How Prepared Are You Really ??

[EmsRescueGuy]

As an instructor of CPR and First Aid, few things annoy me more than someone who tells me that they cant demo a skill in class but they are sure the could do it in a "Real Life Or Death" situation.

I get excuses like, bad knees, innapropriate clothing, even just finishing a big meal.:jerkit:

I often see posts on this page where someone states that they picked up some piece of gear or other to throw in their pack, without mentioning learning how to use it.

You don't get to chose where or when an emergency will happen, If you dont posess a skill in a non emergent situation, you cant rely on it to just "be there" when the fecal material has hit the air circulator.

My point is this, Buying a piece of gear, and/or a manual and counting on figuring out how to use it in an emergency is a really good way to end up, in a really bad way. (This includes field surgical kits )


I had an experience a while back on a camping trip. I haddnt been camping in a few years and found myself trying to get a fire going in wet conditions, after an hour of stuggling, a box of matches and several trioxaine tabs, I finally got one going, but its a good thing my life wasn't dependant on that fire. Since then I have taken every opportunity to practice fire making, and I am now fairly confident that i could make fire in most adverse conditions if I had to.

Everyone should take the time to learn and practice feild skills before they find thamselves in a situation where they Need them. Its not hard to find CPR and first aid courses in most areas, and things like EMT and first responder are available for those who want them.

Volunteerism founded this nation, and Volunteering at a rescue squad or fire department can give you opportunities to learn and practice skills that you would otherwise never have. Church groups and boy scout troops are often looking for volunteers to help out on camping trips. and of course there is no rule that says you cant sleep out in a debris shelter in your back yard, or ue a bow and drill to light your fireplace or barbecue.

My personal favorite means of practice is to take every possible opportunity to spend time Outdoors, Every camping trip, or hike gives me an opportunity to dust off some skill.

Medical, Marksmanship, navigation, fire starting, shelterbuilding and food procurement. alltake practice, and the time to do so is now.

 

[Angus McGunnigl]

I really agree with this post.

years ago I was a collector of things to help me in a emergency/survival situation.

Then I got lost in the woods one day. It turned out fine, and I had plenty of equipment with me. It did remind me that I hadn;t built a fire in the wet for a long time. I had always had the luxury or CHOOSING a campsite. Fate chose one for me this time.

Take a first aid class every couple years, keep your skills up.

 

[longbow50]

I agree with it as well. Practice, practice and practice some more. It's the only way to gain experience and live to talk about it.

 

[SkunkWerX]

Yep, whenever you get a new peice of gear, try it out.
If it's a first aid kit, take a course. Try the Red Cross, they are everywhere can hook you up.

When I get a new knife, I inspect it, but don't feel I need to "practice" with it.

Firestarting? Typically not the starting device itself, it's usually the concept of tinder, kindling, fuel/air combo, etc. The device typically does it's job pretty well. Fero Rod? Not much to practice, it gives off sparks. Will do so all day long. Getting those sparks to "catch" is the real deal.

Using a compass? If you haven't had prior experience (Orienteering in scouts, military, or the like) you really need to go to a park with a map & compass, and practice for an hour or two. Some people have a good "sense of direction" others do not.
We found that having guys draw their own maps is a very good exercise.

You site various land features, estimate distances, and draw a map.
As you spot new features, you fix your new position on the map, and add the new feature.

It also depends on how savvy you are with mechaincal things, as well as how good you are at manipulating your environment.

It's one thing to say, "I can do that", but without knowing you have those skill sets already , you'll be doing a little trail&error learning.

Some lessons can be taught, some can be anticpated and learned beforehand, others fall under school-of-hard knocks.

Wittle it down to it's basic component; It's Problem Solving.
You can have all the gear in the world, but if you don't know how to problem solve, you will just stare at it and wonder what to do.

 

[Saunterer]

I agree with it as well. Practice, practice and practice some more. It's the only way to gain experience and live to talk about it.

Exactly. Here in the ever-growing suburbia, I try to find ever opportunity to practice your skills. We received about 12" of snow the other day, and figured it was a good time to teach my youngest how to make a snow shelter. Using only a E-tool and a bowl shaped sled; we managed to throw this up in about an hour.

And she was really amazed at night, we had it to about 41 degrees with a small camping candle.

 

[SkunkWerX]

Oh now that is "cool". I'd use the snow shelter to wait for UPS to deliver my next "toy".

