If they'd shown his wife before, I'd have bet on him wanting to get home a lot sooner :)Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
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If they'd shown his wife before, I'd have bet on him wanting to get home a lot sooner :)Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
I see that History's site lists the original items from which they had to choose. Was that there before? Makes me wonder if I was just blind. (looks like more than 40 though)
Anyway...so, I ask myself what would I choose, from this list, when limited to 10 and considering myself and other factors. Um...dagnabit, sure are some hard choices (choosing against an item which is good requires deep thought)...
1 - 12×12 ground cloth/tarp
2 - saw (not the bow kind)
3 - multi-seasonal sleeping bag
4 - 2 quart Pot, with lid
5 - disposable lighter
6 - canteen
7 - fishing line and hooks
8 - 5 lbs of dried pulses/legumes/lentils
9 - hunting knife
10 - small shovel
My understanding, based on facebook posts from one of the "survivors" who tapped out early was that a disposable lighter was not allowed.....:detective:Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
What? The Grand-daddy of all Survivor shows?......Which the chicks in bikinis and all......?Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
I like that show........
That must have changed; I can't imagine actual survivalists not realizing that, while a ferro rod may spark thousands of times, in poor conditions, you may need hundreds of strikes to light anything. The butane lighter's one handed activation and sustained flame makes it a clear winner in my book. I keep at least three in different parts of the bug out bag, including tucked inside both the little Stanley pot and the GI mess kit where they're extremely unlikely to be crushed or have the button held down until they're empty. (One of my assistant scoutmasters smoked, back in the days when that wasn't grounds for lynching on a Scout trip, and would carve a little wedge to go under the button on each lighter specifically to keep them from being drained accidentally.)Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
That said, I do have a magnesium/ferro block, two waterproof containers of matches, and 2-3 vacuum sealed matchbooks in there as well. These give me the ability to trade fire as well as providing multiple layers of redundancy for an important task; same as carrying both the Stanley and the mess kit so I have multiple ready-made boiling containers.
Again, IMO, limiting items by count just strikes me as silly; I'd rather see "you can take whatever you can carry through this five mile obstacle course" or something similar that actually addresses realistic decision making criteria.
Repeat after me...."It's TV show, ...It's a TV show...It's a TV show....."
There ya go...... repeated on the interweb 3 times , become true.....
sarge47 - That's strange. This is what I'm looking at:
http://www.history.com/shows/alone/a...ohibited-items
When thinking of how I'd design a show, one thing I like is doing it by weight. Either a much longer list to choose from, or a long prohibited list, and the total weight of everything has to be within a certain weight, same for each person. And this keeps a bigger stronger person from being able to have more than someone else because of just letting them take whatever each can carry etc. In reality, what someone can carry obviously applies. But in reality t.v. wherein people are competing, you could go either way...even those odds, or let each one's ability to carry whatever they can carry be part of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by NightSG
There are pros and cons to every method of starting fires and in all types of environments be it on a TV show or in real life when things go bad. A lighter disposable or top of the line has the advantage of being able to start a poor quality tinder bundle because it can hold a flame to a the tinder for longer than a ferrocerium rod even one high in magnesium. Even an excellent fire board and bow drill that makes great embers/coals needs a better tinder bundle than a high powered lighter with a lot of fluid. BUT either of these a Bow Drill or a large Ferro rod will definitely outlast a lighter even the best top of the line one. Open up your lighter and look at how tiny that ferro rod is in that lighter even if you had some replacement rods for it would it last 40 days? One year of fires 300-600 fires? I don't have as much experience lighting primitive fires as I would like, and am very thankful every time I am successful but I consider a great tinder bundle to be the most important item not the actual source of the spark be it lighter, ferro rod or bow, hand or pump drill, technically these are all friction fire methods if you want to be scientific about it. A lighter generates its initial spark by friction, so does the ferro rod. Mitch goes thru this all on a Youtube video he posted, it has more demo and less blah, blah, blah than me.
