Knoxville cyclist details Chattanooga area bike routes in new book

Thanks to Elle Colquitt's inadequate map during a short bike tour in England, Chattanooga bike enthusiasts now have a book detailing 45 routes in and around the Scenic City.
The Knoxville resident's newly published, spiral-bound, 216-page text provides routes from 10 to 75 miles covering 13 counties from Dayton, Tenn., to LaFayette, Ga., and from Cleveland, Tenn., to the Sequatchie Valley.
"My goal when I do an area is to get you on as many roads as I can," said Colquitt. "Then you just take the map with the most roads you want to go on [and] play around."
The book, "Bicycling Routes: Bicycling the Scenic Backroads Around Chattanooga, Tennessee and North Georgia," is part of a series of similar books by the lifetime cycler. Previous books have detailed routes around Knoxville and the off-road trails in the eastern part of the state.
When Colquitt got lost in England several years ago, she found a touring book that had a lot of the features she ended up incorporating in her books. In the United States, though, she hasn't seen any book done quite the same way, she said.
Phil Pugliese, bicycle coordinator for Outdoor Chattanooga, said "Bicycling Routes" is a valuable resource for both residents and bikers visiting the region for recreational cycling or for exploring its scenic beauty.
"It's a great addition," he said. "It definitely fulfilled a need."
The color-coded routes, which offer 13 start locations and options for customizing rides, are mapped in order that the majority of riders will feel comfortable, Colquitt said.
"Being a woman, riding by myself, I don't want another gal out there [on an unsafe route]," she said. "That being said, accidents do happen."
To create the routes, Colquitt said she talked to biking experts, people in bike shops and people who ride a lot, mapping out all "rideable" roads. By "rideable," she said, she means all roads that are safe, scenic and not too heavily trafficked.
After compiling her maps, she drove the routes and then biked them. Among other information she included are the general route descriptions, steepness of hills, markings of T and Y intersections and stoplights, locations of stores and restrooms, scenic pictures, historic neighborhood details and other points of interest.
Colquitt's desire, she said, was to include "anything I can to help make it more clear."
"It was a labor of love," she said.
The area in and around the Scenic City offers different challenges and opportunities than Knoxville, Colquitt said. Chattanooga affords a better downtown for riding, she said, and has more interesting, surrounding small towns.
Among the more interesting routes she mapped, she said, are Signal Mountain [the homes "felt like stepping back in time"]; McLemore's Cove in North Georgia ["just exquisitely beautiful, with Pigeon Mountain on one side and Lookout Mountain on the other"]; the area around Red Clay State Historic Park near Cleveland, Tenn.; and the Sequatchie Valley ["a beautiful, beautiful area" where the Chattanooga Bicycle Club holds an annual century ride].
Mike Teff, store manager at Trek Bicycle Store on Manufacturers Road, said "a ton of people" request area bike routes when they come into the shop, so Colquitt's book, covering rides from the Riverwalk to centuries, is a "huge asset."
"Anybody can do it," he said of cycling. "That's the greatest thing about it."
Contact Clint Cooper at ccooper@timesfreepress or 423-757-6497.

Terrorist may poison the food supply (but the food companies already have)

Always on the terror streak, the mainstream media is now warning Americans that terrorists may strike the food supply by dumping poison into restaurant salad bars and buffets, for example. CBS News broke the story, quoting anonymous "intelligence" sources who insist that terrorists might use ricin or cyanide to poison foods in salad bars.

I have news for CBS, the federal government, and the terrorists: If you really want to poison the U.S. food supply, just use aspartame. It causes neurological disorders and yet remains perfectly legal to dump into foods such as diet sodas and children's medicines. You don't even have to dump it into the food supply in secret, either: You can do it right out in full view of the public. Heck, you can even list this chemical right on the ingredients label!

Or get into the MSG business. MSG, which is often hidden on "natural" foods under an ingredient called yeast extract, is a potent neurotoxin that promotes obesity and even cancer, according to some experts. Feed people enough MSG and they'll probably die of cancer sooner or later, and that counts toward the goal of terrorism too, doesn't it?

If you really want to get nasty and up the body count, start a hot dog company and dump sodium nitrite into your processed meat like all the other hot dog companies do. Sodium nitrite promotes aggressive cancers -- even in children -- and yet the USDA and FDA allow its use in the food supply (http://www.naturalnews.com/007133.html).

Better yet, feed the population genetically modified corn and then wait for the mutations to kick in. GMOs might actually be called a biological weapon because they cause so much harm to humans and the environment. (http://www.naturalnews.com/GMO.html)

Why be a terrorist when you can do so much more damage as a processed food company?

If you're a terrorist looking to poison the U.S. food supply, get in line, buddy! The food companies have beat you to it!

In the U.S. food supply right now, you can find toxic mercury, BPA, acrylamides, petrochemicals, dangerous preservatives, synthetic chemicals like aspartame, pesticide residues and artificial colors that alter brain function. The FDA doesn't seem to care about any of this, of course: All these poisons in the food supply are legal!

