SPEAR Lesson 7 Commo 1.2 Cell Phone, Land Line and Radio

Spear Survival

Core Training
Lesson 7 of 25
Commo 1.2

Cell phone, Land line and Radio

On a day to day basis the cell phone is going to be the number one communication tool that you have.  With smart phones that are no less than a computer in your pocket you are rarely more than a couple taps away from any information that you want.  As we discussed in the previous lesson there are ways to enhance the use of these devices but today I want to give you a simple explanation on how these things work and what the weaknesses are.
     Not to get into great detail at this level of training but you need to understand some simple lessons of radio waves.  Yes your cell phone transmits on radio waves too.  Radio waves come in an array of frequencies from HF (high frequency) which in reality is the lowest frequencies that you need to be concerned with to VHF (very high frequency) which is where you will find most transmissions today from your car radio and personal walkie talkies.  UHF (ultra high frequencies) are where your cell phones live.
     There is a lot more to this then just that but for now that will do.  The next thing to know is that is that the higher the frequency the shorter the wave and the smaller the antenna.  So the bigger the antenna the farther it will transmit.  (you can't hook an old tv antenna up to your phone to increase your range-it just doesn't work like that)  As an example: a ham radio operator transmitting on HF is using an antenna the size of his house can talk to anyone around the world if the conditions are right.  Your cell phone needs towers that are almost line of site to be able to transmit and receive.  That is why there are so many cell phone towers.  The kink is that those towers are usually located as high as they can be to create the most direct line to the devices they serve putting them right in the danger zone of bad storms.
     If you travel into the woods you won't have any service at all unless you happen to stay close to a tower that supplies a more rural area.  In order for cell phone companies to have coverage everywhere they quite literally have to put a tower and antenna everywhere.  When the population isn't large enough it becomes cost prohibitive and there are just zones with no coverage.

Land Lines.  A land line is a hard wired phone in your house or place of business that doesn't rely on radio waves. (use of satellites by the companies excluded)  When you can pick up your phone, dial a number and talk to someone across town you are using a land line.  Typically the term doesn't separate the use of cordless phones within the house but here we must make that clear.  The reason is that if the power goes out then so does your cordless phone.  You will need a good old fashion corded phone to get through in a severe power outage.  Remember that even if you don't have a phone hooked up and paying for service that the provider still have to allow the use of 911 services from that phone line.  If you don't have a house phone because you rely on your cell phone you should still invest in an inexpensive corded phone to plug in just in case of an emergency.  (when you plug the phone in there should be a dial tone, if not call your local phone carrier and get that fixed)

Radio.  We discussed above about how radio frequency effects antenna size and that determines transmission distance.  I want to discuss some basic ideas of ways to get better connected with your family in an emergency.  UHF hand held radios that use GMRS & FRS (General Mobile Radio Service & the Family Radio Service) are a great addition to your commo equipment.  These are the small walkie talkies that you see in the stores that say they have a 36 mile range or something like that. This might be in the deserts of Arizona that they are good for that distance.  Remember UHF small antenna-short transmission distance.  It is actually good that the distance is small because you would here lots of other people talking on these channels in an emergency.
     You may have company on these frequencies in an emergency but when the power is out for a couple of days the people who have to capability to charge them will be greatly declined.  There may actually come a point in an emergency where it is helpful to have multiple members of your community on a single frequency.  The down side of these radios is that they have a short distance and they will be used by lots of people but if you have members of your family going off is search of food or supplies then having a way of staying connected will be worth it.
     There are other options for group communication that we will cover in upcoming lessons.  For basic radio communications you can't beat a low cost set of radios to keep your family connected.


If you haven't read the previous lessons yet I suggest that you do now to get up to date with the training thus far.  Moving forward there is a lot more hands on practice required.  Practice the skills that you learn and expand upon the things that you learn.  Your goal is to improve your chances of survival in an emergency.  This course is designed to be a road map for you to start from or to fill in the blank spots.

This is lesson 7 of 25 of the Core training course of the Sage Institute.  Up next Lesson 8 Navigation 1.1

Survival Preparedness The Martial Arts Way

Survival Preparedness

The Martial Arts Way

I don't know of any college or university that offers a masters degree in survival or preparedness.  You will never become an expert by reading books, blogs or YouTube videos.  You will know what you could do when things go wrong but that doesn't make you an expert. Does it?

Of course not.  If you were an expert in survival and I said that you could become an expert in front of your computer you would probably stop reading right there.  The truth is that the things that you learn in books and online are great sources of information but without real world practice they are going to be hard to pull off in a crisis.

