Adam Jones will be on a hunt shoot this weekend, so what better way to prepare than to go back to his roots and discover the bear necessities of life.
The Wales Grand Slam prop will be anchoring the Ospreys scrum in their Heineken Cup clash with double-champions Leicester Tigers at Welford Road on Sunday and the animal theme was very much in mind as he visited one of his old haunts near his Abercrave home yesterday (Thursday).
The near 20-stone tight-head is renowned throughout the rugby playing world for his 'shaggy' looks and he is part of the Ospreys' 'Hair bear' bunch of front row forwards with fellow prop Duncan Jones.
But what many people didn't realise is that Adam used to dress up as a bear in his teenage years when he worked at the Dany yr Ogof showcaves a few miles from his home.
So, a few days before he locks horns with the Tigers in Leicester, the 24-year-old international prop went back to his old stamping ground as a bear to seek inspiration for Sunday's mighty effort.
"I worked at Dan yr Ogof for a couple of years when I was 15. All the kids in my school used to gravitate towards the showcaves in the summer and it seemed as though everyone got a job of some description helping out there," said Jones.
"You used to have to start off in the bear suit and then work your way up to showing people around the caves and dinosaur park. All I can remember is how hot and sweaty it used to be in the suit.
"It was great fun, though, and Dany yr Ogof is a great facility. They get around 90,000 visitors a year and it is a great boost to the local community.
"I still pay regular visits to the caves and I always wonder who is inside the bear's costume when I'm there."
These days Jones sweats it out in the hardest part of the rugby game in the front row. And he knows he and his Ospreys team mates will have their work cut out at Leicester.
"It is going to be a big couple of weekends for the Ospreys with back-to-back games against Leicester Tigers," admitted Jones.
"They are a very good side with an incredible home record. They are a proven force in the Heineken Cup.
"We know it is going to be very hard for us to win on Sunday. We just feel we've got nothing to lose going into the game.
"If we can get something out of the game in Leicester then it will fill us with confidence for the return at the Liberty Stadium the following weekend. That should be a cracking match.
"We had a great crowd for the opening game at the stadium against London Wasps and we could be looking at something similar next week if we can put in a good performance in Leicester."
Having beaten Stade Francais Paris at home in their opening game, the Ospreys fell to ASM Clermont Auvergne in Round 2. The next two matches will be vital if they are to stand any chance of progressing through to the knock-out phase of the Heineken Cup and stay on course for a possible place in the final in Cardiff at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday, 20 May.