BTW if I was adding items NOT on the approved list it would be a polyethylene sea kayak and paddle to catch more fish, sea critters and go visit the other men and barter with them. LOL
Some young ladies in bikinis from CBS's "fake" Survival show so dirty old men like Hunter63 would want to watch the show... That would be the ticket...
It is said that John the Baptist wore rough Camel's skin/hair clothing and ate locust in the wilderness. A survival show based on that might be interesting. Or Christ living on locust and little water for 40 days and nights in the Palestine wilderness, or Moses waiting up in Mount Sinai, well not such a good idea there Egyptian army is currently fighting ISIS in the Sinai and losing many men... best move that Challenge to Utah or Arizona...
TXyakr -
Leaning more towards the ferro rod set initially, I wondered what kind of set it'd be and how many strikes you get. I ended up considering the wet environment and comparing getting sparks versus having actual flame...that I might use up tons of my spark-quota on one fire...and thinking that if I lasted long enough for my lighter to run out, then I should be far enough along to begin using another method like bow drilling or just being able to maintain fire that I have, rain and wind notwithstanding. If I am not in that kind of shape with fire proficiency while having lasted that long, it might be moot.
I personally like the idea of a zippo with a bottle of fluid and some replacement flints.
And some smokes to break out for those special moments. And a can of coffee. Btw, I consider things like enjoying coffee moments, etc, to have great psychological impact. When things like boredom are mentioned, I think about how you must do more than only the bare survival activities. You need to enjoy yourself. Enjoy the environment, instead of being terrorized by it. I honestly wondered if something like coffee was on their allowed list, and I wanted to find that out specifically. Gee, they had spoon and towel and comb on there.
But then...we can talk a lot about what we'd do, while needing to remember that energy (and hydration) becomes an issue - you need to do so much right in the beginning, and a person gets worn out when some of what you're needing to do is get food and water and may have not gotten that yet. It's a big hump right in the beginning, and if you don't get over that hump well right at the beginning, it almost dictates everything afterwards for a long while. That's why I consider some kind of food rations for the beginning to be important...keeping some energy until I'm established in a basic way. Water would be included in this philosophy of mine, but you need so much of it to be any good and I'm thinking that in at least this show's environment water isn't too difficult.
Best is a very large Ferro rod high in magnesium in a cold wet environment slowly scrap off bits onto a piece of driest bark you can get like inner wood (clip of Alan getting excited about it Thursday night was funny but outdoorsmen can relate). Then strike sparks onto these scapings with tinder on top, blow get smoke and a flame. It takes a lot of practice in a very wet, humid climate.
There have been many discussions here at WS about coffee substitutes in the wild. Most are not very pleasant but you can adjust to them over time. Also teas of various wild/found herbs or even leaves of various evergreen trees. Best not to over do it or your bowels may get very loose. Just enough to flavor the hot water, don't go crazy or you could dehydrate yourself sitting behind a bush somewhere. I WILL NOT admit to having ever done THAT!
Keep a record of how long a zippo lasts, good luck with that. Fine for weekend car camping folks... best to have a backup and know how to use it if you venture much beyond the safety of your automobile or ATV... extra ferro rods for zippos are tiny easily lost and break if you look at them crosseyed...
BTW perhaps the first Wilderness Survival "Show" was John the Baptist. Thousands of people from many miles around came to see this man dressed in camel skin who ate locust insects he was as Isaiah 40:3 said may thousands of years ago "The voice of one crying in the wilderness" drew a crowd. Father Abraham left the big city of Ur to go into the wilderness and live a simple life many years before that but he did not draw a large crowd so it was not technically a "show". Anyhow John the B has CBS beat by over 2000 years.
^ See Castaway with Tom Hanks? That'd be me - dancing and chanting 'round my fire. (Best/funniest moment: "what is that?!")
Well, zippo is what I'd have if having such a thing...would stick to drilling or fire-piston when possible otherwise.