So how do you do it? Besides packing a backpack with a wool blanket and a spork and heading into the woods for a year, how can you become an expert in survival?  Perhaps you have been interested in survival and preparedness for years now and have been bouncing around from one topic to another only to realize that there is still so much you could learn.  Or perhaps you have just been through a crisis in your life and have vowed that next time you will be better prepared.

You can become a survival expert the same way that you become a martial arts expert, a good teacher and lots of practice.

The path to becoming a martial arts expert "black belt" is really quite simple.  You start your training as a white belt which requires you to humble yourself to the rest of the class.  You can then engage in the lessons appropriate to your level.  Most students find this hard and want to practice the harder flashy techniques that they see the black belts doing.  The instructor has to keep them focused on the multiple repetitions that they must complete to make it to the next level.

The secret here that most people don't know is that when a black belt has to use their skill to defend themselves 99% of the techniques that they will use are those same white belt techniques that they learned as new students.  This doesn't happen by accident it is the goal all along.  

Let me describe how a martial arts technique is mastered and then show the relevance to survival skills.

When a student first learns a technique they are taught how to stand in the proper stance and how to balance their body before they even start to move.  Next they are allowed to slowly practice the technique, let’s say a front kick.  They extend their leg over and over again until it seems like it might fall off.  What this is doing is producing muscle memory and conditioning of the muscles that are used in that kick.  

When they have practiced enough that their kick looks good and is completed without losing their balance then they own that kick, but they haven't mastered it.

After owning the kick they now have to make it effective.  By adding speed and power the likelihood of success of this kick is increased.

Once the kick is fast and strong it is time to learn when to use it.  Sparring practice emphasizes the timing and opportunity to use this kick.  They continue to practice over and over with repetitions and sparring exercises until the final plateau is reached where they have mastered the kick-Thoughtless application. (When they can use that technique without even thinking about it)  It becomes a natural reaction to the situation.

This isn't the end though for the student.  There is more than one technique to any system.  The student must master them all to become a black belt.  They don't master one and then start on another.  They learn a set of techniques for each belt that they obtain.  Usually the techniques of one level are just slightly different from the previous level so it enhances the mastery of the base technique.  They progress up the belt ranks getting better and more capable as they go.

That is the technical part of becoming a black belt.  There is another side, a more important transformation that happens to the student throughout this journey.  As they continue to make their techniques more and more refined looking at them with an enhanced level of scrutiny, they begin to do that to their character as well.  They don't judge themselves by a set of skills but more a set of values.  They become black belts.  When the belt goes on their uniform it is merely a representation of what they have become.  The belt doesn't make them black belts, their dedication to personal development does.

To become an expert in survival you need to have levels of training that allows for you to start as a humble beginner and to build upon basic skills until they become second nature.  You first must learn skills like building fires and finding food.  Then you learn to do them better and faster.  Eventually you do them with a level of confidence that takes them off your crisis worry list.

When you own the skills, like building fire, you then learn the best application of that skill.  Like where to build it and how to gain the most benefit from it. You learn to make it in the snow or with a bow drill.  You master that skill.  But there are more skills to learn.

There are more skills to learn in survival than in the martial arts but they require less practice as they will likely not need a reaction as fast as combat.  You will be able to think your way through a crisis using your knowledge and experience together to succeed.

The final step and most similar feature between the martial arts and survival is the black belt mentality.  If it is practiced with the same level of personal perfection required for the simple front kick it will elicit the same response in the student transforming them into an expert, one that doesn't need a belt to prove it.

There are more complexities in the martial arts than just these few that I listed here but this is the foundation to all the fighting arts.  The techniques may be different but the goal is the same.  In the martial arts we have an expression that says "there are many ways to the top of the mountain but the view from the top is the same".  Survival is just another way up the mountain.

SPEAR Lesson 6 Commo 1.1

Spear Survival

Core Training
Lesson 6 of 25
Commo 1.1

Commo, or communications, is an essential part of everyday life.  We live in a constantly connected world where information and people are only a couple of seconds away.  The cell phone has changed the face of communications from  a house phone  to these little devices that fit in our pockets and we take everywhere.  

     Communications as a basic need serves the purpose of informing us about what is going on and connecting us to members of our group/family.  Primitively there weren't any forms of electronic communication.  Information was delivered in person.  People had to go to see somebody else to ask questions or discuss issues.

      

Lets look at the everyday situation first and how we can be better prepared.  Knowing how important our communication devices are to our daily lives we can do a few small things to ensure that we can keep them running longer.  The battery is the weakest link that we have control over with our phones.  Having the ability to charge your phone when away from home is important.  You may have had good luck with your phone lasting all day and haven't had to get a car charger yet.  Perhaps you have a wall charger at work and can charge your phone there as well.  But what happens if you get stranded in your vehicle and your phone runs out of battery.

