Newbie Question About BoBs et al.

[Mike K]

Hey guys,

What are situations in which you would use your BoB or mini kit? Maybe that'll help me figure out what sort of things to include in my set-up.

Thanks,
mk

 

[Charles Gallo]

I used my mini kit as recently as last week. I was getting off the train when a woman in front of me went down to her knees - it seems she was suffering from a bit of heat exhaustion! (The train's heat was stuck ON, and it was over 100)

I asked her if I could get help (Called the station cops - always there), and gave her my bottle of water. That helped pick her up big time

When the medics came, I left, went upstairs, and bought another bottle of water

I regularly use it for things like Advil, and bandaids when I'm out, or sewing clothes that rip, etc. Heck, I used some of the 550 cord to hang the stockings in front of the fireplace!

My Minikit is meant to be USED and restocked

 

[survivor]

Your BOB and mini kit is there in case of any emergency, you should have a look at what are the most likely emergency situations you are going to be facing and choosing appropriate kit.

 

[farmboy]

I guess my suggestion would be to look at your daily life, and think about what has gone wrong in the past, or COULD go wrong. It doesn't have to be catastrophic. I used my mini kit just the other day in a movie theater. During the movie my wife had a headache, so I used the Maglite Solitaire to find some tylenol in my kit for her. Some other examples to get you started:

You travel out of town a lot, and a spare phone card would be nice.

You rip your jacket on the way into a job interview, and use the needle and thread for a quick fix.

Forgot your wallet at the video rental store. Use the $20.00 stashed in the bottom.

You purchased a large item at the antique store, and you can't close the trunk lid. You use the unwaxed dental floss to tie it down.

Etc., etc., etc. Hope that helps.

 

[RokJok]

There are a lot of sites on the web with recommendations and examples of BOB contents. A search will find them.

Considering that BOB are for more catastrophic situations, be sure to include copies of important papers you may need to establish credentials or claims. Typically that would be like insurance policies, deeds & titles, copy of car registration forms, family contact addresses & phone numbers, banking account info, social security numbers, etc. Waterproofing them is a very good idea. I've found vacuum-pack bags from those infomercial vacuum units work well.