If I can acquire the ingredients, teas would be a regular thing for me. Coffee, just a good morning ritual, or for cold rainy stretches. And...out there, things taste much better. It's about context. I don't find it hard to acquire tastes ("the best spice in the world is hunger"). Living like that, rough coffee is somehow appropriate...is luxurious. Funny though, if they had coffee on their list, I'd demand that it be Columbian, or wouldn't even have it. Would rather hope to find dandelion or chicory.
No bow drill set I have ever seen even remotely has a chance of lighting as many fires as a disposable lighter. My preferred set of willow on willow will give you two or three fires per hole in optimal conditions. Then the spindle will be through the hearth. Trying for that third coal could end up a waste of time if the spindle goes through the hearth.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
You get an average of 3,000 lights from a BIC disposable. Is there a bow drill set that will give you a comparable number of coals?
I stand corrected on the list, I was going by what one of the guys wrote on FB. I also agree with you on limiting items; I've made no secret about how that's one of my pet peeves!...:w00t:Quote:
Originally Posted by NightSG
I think I had mentioned almost 100 comments back in this thread that Mitch from this "Alone" show had a youtube video demonstrating long term fire starting tools pros and cons. Obviously a intelligent person would need to make new fire boards, spindles and bows assuming they were in a place that had useable and appropriate wood not in the middle of the sahara desert where there might not be fire wood so why bother. OH camel dung, forgot about that use your lighter to start that! LOL I heard a rumor that next "Alone" show will be there, ha ha ha. Watch out for ISIS.Quote:
Originally Posted by Batch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoT9jguo8is
EDIT: I've seen people spend 10-20 "lights" of a Bic lighter to get a fire started because they did not know how to make or use a tinder bundle properly. Also had people step on my Bic lighter while they were borrowing it and crush it, thankful it was not my only starter tool that I knew how to use effectively. And often the gaskets on a zippo will get old especially if it was left in a hot vehicle and then it leaks, no fluid you are left with a tiny ferro rod, tiny little sparks. Good luck with that. It can work but is a PITA and requires a very good tinder bundle.... My point is have options IF you venture more than 20 yards from your vehicle or for sure if you hike several days from it. NOTE: this does not apply to Hunter63 or Kyratshooter, for them just use jumper cables or some wire on the battery of your vehicle you will be fine, ha ha ha
So how many fires CAN an average casual camper start with a brand new BIC, how many people buy a new one for each and every trip? Just in case a flood, wildfire or something strands them?
I just finished reading the complete list, yeah, I'd take all that stuff, plus some. No outdoorsman in his right mind goes out into the total wilderness with only a limited amount of stuff and takes video cameras and equipment. For the record, my 1st choice of a fire starter is a long barreled butane charcoal starter. I use wood for fire-starting as well...as firewood. I also carry "lifeboat" matches, mag block, and a six inch ferro rod. Can't be too safe ya know. The regulation against water filters & purification tablets was a bonehead decision, IMO, as this caused at least one of the group intestinal distress. I do hope the producers' liability insurance premiums were current. Alan was my pick to win, however Sam surprised me. I thought he'd be one of the 1st few out. I wonder how he felt when he found out he missed it by only one spot away?...:detective:
Basically when you limit your items or circumstances (SHTF) limit them for you in real life your time spent on basic tasks increases that is why light weight backpacks and Ultralight or SUL etc. who do long distance at a fast pace look for multipurpose items.
I assume that a show like History Channel's Alone and Discovery Channel's N&A appeal to some of those minimalists, long distance trekkers but make no sense to car campers and ATV campers who spend hours packing/unpacking and loading/unloading many many pounds of gear and most of their "trail" miles are powered by petroleum. Different strokes for different folks. All that matters is that you get out there and be active. The 10 - 20 yards you putter around a campsite at a state park is MUCH MUCH better than the walk from the TV in the living room to your kitchen for more aluminum can beverages and sugary snacks. IMO
That is mostly correct.....Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
One thing about being a smoker for a lot of years...just a fact..is a smoker may not get a proper fire going....but will ALWAYS get his smoke lit.
