Civilian SERE course?

[Von Rheydt]

Dandelion tea ............. hmmmmm! Pine needle tea is better and also has more vitamin C than orange juice.

Dandelion: The whole plant is edible, leaves, flower and roots. Leaves are good in salads, as are the flowers and the roots if dried and ground then added to hot water make a good drink that works well at settling a stomach.

There you go you've just had your first Bushcraft lesson. And no, Bushcraft is not for tree hugging, sandle wearing, dope smoking hippies. I have met more ex-SF types doing bushcraft than during any other activity ......... except for skydiving.

SERE is for people who need it, most don't. The average civilian would mentally die doing a small portion of the practical phase of SERE.

I had a look at the Bushido Tactical course for urban survivors. It looks a bit full to me for two days I would assume it is introducing the student to subject matter rather than teaching solid foundations. I look back on my bow drill and fire lighting course which took one whole 8 hour day. My land nav and map reading course took 5 days. A good basic civilian first aid course takes two days. Shelter building takes minimum half a day and then the student gets to sleeps in it.

Bushcraft helps the practitioner build a solid set of skills that will help him or her live fairly well in the wild. Because, to be honest, if you are just survivng you are just getting by and are not in a position to thrive.

The guy to read is Ray Mears he is paid pretty well to train some special military folks when he is not doing his TV work. On your side of the pond there is Mors Kochanski up in Canada who is regarded as an outdoor god. Mors runs a few courses throughout the year and they are always attended by folks who want to learn the serious business of outdoor living.

That said, the test that a fair few put themselves through to prove to themselves that they can do it is the WEISS COURSE. I know a few ex's that have done this because they want to see if they still have it. It is probably as close to the survival element of SERE that a civilian can get to.

WEISS: http://www.bearclawbushcraft.co.uk/courses/weiss.htm

Rays School: http://www.raymears.com/

Mors: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mors_Kochanski

A favourite saying in bushcraft is, "The more you know the less you carry". The aim being to be able to step outside of the civilised world in the clothes you are wearing carrying only a knife.

[bvmbandit]

Well, either it is or isn't.

SERE is not something you "kinda or sorta" do. Lets not forget that survival training is only a part of it. It is the S in SERE. Its the ERE that makes it SERE, with the R probably being the toughest.

There is more to SERE than sneaking around the woods in multicam eating bunny rabbits and dandilions. I doubt very few people would want to pay for this training, let alone go through it. That is why we probably don't see a lot of SERE courses for pure civilians.

I would agree 100 %. Although I went through the training and learned a lot of good information that won't be forgotten. I'm glad to have only had to do it once while in the military.


I took the training to teach and pass it on to our pilots...

Forget about the R and E part if your not in the military.

Scott

[Jason Knight]

Another resource you might consider:

Alderleaf Wilderness College: Wilderness Survival School

We've been offering survival courses in the northwest for a number of years.

-Jason

[GMZ]

I think I have what youre looking for. OnPoint Tactical offers an "Urban Escape and Evasion" and "Urban Survival" course. Seems interesting enough, cost is about $500.

Reviews of the course
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jack...e-from-la.html
http://urbanjournal.com/articles/urb...pe-and-evasio/
http://www.survivalblog.com/2009/01/...d_in_a_ca.html

Better review
http://www.itstactical.com/2009/09/2...n-environment/

Link
http://www.onpointtactical.com/

[RV4021]

Max Joseph with TFTT puts on a course that is similar to what you are looking for. Here is the link http://www.tftt.com/TFTT_CFC.htm

Robert

[QuietShootr]

Forget about the R and E part if your not in the military.

Scott

You can't think of any scenarios where R and E might be useful skills outside the military?

Don't answer, just think about it.

[FlyinSooner]

Well, either it is or isn't.

SERE is not something you "kinda or sorta" do. Lets not forget that survival training is only a part of it. It is the S in SERE. Its the ERE that makes it SERE, with the R probably being the toughest.

There is more to SERE than sneaking around the woods in multicam eating bunny rabbits and dandilions. I doubt very few people would want to pay for this training, let alone go through it. That is why we probably don't see a lot of SERE courses for pure civilians.

OH SO TRUE!!!

[tacti-cool]

Join The Army,Volunteer for Special Forces, Pass selection, then you get to go to Real SERE-C(high risk).160th SOAR also goes to SERE C.
Survival of the fittest....

SERE was the best and worst time of my life. Amazing training...

other than that i would say re-enact MAN vs. Wild .. lol....Drink you own piss ....hahaha

[Heavy Metal]

Well, either it is or isn't.

SERE is not something you "kinda or sorta" do. Lets not forget that survival training is only a part of it. It is the S in SERE. Its the ERE that makes it SERE, with the R probably being the toughest.

There is more to SERE than sneaking around the woods in multicam eating bunny rabbits and dandilions. I doubt very few people would want to pay for this training, let alone go through it. That is why we probably don't see a lot of SERE courses for pure civilians.

What? You mean people don't want to pay to be waterboarded and beaten-up? Damn, there goes my retirement plans!

[Iraqgunz]

Flyinsooner and tacti-cool are now in the top 20 for 2012 necroposting.