Bozeman Montana (Bears oh my!) - 5/5/09

Between the tours Craig Minowa composed the music for a National Geographic documentary Expedition Grizzly featuring Casey Anderson and Brutus the bear.  Before our show in Bozeman we had the amazing opportunity to meet Brutus the bear.  We had met Casey before at a previous show.  Honestly I thought he was a bit off when he told me that he lived with a grizzly bear.  I just shrugged my shoulders and figured the drinks had gotten the best of him.  I was mistaken, Casey does actually live with a grizzly!  Casey runs the Montana Grizzly Encounter.  A grizzly sanctuary that provides a place where the public can come and learn about grizzly bears as they watch the majestic animals up close in a beautiful mountain setting.  If your ever in Montana look this up and stop and visit Casey and Brutus.  They are both amazing!

This shot is to give you perspective of the type of relationship that Casey and Brutus have.  Keep in mind that on one else can handle Brutus in this manner.  Brutus was raised captive by Casey  but he is still a grizzly bear.  I can not put into words the type of relationship that Casey and Brutus have.  It was one of those experiences that change your life.  Thank you Casey for the amazing experience.

Brutus was doing a little showing off for the camera.  Keep in mind that I am only about 5 feet away from him.  I was very hesitant when I found out that the only thing between me and the bear was the two wires you see in the background.  When I asked how much voltage was running through the wires.  Casey told us that Brutus is so trained to stay away from the wires that they were not attached to anything.  I admit to being a little scared since Brutus is over 7 feet tall and weighs over 800 pounds.  This is not the normal grizzly experience that the public would get at the grizzly sanctuary.  We have a special friendship with Casey and safety was always Casey's  first priority.  It was amazing to see how Casey could read the body language of Brutus.  He knew what Brutus was thinking at all times.

A shot of Shawn Neary with Brutus the bear.  Note they were holding the wires down to try and keep them out of the shot.  Note the smiles the band members had wile getting a photo taken with Brutus.  

Casey measured the head of Brutus in at 52 inches.  

This was Jake, another younger grizzly at the sanctuary.  He was standing up while watching Sammy and Micah (Sarah and Adrian's kids) play behind the concrete barrier.  It was kind of disturbing how aware they were of the little ones.

Arlen and the Bear.  I think the look on Arlen's face was enough said.  

When we were standing around chatting with Casey, Brutus was doing his cowboy walk.  A territorial strut that shows male dominance.  This is a trait the grizzlies have in the wild.

Craig and Connie Minowa posing for a picture with Brutus.  This gives you a sense of scale.  Craig is 6'2".  Brutus is standing about 5' behind them.  Another thought to ponder is that in 3 strides grizzly bears can reach a speed of 40mph!  

Red and the band posing for a photo with Brutus the bear.  I was not in any of the photos because I am the guy with the camera.  Again wow!

Some of the band members chose to feed the bear by hand!  This was a shot taken when Adrian volunteered to feed the bear some doughnut holes.  Keep in mind Brutus is a captive bear and it is not safe to try this with a wild bear.

Adrian feeding the bear!

This was the live painting I did that night.  Titled Brutus