Skills vs. Gear

T

TFin04

Joined
Aug 21, 2005
Messages
1,494
This seems to be a common theme across different industries.

Too often people get caught up in the latest and greatest gear, when they do not have the needed skills to actually use them to the full potential.

Over my (not so long) time on this world, I have see this happen with:

Professional Paintball
Motorcycle riding
Mountain Biking
Fishing
ATV'ing
Shooting/Firearms
Bushcraft

There is a firearm training group I am familiar with that lists these essentials, in order:

- Mindset
- Tactics
- Skill
- Gear

What that means is you should accomplish the first rung before moving on. Too often people get caught up into cool gadgets and latest and greatest gear before they even know how to use them properly.

I understand this is a subforum of a 'gear' site (knives), but the headline itself says SKILLS. Short of a handful of regulars, it seems most are more interested in talking about grind angles and new blades rather than their SKILLS in the wild.

Bug out threads especially. How many people talk about their bug out bag, bug out vehicle, armor, rifles, and the 100 lbs of crap they plan to take with them? Have you actually humped that gear the 10, 20, or 30 miles you plan to go? Done it at night? Done it at a moments notice? If not, you are wrong.

I'm not trying to call anybody out or seem pompous, just a bit of an observation/rant that has been at me for a while. What's your take?
 
i don't think you will find anyone who disagrees with you about this but most people do this for fun and new gear makes this fun. playing with new gear also allows you to learn too.
 
I too agree with your premise, but this is one of the few forums I get a chance to visit on where most members actually get a lot of testing done out in the field...be it a new gadget or knife, or actually practicing some primitive skill such as trap making or carving a utensil. Gadgets are great but skills are more important. It's all about balance and not forgetting the basics; I think you'll see more of that here. In the outdoors sense, that philosophy (excluding the tactics; although you could probably add in "techniques" under skills) is very applicable for a priority listing:

1) Mindset
2) Skills
3) Gear

You'll get no arguments from me on those:thumbup:

ROCK6
 
I would agree with you to the point that I will state that on this forum..MOST of the people here get in dirt time, and test there new gear... Now when I was heavy in the gun comunity..most of the gun collector I new were lazy, and had deep pockets(not a generalization, just my experience)....to really train with your firearms..you need range time and you need to be in shape, gun fighter shape...an actual gun fight is INTENSE...and slow poor reaction time will result in your demise..piss poor shooting will result in your demise..being a dumbass will result in your demise....see the pattern..GUNS leave very little room for error...and having the most TACTICOOL gun wont keep you away from the lead thats flying..training is all you will have..and hopefully a gun that wont JAM!
Guns are a really fun hobby, but gunfighters and gunfighting is serious business. LEO's and MILITARY will tell you, they train mission specific, (dirt time) and what type of gun you carry isnt much of the equation..other than caliber and function. Gene
 
I spent most of my hiking/outdoor time broke and not being able to afford cool gear so I had to learn to make due with what I had.My skills came form those early hikes.Now I have the money to get a few toys I can enjoy my time in the woods in more comfort than I used to.
 
TFin04 said:
There is a firearm training group I am familiar with that lists these essentials, in order:

- Mindset
- Tactics
- Skill
- Gear
Click to expand...

I just came from that training company's Alumni Weekend and was just thinking this very thing. Wetsu did a small section on firestarting and was talking about the importance of the right mindset.

Recently I have undertaken putting together a bushbag. One of the criteria was to buy as little as possible. I have a good bit of the smaller incidental gear but I didn't want this project about putting together a kit of new gear, but about learning what I could do, picking up new skills and such with the gear I have.

Started my first fire with Flint and steel (which I did buy but have always wanted a set). Made my first charcloth and such.

I have to free myself from the "latest and greatest" mindset and instead focus on what can I learn today. I find that I really don't learn much by acquiring stuff but by using stuff.

You on their forum? What's your username?

(Mods, if that is inapropriate then I do apologize).

Charlie
 
Last edited:
CShepherd said:
I just came from that training company's Alumni Weekend and was just thinking this very thing. Wetsu did a small section on firestarting and was talking about the importance of the right mindset.

Recently I have undertaken putting together a bushbag. One of the criteria was to buy as little as possible. I have a good bit of the smaller incidental gear but I didn't want this project about putting together a kit of new gear, but about learning what I could do, picking up new skills and such with the gear I have.

Started my first fire with Flint and steel (which I did buy but have always wanted a set). Made my first charcloth and such.

I have to free myself from the "latest and greatest" mindset and instead focus on what can I learn today. I find that I really don't learn much by acquiring stuff but by using stuff.

You on their forum? What's your username?

