Earlier this year, the crew from Combat Flip Flop made a great showing on Shark Tank, securing funding that is taking their brand and vision to the next level. In case you missed their epic appearance, ABC will rebroadcast the episode tomorrow night, June 3rd.
We haven’t run one of these classic military movies for some time so I thought this would be a great way to get back into the groove.
About 10 years ago I was preparing to retire from the US Air Force and my friend, photographer Hans Halberstadt told me about a book project he was working on.
Hans told me it was going to be called “Battle Rattle” and be all about “the stuff a soldier carries.” I was pretty excited about the concept. Then, he asked me to write the foreword. I accepted the offer and set about writing.
Another friend of mine, Army Veteran Stephen Hilliard, was working as the director of R&D at the time for ATS Tactical. You may recognize his name from his current work with Blue Force Gear. He had written a primer entitled, “Packing For War In Southwest Asia” which has been published on the Lightfighter Internet forum. Hans read it and asked Stephen if he could include it in the book. Neither Stephen or I were paid for our work. Rather, we did it because of our passion for the topic. The publisher was notoriously cheap. In fact, I think Hans paid for my copy of the book.
The book was published later that year as part of the Battle Gear series by Zenith Press. “Battle Rattle” is out of print now but worth finding a copy if you are a conessieur of individual equipment.
Ten years on, I still think that it not only offers a good historical perspective, but that it continues to point to wear we are going.
Some of you may know that I write a column for the trade publication “Tactical Retailer”. “Is Bushcraft The New Prepping Trend?”, is my latest article.
While SHOT Show 2016 was my busiest ever, I didn”t see any major technology or product announcements. Everyone had new products, but they were incremental improvements. Additionally, everyone I spoke with was upbeat despite the slowdown in the worldwide economy.
Let’s face it, when times get tough, people turn to themselves. That’s how the Prepper movement started. But Prepping has hit its peak and people have begun to realize you can only store so much for future use and even a warehouse full of water and food won’t do you any good if you aren’t with it.
I’d like to discuss a “tactical” trend that’s starting to pick up steam. Regardless of whether you refer to it as fieldcraft, bushcraft or outdoor skills, the techniques that are part of this movement allowed our ancestors to make it day-to-day while they tamed this nation’s frontier. And while it’s seeing a resurgence here in America, bushcraft has been popular in Europe for quite some time with well organized groups and specialty stores.
Along with most of my generation, I learned my skills while growing up. I was a Boy Scout and honed them while camping and hunting. Later, I added to those skills while serving in the military by attending Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape training. However, not everyone has had these same opportunities. Today, even those in rural areas do not learn how to survive on their own for 72-hours or more, thanks to our modern standard of living.
Prepping might have been the foot through the door, but as many are beginning to learn, you never know when you’ll find yourself in a situation where you have to fend for yourself.
At SHOT Show 2016, there were more and more products aimed at survival, evasion and escape. Specialized items such as lockpick kits, fire starting kits, first-aid items, water purification and pocket survival kits have become increasingly popular, and there are multiple specialized suppliers who have stood up to meet the demand. My trip in March to the IWA Outdoor Classics in Germany only confirmed this.
Like I said before, these skills and the items to support them are intended to allow their user to survive and thrive in the backcountry. In some cases, the concept is to just get out of a risky area in order to make it to a safe haven, and in others, the idea is long-term survival and to live off the land. Both instances require skills as well as tools.
To read the rest of the article, visit www.tacretailer.com/2016/05/05/is-bushcraft-the-new-prepping-trend/. Industry folks might want to check out the whole publication.
Nick Koumalatsos was hired to take a team of scientists into Bolivia to uncover the potentially life-changing discoveries for the newest Discover Channel Series “Trailblazers”.
Triple canopy jungle can be one of the most dangerous places on earth.
Almost everything in the jungle tries to protect it self and that means it wants to hurt you. Harsh climates, dangerous terrain, poisonous plants and insects and hostile natives.
Everything from a woobie, to a machete in Nick’s Gear Load Out for Discovery Channel’s Trailblazers can be found here: www.nickkoumalatsos.com/the-guide/2016/5/3/the-trailblazers-load-out
Just like the title says, the Amazon Best Seller ‘Black Powder \\ Red Earth’ Season 2 is now available in its complete edition. The Complete edition features over 250 pages of content in one continuous volume.
blackpowderredearth.com/graphic_novels
Wealth and Finance International magazine (with a global audience of 130,000 subscribers) just awarded Guy Cramer of Hyperstealth Biotechnology Corp. “CEO of the Year in Canada for 2016”!
Harris Publications is the largest publisher of magazines in the United States, or should I say was the largest. Earlier today we found out that they are ceasing production of their hard copy magazines, closing their doors, effective tomorrow citing the “rapid ascendence of digital media”.
This is a major blow for those of use who have enjoyed their print coverage of the firearms industry.
However, a newly launched business plans to keep the websites, www.tactical-life.com and www.personaldefenseworld.com running.
