during the Tour Divide, a lot people were very much concerned about bears. while I never actually saw a bear, I did see a couple of prints in the dirt.

I may be totally ignorant when it comes to bears, but I think the situation is pretty much avoidable. The primary Lure being food. I'm pretty sure they'd choose to scrounge food rather than case a person down.

a few years back, a buddy, along with his backpacking buddies... in Onion Valley, in the Eastern Sierra
1 guy was knocked down and scratched up by a bear, 50 stitches later.

I could hardly believe that the incident occurred.
basically they were in a rocky area, no tree coverage
in the middle of the night, a bear started walking off with 1 of the guy's backpack, which probably had food in it.
so he started throwing rocks, and screaming
everyone got out of their tents, and before anyone could do something
this guy while still throwing rocks, and yelling, the bear walking away with his backpack
the guy decides to chase the bear

chase the bear?

he gets close, the bear drops the backpack, turns around, stands up, and knocks him down
everyone freaks out, thinking that he's being eaten alive
whereas the bear actually just scratched him up with its claws, and jammed its muzzle all over this guy

the crazy part was that these guys were a ways away from their car
they went to the hospital, I'm thinking in Bishop, where he received about 50 stitches down his back.

seems to me that it always comes down to the issue about food.

We have! We saw lots and lots of bears up in Canada but nearly all of them just ignored us. That one (referenced earlier) exhibited very, very odd behavior for a bear. We still have no idea why he approached me.

Lots of people carry it, fortunately few ever have to use it. On the highway I have seen lots of bears, both black and grizzly, but they don't pose much of a threat (to me) since there are usually lots of cars full of tourists who get much closer than I do. Most of the people who get attacked by bears around here are either hikers who startle them in the woods, or campers who are careless with food.

As Bekologist indicated, mountain biking is one of the best ways to meet a bear.

Topeak makes adjustable bottle cage that can fit a smaller container, such as a bear spray, without any modifications to the container itself.

You must be from Winnipeg...

If you ask me it is always better to be prepared, what if the bear is up in the tree eating your pannier/picnic basket!

Rember though if you are going to carry the spray be sure to test it out and get a handle on how it works! Just remember to shoot downwind, haha.