<commit_before><commit_msg>update file<commit_after>---
layout: post
title:  Equipment - Choosing the Right Pack
date:   2016-02-15  
image:  images/@stock/10.jpg
excerpt:  Function and Comfort in the Survival Trial Arenas 

categories: about
tags: survival trial, about, training, 
author: <NAME>
comments:  true
---

I see a multitude of packs come through the ST Arenas, everything from custom packs from prominent manufacturers to the military issue ALICE Pack.  Like footwear, the pack is a key piece of equipment in the Survival Trial Arena.  Select the wrong one, you will struggle and fight it the entire time.  

The key to choosing the proper equipment is understanding the Survival Trial Arenas.

## ST Arenas

The goal with all Survival Trial Arenas is to create situations that revolve around our lives, in as relevant of a way as possible.  This is the challenge for me as the Creator, to build an overall experience that will stay with every Competitor long after the Trials are over.  This is also the fun part because it helps me become a more capable person.

But Survival Trial is Life.  When approaching equipment preparation, one should begin with, “What would I do if this were real?”

2016 has an updated format for Survival Trial that revolves around a consistent storyline.  The Trials have been a “Choose Your Own Adventure,” with me not dictating the means in which Competitors get to/from locations, but this year I am building a narrative around what is taking place in the ST Arena.  If you have been following the newsletter, you have been receiving updates on the state of affairs in the Daybreaker Arena.  They are a good starting point in preparing for the ST Arena.

These reports are emulating what we are seeing around us in our current lives which we should be paying attention to, and things that have happened in the past.  I look at things like, what would happen if our power went out for a couple of weeks, like we see sometimes in bad snowstorms up North?  What if I found out the water that comes out of the tap was poisonous, like in Flint MI?  What would I do if were sitting at my desk at work and heard gunfire?  This is the base concept of the Survival Trial Arenas.

## Packing to Survive

I used to require a packing list much like a military deployment, compete with penalties for missing equipment.  This is something that goes back to layouts in the Army, where attention to detail meant success or failure in a mission.  If you were missing a Mission Essential Item while on the streets of Baghdad, this could mean Life or Death for yourself, or worse: your friends. 
 
The previous Trials had specific items on them that Competitors would use if they encountered a Situation in the ST Arena.  I changed this in 2015 for two reasons:

1.	Cost involved.  One should not have to buy new pieces of gear to compete in Survival Trial.

2.	Personal Preparation:  I would rather you compete with the minimal amount of gear and use your number one survival tool:  **your brain** to resolve the situation.  

If I were forced on foot to move in an area that may or may not be friendly, what would I take with me?  If there was a possibility that I may have to carry something awkward and heavy, but essential, how would I do this? 

### Backpack

There are a number of backpacks on the market that are designed to integrally house and carry items.  Most have a main pocket with several inner/outer pockets to put things in.  Some have scabbards for firearms; most lack an internal frame.  There are some packs that have rods and plastic inserts to add rigidity, but are mainly just large bags with several pockets.  I own one: an Eberlestock Gunslinger 2 pack.
  
![Backpack]({{ site.url }}/images/articles/pack/3.jpg)
  
  
I used this pack in the 2011 Spartan Death Race in Vermont and fought it the entire 45 hours.  It is not a bad pack, it was the wrong choice for the event.  I carried a log that was saturated with water for the entire time and because I lacked rigidity in my pack, I had no way to secure it.  It flopped side to side the entire time and caused more work for me.  It was a good test of patience and a good lesson for the future.

### Rucksack

A Rucksack incorporates the pack and an external frame together, with the pack attached to the frame.  The military ALICE (All-purpose, Lightweight, Individual Carrying Equipment) Pack is a very good example of a versatile rucksack.  Understanding that all military equipment is provided by the lowest bidder (for the Infantry anyways…), the ALICE Pack offers simplicity and strength.  I have personally dropped them out of trucks and helicopters, jumped with them out of fixed wing aircraft and always relied on them to hold together with me on every mission.  When invading Iraq in 2003, I carried everything that I needed to survive in my ALICE Pace and lived out of it for several months before the supply chain caught up with us.

![Rucksack]({{ site.url }}/images/articles/pack/alicepack.jpg)

I have several years of experience with this type of pack in some very austere conditions.  I know that I can take a pack like this into any situation, carry well over 120lbs of equipment and survive.  I do not need extra pockets to carry more things.  I need to carry what I need.

### Pack Frame

![Pack Frame]({{ site.url }}/images/articles/pack/1.jpg)

The Pack Frame is just a sturdy frame with chest straps, with or without a folding shelf in the back, designed to carry weight.  The interesting thing about this setup is how incredibly versatile it can be.  When hunting, this is a very good option in carrying game out of the field back to basecamp.  In trekking, one can carry a series of bags lashed to the frame to increase ease of access for equipment.  This is what I suggest for the Survival Trial Arena.

![Pack Frame]({{ site.url }}/images/articles/pack/5.jpg)


Pack Frames are usually aluminum, but I have seen steel tubing welded together.  The folding shelf comes in handy in supporting odd-shaped items or getting the injured to help.  My current set up is a pack frame with bungee cords and ratchet straps.  Bags can be anything, from garbage bags to gym bags, whatever supports your survival goal.  Overall, the pack frame does not limit what can be carried.  

## Conclusion

Think hard about what you will be carrying in the Survival Trial Arena.  If you are doing this, then you are thinking about what you would potentially carry in real life.  Weigh what you own versus what you would like, as far as packs go.  Outside of natural or man-made disasters, consider *realistic* situations that you may encounter where you live.  What would cause you to want to leave your home and if you choose to leave, what are taking with you?  

Finally, how are you going to carry it?  



## About the Author:

[<NAME>](http://jonweiler.com/) is the creator and coordinator of Survival Trial.  Beginning in 2011 with a concept of blending an Adventure Race with real world Survival Situations, Jon has forged the Survival Trial as the Ultimate Test.  

![Survival Trial Creator - <NAME>]({{ site.url }}/images/jonweiler.jpg)



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