A Place That Offers Basic Type Training

[Matt In Oklahoma]

http://www.backwoods.com/stores-and-events.html

I found this place a while back and went to one of their classes on water purification. My knowledge was limited in this area with all the different products out there. These folks broke open one of everything on the shelf and covered it to include having water availble to try it. The Instructor who taught it is a hiker herself and knew alot as she uses the stuff and is not just a salesperson. Thats something I can't say for a class I went to at a larger sporting goods place. Their "teacher" couldn't have started a fire with gas and charcol:mad:
I don't know if they are in your area or not but if so check them out. Of course their hope is you will buy stuff while there which is fine and I oblige them on that if it is reasonably priced. It's a good way to get some basic knowledge and even refresh or learn what the new products are and do.
The upcoming basic classes being offered in my area the next few months are:
Survival Series: Shelter (it appears to focus on tarp shelters)
Survival Series: Navigation
Climbing 101
Backpack Fitting Clinic
Tent Display Extravaganza (great if your in the market for one)
Freeze Dried Food Tasting (mmmmm, my favorite subject, food)
Survival Series: Water Procurement
Survival Series: Edible Plants
Gear Care & Repair

[Knobster]

Well shucks... closest place is over 8 hours away.

[Cimarron]

Visiting them on line they seem really proud of thier gear..kinda high prices. Gonna go and visit them in store in a couple of weeks.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Visiting them on line they seem really proud of thier gear..kinda high prices. Gonna go and visit them in store in a couple of weeks.

Like I said "if it is reasonably priced" thats my way of saying dont fall into the retailers trap just because.

[jloneill17]

$425.00 for a sleeping bag sounds pretty reasonable....if I made 250k a year. Backwoods is looking for people with some deep pockets. That isn't me. Even if i did have deep pockets, i'm not spending 425.00 on a sleeping bag.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

$425.00 for a sleeping bag sounds pretty reasonable....if I made 250k a year. Backwoods is looking for people with some deep pockets. That isn't me. Even if i did have deep pockets, i'm not spending 425.00 on a sleeping bag.

Hahha if I spend 425 on a bag I wont be alone in it thats for sure and it will have a snowcone machine!!!! LOL

[splat23]

Matt,

Thanks for putting this out. I live close to the store and didn't even know that it was there. I just found a climbing class and medical class I was looking for.

Thanks Again!

Splat

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Matt,Thanks for putting this out. I live close to the store and didn't even know that it was there. I just found a climbing class and medical class I was looking for.Thanks Again!Splat

Cool, glad it helped!

[RyanMac]

Dude, this rocks. I am checking it out now. Thanks.

[barfife]

Hahha if I spend 425 on a bag I wont be alone in it thats for sure and it will have a snowcone machine!!!! LOL

You did mean a 12v snowcone machine, right?

Appreciate your post...but that sure is a long way from Georgia

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Went to another free class they had today with Cimarron. It was rock climbing and they partnered with a local gym that had a rock wall.
Make them forearms burn!!




does this harness make my behind look big?LOL

Staying on the green (hard) trail


I wasnt to sure about being hooked up to an oversize catfish yoyo, rather than a person on belay, but it seemed to work and was apparently fatman rated as I failed on the difficult trail! LOL

Cimarron may post some of his stuff later
We had a good time, learned a few things, tested ourselves and got a good forearm workout.

[Cimarron]

I was thinking 'how hard would it be to climb a plastic wall that had all kind of hand/foot holds'...Harder than I could imagine apparently Lol.



Yup, the "catfish yoyo" made me a little nervous and there is no using it as a sort of counter balance/anchor in helping you pull your self up. It is purely for when you fall.

I second the difficulty on the green trail. The angle in the vid does not do it justice to how high the next hand hold is, it is quite a jump to get it..which I failed in getting it.

Good test of endurance and strength. learn what a fella can and can't do..I gotta keep up with the gym and boy my fore arms are on fire!

[JUSTIFIED]

Looks like a blast! That does look like the majority of your weight is being supported by your forearms! So who finally beat who to the top?

[Cimarron]

Looks like a blast! That does look like the majority of your weight is being supported by your forearms! So who finally beat who to the top?

We really wasn't racing or competing against each other, at least I wasn't anyway. I looked at it more of what I could do, me against that wall. I have been repelling but that was 20+ years ago and that is going down not up so it's definitely a different work out.

[Matt In Oklahoma]

Looks like a blast! That does look like the majority of your weight is being supported by your forearms! So who finally beat who to the top?

Don't even think we thought about racing. We were there to learn and gain skill and try not embarrass ourselves to bad. If anything the rock won LOL if you follow the colors on particular rocks they form a trail and some were extremly hard being distanced out and at steep angles. I haven't done it in 9 yrs and have had arm surgery since then and that combined with age truthfully I wasnt even sure I could do it. I think we both suprised ourselves however and did very well. The first climb we just climbed using everything to get the feel and become familar with the equipment. The hardest part was jumping off at the top and trusting that oversize yoyo to not drop me like a rock. Most of them doing it weighed bout 150-165 or less and i'm 215 so that was a mental issue for me as i've only done it with people I trusted on belay. We made several climbs and began following the trails laid out and both attempted the most difficult one and made it most of the way.
We got outside the box (being fort living room) and did something different that has the potential to help, learned a few things and got a good forearm burn on something besides weights, we communicated with each other during the exercise and enjoyed the fellowship of LMIs all for the price of gas getting there.