Batteries from your Mini Mag and spring from a ball point pen (stretched out) ...or paper clip....or foil gum wrapper....or road flare....but will get that smoke lit.
Hunter wonders around in the wilderness, cold, wet, hungry.....Rescue guy get there...Hunter says, "Hey Bud, gotta a light?"
SAR guy says "Yes, here ya go....." (lights smoke)...."Hey, you need rescue?......Hunter say, "Naw, I'm good now.....Thanks....Some body moved the truck....."
It was meant to be a challenge with emergency back up Sarge47 not a vacation trip for fun and relaxation.
http://www.history.com/shows/alone/a...ohibited-items
If I was to take a food item it would be the
1. 5 lbs of beef jerky (protein)
Not
2. 5 lbs of dried pulses/legumes/lentils mix (starch and carbs)
interesting that one person chose that.
Under Tools I wonder where the line between hunting knife and machete are crossed and might try to get by with a long knife with saw like teeth on back but no saw would be super difficult, also very difficult without an axe. So those are very high on list. Steel shovel slightly higher on wish list than dental floss lol. I have a great Cold steel Soviet Special forces style shovel and some others including a titanium trowel but often don't use them. Rule is if you don't use it on multiple trips don't take it next time, lighten your rucksack, ask any special forces or marine who has done forward missions where speed was critical. They might say "what the heck leave that at home dude."
Obviously camera gear was necessary or concept of "Alone" show would not exist. Several said how much of pain that was and they were trained on how to use it for a week or two prior to being dropped off. All these shows give you full medical shots and evaluations, I was told that very specifically by a TV producer, no reason not to believe it.
Hey, didn't I see someone splitting a tree with a machete, or am I remembering that wrong? There is no machete on the list. That and the disposable lighter...making me think history got a little mixed up along the way or changed things.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
I think that the idea here is not having to go to a store, or making do when one or the other gets broken or lost, etc. How many lights you get from the same drill is not important, but how perpetual that the drill method is. I can't make a bic lighter out in the wild. But I can make a drill. I can't make lighter fluid out in the wild, but I can make a drill. Moreover, if I had a disposable lighter, and a drill was working well, I'd save the lighter for when I really needed it and use the drill for regular purposes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Batch
That one had me thinking - I've no experience or knowledge here. Was thinking of the jerky, biltong, and pemmican...but started considering the salt content of all of those coupled with how they are dehydrated themselves already. I imagined them sucking all the water right out of me while believing that I was keeping a calm tummy in the first few days hustling and burning energy to get some things established early.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
When I was a pack a day smoker, it wasn't that unusual for a Bic to last me more than a month. That's 600 fires. Even a marginal tinder bundle shouldn't need much more "flame time" than a cigarette unless it's just soaking wet.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
And that doesn't include the times his boss used it to build a fire under him. Just sayin'.
I don't think I would have given a large supply, but IMO, 10-20 liters worth of sterilant (iodine, potassium permanganate, chlorine, whatever) among the "freebie" items would probably be a good idea to give them time to settle in, or get reestablished if their fire is swamped out for whatever reason.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
Hopefully after the details came out, he realized that Alan was settled in for the long haul and would easily have stayed well past the birth of Sam's son. Half a million is a lot of money, but the birth of your first child is priceless.Quote:
Alan was my pick to win, however Sam surprised me. I thought he'd be one of the 1st few out. I wonder how he felt when he found out he missed it by only one spot away?...:detective:
Protein is available wherever animals are. Especially for that region and time of year, I'd go for more carbs. (Didn't see any berries or other sources of fast burn energy.) Probably the gorp rather than the plain chocolate, since I could pick out the part I needed at the time.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
Depends on how much they knew about the area beforehand; a machete wouldn't be on my list after looking at it. Maybe a kukri like Alan's and a saw, though it sure would be nice to have a ~6" knife too. As much as Cody Lundin does with a Mora, I consider a hatchet a luxury, and the ones lugging full sized felling axes didn't seem to be getting much use out of them that a heavy kukri wouldn't have done pretty well.Quote:
Under Tools I wonder where the line between hunting knife and machete are crossed and might try to get by with a long knife with saw like teeth on back but no saw would be super difficult, also very difficult without an axe.