Showing the kids this type of thing is fantastic!! Whenever we went camping I'd show my son another skill to put in his "bag of tricks".

 

[Kevin the grey]

I would respond in outrage to this post but I just had a big meal and my sweater is constricting my wrists too much for me to type.

Yep that is my biggest challenge. Even as seemingly simple a task as Doc's birch bark torch intrigues me. I have the bark. I'm just too chicken to light it up on the street. The neighbors think I am nuts already with all the bows and arrows they see.

 

[Rupestris]

Just completed my re-cirtification in CPR, BFA and AED on Monday. :thumbup:

 

[DOC-CANADA]

I would respond in outrage to this post but I just had a big meal and my sweater is constricting my wrists too much for me to type. Me too, but I just got up.

Yep that is my biggest challenge. Even as seemingly simple a task as Doc's birch bark torch intrigues me. I have the bark. I'm just too chicken to light it up on the street. The neighbors think I am nuts already with all the bows and arrows they see.

Kevin, you're looking at this all wrong. Them thinking (maybe, knowing?) you're nuts means they will leave you alone. Situation -PRICELESS!

Doc

 

[Kevin the grey]

Doc I have to tell you. Neighbor above me was a drug addict. If you want to smoke pot I don't care in the least. If you wanna smoke pot,snort coke,drink rum and bang on the walls while playing arhythmic music ? There is going to be a problem. He harassed me for a long time.

Then MR. dufus upstairs moved in beside me. I went and got my Kukurri machete and showed it to him in a respectful manner. I then chopped down several nuisance bushes in a most disrespectful and loud aboriginal chant kind of way. I have not heard a peep out of him since.

Sorry for the thread hijack.
I consider chopping a survival skill I need to practice.

 

[bulgron]

I often see posts on this page where someone states that they picked up some piece of gear or other to throw in their pack, without mentioning learning how to use it.

I do this out of a deep sense of public service for my fellow forumites. I figure, the more toys I buy, the less they cost for everyone thanks to volume discounts. So by buying toys, lots and lots of toys, and throwing them in my bag (even if I don't know how to use them), I can help you all also afford to buy lots and lots of toys.

But seriously.

It's hard to practice building a fire in wet conditions when, for all practical purposes, you live in a desert. That said, the months after the first of the year are often wet around here so I'm thinking about heading out to some BLM land that's caught my eye and practicing my skills under adverse conditions.

I want to start camping with a siltarp and leave the tent behind. My understanding is these things are hard to put up if the wind is blowing, so I intend to head over to our local open space and practice putting it up come the next good storm.

What a wacky thing to do. Being "into" this stuff makes people look at you kind of funny. Fortunately, I have a schedule that allows me to sneak away and practice stuff without too many people knowing I'm doing it. As always, trying to blend in....

 

[SkunkWerX]

What's a siltarp?
I always heard the tube tents are a compact easy survival type of shelter.

I envision a tube tent, strung from a tree to the ground, or with a 2" sized tree branch inserted down it's length, like a debris hut, then, pile debris for insualtion.
100% waterproof, great wind barrier too.

Kevin, on a nice cool night, just go light the torch! oh, make sure you are outside.
if anyone asks, just hold it high, and tell them you are Canada's version of trhe Statue of Liberty. Helps to wear a baggy robe and a tiara.

Promise, after that, they will certainly leave you alone.

 

[bulgron]

What's a siltarp?

A siltarp is just a tarp made out of an ultralight waterproof nylon. There's a number of manufacturers around the web, some of them even home-based businesses. Integral Designs makes one commercially as well:

http://www.integraldesigns.com/product_detail.cfm?id=726

I first heard about siltarps from researching ultralight backpacking techniques. I want to get a siltarp sometime after christmas so that I can experiment and see if I can really get enough shelter out of one to make it through a stormy, rainy night. I'm thinking it might make a great emergency rain shelter. But apparently the nylon is very slippery and so is very difficult to put up in a wind. Also, apparently there's different techniques and configurations you can pitch a siltarp with, so there's much to learn there.

 

[ashtxsniper]

I fully agree with this post.

 

[kr1]

Everyone should take the time to learn and practice feild skills before they find thamselves in a situation where they Need them. Its not hard to find CPR and first aid courses in most areas, and things like EMT and first responder are available for those who want them.

Could not agree with this more.