(Did you know that a car battery that is too dead to start your car still can be used to charge your phone?)

The car charger should be in every vehicle that you have.  At a price of less than $10 each it is low cost peace of mind.  Inside your core bag you should carry a usb cord for your phone, a wall adapter for that cord and an external battery charging device.

The external charging device is a low weight addition to your core bag that will increase you communication ability if you are on foot and away from your vehicle.

If we change scenarios to a longer lasting emergency, communication takes on a whole new meaning.  We are no longer talking about getting a text out about picking up a gallon of milk on the way home or downloading a cute kitten video.  We are now back to needing to know what is going on and if people are safe.  In an immediate crisis your phone will be all that you have but might not work well or at all with the cell frequencies taken over by emergency services and thousands of people trying to use them at once.  If you and your family have already established a rally point then you can make a plan to meet there or back at home in an emergency.

When the emergency is large enough that it shuts the power off for a few days you will likely have no cell reception as the cell towers require power to operate.  Radio communications and television will be all you have left.  The problem with these forms of communications is that you can listen and watch but you can't send anything out.  Eventually, if the crisis continues beyond a week then even tv and radio may go off the air or your ability to generate electricity might be gone.  The average american doesn't have a communication plan beyond this because they haven't needed it yet.

In a worse case scenario when the world is in crisis and society is falling apart communications will be critical for many reasons.

1. Connecting with family members to ensure their safety
2. Receiving information from government and emergency service of the state of the situation
3. As a warning device of potential dangers (rioting, looting or severe weather)
4. Community information 

The purpose of this lesson is to demonstrate the importance of communications so that you won't take it for granted and can plan ahead to keep it going.  Commo will be expanded upon greatly in higher levels of SPEAR training covering ways to improve your communication ability in an situation.  At this level of training, get a charger for your vehicle and pack the listed items in your core bag.  Review the rally point with your family and discuss when you will meet there.  Discuss the time frame when they will meet at home is communications are not available in an emergency.

The last thing you want to happen is to be stuck in the dark not knowing what is going on in an emergency.  Plan ahead to keep yourself connected.

SPEAR Lesson 5 Load 1.3 Tools Beyond Total Load

Load 1.3 Tools Beyond Total Load

The "stuff" that we acquire in our quest to better prepared for the world can be roughly broken down into three main areas: 

• Gear that you carry with you
• Gear that you keep in your vehicle
• Gear that you keep at your home 

You carry your core bag with you.  We will be building upon that in future lessons.  You have your total load for you vehicle and your home which defines what you need to have to make a hasty retreat from your home.  So this lesson is about the "stuff" that you can/should have at your home to be better prepared.

I bet that you can already guess some of the things I am going to list here.  Batteries, candles, generator, fuel etc.  You would be correct on all of these but there is more to it than that.  Lets start with batteries.  Did you know that the new led flashlights will last three times as long as a conventional bulb flashlight?  Did you know that those cheap batteries you get at the discount store for next to nothing have a much shorter shelf life and might not even work when you need them?  Let me just ask you this:

Do you have a flashlight or two that is ready to go right now if the lights went out?

I hope the answer to that is yes because when the lights go out the only way that you can do anything is with light.  Imagine now that the power goes out and stays out.  How long will your light last.  The simple answer to this problem is a small solar generator and rechargeable batteries.  A couple of sets of rechargeable batteries could last you for months if the grid went down.

Candles are the second choice for light but given the fact that we aren't used to using candles for light and haven't developed the necessary safety practices I wouldn't recommend them without first practicing.  People a hundred and fifty years ago used candles everyday and were quite practiced in keeping that small flame from burning down there house.  We use candles as a novelty these days more for the aroma or ambiance.  If given the choice of spending your hard earned money on candles or rechargeable batteries then skip the candles.

Power!  Electricity is king in our world.

  I don't know if you have ever imagined what it would be like if we didn't have it.  If it just went out and didn't come back on for months.  Electricity is the glue that binds our society together and without it things would quickly fall apart.  We can prepare for the power staying off for months and this way we will be better prepare if the it goes out for a couple of hours.
     Whenever there is a storm that blows down some branches and takes out some power lines you can bet that the hardware stores are going to be overrun the following day as people purchase generators for there home.  This has become a common theme for every storm.  Generators are a fine investment if you know how to keep them running for more than one storm.  Generators that were purchased last year for a storm and put in the back of the garage will probably not start again without mechanical intervention.  Gasoline has a shelf life of about three months.  Stabilizers can increase that to about a year but eventually it will go bad.
The best practice is to drain to gas out of your machine and run it till it runs out of fuel in the line.  Keep fuel stored in five gallon containers that you can put into you vehicle once a month and refill with fresh fuel.