Again, there's a huge difference between light, fast, and mobile, and "go here and make this spot home for as long as you can." If I'm going to be on the move every day trying to cover ground, a heavy canvas tarp is off the list, as is all other shelter building gear beyond lashings and a light tarp for nightly lean-tos. Fire building becomes more critical for movement too, since there's no way to just keep banking and reviving one fire. Water purification changes too; don't want to purify 40lbs of water or catch that much rain then lug it up a mountain, but if you can rig storage in a long term camp, it's sure a nice bit of insurance to have.Quote:
Rule is if you don't use it on multiple trips don't take it next time, lighten your rucksack, ask any special forces or marine who has done forward missions where speed was critical. They might say "what the heck leave that at home dude."
Really, it should make him feel pretty good. He should claim it as a bragging right. Best consolation that there is for not winning. He was second right behind the winner...a whipperschnapper neck-and-neck with the old man who won. One of the few who didn't really whimp out, but instead was hanging pretty good. That'd make me feel pretty good about myself. Though it's not a win, I'd brag the hay out of that.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
Btw, does anyone have any more knowledge or experience here? Is the salt content of the other stuff an issue or not?Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
Otherwise, while I do like the protein, as nightsg I like the idea of the starches and carbs more considering that I'd only have it for that initial boost when first going out there and trying to get a lot done fast early. But, I'm wondering if the salt content is a real concern in these survival contexts. Anybody know?
In that context, extra salt isn't needed; these guys weren't sweating off a gallon or two a day the way they would be down here or in a jungle. Hyponatremia isn't much of a risk when a major chunk of your diet is saltwater fish, mussels, seaweed, etc. Whether the extra salt in jerky or biltong would actually be a detriment, I don't know for sure, but unless they wolfed down the entire five pounds in one or two sittings, I doubt it.Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
Even if someone had a diet that should be low in salt like Hypertension. The jerky would not cause a problem unless you ate a lot each day. And then your blood pressure is usually only raised about 10 mm of HG with a high sodium diet. The caloric loss should offset that easily.
The jerky added to a soup type meal of what every you can obtain can be a real game changer. Adding a protein source to a dried grain or a collected plant or starch is definitely a comfort where you might not be able to collect protein.
I still think it was a silly premise. Some challenge. The producers were really fortunate nobody died or got seriously injured. I don't care what "waivers" might have been signed, they still could have been sued and lost if there were any fatalities. I also say that it wasn't survival since to be rescued all's they had to do was make a phone call! I did learn some things on there...mostly what "not" to do...:detective:Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
I was wondering as the show progressed why weren't the guys doing more with their shelters like the fella did with the "YURT" shelter? Sam was in a bad position as he got a lot of wind. Had he fortified his shelter with branches he might have had a better time of it. Then the thought hit me, lack of food causes problems, both mental and physical. Low energy level as well as mental lethargy are common under such circumstances....:detective:
I don't think there has ever been any sort of "survival" event or show that didn't include some way to "tap out," and in an endurance challenge like this, the only other way to lose would be to die out there. That would have made for a lot more episodes, but I don't think the world is quite ready for a real "The Long Walk" (or in this case, Long Sit There) type show just yet.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
I quit smoking in Feb 2014 but you'd never find me without a lighter. I'd take a Bic over a ferro rod any day. But, I carry both.
Yes...this is one of the things that I think about with these shows. They don't seem to do or try much. Lots of their difficulties stem from them not actually doing or attempting very much. And then I remember that you can get quite lethargic fast when living the physical lifestyle in the elements that it is and without much water and food. Your very first day trying to procure potable water and/or put together shelter which is even half useful, can wear you out if you don't take in water and food that same day, then after that many people can only get more lazy almost against their will. So if you can't get over that first hump, it can all go down hill from there.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
This is one reason why I don't really like things like the 3-3-3 rule, because it doesn't really communicate much and can even be deceptive without deeper understanding than rule-of-thumb clichés. Sure, you can survive 3 weeks without food, 3 days without water...but what that really means is that's the period of time before you probably die, if you don't get rescued or magically have water and food immediately. In other words, after 3 weeks without food or 3 days without water or 3 hours or minutes without shelter (depending), you may still be alive, but you may not be in any shape to even stand up and walk 20 feet or think straight and avoid the death that is coming after that period of time.
