Table of contents for October/November #27 2018 in RECOIL OFFGRID

I recently attended traffic school for a speeding ticket. If ever there were a collection of armchair experts assembled in one room, this was certainly it, as well as a lesson on people’s inability to be objective about themselves. The instructor asked the class for a show of hands of everyone who considered themselves to be a good driver. Of course, everyone in the class threw up their hands — including me. As the class progressed, my lack of familiarity about the ever-changing laws became more apparent. I also couldn’t help but wonder how some of the people around me would even qualify for a library card, much less a driver’s license. Bottom line — I reluctantly accepted the fact that if I were such a good driver, I wouldn’t…

What’s this protest about?” my wife absentmindedly asked as she thumbed through Facebook on her phone. “More president hating or something about vegetable rights this time?” she mocked. The ride to our son Johnny’s game was taking longer than expected, and we were all getting frustrated with the slow pace. Earlier in the day, I had heard something on the radio about protests, and as the vehicles ground to a halt, the uncharacteristic evening traffic started to make sense. People with poster board signs, many with covered faces, began to fill the spaces between the idling cars. Some of the more energetic protesters started to jump onto car hoods and hurl objects at the gridlocked motorists. Then I saw it, a few cars ahead of us. Several men crowded around…

Tim MacWelch has been a survival instructor for more than 20 years, training people from all walks of life, including members from all branches of U.S. Armed Forces, the State Department, DOD, and DOJ personnel. He’s a frequent public speaker for preparedness groups and events. He’s also the author of three New York Times-bestselling survival books, and the new Ultimate Bushcraft Survival Manual. When he’s not teaching survival or writing about it, MacWelch lives a self-reliant lifestyle with his family in Virginia. Check out his wide range of hands-on training courses that are open to the public at www.advancedsurvivaltraining.com. Jason Squires is a defense attorney in excellent standing with the Arizona State Bar. In nearly 20 years, he has litigated and defended a multitude of criminal and civil cases, representing…

A 2016 article published by the American Automobile Association states that, on average, Americans are behind the wheel for 17,600 minutes per year. Yet most people are woefully underprepared to best utilize their vehicle in an emergency situation. This is usually not a result of willful neglect or even lack of effort. People simply don’t know what they don’t know about driving. And, like shooting, the number of reliable sources for quality information versus the number of people who need that information is simply depressing when pondered too seriously. We read about these situations in the news, but never think it’ll happen to us. What if you’re being chased? What if a simple “forgot to signal” mistake on your part provokes someone high on drugs to try running you off…

Fear of the dark is a natural human condition, but it’s not a lack of light that we fear — it’s a lack of awareness of our surroundings. In total darkness, our minds tend to wander to the myriad of unseen dangers that could be lurking in the shadows, leading to feelings of dread and powerlessness. As children, we worried about imaginary monsters and ghouls; as adults we’re unsettled by an awareness of the real threats in our vicinity, even if they’re as simple as a hidden tree root that could lead to a sprained ankle. Carrying a flashlight is one way to regain your vision after dark, but it occupies your hand and must be manually aimed. A headlamp bypasses these issues, naturally following your view and freeing up…

We also asked Capt. Graff and Search Specialist Muder to give us five takeaway lessons from their deployment that they were able to apply to their own lives. CALCULATE YOUR FUEL USE Capt. Rob Graff: I think harder now about making sure that I have enough fuel for my generators and figuring out exactly how long they’re going to run based on the fuel on-hand. This was an issue while I was deployed with my own house. I had fuel, and two different methods — propane and gasoline. And what I found out was that the propane was gone quick. It burns cleaner, but doesn’t last as long as regular gasoline. It also comes down to knowing what you can and can’t run with the generator. In my house now,…

1 MAKE & MODEL Hawke Endurance 30 WA SF 4-16x50 .223/.308 WEIGHT 1.23 pounds MSRP $480 URL us.hawkeoptics.com NOTES After your fridge has gone bare and the supermarkets have run dry, you’ll be left to your own devices when it’s TEOTWAWKI. And hopefully one of those devices will be a powerful scope for hitting big game at long distances. The Endurance 30 gives you a reticle that’s still accurate even if you’ve adjusted to maximum magnification. In this case, the wide-angle, second-focal-plane optic has a 100-yard zero and holdover aim points out to 600 yards, with the distances glass-etched. The Endurance features a 30mm monotube chassis, a 4-inch eye relief, and an 18-layer coated lens. It’s also shockproof, waterproof, and nitrogen purged. While the reticle might be a tad thin…

