Two essential items...

RomeoMike wrote:
I have no jungle experience but have plenty in the canyons, including
narrow ones, of Utah and Arizona. Also in Ponderosa pine forests.I've
yet to be in a place where the SAT phone wouldn't work. Just my personal
experience. Is it possible that Les was dramatizing his situation for
the show? I'm not familiar with it.

You need an unobstructed view of the sky for a sat phone to work
reliably. Foliage
absorbs microwaves - as others have pointed out. The solution, if you
are under a canopy,
is to find a clearing - if you can.

I personally prefer the survival show that has the ex SAS guy. Unlike "Les"
, he does not suddenly find an old motorcycle laying on the ground.

The ep. with the ex SAS guy and the suspected bear was excellent.

B2Z


"B A R R Y" wrote in message
et...
RomeoMike wrote:
Is it possible that Les was dramatizing his situation for the show?

Possibly. However, he rarely talks about the backup plan during the show,
except when it seems to be not as usable as he expected. G In another
episode (Adrift), he was pointing out how the radio he expected to use to
communicate with his "babysitter" boat failed, and they were unable to
make contact on the open seas. His solid backup plans are described on
his web site.

The episode where he mentioned the sat phone issues took plane in the
Costa Rican jungle, with high, heavy foliage coverage. He pointed out the
the phone was plenty usable on the coast and in rare clearings. The issue
came up when he was in an area with solid square miles of canopy, pointing
out the lack of signal on the phone and the inability of an airborne
rescue crew to find him if he was injured. He didn't mention having any
kind of ELT, and he doesn't normally hide such things.

Part of the show's purpose is to demonstrate survival techniques available
when you've got very little. It's less of "Isn't Les great and amazing"
and more of "You could do this if you had to", and "You will die if you
DON'T do THIS." He usually carries only a few very basic and likely to be
carried items, like a Leatherman tool, and is allowed to use whatever the
situation might normally include. One of the episodes was an Arctic plane
crash, where he used broken airplane parts, wiring, and small quantities
of fuel to survive in winter Arctic wilderness.

While the show includes _some_ drama, as it _is_ TeeVee G, I've still
found every show genuinely interesting from an outdoorsman's perspective.
Someone with military survival training might find it silly.

And again, I'd personally still carry the phone... G

Bravo Two Zero wrote:
I personally prefer the survival show that has the ex SAS guy. Unlike "Les"
, he does not suddenly find an old motorcycle laying on the ground.

The ep. with the ex SAS guy and the suspected bear was excellent.

Do you remember the name of the show? I'd like to set my TiVo to keep
an eye out for it.

FWIW, Les doesn't "find" anything. The stuff used in each scenario is
how he got there. G For instance, the motorcycle was supposed to be
what he was riding in the desert, not planning to be out there or
equipped for more than a few hours, and it broke down.

Think about it... When suddenly stuck in a remote area, anything we
have with us, including what's left of the aircraft, (or car,
motorcycle, boat, horse...) is fair game.

B A R R Y wrote:
Someone with military survival training might find it silly.
G

On the contrary, I find it anything but silly.

Both shows are well done and offer excellent survival tips. Of the
two, I'm slightly more impressed by the ex-SAS guy because he purposely
risks his life to demonstrate survival techniques such as the time he
jumped into icy water, extricated himself, and dried his only clothes.
His only concession was he started a fire beforehand (still had only
embers to get it going again after he was in the water). The shock of
entering freezing water literally can kill you. He's also parachuted
into trees and jumped off a cliff into water a long ways down. The guy
is crazy (or ex-SAS)!

150flivver wrote:

Both shows are well done and offer excellent survival tips. Of the
two, I'm slightly more impressed by the ex-SAS guy because he purposely
risks his life to demonstrate survival techniques such as the time he
jumped into icy water, extricated himself, and dried his only clothes.

Can you recall the name of the show?

150flivver writes:

The guy is crazy (or ex-SAS)!

Scandanavia must be very rigorous in its pilot training.

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Not the SAS you are thinking of.

Mxsmanic wrote:

The guy is crazy (or ex-SAS)!



Scandanavia must be very rigorous in its pilot training.

Man vs Wild

http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/ma...out/about.html


"B A R R Y" wrote in message
t...
150flivver wrote:

Both shows are well done and offer excellent survival tips. Of the
two, I'm slightly more impressed by the ex-SAS guy because he purposely
risks his life to demonstrate survival techniques such as the time he
jumped into icy water, extricated himself, and dried his only clothes.

Can you recall the name of the show?

Bravo Two Zero wrote:
Man vs Wild

http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/ma...out/about.html

Thanks! I'll sic my TiVo on it.

150flivver wrote:
B A R R Y wrote:
Someone with military survival training might find it silly.
G

On the contrary, I find it anything but silly.

Both shows are well done and offer excellent survival tips. Of the
two, I'm slightly more impressed by the ex-SAS guy because he purposely
risks his life to demonstrate survival techniques such as the time he
jumped into icy water, extricated himself, and dried his only clothes.
His only concession was he started a fire beforehand (still had only
embers to get it going again after he was in the water). The shock of
entering freezing water literally can kill you. He's also parachuted
into trees and jumped off a cliff into water a long ways down. The guy
is crazy (or ex-SAS)!

Bear Grylls' show is Man v Wild. The credits list someone else
as the "survival expert".

I find the comment that he's ex-SAS a bit too much to
believe. Based on his age, and his bio, he would have been in his
late teens while in the SAS. I thought the SAS only accepted
currently enlisted army who've been in a fair amount of time. Plus, the
way the bio is worded .. "served with the SAS" rather than "served
in the SAS".

Personally, I prefer Les' attitude of avoiding a situation where you
might get into trouble.