(Mods, if that is inapropriate then I do apologize).

Charlie
Click to expand...

Good post and good to see another GOTX'er. I have the same name over there. I haven't been able to make it to one of his classes yet but I train quite a bit with a local company who is another BTDT dude. Hoping to make a road trip to Camden in 09.
 
Boys like toys. :D

I think a lot of people don't necessarily live in an environment conducive to practicing bushcraft skills 24/7. Some people might get out only on the weekends which delegates the rest of the week to living vicariously through toys. Some people might be married and have 4 kids. A baseball game and BBQ is likely to trump making bird traps.

I'll agree that skills are more important than gear. But sadly a lot of people probably don't get to practice them as much as they would like.
 
On my part, I'll say that gear is a lot easier to talk about than skills in brief. It's easy to post a picture of a knife and say why something about it is good or isn't, but doing the same with respect to wilderness skills is much more difficult.
 
Thats true Elen..I never thought about it like that..
 
There's also the focus of the board.
Even though this is the Wilderness & Survival Skills forum, it's a group of blade collectors talking about going out in the woods.

Now go to other boards where hiking or camping is the focus, and you'll hear little talk of what blades to choose. If they're mentioned at all, it's how to use a knife (don't care which one, they discuss the skill, not the knife), or it's incidental as part of a gear list.

Most of us are here because we're blade enthusiasts who also go outside.
 
I'd say the WSS forum generally strikes an excellent balance between discussion of skills and discussion of gear. On any given day, the threads visible on the first page will include trip reports, gear reviews (including thorough testing), Q&A sessions, skills tutorials, kit explanations, and conversations about the many joys of the outdoors. Of course knives feature prominently. That's to be expected, and most of us wouldn't have it any other way. Also, - unlike many 'gear junkie' forums - the folks here do not engage in gear snobbery and one-upmanship.

In fact, I think that this forum focuses primarily on the wilderness experience, with both skills and gear being vehicles through which discussions of said experience can take place.

All the best,

- Mike
 
Well some gear is needed.......

I challenge anyone to batton a piece of wood with a sudo-chop :D
 
I have and insist on high quality and appropriate gear. It does not always cost the most and pre owned gear makes up a good portion of my "stuff". It gives me great satisfaction to plan, plot, research and rearrange it in various bags and boxes for different situations and scenarios.

My skills are moderate and uneven, sometimes I confidently exceed my limits in one area because of my skill level in another area is high enough to put me in a position where I overconfidently put myself, and unfortunately sometimes others in a precarious position.

My mindset and enthusiasm are interpreted as actual knowledge and experience by others, even though I repeatedly inform others my skills are not equal to my knowledge, and my experience level is not what they should base their comfort or safety on.

Posts like this help me to refocus on what is important and gives me a sounding board to reflect on what I need to work on. Significantly, this post inspires me to focus my mindset to a practical balancing of my skill levels.
 
I don't see how its an all or nothing thing. Sometimes I like to go light and carry just a little stuff. Sometimes I like to cart a tonne of things and play with'em out doors. This might mean extra knives, it might mean a bigger then needed stove, it might mean a football. I go outdoors for a lot of different reasons and different gear will suit those different reasons. Just because I enjoy a little bit of easy going car-camping, doesn't necessarily mean I don't possess the skills to go backcountry. Truth is I'm interested in both activities.
 
mmmotorcycle said:
Well some gear is needed.......

I challenge anyone to batton a piece of wood with a sudo-chop :D
Click to expand...

I consider myself a Demo master....I could totally do that, and if you were there..you would be in for a real treat!
(just saw the TKD Spoof film..the foot fist way.)
 
i agree with your mentality...for instance people say well don't good shoes make you run faster? i say well i'm not good enough for fancy shoes to make a big difference. in need to take about 15 minutes off of my 5K time for high tech shoes to actually matter. until then i need to work on me. (by the way, i have yet to match my barefoot time wearing shoes)

similar to the way that form follows function, i think that it is better to first establish your own personal form and determine how you work and what you need, then outfit according to the situation.

BUT-as was recognized this is a gear forum and people come to talk about gear. skills are hard to talk about over the internet. photos make it a little easier and videos make it easier still, but there is nothing like having something demonstrated in person. i personally like to find out about and talk about gear online, then go out in the woods and use my skills (and new gear that i have found out about through the forums)

people put alot of emphasis on gear around here because that's what we come to talk about. i have noticed on some other forums that there is far less emphasis on gear and much more on skills...for instance outdoors-magazine.com forums. there is a gear subforum, but it is primarily based on skills. just a different focus.

in the end, the people that go out and do it are who they are and they know it, regardless of what they talk about online.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top