The Ultimate Survival Test Question

I would pay very close attention how the person responded to my questions and comments, however. If they got easily peeved or offended - - - that would be a very stong indication that they didn't have the kind of personality that would roll with the punches in a survival situation. - - -
 
Pointshoot777 said:
I'd ask a different question: "What is the Rule of Threes?"
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Great question:thumbup: Again.... if you can't adhere to the rule of threes because you're to busy freaking out..... what good is it? None the less the "rule of threes" is one to know and adhere to to be sure!
 
I would ask if anyone was a medical doctor, EMT, or combat medic. They bring the medical skills and I'll bring the survival skills.;)

Or..."Who knows how to tie a sutcher?"
 
BlackPaladin said:
I have thought about this for years, even before I really was interested in becoming more knowledgable about survival, and was just a minor knife nut. Afer 20+ of mulling it in my mind, I decide to publish! :cool:

You are to decide if a person is a strong candidate as a partner in a survival situation. The person has to answer the question as truthfully as possible, whether it helps or hurts their chances of being selected.

I thought of one question that is the ultimate:
How many knots do you know how to tie?
(I am lumping everything into "knots" so everyone is on the same page. Of course, we have knots, hitches, splices, etc.)

This question, with a reasonable parameter set that I have yet to determine, will give you the best chance at picking a capable individual.

Most average people know how to tie their shoes (overhand knot and and a bow), and maybe know a few other knots.

The people who know how to tie quite a few "knots" are current and ex-military, current and ex- Cub/Boy/Eagle Scouts, experienced hunters and fisherman, experienced hikers and climbers, etc.
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BP, I tend to agree. Respectfully, I think some are missing the point.

Doc
 
Shotgun said:
I would ask if anyone was a medical doctor, EMT, or combat medic. They bring the medical skills and I'll bring the survival skills.;)

Or..."Who knows how to tie a sutcher?"
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Excellent point.

I was thinking about my favorite pub the other day:

I guarantee the staff doesn't know where the first aid kit is (this should be mandatory wherever you are - school, work, working from home, on you pickup truck while you are hanging drywall, etc.). Plus, people should know who knows CPR, first aid, etc. where ever you work.

(The reason I was thinking about this was I heard that these two "friends" almost got into a fight over a real estate deal that is going bad, and I was wondering if it got bloody, how quickly they could patch Pat up.)
 
BlackPaladin said:
I would wager that your neighbor's situation is somewhat unique, and that the average person that knowledgeable in rope tying has a little more survival in his bones (brain!).

Further, I am not talking about finding Les Stroud walking down Main Street, necessarily. I am talking about finding someone who has a reasonable chance at having some survival skils.
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No, I agree with you to a point. I see where your idea comes from and it works for me.

If your talking about a SHTF situation, a quick determination is the best medicine.

I really yearn for the days when a man was a man, you could bet your salt that most any grown man could be depended on to be able to tie a knot, shoot a gun and do any other manly job that needed done.

That was then, this is now. The world is full of soft handed metrosexuals who can hardly sustain themselves even when surrounded by excess.

We the real men are fast becoming the minority.

Yea, knot tying is a pretty good place to start.
 
shotgunner11 said:
I really yearn for the days when a man was a man, you could bet your salt that most any grown man could be depended on to be able to tie a knot, shoot a gun and do any other manly job that needed done.

That was then, this is now. The world is full of soft handed metrosexuals who can hardly sustain themselves even when surrounded by excess.

We the real men are fast becoming the minority..
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I would be willing to quess that many of us regulars here in W&S feel that same way as you do. I know I certinaly do.
 
BlackPaladin said:
LOL, smart ass.

The point is, people all say all kinds of shit. But my computer science brain says, hey, maybe empiricize this.

20 years to "publish." Not to formulate. Read. LOL.
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OK, my remark does sound somewhat disrespectful. I did not intend it to come out that way. Sorry. I just don't think that the ultimate question would have assumptions to it, as you are assuming that if you can tie knots you can do the other things necessary to survival.

What about asking what kind of suvival skills do you have and if you say you have them, you have to show them to me. Sort of like show and tell. Only backwards.
 
I'm not convinced that the knot tying question is especially suited to its purpose. Based on personal experience, I don't see a strong correlation between number of knots known and ability in a survival situation. I've known fisherman, sailors, and climbers who could tie plenty of knots, but couldn't build a shelter, start a fire, apply first aid, etc.

I agree that the edible plant question would likely serve much better. I also think that questions designed to determine whether someone will stay rational, and not panic, are likely to serve better.

I'll think about it some more, but my initial thought is to ask something of an entirely different type. I'm thinking that I'd ask the prospective survival partner to tell me about his/her loved ones. The type of characteristics that the person chooses to discuss about their loved ones will likely reveal a lot about their potential value as a survivor. Further, the type of answers about loved ones could help in determining how much will to survive s/he will have; and I think the strength of the will to survive will likely prove more relevant than knowledge and skills.
 
