Thus the first shot has to be a good one. The bomb would be one of those .50 Mag but again you would have to make the first shot count because that gun will raise your arms after each shot. Also those are very expensive.

For now I carry about 15 rounds of 00 buck for my shotgun which I consider my back up for now. That should finish off even the biggest angriest bear. A lot of the folks in AK were carrying shotguns on slings with 00 buck. I spoke with one person who lived there who said he preferred it to a pistol since you don't have to take the added time to aim, just point and shoot.