Investing in a propane generator will cost you  more in the beginning but the fuel will stay fresh indefinitely and the engine runs cooler,easier and quieter.  This is a far better choice than the gasoline model.

Power can also be generated at home with solar panels or wind turbines.  There are more options than those but those are the biggest.  The problem with this is that they are only as good as the sun or the wind that they receive.  I would recommend investing in a small solar panel kit like the Harbor Freight set that will be big enough to run your most essential items and to charge batteries.
 These units are easy to use and will give you a huge step up in your preparedness.

The next item on the preppers home purchase list should be some good quality garden equipment.

1. Spade shovel and flat shovel
2. garden rake
3. bow saw and ax 
4. splitting maul 

These tools are very handy to have around the house just for the everyday needs but in a long term survival situation they will allow you to do so much more than you could without them.  From digging hole for trash or sewage to processing firewood to keep your family warm they will be worth the cost of investment.

The final item I want to add to this list is a wood stove.  Now there are many other items that you can add to your inventory that will help you survive but nothing as essential as this.  A wood stove will allow you to heat your home and family without relying on the fuel in your generator and whether or not you can get more.  It will allow you to boil water to make it safe to drink.  It will allow you to cook food as well as make tea and coffee which will be huge for moral.

To use a wood stove is dangerous if you don't understand the dangers so educate yourself on how to keep the flue clean and storage of combustibles around your stove.

These four things are a great place to get started in getting yourself and your family prepared for whatever may come.  This is level one of many.  The farther you go in your training the better you will face an emergency.  I know that some of these items are costly but start the process of educating yourself on your options and making the best choice for you and your family.  All of these items can be acquired at a low cost if you take the time to look.  Second hand generators are cheap because they won't start.  You can convert them to propane with a kit available online.  Garden tools are great yard sale finds as well as wood stoves.  If you avoid the fancy glass front units and stick to a basic traditional design you will save hundreds in this purchase.

What tool or item could you not live without in an emergency situation?

Please post you comment below

SPEAR Survival Lesson 4 Load 1.2

SPEAR Survival
Core Training
Lesson 4 of 25
Load 1.2 Total Load and Load Plan

      

     Now that we have covered the selection of a rally point for your family, your overall goal for preparedness and your everyday carry bag we need to cover the load plan for your home and vehicle.  Think of it like a map that tells you where things are but you get to draw it.  With some practice and forethought you can save yourself a ton of headaches in the future by putting things where you are going to need them.  For your home it is essential to have the things that you are going to load in your vehicle near an exit that is close to where you can load the vehicle.  Sounds obvious right?  Imagine that right now there is a knock on your door and it is a member of law enforcement and they are directing you to evacuate your home.  It doesn't matter why.  The reality is that you may be gone for an extended period of time.  You have only ten minutes to get out.  What do you bring? Where does it go?  Will it all fit? Where the heck did you put it?

    Total load and load plan is a simple list of what you are going to bring with you in the case of an emergency when you need to leave your home.  

     You may be going to many different places but having a simple plan of what you want to have in your vehicle and where it is going to go will be a great advantage to you.  How many times have you been somewhere and wished that you had a certain tool with you.  Or you broke down on the side of the road and your natural instinct is to fix the problem and get on your way, except, there isn't a single thing in your vehicle to help you fix the problem.  Now if this has happened to you I am sure that in the back of your mind you were telling yourself that when you get home to put some tools in the vehicle. Perhaps some of you actually put together a tool kit for the car only to take it out when you needed it for some project,only to forget to put it back.
     When you set a load plan for your vehicle and home it is important to make it dedicated to that location.  It doesn't come out when you need to change your kids flat tire on there bicycle.  You need to have a home tool kit for those needs.  The load of your vehicle stays in your vehicle at all times, Until you need it!

     So lets start with the most obvious thing to consider,-- people.  How many people are you going to have to load into your vehicle? Will they fit into just one vehicle?  Don't forget to account for pets as you won't likely want to leave them behind.  Assign the seating so you don't have to waste time when it is time to go.

     When you have this number figured out you can see what space you are going to have left.  Every vehicle must have a maintenance box consisting of extra oil, coolant, transmission fluid and windshield washer fluid.  You should include jumper cables and a couple bottles of water.  These things should be in your vehicle at all times and if not I suggest you get them in there today.  Some extras that you might consider would be a tire pump and a tire gauge

     Now filling the space that you have left shouldn't leave you with no extra room for anything else.  Pack what you need only.  Food and water are top of the need list.  Imagine that you start on a four hour drive and it turns into a three day expedition.  You can't be prepared for everything but by having extra food and water you will increase the time you have to deal with other issues.