With the knot question, you might end up with an especially skilled dominatrix. Seriously, I'm not sure there's any one question that points to a best candidate. I've known people who had "the skills" and "the equipment" but didn't have "the mindset". If you want a single question to test for "the mindset", ask them what they thought of the book ALIVE. If they lick their lips while thinking about it, they probably have the survival mindset but watch how close you sleep to the fire. LOL
 
I'd ask how often they exercise, what kind of physical shape they are in. All the knowledge in the world won't help much if you don't have the physical endurance, stamina and toughness to see you through the hard times. And it's easy to test - have people do jumping-jacks and see who gets out of breath fastest.

That being said, I do think your question about knots is clever.
 
tarmix101 said:
I would be willing to quess that many of us regulars here in W&S feel that same way as you do. I know I certinaly do.
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I've got to agree. Who among us watched the footage of the aftermath of Katrina and wasn't amazed at how few people there had the survival mindset. Admittedly, that was an extreme situation but the part that really bugged me were the signs and comments of "where's the government...why aren't they here to rescue me?"

The last entity that I would rely on in a survival situation is the government.
 
I think the point is that knots, while important, are more of a detail than a priority in a survival situation. If someone has taken the time and put forth the energy to learn 30 or 40 different knots, then they are more likely to have gathered other important survival skills than someone that only knows how to tie their shoes. I'm not sure of the logic, but it is not a terrible question to ask if one is only able to ask one question. But, I'm not sure if it is any better than "can you make it to the nearest Holiday Inn in your current condition?"
 
BP,
I just want to throw another twist at you. I can see your point with your question (I am a knot knut, have been since I was 5yrs old) So I do understand why that question is important.

But... Let me say this.
In a real SHTF situation, Your ability to remain calm and LISTEN may be the most important factor in YOUR survival. To ask someone a question, then determine if you want to "team up" with them may be flawed.

The person (or group) that you want to find is the person who has remained calm, not jumped to conclusions, and maybe even asking you some sort of survival quiz. That is the person I personally want to have a little faith in.

Just my $.02
 
hlee said:
I think the point is that knots, while important, are more of a detail than a priority in a survival situation. If someone has taken the time and put forth the energy to learn 30 or 40 different knots, then they are more likely to have gathered other important survival skills than someone that only knows how to tie their shoes. I'm not sure of the logic, but it is not a terrible question to ask if one is only able to ask one question. But, I'm not sure if it is any better than "can you make it to the nearest Holiday Inn in your current condition?"
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You are mind-melding with me. You got it.

One question. Something not open-ended. If I have a choice between someone who ties three knots and someone who ties 20, NOT KNOWING ANYTHING ELSE, I am taking 20-knot person.
 
BlackPaladin said:
You didn't read carefully.

It is the ultimate question to have the BEST chance of getting someone.

Of course, there are umpteen categories of things. There are hundreds of posts here on dozens of different topics everyday.
If you can come up with one question that's better, I am all eyes.
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I still do not agree. Knots are useful but how many you know is not a very good measure of survival skills.
Knots will help you with shelter but not with water or navigation.

In fact I think the opposite; asking how many knots you know to grade someones survival my show that you do not know very much by putting such a high value on knots.

How about questions like;
What ways can you start a fire?
What are some ways you can navigate without a compass?
Can you identify poison ivy and oak?
How many ways can you signal for help?
How do you stop bleeding?
 
You are still missing the point somewhat.

You don't even know how many knots I know. What if I said I only know three?

I am not putting stock in knots, per se, but in the statistical likelihood (NOT certainty) that a person who knows more than an overhand knot and a slip knot has had some experience in the outdoors. See OP. The people on this board, for the most part, prove that correct.

Ways to make a fire is actually not bad.

EDIT: I thought of the word: proxy. Knot-tying is not the end-all, but is a proxy of the level of POTENTIAL survival skills.
EDIT: Unless they actually demonstrate, I might change my mind on the fire one. Example: I know all the methods, but I don't KNOW all the methods (practiced and proficient).
EDIT: I was trying to Google something that gets into the spirit of what I said above, and follow this thread, because several posters make the same point:
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1168724235.comments.shtml
 
Of course tying knots isn't the most useful survival skill, but I don't think that was the point of the original post. The point was to ask a question the answer to which, on average, would yield the best qualified person to have as a survival companion.

As far as that goes, I think it's a pretty good question, but I can think of a few that might be better. For example, you could ask "How many 6000 meter high mountains have you climbed?" Anyone going up those things with any kind of regularity is guaranteed to have significant survival skills, a lot of resourcefulness and a hell of a lot of endurance and determination.
 
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