Hearing Enhancers

[Fallow Way]

I have been introduced to the idea of using hearing enhancers when man tracking, I do it for a Search and Rescue team, and wanted to get any feedback I could about makes and models if anyone has come across them. (They are used in some quarters when hunting)

The two models I have found are from the States:

Redhead Hearing Enhancer $14.99

and the

Walkers Game Ear I and II $149 - $199

If anyone has any experience of these, or indeed aware of any other makes and models they would suggest I look at then please suggest.

 

[Buckshot]

I had a letter through the post yesterday for an 'in the ear' digital ear defender set just released onto the market. Mine for a special price of just £495 A british company.

Truth is I've not had much luck with them myself, I find the microphones get affected by the wind too much making you turn the volume down and defeating the object.
If you use the headphones type it means you can't wear a full brim hat - which I do ! On the other hand it does keep your ears warm

Perhaps if I could find and 'in the ear' style with decent wind proction for a decent price I might look into it - but so I've not found one...

Mark

 

[Marts]

I was always told that that's what your hands are for

 

[Fallow Way]

Well yes, same principle, but when its an emergency, there are 101 other things going on and it could just be that faint change in bird language some distance away at the periphery of your senses, you want to give yourself every chance possible to pick up on it.......and still have your hands free.......not looking like Dumbo

 

[Rhoda]

Walkers Game Ear is pretty good.

 

[Fallow Way]

Is that was Max uses? I never got a good look at his, he did mention he payed the extra to get it in a "tactical" (ie cool) black

 

[Rhoda]

That would be telling! Actually I 'm not 100% sure which one he's using now, can't keep up with all the kit he goes through but I know that the game ear is good.

 

[bushwacker bob]

If your 'man' tracking why not use a DOG. they have enhanced hearing and the ability to follow a scent and unless your dog is K9,they dont run out of batteries when you need them most.There are recognised breeds specially bred for the purpose and are used by many search and rescue groups.

 

[amott69]

Max uses one of the walkers hearing enhancers, he showed me it on a course last year.

 

[bambodoggy]

Max uses one of the walkers hearing enhancers, he showed me it on a course last year.

And maybe at Max's level it really does enhance things... I think for most of us non-professionals the Mark One Human Ear would do just fine.

I tend to agree with Bob too, a well trained dog with an equally well trained handler will find a man faster than all but the highest level of human tracker imo.

just my thoughts....

Bam.

 

[Hawkeye The Noo]

When on a tactical course last year with Max we used a lot of hand signals to communicateas it was all about tracking and not being seen or heard. The tactical ear was so that you could hear the person you were tracking before they heard you as the trackers life may depend on it. In a SAR situation they can be complementary but are not as essential as in a tactical.

cheers

Jamie

 

[bushwacker bob]

ahh, I see now. I thought it was for search and rescue, but you mean its for sneaking up on people without them knowing, kind of SAS bushcraft

 

[Fallow Way]

Dogs are used in Search and Rescue also, however there are gains and drawback as with everything and I am not at this point interested in becoming a SAR dog handler but do spend a lot of time with them on training exercises. It is a very valuable addition to a SAR team, however their availability is not always assured and there is only so much ground they can cover and ways to use them.



Search and Rescue is not just going out and looking for people as many expect, you have to be trained and certified and there is a huge management effort controlling all the different teams.



When tracking, and when in an emergency it needs to be aggressive tracking, picking up on the concentric circles emanating from the MISPER could greatly reduce the time spent looking for them. As an example, on the Search and Rescue tracking Part One course I did with Max through the United Kingdom Lowlands Search and Rescue Institute, I picked up on a bird language change caused by him 20 minutes before we actually tracked to his position. This sort of thing is vital to pick up on in a life and death situation.



It’s the same as saying not to use binoculars or radio equipment at the end of the day. There is a device to aid you in the endeavor to save life/suffering, use it.



