I've only encountered a small black bear once while camping and we both made "hasty" retreats in opposite directions. (Of course this was after my initial "freeze" and the subsequent silent hailing of "Paul to God...Paul to God..come in God over") Depending on the situation: size of bear, path of escape; would you let the bear make the first move and decide the outcome of the stand-off or would you try to exit stage left asap and "hope" the bear performed the same actions in the opposite direction? They say you can't outrun a bear. I say that's up for debate when fear is factored into the equation. (This scenario involves no firearms on the person, but a knife is available)