The Price of Safety
Plus, a few summer product recs for your outdoor adventures
I’ve been in Whitefish for just over a week. Between the locals bringing it up in almost every conversation and the trailhead warning signs, I’m eminently clear that Montana is bear country.
I’m now the owner of “Counter Assault.” When I ran an instagram poll on what my followers thought bear spray cost ($19/$39/$49/$79), the majority said $19 or $39.
Like most city people, I expected bear spray to be priced similarly to insect repellent or sunscreen. Seems reasonable as a consumer packaged goods comp, doesn’t it? Maybe a little price premium for being in a small town and a 10% adjustment to account for inflation.
But I wasn’t expecting to pay $49.95.
It turns out that bear spray is - without any doubt - in a category of product with some enviable attributes.
It enhances safety. Even if you don’t fully subscribe to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, believe me when I say that products designed for life safety have a mass market.
It has limited substitutes. The main active ingredient in bear spray is Oleoresin Capsicum (usually 2%). Conventional self-defense pepper spray is usually formulated with a 0.5% strength capsaicin. Bear spray has a range of about 25 feet. Pepper spray typically ranges around 10 feet. Bringing pepper spray into the woods thinking that it will help in a bear encounter is like bringing a knife to a gun fight. Both do damage under different conditions, but a recreating individual is best protected with the matching principle. Bear spray for possible bear encounters.
It’s a fear-based sale. If a bear attack, a rare but not impossible event, has a 0 or 1 binary-outcome where 0 is death and 1 is survival, everyone aspires for 1. Future regret-minimization is a strong psychological motivator.
And it’s perishable. Within a few years, the pressure inside the aerosol can will lose force, rendering the spray less effective. Cans contain an expiry date, forcing outdoor adventurers to check on and then replace their bear spray on a regular schedule.
All of these forces allow the manufacturers and sellers of bear spray to command a sizable premium in the value chain.
While I’m on the topic of bear spray, if you were thinking about applying it like bug spray, think again.
In other news, if you’re heading out this summer, here are three products plus one snack that I can’t recommend highly enough.
I have been stopped over and over again and asked about this backpack. There’s nothing fancy about it. It’s $21 now, but back in 2020 when I got mine, it was $12. The bag is small enough for a child, but also reliable for adults to bring on day hikes. I used to wander around Central Park with it when I wasn’t wearing an outfit with pockets. I’m able to fit 2 bottles of water, snacks, sunscreen, a hat, keys, IDs, a wallet, my phone, and even an extra layer inside. There’s a loop on the adjustable strap that even holds my newest accessory. Yup, my 🐻 spray.
Sometimes for whatever reason, I’m not able to immediately shower after a trek in the woods. Maybe I have brunch plans or some other errands to finish before I get home a few hours later. These wipes are a fantastic shortcut. I use them on my face, neck, chest, and arms to feel clean enough to inhabit the world for another half-day. The product is gender neutral and made by a certified B Corp. The 20-pack is great to divide among travel bags, car door stowage, and even school or work bags.
After a hike in Capetown this March, I rushed to class and neglected to eat or drink enough to replace the electrolytes I lost on my ascent up Lion’s Head. Hours later, these salts rescued me. Now, I keep a couple pouches in my bag for pinch circumstances. The sample pack includes fun flavors like mango chili, citrus, lemon habanero, watermelon, and even chocolate.
These days, I deeply appreciate the value of small format, high-calorie snacks that can serve as a small meal replacement. Why? Because sometimes you don’t want a lot of food sitting in your stomach, but you do want a quick hit of energy. This package of pretzel sticks with Nutella dip provides a little salt/sugar boost that’s ideal to help fuel exercise and offers 270 calories, which is often enough to power me through 60-90 minutes of a moderate intensity workout. I like to eat them in the car on the way to spin class. They’re packaged well so the pretzels don’t break and generally cost just over $1 per pack. Throw one in your day bag.
Happy trails!
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