Volunteerism founded this nation, and Volunteering at a rescue squad or fire department can give you opportunities to learn and practice skills that you would otherwise never have.

I would add that just taking the class in my opinion isn't enough. You must practice these skills.

This is why I volunteer. I am really not a goodie two shoes though I do like helping people in need and actually have gotten a couple of memories and even some letters that mean a great deal to me. The greatest thing I get to do is work on live human beings (well most are alive, some of them even stay alive and I have brought a couple back) and practice the skills I was taught. I did this when I started as people that had done it for years watched over me while making sure I was doing it right so I didn't hurt anyone. When I got confident enough and did it enough times and I (and they) were pretty sure I wasn't going to hurt anyone I started doing it on my own. Then I eventually started to know enough that I could keep an eye on the new people to make sure they didn't hurt anyone. It is a tremendous honor to be a member of such a system. I have learned an awful lot from doctors to nurses, parmedics and other EMT's and not have to pay anything for it other than a little bit of your free time.

KR

 

[Kyp Degal]

Great post, EmsRescueGuy. I've just been getting into this kind of thing again recently, and didn't have hardly any experience with firebuilding. So last time the family wanted to make a fire for some hot dogs, I went out with my trusty E-tool into our front yard (we have a huge, wooded front yard) and dug a T-shaped fire trench I'd read about, split some wood with my Ranger RD7 and a baton, a started trying to make a fire. Now, of course, I had read everything on the subject I could find, but it still took me over an hour to get a decent fire going. The sad thing is, the wood wasn't even barely damp. Just my poor skills, or lack thereof.

Last time I went to Wally World, I picked me up a magnesium bar to practice with. Another challenge. I managed to get a small pile of shredded cedar bark lit with it, but haven't had a chance to actually try building a full fire yet with it. From now on, I'll be practicing every chance I get, til I could light a fire in the rain, one hand tied behind my back.

Josh

 

[2dogs]

Great post Ems. At the FD I taught skills I had never done IRL. Some things just don't happen all that often. When I first joined we had Level A Hazmat suits. I learned how to don and duff the suits and then later on trained others in their use even though I had never worn the suits on a call. Darn good thing too because we had no decon system at that time. My training met department standards but in reality it wasn't worth a hoot. I was just repeating words some one had told me.

I was also taught skills like repelling which I had done for years while rock climbing and just for fun off bridges and buildings etc. Later when I taught repelling I was able to teach the new FFs how to foul up and recover. I was told to stop teaching that way as we only taught how to repel "perfectly". Screw ups were not allowed. I ended up having to go to the chief to have the lessons rewritten. Bottom line is not everyone is qualified to teach every skill and I was qualified to teach various types of repelling but not allowed to.

One last war story that lots of us share in. I learned CPR so many years ago that I can't remember my first class. I recerted every two years and thought I was pretty good at CPR until that first time. The first time I heard all that cartilage break I stopped thinking I just did something really wrong. I stopped just for a moment, but I did indeed stop. Now, having done CPR about 100 times there is no hesitation. I have the skill and the practical knowledge to back that up.

 

[Rupestris]

The first time I heard all that cartilage break I stopped thinking I just did something really wrong. I stopped just for a moment, but I did indeed stop. Now, having done CPR about 100 times there is no hesitation. I have the skill and the practical knowledge to back that up.

2 dogs,

You are absolutely right. I've been certified in first aid / CPR for several years now. In the past few years, the need to use it has come up twice. While I did more than the other bystanders, without practical experience, I think I could have done more in both situations.

This and other experiences lead me to BA/UU/R (Buy ammo/use up/repeat) school of thought. When it comes to situations that will test your iron, the best thing to have is experience and a good working knowledge of the tools you have at hand.

Whether its firearms, first aid or survival skills, the more familiarity you have with your tools, the better off you will be. I'd put my money on experience over tools any day.

Chris

 

[DOC-CANADA]

Whether its firearms, first aid or survival skills, the more familiarity you have with your tools, the better off you will be. I'd put my money on experience over tools any day. Chris

Well said and 100% correct.

Doc

 

[EmsRescueGuy]

The first time I heard all that cartilage break I stopped thinking I just did something really wrong. I stopped just for a moment, but I did indeed stop. Now, having done CPR about 100 times there is no hesitation. I have the skill and the practical knowledge to back that up.

Cartilage Hell Wait till you completley cave in some 98 year olds chest because the nursing home lost the DNR :barf: