Troy James Hurtubise is a Canadian inventor noted for his often bizarre creations that he tests on himself in spectacular and usually dangerous ways. Though Hurtubise is credited with a wide array of inventions of varying utility the majority of his career has been spent in pursuit of that most elusive of dreams: a bear-proof suit.
Hurtubise's obsession with bears began on August 4, 1984, when he was mauled by a grizzly bear.
The encounter had a profound effect on Hurtubise. Returning to his home province of Ontario, he decided to learn as much about grizzlies as he could. However, how could he learn about these creatures without subjecting himself, once again, to their terrifying wrath? The answer came while he was watching RoboCop in his college dorm in 1987. It was then that he decided to build a research suit that would be strong enough to survive a close encounter without harming the occupant. Such a robo-bear suit would allow him to search for bears, and answer important questions “from the bear's perspective”, he was quoted as saying.
Seven years and $150,000 later, Hurtubise had worked his way up to the Mark VI, the suit he believed could protect him from a grizzly. In order to test it, Hurtubise consulted widely asking onlookers to try to simulate a bear attack upon him as he wore the suit.
These tests saw members of a notorious Canadian bike gang paid to maul him, a 300-pound log swung into his abdomen and solar plexus, a BMW driven over him, as well as Hurtubise simply tossing himself down the side of an escarpment.
Though initial testing on a Kodiak bear proved troublesome, as even a smaller bear was able to rip the helmet from the suit quite easily while the overwhelming weight of the suit effectively eliminated the possibility of flight or retreat, Hurtubise is said to be attempting to make the suit explosion-proof as well and hopes to sell the suit soon.
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