     Beyond food, the next most important item to consider might be communications. Having a way of knowing when it is safe to go back home will be essential.  Don't assume that your phones are going to work and that you will still be with your vehicle.  A CB (citizens band radio) or a small hand crank radio might be a life saver.  Don't forget the car charger for you phone.  At about ten dollars a piece you should make sure that every vehicle that you own has one.  The last piece to the communication part of mobile evacuation is HAM radio.  You need to be licensed to use ham radio but the test isn't very hard for a tech class license that will put you way ahead of the power curve. ( I will discuss HAM and testing in upcoming blogs)

     Security would fall high on the list as well.  If you are going to bring guns with you on the trip you will need to plan that out ahead of time by having extra ammo on hand that you can take with you.  Your personal protection weapon should be kept in a safe when it is in your house but when you are traveling in an emergency situation you don't want to waste time digging it out.  Keep it someplace where you can access it quickly if you need it or hide it quickly if the situation requires.  Plan where the weapon is going to go and practice it.  Keep in mind that you may need to access your weapon while you are still strapped in your seat belt. 

     In the shelter department it would be wise to have a prepared tote that goes right in the vehicle when it is time to go.  In the tote you should have a folded tarp in the bottom that is large enough for your family to all fit under.  A small tent that is capable to hold your family size.Include some basic tools such as; a hatchet, hammer, rope, duct tape, knife, screw drivers etc,  Your tent doesn't have to be stored in the handy little sleeve that it comes with.  You can fold it the best way to fit your tote.  A few wool blankets and sleeping bags if space allows or your climate dictates.

     The size of your tote will be determined again by your family size and the amount of space that you have to hold it.  The more you bring the better off you may find yourself but keep in mind that there has to be balance to your packing. You can't have a massive tent and air mattresses that rival the Four Seasons and only have enough food for a couple of days.
      Keep your shelter tote handy and ready to go into your vehicle first.  Food, water and medical may need to be accessed before you need the shelter tote. (note: you may have to split your shelter tote into two or three smaller totes that will fit better in the space that you have available.

     Your medical box should be added to your load plan.  We will cover the contents of the medical kit for your home in a future lesson.  For now just try to get all your first aid stuff together and put it in a single tote or bag that you can grab when you are heading out.  You will have your core bag kit but if your stay gets extended you might not be able to have these things replaced.  It is better to just bring them with you.  Remember that it might not just be your family that you have to administer first aid to.

     Map books, an atlas and local terrain maps should be kept in your vehicle all the time.  If you don't have them now, I suggest doing so soon.  Don't assume that the GPS on your phone is going to be working throughout any or all of your trip.  Get the maps and put them in your vehicle so you can't forget them.  Even if you know the way to where you are going there is no guarantee that the your normal route will be passable.  Knowing how to get around a traffic jam could be crucial.

     You may have things that you won't be able to leave behind that have sentimental value so plan that space accordingly.  If all the things that you need to bring don't seem to fit into you vehicle you might want to consider a roof rack or hitch plate for your vehicle.  Don't wait till you are trying to find room for the extra food and can't to wish you had more space.

• Food and Water (enough for three days packed in a tote ahead of time)
• vehicle maintenance box
• Small crank radio (keep it in your tent tote)
• Tent tote with tarp, tent, blankets, towels and tools
• vehicle repair tools
• Medical kit
• Maps
• Personal items

The total load of your vehicle is something you should consider the next time you are shopping for a new vehicle.  That sporty little machine that looks so nice might not be the best choice.

     MOP order.  Take an afternoon and pack your vehicle for a trip.  Find out how much space you have left for your gear and where you can put it.  I guarantee that you will change your plan after just trying this once.  Make it a habit to think about the load of the vehicle.  When you are going to the beach, plan your load.  Trip to a concert, plan your load.  The more times that you practice the frame of mind that considers this important topic you will develop a habitual mindset that remembers the load set.

     Core training is just the basic foundation of the survival elements that will be required if crisis happens.  It also is designed to change your mindset to a more anticipatory direction so that you can look ahead to what could happen instead of looking back and wishing you had been better prepared.  There are 28 lessons in this series.  Coming next is lesson 5 "Beyond Total Load" where we will discuss the best direction for investment in making your household more survivable if you are able to hunker down and stay put.

Start from the beginning: Lesson 1
More information: www.spearsurvival.com