Family Friendly Prepping

[NorthernRaider]

Family Friendly Prepping
© NR 2013

I see a familiar trend starting to re-emerge into the prepping forum and that is primarily people assuming that most preppers are single fit young men.

And often a similar assumption is made that even their other fit single young men are going to want to live in a basha eating raw lichen and rubbing two boy scouts together to light a fire.

This is an error because even the bush-craft and wilderness survival crazy young buck usually has a mum, dad, gran, bro, big or lil sis, wifey or fiancée or a bit on the side. And many of today’s fit single young chaps who are instilled with enough wisdom to become preppers are 100% total and absolute urbanites with zero interest in living like a 21st century Robin Hood.

And (thankfully) more and more women are joining the community and beginning to relearn the preps their grandma’s knew and valued.

I respectfully and humbly suggest that when we develop a prep plan or program we should by default make allowances for expanding those plans to account for family members and future partners and relatives.

I’m thinking of the example of that couple Ashley and ?(can’t remember the name) who put all their leisure money and extra funds that had available for prepping into a two berth modern sailboat only for the lady to produce twin boys nine months later. Which totally buggered up their plans as the boat was instantly rendered unsuitable.

In a similar vein I see well-meaning folks offering shit hot practical advice on kit selection, but often that kit is yet again really only suitable for fit, healthy young men with great stamina and strength.

It may be simple for you or I to wield a 50 pound bow for example, but imagine if you broke your arm as you did a Tarzan impression in the treetops, or you are hit by gastro or man flu just as your family / group’s food runs low. Suddenly we see your 12 year old son or your gorgous but slightly built girlfriend or even your mum trying to get to grips with your 50 pound bow?? They are more likely to put an arrow through their hand or up their left nostril than hit that roe deer 50 yards away.

In a similar set up that I have raised before that you invest in a good quality 4x4 and fit it out as a BOV with raised suspension, diff locks, larger wheels, jerry cans, huge great roof rack to carry loads of gear so you can bug out of town at short notice. But what are you going to do if you have the future GF or wife or best mate bugging out with you? Or granny or the kids?

And this being the UK its bitterly cold, raining non-stop for days on end as usual where are you all going to sleep, cook, wash, go to the loo etc. So perhaps it may suit your preps in the long term to look at converting a panel van into a BOV with internal sleeping space.

Look at your potable water preps, yes indeed you may be able to get by on 2 litres a day and don’t mind going a fortnight without getting washed, but I know your GF or wifey will go insane within 48 hours, Humorous perhaps but if you have infants you need a strict hygiene plan in place for cleaning, feeding, cooking and other brat raising essential needs and that requires lots more clean water.

Teenage daughter you say! You need a 44 ton truck and water tanker containing 34,000 litres a week to keep her quiet, and a shower and a power supply.

I think that at times we do ourselves, our families and new preppers a great injustice by assuming everyone has very similar logistical needs, indeed I have seen groups of preppers on some US forums being savagely critical, judgmental and bitterly hostile to anyone who does not base their bug out vehicle on a 4x4 Jeep, Whats the point of owning a gas guzzling rock climber when you live in Manhatten and have a wife and six kids to contend with.

Try planning with expansion in mind, and when posting on forums give a little consideration to others of different strokes whose needs may vary from your own but with your guidance they could find the kit or answer they need to suit their own circumstances.