the bear spray from a long way off, which is highly offensive to them
This is plain wrong. Bear spray is NOT a repellent, it's an irritant. In the same way that chili powder makes bland food SMELL better but is NOT something you'd want in your eyes, the red pepper oil in bear spray might SMELL quite good to a bear, but spraying it into their eyes and noses will definitely cause them terrible (but temporary) pain. That's why
https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/static/s...hould_know.pdf
states, "DO NOT PRE-SPRAY OBJECTS. Bear spray does not work like an insect repellent. If used this way, it may actually attract a bear because of the residue’s strong odor."
and why
https://bebearaware.org/deploying-bear-spray
states, " Never spray yourself, your clothing, or your tent - doing so could actually attract a bear to the scent"