If there is a gadget out there that will help me detect something I might have missed in this sort of instance then I think it is worth it. I can be a purest in my own time.

 

[Hawkeye The Noo]

It’s the same as saying not to use binoculars or radio equipment at the end of the day. There is a device to aid you in the endeavor to save life/suffering, use it.



If there is a gadget out there that will help me detect something I might have missed in this sort of instance then I think it is worth it. I can be a purest in my own time.

I could not agree more, if it works for you, use it. if it saves lives, even better. I have a lot of respect for the people involved in SAR as you do a great and valued job.


Jamie :You_Rock_

 

[bushwacker bob]

It could also COST lives.
If your birdy call change was sparked by something other than the lost person ie a fox etc it could have the whole tracking effort heading in the wrong direction for 20 minutes before you realised you audible mistake.Its a piece of kit better suited to search and destroy rather than search and rescue.

 

[EdS]

to be honest in a SAR they'd not be much good. From my experience the missing person is either:

1) at home
2) injured/unconsious/hiding
3) dead - often hang from a tree.
4) down a cave

It is not often that they are wandering around making a noise - unless they are actually on a RoW.

 

[Fallow Way]

Bushwacker Bob - LOL i wouldn’t know the search and destroy applications not being military trained, I just know Search and Rescue.



In that instance, although it took the teams 20 minutes to track down to where Max was hiding, if Control had requested my team investigate, we cold have walked there in a minute or less due to where he actually was. In addition, if you are sign cutting with another Tracker team, or there are also Search teams in that area, they could be tasked with investigating, leaving the team to continue following sign. The idea in a SAR situation is to use all aggressive means available to close the Time/Distance gap. A lot of SAR is going on available information, established patterns of behavior and trying to get into the mindset of the MISPER and at the same time trying to understand where they might have gone, systematically eliminating areas. Our Control’s have a big old map to stare at and have time and again gone on what little information they have gained about the MISPER and been correct in where they think they have gone.



As well as being systematic, there are elements of guesswork and bold movements for example Type I search "hasty" teams being sent out in a wide arch to check track traps/pathways. This sort of exploratory action would have lead to a team finding a MISPER in 30 minutes some 2kilometres away had the Training Manager of that event not decided to make life harder for them



EDS - in all the case reports for the Association of Lowland Search and Rescue, the number which come under your situations is by far the minority. If you also go on Missing Person Behavior modeling stats from past searches which encompass UK and USA, obviously with the exception of Despondent, again the amount is drastically in the minority.



In my experience I have found studying the concentric circles which could be caused by a MISPER has been a phenomenal eye opener thanks to Max. I have found it to be an amazingly useful tool. As another example I tracked a fellow Forester through a large site the day after just through bird language.



However I didn’t really want to have a big conversation about the idea of using them, just what makes and models people are familiar with. At present I’m convinced in the idea of trying it and seeing what I can get out of it.

 

[Muckypaws]

Paul,

Have a word with any local deer stalkers - they use them.

Also, if you want to try some out visit the British Raptor Fair (newport, Shropshire) this weekend and there will be people selling them for you to try.

I've been to this game fair a few times and really enjoyed it.

Message me if you want more info.

Simon

 

[Muckypaws]

With a deaf partner I can vouch for the issue of wind noise - she is always suffering from interferance when out in the countryside. Anything that is close to the mike will cause noise whether its a hood or collar etc. Even with her cochlear Implant that has programmable DSP and multiple Microphones they cannot eliminate this noise.

Also, as Max discovered - they don't like getting wet! You can get rain coveres for them but they are still vulnerable through the mike appeture.

You might also like to try getting hold of a 2nd hand analogue hearing aid (which, after all is what they are) and then buy a custom ear mould to use with it. I think she has some old ones if you want to try them but you still need to the ear mould regardless.

Simon

 

[Fallow Way]

It was some stalkers that suggested the Walker model.Phone later for the shropshire game fair info.