Survival Beyond the 10 Essentials

An informative, down-and-dirty look at key wilderness survival techniques, Survival Beyond the 10 Essentials features former U.S. Air Force global survivor instructor Gene Ward in a series of brief segments demonstrating various pieces of makeshift “survival kit” equipment that could prove to be multipurpose lifesavers in emergency situations. Take a clear plastic body-length lightweight bag for instance: it can be worn to maintain body warmth (staving off hypothermia), strung between two trees to create a tube tent shelter, or wrapped around the branch of a deciduous tree to produce water. Ward teaches viewers how to build a fire (even one-handed), set up various shelters, make a slingshot with medical tubing (also handy for a tourniquet), and signal for help. Most of the materials are available from a number of outlets (such as parachute cord, a button compass, and fish hooks), while others can be purchased at Ward's website (the fire-starter kit, for instance). While the program has a bit of an off-the-cuff feel, there's no question that Ward knows his stuff and in little more than a half-hour shows viewers how to “not just survive, but thrive” if forced to spend an unscheduled night alone in the great outdoors. Recommended. Aud: P. (R. Pitman)