Prep I always have my SUV stocked with basic survival necessities. I break these into three categories: 1. People. Items people need to survive such as water, clothing, and self-defense items; 2. Vehicle. Goods to keep the vehicle functioning; 3. Mission-specific items. For example: things needed for my son’s baseball game. While traveling with a pregnant wife, the matter is further complicated because of emergency issues related to the unborn child. I must have a bag specifically for the wife stocked with essentials like birth certificates, insurance information, cash and credit/debit cards, and preparation for a hospital stay. People: While traveling anywhere you must have clothing to anticipate changes in temperature. Children have no concept of preparation, and extra care must be given to ensure each child has comfortable shoes…

Picture this — you’re at an ATM late at night by yourself when two larger men come up behind you. At first you think it’s two people waiting to withdraw money after you, but your spidey sense tells you that something’s off and their demeanor is discomforting. You have no CCW pistol or knife on you, and you never bothered to learn martial arts. If things go south, the odds won’t favor you as the victor. Suddenly you find yourself sucker punched in the back of the head, immediately followed by a few quick kicks to the rib cage and face after you hit the ground. Before you know it, the two assailants grab your wallet and quickly disappear into the night. Their reward? Your cash and ID. Yours? A…

Black Diamond ReVolt This headlamp offers a tightly focused white spotlight, diffuse white floodlight, and directly accessible red setting. Each can be activated individually, or both spotlight and flood can be used simultaneously. Controls are simple, and each light source can be precisely dimmed by holding down the power button. The ReVolt can run on common AAA disposables or the NiMH batteries it comes with — the latter set is rechargeable via a hidden micro-USB port, but offers substantially lower output (175 lumens) and runtime (75 hours). But at a sub-$50 street price, overall value is quite good. PROS: Three individually dimmable LEDs let you quickly access the exact type of light you need Lockout mode removes the risk of accidental activation in storage IPX8 waterproof to 1.1-meter immersion CONS:…

Prep One of the most important things I can recommend before hitting the road is to study a street map long and hard. I don’t care if you’re looking at a map of your hometown, an area you work in, or a vacation destination. Get to know the connections and choke points of the streets, bypasses, and highways through the area. This helps you find alternate routes and avoid congested areas. Once the city streets are familiar, take time to study the map again periodically, and bring the paper map with you in the vehicle. I’m not suggesting that you ignore your phone’s navigation apps or throw your Garmin out the window. On the contrary, use those tools as much as you like. But understand that nothing beats map study…

Ever since the aptly named Little Badger was released by Chiappa, it’s been highly regarded as a field, youth, and survival rifle. And it isn’t hard to see why. Regarding the end of the world as we know it — no, you won’t beat back totalitarian governments, nor hoards of zombies, with a wee single-shot .22LR. But when it comes to the backwoods it’s right at home. At under 3 pounds with a street price south of $200, the Chiappa Little Badger is an appealing choice. It comes equipped with military-style peep sights that any serviceman will be intimately familiar with, and a rather decent (but not great) trigger. While we found the factory sights to be more than adequate for our purposes, many have taken it upon themselves to…

The number of residential fires in the United States has steadily decreased over the past six decades thanks to advancements in detection and suppression. Still, the National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) reports that hundreds of thousands of house fires are reported every year leading to thousands of fire-related deaths and injuries. Protecting your family and your home from fires is an often overlooked, but critical need. Home fire protection most commonly includes the purchase and use of smoke alarms and fire extinguishers. These offer you the capability to extinguish a small fire, if you catch it in time, or to be warned of a bigger fire if you don’t. Those are crucial safety devices for the times a fire occurs inside your home. But what if the threat comes from…

Waiting on standby for hours with his crew of nine handpicked men next to the runway at NAS Jacksonville, Capt. Robert Graff of Florida Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 8 (FL USAR TF-8) finally got the phone call he’d been waiting for. Hurricane Irma had just made landfall in the Florida Keys as a Category 4 with wind gusts up to 130 mph. Communications with the area were almost non-existent, and rumors were everywhere that Key West was destroyed and bodies were floating in the streets. Speculation aside, Graff knew at least three things to be true. First, that the large, federal FEMA rescue teams were still gearing up and re-staging since the projected landfall location had changed so many times. If help were to arrive immediately, it wouldn’t…

Want to share your experiences with the community? We often publish lessons learned, survival stories, and other reader-submitted content on our site. Here are three examples you can peruse: Russ, a 68-year-old Army veteran, embarked on a 23-mile solo trek along the Colonial Parkway in Virginia. He shared some photos and thoughts after completing the journey. offgridweb.com/?p=13681 While working overseas in the African nation of Mozambique, CJ Lozano was detained by local police officers who began demanding cash. Quick thinking and preparedness helped him avoid being jailed under false pretenses. offgridweb.com/?p=5967 Bill Napier survived two Category 5 hurricanes — Katrina in 2005 and Harvey in 2017. Each time, his home and property were severely damaged, but he learned valuable lessons from the disasters. offgridweb.com/?p=11332…