I always say that you aren't in trouble when you're thirsty or hungry or loosing body temperature...instead you are in trouble immediately, that very first minute. You better get busy right quick, and avoid reaching any of those states in the first place. Also this is why I say that there is an "initial hump" - assuming situations where you have no food, water, shelter, fire, etc, and little modern tools/equipment/supplies, you really need to achieve quite a bit as early as possible, and this accumulates a lot of physical exertion...without that water and food, you can be spent before doing what you need to do to be able to continue further.
I'm really kind of amazed when these people are able to give commentary on camera as coherently as they do after exerting themselves some and not having much water or food. But then they edit...in some outtakes of a show you can see them struggling and not even able to stand up without losing their balance or almost blacking out. They should show that kind of stuff more often.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Batch
Dang it! I guess that guy does get the cookie. Another guy predicted it on post # 115, but the post you refer to is #106, so the clear winner. :(
I would have chose pemican, like Sam did. In fact, I would have chosen 5 lbs of tallow if it was a choice.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
Yes a machete was not officially on the list only a hunting knife but if you were paying attention Alan had a Kukri blade or small machete, that is why I brought up that question of where the line between a hunting knife and machete were crossed. Part of surviving difficult SHTF situations when on hunting or camping trips is being observant. For North Vancouver Island specifically my choice would be #1 Sharp Axe, #2 Large Knife (not big machete), #3 large Buck saw. I can dig with knife also there are instructions on how to make a post hole digger on primitiveways and other websites, Also broken bottle found on beach works to dig with, and some fairly hard woods there make a good shovel, many alternatives to shovel I have lived for many months in wilderness without a shovel. Difference between a GI in the fox holes/trenches and Special Forces at a forward location perhaps.Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
Also for those who actually have extensive experience using fuel lighters, ferro rods and wood friction methods such as bow drill the advantage of lighters are that they can hold a flame to a moist or poor tinder longer but these are more likely to fail, i.e. fuel drains gasket fails, or is crushed or tiny ferro rod is broken or falls out etc. Even if a ferro rod breaks all an experienced person need is about 1 inch perhaps less. If you have a blade, axe, saw or knife and some reasonably good wood you should have infinite source of drills: hand, bow, pump, saw etc. You ABSOLUTELY should go out to your back porch or local park and practice but at the very least watch that youtube video by Mitch I posted. Hundreds of other videos online but all a waste of time if you don't GET OUT THERE AND TRY IT OUT FOR YOURSELF!!!! Get off your comfy chair!!! Put out your cigarettes!
BTW I have seen indigenous people in the Amazon Jungle split fairly large trees with fairly thin "grass" machetes when they did not happen to have their axe with them. But it is NOT the preferred way to do it and generally requires a baton to get it started then baton does most of the splitting not that machete. Also best if the tree is still green. Axe is definitely best. Skill and experience is far more important than a truck load of equipment when you are in a very remote area, but that would require that you leave your keyboard/electronic device.
