[Duncan Longhutton from Winnipeg U.S.A. emailed dwwae to see if we knew anything about the greased bear races his grandfather had told him about from his childhood.]
Bears were often used for sport in the north west of America during the Depression. People struggling financially had to find their own entertainment and many saw opportunities for fun amongst the burgeoning bear population. Bears were often painted, wrestled and in some cases raced.
Families would head to the hills in large groups to hunt these fearsome creatures. Once cornered and captured, the bear was lashed to a pair of handmade willow-wood skis and then paraded around the town in the ritualistic 'Basting of the Bear' ceremony.
During this barbaric process, the bear was greased - usually with goose fat - to reduce drag, before being pushed down the steepest hill in the area alongside a 'rival' bear from a nearby town. The losing bear was usually released back into the forest. Sadly many of these bears died from exposure and their skin was often found to have become quite crispy.
The winning bear was usually carried by the townspeople back up the hill to sit at the head of the table during a feast often of meagre food but with huge amounts of illicit alcohol available. The people drank and danced long into the night, sometimes pouring drinks directly into the mouth of the winning bear and often partying until sunrise.
The tradition carried on until the late 1930's but the police records from the period show a marked increase in the number of incidents involving drunken bears. Most notably a brawl between a bear and a church pastor in Montana resulted in severe facial injuries to both parties and rather soured the mood. Soon after, the church could no longer condone the 'Basting of the Bear' ceremonies and thankfully the practice largely died out.
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