there are some wierd people out there!
(for the record, i am a bushcrafter, and have long since cast aside survivalism!)
12 years ago i used to work with a guy called Dave.S (a quiet, seemingly normal bloke), we worked together as a voluntary basis for the local Norwich YMCA i didn't know him and due to the fact he had a slight interest in "survival" i befriended him.
in my infancy as a "survivalist" he introduced me to a different more paranoid view on "survival".
each walk the conversation would wander from normal chat which he would always highjack and talk about bombs and explosive!
he also had a fascination in horror make up and often talked of dressing up as a monster to scare people, and or faking serious wounds.
ok, Dave. S was and still is(to my knowledge) a compulsive lier
some of which consisted of:
being a mountain rescuer(he's scared of heights)
being a security guard (he's far too slightly built)
being a Ninja (yeah i know)
being in the army(again too small, with limited knowledge)
being married(he backed this up with a photo, which he later confessed as untrue)
often faked illness to get out of explaning being late, including epilepsy(which i never saw, and know of real sufferers).
and more worryingly, talked of planting bombs near an army base!
and a reliable friend told me he was seen running from his house with a starter pistol saying "I'm going to do it!" which he handed over to the local police the same day!? :shock: :-?
knowing his facination of things that go bang, (some of which he showed me)and all the lies, i decided that the relationship was not safe/healthy, and i slowly moved away!
the very last trip i did with him was a nightmare about 10 years ago:
i was friends with a local farmer and was given use of his 7 acre woods.
present was me, my friend johnny, and Dave.s
I'd always felt Dave copied me, which he did, he basically had all the same gear as me just very cheap "Taiwan" versions of each item!
on this occasion it was raining all day,
we were building a huge lean-to shelter, and the insulation had got so heavy with water that the freashly cut beams(arm width) had cracked and were collapsing, no one was in danger we were still building it, anyway, at this point it was getting dark we were wet , it was still raining we had 3 options:
stay and repair the shelter?
(not really an option, in the dark and wet)
sleep in the farmers barn?
(all our gear was wet, and we would not have got warm, no fire)
walk 10k back home?
though a long walk, we would keep warm by our movement, and be in our own houses in a few hours.
we had a group discussion and decided apon the walk home, at which point dave started throwing all his gear in the fire :shock: ????
after telling him to grow up (he was25)and calm down we walked home.
the fact he flipped out isn't so worrying everyone is allowed to get cross, it's the fact that it was a potentially dangerous situation, the shelter could have hurt someone, it was cold and wet!
so put this situation in a different scenario say setting up camp in the lake district in bad weather? when you are tired?
need i say more?
check your group members out! do small hikes before expeditions to find out stuff like this!
i still bump into this guy, recently he kept giving me little gifts :shock: , untill i completely blanked him.
told me how he went with a friend and shot rabbits with a crossbow on public land with footpaths in broad daylight on a weekend! and didn't see a problem with it, which disturbed me alot!
i haven't spoken to him since, this guy is still around.
as i say, check your group members, don't be paranoid but be carefull!
99% of the poulation is fine (including bushcrafters
) but that 1% can be dodgy!
chears Rapp
(for the record, i am a bushcrafter, and have long since cast aside survivalism!)
12 years ago i used to work with a guy called Dave.S (a quiet, seemingly normal bloke), we worked together as a voluntary basis for the local Norwich YMCA i didn't know him and due to the fact he had a slight interest in "survival" i befriended him.
in my infancy as a "survivalist" he introduced me to a different more paranoid view on "survival".
each walk the conversation would wander from normal chat which he would always highjack and talk about bombs and explosive!
he also had a fascination in horror make up and often talked of dressing up as a monster to scare people, and or faking serious wounds.
ok, Dave. S was and still is(to my knowledge) a compulsive lier
some of which consisted of:
being a mountain rescuer(he's scared of heights)
being a security guard (he's far too slightly built)
being a Ninja (yeah i know)
being in the army(again too small, with limited knowledge)
being married(he backed this up with a photo, which he later confessed as untrue)
often faked illness to get out of explaning being late, including epilepsy(which i never saw, and know of real sufferers).
and more worryingly, talked of planting bombs near an army base!
and a reliable friend told me he was seen running from his house with a starter pistol saying "I'm going to do it!" which he handed over to the local police the same day!? :shock: :-?
knowing his facination of things that go bang, (some of which he showed me)and all the lies, i decided that the relationship was not safe/healthy, and i slowly moved away!
the very last trip i did with him was a nightmare about 10 years ago:
i was friends with a local farmer and was given use of his 7 acre woods.
present was me, my friend johnny, and Dave.s
I'd always felt Dave copied me, which he did, he basically had all the same gear as me just very cheap "Taiwan" versions of each item!
on this occasion it was raining all day,
we were building a huge lean-to shelter, and the insulation had got so heavy with water that the freashly cut beams(arm width) had cracked and were collapsing, no one was in danger we were still building it, anyway, at this point it was getting dark we were wet , it was still raining we had 3 options:
stay and repair the shelter?
(not really an option, in the dark and wet)
sleep in the farmers barn?
(all our gear was wet, and we would not have got warm, no fire)
walk 10k back home?
though a long walk, we would keep warm by our movement, and be in our own houses in a few hours.
we had a group discussion and decided apon the walk home, at which point dave started throwing all his gear in the fire :shock: ????
after telling him to grow up (he was25)and calm down we walked home.
the fact he flipped out isn't so worrying everyone is allowed to get cross, it's the fact that it was a potentially dangerous situation, the shelter could have hurt someone, it was cold and wet!
so put this situation in a different scenario say setting up camp in the lake district in bad weather? when you are tired?
need i say more?
check your group members out! do small hikes before expeditions to find out stuff like this!
i still bump into this guy, recently he kept giving me little gifts :shock: , untill i completely blanked him.
told me how he went with a friend and shot rabbits with a crossbow on public land with footpaths in broad daylight on a weekend! and didn't see a problem with it, which disturbed me alot!
i haven't spoken to him since, this guy is still around.
as i say, check your group members, don't be paranoid but be carefull!
99% of the poulation is fine (including bushcrafters
) but that 1% can be dodgy!chears Rapp
).
