Jim Hawkins may not have been in a rodeo before, but his lassoing of a stampeding 2-year-old black bear with a rope has crowds cheering.

The bear, with his head trapped in a cheese puff container, was destined to starve if he wasn't freed from the barrel. Although locals kept calling the animal authorities for help, the creature always wandered off before assistance could arrive.

With a length of rope and some work gloves, the 66-year-old former firefighter lassoed the bear's waist and pulled with all his strength – that's when the bear realized he was caught and turned on Jim to attack.

After a bit of a tussle, the bear scurried up a nearby tree. Jim tied the rope to the trunk so it wouldn't run off until authorities arrived.

Once the Colorado Parks and Wildlife showed up, the critter was tranquilized, lowered from the tree, and had the barrel safely removed from its head so it could be returned to the wild once more.

Jim claims this is not the first time he's dealt with bears, but it is the first time he's ever had to wrestled one.

"I'm a 200 pound man. That's a 100 pound bear," Jim told the Washington Post. "This was a little bear with a big problem."

Share This Cheesy Happy Ending…  (Photo by Sharill Hawkins)