Grizzly attacks teen bike rider
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A teenage girl riding in an all-night bicycle race in Alaska suffered severe wounds early Sunday morning when a grizzly bear attacked her on a trail in Far North Bicentennial Park, authorities said. The Chicago Tribune reports:
Police officers with shotguns escorted medics into dark woods to retrieve the girl, who was to undergo surgery at Providence Alaska Medical Center. The hospital reported she was still in surgery at 6:30 a.m. Sunday. ‘She was cut up and bit pretty good,’ said Anchorage Police Officer Jean Mills. Police declined to identify the victim. .. Police were called at 1:35 a.m. after another bicyclist found the mauled girl down and dazed on the ground. She was among about 60 participants in a 24-hour race sponsored by the Arctic Bicycle Club. The team event began at noon Saturday and was to end at noon Sunday. Organizers canceled it after the attack and were trying to account for all the other riders. Most likely the grizzly, which has a pair of cubs, was fishing for salmon in the creek and might not have heard the cyclist coming due to stream noise and strong winds roaring through the forest, he said.
A spokesman said this afternoon that the girl was expected to survive.