Anybody recognize which one? Either he's really good at sharpening on random rocks or it held a heck of a good edge the whole time judging by a couple of scenes well into the series where he was using it for delicate tasks.Quote:
Originally Posted by TXyakr
I agree or Biltong or anything with mostly protein and fat not starch and carbohydrates which are easier to find in most wilderness areas in this case Bull Kelp or others in other areas. My concern about fats is that in a humid climate they go rancid very fast, while higher protein can last longer before it goes bad IF you can keep it dry and out of reach of animals. Then you obviously need to ration it on rainy days when not possible or waste of time to forage for food.Quote:
Originally Posted by finallyME
If you don't have a way to find and purify fresh water in this situation (N-VI) or in most remote areas you will die within 3 hours (daytime desert) or 3 days for sure. So the salt content of your food is not as negative a consideration for someone exerting energy in an outdoor lifestyle as its for someone with high blood pressure working in a white collar climate controlled office. Basically you need more salt living outdoors. If possible should be boiling water as often as possible, drink warm tea or just warm water often, keep a record of it minimum of 1/2 gallon per day drink with every meal or digestion does not work properly. When camping in hottest parts of Texas from July to August I drink up to 2 gallons of water per day, if I see any yellow in urine I drink more even if water is hotter than my body temp. I have been outdoors with white collar office workers (folks who exercise in AC gyms only) and they nearly lost it (vomited/fainted) due to lack of salts in their diet after only about 6 hours of exertion in the outdoors, basically they were not "conditioned" both physically and nutritionally.Quote:
Originally Posted by WalkingTree
I am not an expert on it but I have had a long discussion (or listen to lecture on "waivers") with a Lawyer friend on a long road trip to camping location. And I also talked to a TV producer about it. Basically even a very carefully written waiver does not protect the TV network from gross negligence, but the contestant does take on some risk. Most is the risk of transportation getting there like the two helicopters that collided in Argentina killing the French contestants from the "Dropped" show last March if you recall that tragedy. I think 10 people died including celebrities.Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarge47
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...lling-ten.html
In the case of this "Alone" show they were only a few hours way from rescue by land or sea, or by air if weather allowed for that. Risk of injury by wildlife was fairly unlikely as long as they did not hang food or eat in their sleep shelters like fools. Alan video recorded himself eating by the water in and an open area, and built a separate kitchen shelter. Experienced people do this in black bear and puma country, also wise in raccoon country. I have had those come up and beg for food. Once gave one garlic, it ran away, lol.
BTW I make sure all the adults READ!!! and sign waivers when they go on day trips or weekend trips with my friends and me. Kids must have their parents or legal guardians sign them. But I understand some of the weakness of these waivers (especially after long "talk" with lawyer 10 hours in car together, not on THAT topic the entire trip!). and that if anyone of us instructors does any thing negligent the waiver is useless in a court of law.
I could not find the exact blade he used but perhaps he will do a youtube video of items sometime. Key in this marine/saltwater environment is a 1080-1095 high carbon blade with all but bevel coated to protect. Then use any fairly fine grain stone to sharpen daily or even multiple times per day. You do not need to buy some special "Arkansas Stone". Many other stones will work depending on what blade is used for, for example mostly wood/bushcraft best not to get super sharp, leather strop not a good idea. What do you think Crashdrive? Except if you just really need a shave or something like that.Quote:
Originally Posted by NightSG
Watch his casting video if you have not already, get an idea of how he knows to use what he finds in the wild and his attitude toward this "challenge" versus a true "survival" situation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdG5JNg_Gxk
Edit: fairly good Kukri but probably not the one Alan used OKC Kukri Knife under $100 shop around.
https://ontarioknife.com/fixed-blade...i-knife-detail
Alans blade is the condor kukri. a few of the other forums and tube channels have confirmed that anyway from what I have read.
I believe the beans and legumes were a good choice but since the limit is 5lbs I would have cut back on them and added peanut butter. Calorie dense, name one animal that doesn't like it so it could be bait for traps, if natural peanut butter the oil has other uses as well. That is if they would allow it because the producers would not allow certain things even if on the list.
I agree that a good 3lbs felling axe or at least a forest ax would top my list followed by a mora styled blade as far as cutting tools. Being in Louisiana I did not always have that view but after getting out of my comfort zone and using an ax I find myself leaving the machete at home much more often and if it were for a longterm trip I will be taking the ax.
Sam has nothing to be ashamed of and I am happy for him and his new family. I called him the dark horse early on and as spot on with that. Congrats to Alan as well. Looking forward to seeing what changes they make to the show.