Todd and Kim Robertson are convinced their Ford Focus was targeted by a black bear because of the aroma of donuts that permeates inside.

Kim Robertson/Courtesy

Doughnut delivery drivers in Steamboat Springs might want to start looking over their shoulders.

Todd and Kim Robertson awoke early Monday to discover a black bear was so determined to break into their doughnut delivery vehicle, it ripped off the car’s back bumper.

The Robertsons had no doubt about the bear’s motives.

“It always reeks of doughnuts in there,” Kim Robertson said.

The bear left a paw print on the car and left the scene after it couldn’t successfully get into the Ford Focus.

The animal was long gone before the Robertsons discovered the damage and officers arrived.

The Robertsons own Moose Watch Café in downtown Steamboat. They use the vehicle to make wholesale doughnut deliveries around town.

It’s also not uncommon for aprons that smell of doughnuts to be in the car waiting to be cleaned, the Robertsons said.

Todd Robertson said there were no doughnuts in the vehicle, which was parked in their driveway in the 3300 block of Columbine Drive, at the time of the bear encounter. But even the leftover smell of the sugary goodness appeared to attract the animal, which obviously had good taste.

Police officer John McCartin confirmed he could smell doughnuts just by standing outside the damaged vehicle.

“I guess if anyone is an expert about this, it’s us,” McCartin joked.

Kim Robertson joked that with bears now going after doughnuts in town, some of the pressure from “doughnut jokes” had been taken off of the local police for the week.

“They’ve been so great about this,” Robertson said of the officers.

Bear activity has been picking up steadily in Steamboat this spring.

Officers were responding to a report of a bear near Eagleridge Road Tuesday morning.

Last month, a bear entered a car in the 2700 block of Burgess Creek Road and caused damage.

To reach Scott Franz, call 970-871-4210, email scottfranz@SteamboatToday.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottFranz10