ESEE/ RAT Advanced Escape and Evasion Kit

If you frequently go to the wilderness, as a hunter, backpacker, or bushcrafter, you need to have a last ditch survival kit. Prepared individuals build small kits and call them PSK's, or personal survival kits. They are the last line of survival, if everything has gone wrong, and all your other gear has been lost, stolen, or destroyed. They are small enough to strap to your belt, or carry in a pocket, so that they are always on you. As a Special Forces medic once told me, "If it isn't strapped to you when everything goes sideways, you don't own it."

Generally here at Dragoon Solutions we advocate building your own survival kits. Usually that allows you to put together a kit that fits your needs specifically, without wasting money on something that you don't want or need. However, we have found a kit that meets a need, and leaves you with plenty of room for customization.

Randall's Adventure and Training/ ESEE Knives has been building no-nonsense survival gear and knives since 1997. Their equipment has been used in combat zones and law enforcement operations all over the world by warfighters and counter-narcotic special operations teams, and by every day men and women who know the importance of solid blades and survival equipment. If you have read much on this blog, you may have noticed we are big fans of ESEE knives. Recently, through a contest of theirs, we have come into possession of their Advanced Pocket Survival/ EE Kit. Read on to see our initial thoughts on this ready made Personal Survival Kit

The Bug Out Bag Series Part 1- Theory

 Part I- Bug out Bag Theory

What Is a Bug Out Bag?

  

If you could grab one thing on your way out of the house, knowing you may not be able to come back for anything else, what would that be?

    Imagine that tonight you wake up to the fire alarm blaring, and the smell of smoke on the air. You have time to get you and your family out (because you practice this, right?), but what now? Hopefully you are lucky enough to have some sort of support network to fall back on until life gets back to normal, but leaving home with nothing but the clothes on your back (at least that, hopefully) will instantly put you in a “survival” situation. Think about a different scenario. What if its not a fire that forces you out of your home? It could be a chemical spill, a weather emergency, or civil unrest. Any of these things could force you out of your home… possibly forever. It would be a scary thing to face unprepared. Having a Bug Out Bag can help you in any of these situations. 

Military style 72 hour bag

Read on after the break, and we will talk a bit about what the Bug Out Bag is, and what it is not.

Gear Review: Entrek Backup Utility

Recently, we left our carbon steel comfort zone here at Dragoon Solutions. Kyle picked up an Entrek USA Backup Utility, to see how the knife would fare as a small, light, all around field knife. The initial review is definitely a positive one. Stay tuned after the jump break to see what this little "knife with muscle" is all about.

What is Your Mindset?

   Most of the time when I wake up in the morning, everything is normal. It isn't much different than yesterday... same home, same car, same job, everything. Some small things may change, needing to scold a kid, maybe clean up a dog mess, but for the most part, our lives are scripted to a certain degree. Humans like to have structure in their lives. All of this holds true every day for most people, but every day, bad things happen around the world. Ive thought a lot about the people directly effected by 9/11, or the tornado in Joplin, MO, Hurricane Sandy, and other terrible events. More than likely, not one of them woke up thinking about that day being "The Day," where they would be an unwilling part on the opening salvo of the modern War on Terror, or where they would be thrust into a very real survival situation. Now, this is what drives me. Its is where my passion lies. It is my mindset.

I will Prevail.

Allow me to be clear. I do not live in fear. I live with the knowledge that any day could be my day, and that I need to, and will be prepared.

Mike
11FEB13

Our Stand on Equipment

   We recently got on to the topic of tactical gear, and we wanted to put a few things out to explain our point of view, and why we see gear the way we do. As we have said before, both of us here at Dragoon Solutions are former US Army soldiers. That gives us both an affinity towards the latest and greatest "sexy" gear, MOLLE, multicam, and all other things tactical. However, we also understand that the mission drives the equipment. You won't see us on a mock bug out wearing plate carriers and kevlars, because even though we love tactical gear, we aren't planning on going to war. We also both have experience in the medical field, both military and civilian, and that translates into our equipment and preparedness plans. Our IFAKs and medical kits are probably going to be more complex than the average person.

    To the point we, the Dragoons, are preparing for any situation in which our every day way of life may be compromised. The definition of survival is "The state or fact of continuing to live or exist, typically in spite of an accident, ordeal, or difficult circumstances." The definition of preparedness is "A state of readiness." Dragoon Solutions always seeks to continue to live in a state of readiness, whether or not there is an accident, ordeal or difficult circumstance. In other words, we are preparing from your most basic natural disaster (Yellow Situation, see the Dragoon Disaster Scale) or a full Black Situation. With that said, we generally hold no opinion on what may cause the situation, just that it MAY happen. We assess our threats, and continue to prepare, and the gear and supplies we procure are based on our mission, experience and knowledge.

    No matter the situation you are preparing for, put your money and time into the training and gear that will help you prevail in that situation. No matter what, remember that all the gear in the world won't save you if you don't have the will and knowledge to prevail. Work on your mindset and skillsets first, gear always comes second.

16JAN2013
Mike/Kyle

  

Tactical Equipment and Preparedness

Equipment for a Soldier, or for the Self Reliant?

    If you spend any time on survivalist or preparedness forums on the internet or prepper themed YouTube channels, you may have seen a marked increased interest in tactical equipment. Tactical equipment, tactical shooting... the word "tactical" has been attached to just about everything out there. I can think of a few different reasons, such as video games, combat simulation sports, and maybe most importantly, America's longest period of modern warfare. There are a lot more people these days that have had an exposure to tactical equipment, and brought that interest home.

There is nothing inherently wrong with any of that. Tactical gear sells. Like anything else, sexy sells. In the preparedness world, it is no different. It is hard to sell your point with a video about canning equipment, or freeze dried food. It is much easier to sell the newest "sexy" tactical equipment, rifle, or flashlight.  Again, there is nothing really wrong with that, it just creates a lot of noise to cut through, especially for a new prepper.

The picture above contains a ballistic plate carrier, Kevlar helmet, and "war belt," along with a combat load out of magazines for the carbine and handgun. To many, it looks like equipment only a warfighter in a combat zone would need. To others, it looks like a part of their preparedness equipment. Where do you fall in that spectrum?

Let's try to cut through the hype, and get to an understanding of how tactical equipment fits in to the whole picture of preparedness.