So here's a message to Al-Qaeda and all the other terrorists trying to kill Americans: Don't bother with bombs and missiles... just get into the processed food business!

Or, heck, if you really want to kill Americans with poison, get into the cancer industry! The "Al-Qaeda Cancer Clinic" could really rack up some body bags by doing what all the other cancer clinics do: Inject patients with chemotherapy and watch them die (http://www.naturalnews.com/029996_c...).

Seriously, if you want to kill Americans, all you really need to do is keep supporting conventional medicine and the FDA with its do-nothing position on dangerous chemicals that threaten the health of Americans right now. FDA-approved drugs kill well over 100,000 Americans each year -- a statistic that dwarfs the body count of any terrorist group.

Come to think of it, how do we know the FDA isn't already being run by terrorists? Their actions, which blatantly endanger American lives, are entirely consistent with the aims of a terrorist organization. (http://www.naturalnews.com/001894.html)

By the way, this is all depicted in a CounterThink cartoon I created in 2006 called The Food Terrorists: http://www.counterthink.com/The_Foo...

This cartoon anticipated today's terror news alerts by four years. That's because when it comes to the U.S. government's rhetoric on terrorism, it's not that difficult to see where they're taking it.

Want to know what the next four years will bring us? I'll soon be publishing a list of predictions for 2011 and beyond. Watch NaturalNews.com for that announcement.

In the mean time, you might want to steer clear of FDA-approved foods and drugs, because you just never know what's really in them.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
Editor of NaturalNews.com

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/030811_terrorists_food_supply.html#ixzz199WbzAzy

Sources for this story include:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010...

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Sing the health praises of parsley and sage

Those of us who go back a few years likely remember the line about parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme in the huge Simon and Garfunkel hit song about two ill-fated lovers, "Are You Going to Scarborough Fair". Many have speculated that the reference to the four popular herbs was due to their use in Medieval Europe to help cleanse the air and ward off the infamous black plague. Others have thought that the reference to the four herbs was because the combination may have been used as a love potion. Whatever the reason for their inclusion in the popular song, the many health benefits of parsley and sage are worth loving and singing praises about in their own rights.

PARSLEY

Parsley is an amazing medicinal herb with a world of health benefits. The root contains calcium, B-complex vitamins, and iron, which nourish the glands that help regulate the uptake of calcium. It is a source of magnesium, calcium, potassium, vitamin A, beta-carotene, vitamin C and vitamin K.

Among the many benefits reported for parsley are:

*It is a diuretic which helps the body produce more urine to keep the urinary system operating smoothly and which helps prevent problems such as kidney stones and bladder infections.

*It is wonderful for removing toxins from the body, such as heavy metals.

*It is an effective breath freshener. It is believed that the practice of including parsley on a dinner plate began due to its breath freshening abilities and not merely for its decorative effect.

*The root and leaves are good for the liver and spleen.

*It helps relieve bloating during menstruation.

*It provides relief for edema, often helping when other remedies have failed

*Parsley root and seeds help relax stiff joints, often making stiff and unmanageable fingers work again.

*It helps remove gallstones when used properly by taking a pint of the tea daily.

*It is beneficial for the adrenal glands.

*It is a powerful therapeutic aid for the optic nerves, brain and sympathetic nervous system.

*Parsley juice is an excellent tonic for the blood vessels.

Note: It is best to avoid large amounts of parsley if you are pregnant, especially the use of the volatile essential oil.

SAGE

Like rosemary, its sister herb in the mint (Labiatae) family, sage contains a variety of volatile oils, flavonoids and phenolic acids, including rosmarinic acid. The oils found in sage are both antiseptic and antibiotic, helping it fight infections.

Besides the antioxidant and other properties shared with Rosemary, sage`s other health benefits include:

*It is effective for symptoms of menopause, night sweats and hot flashes because of its estrogenic action and because its tannins help dry up perspiration.

*Sage helps provide better brain function and has been used in the treatment of cerebrovascular disease for over a thousand years. It helps provide better recall and research has suggested that it may be an effective option to help treat Alzheimer`s.

*There`s also compelling evidence that sage may be of value to people with diabetes for whom the hormone insulin does not work as efficiently as it should. Lab studies indicate that sage may boost insulin`s action.

* The ability of sage to protect oils from oxidation has also led some companies to experiment with sage as a natural antioxidant additive for cooking oils that can extend shelf life and help avoid rancidity.

In an upcoming article, we will also sing the praises of the other two herbs mentioned in the popular song - rosemary and thyme.

Sources included:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scarbo...
http://www.healthy-holistic-living....
http://www.greenmuze.com/blogs/natu...
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/pars...

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What do you make at home?

Original post by: dressagerider95

One of my projects for the upcoming year is to grow sugar beets and make sugar out of them since that is something that will be really needed. I have lots of other self sufficiency projects but I was just wondering what does everybody here produce at home? ie what could you keep making indefinitely.

To reply to yhis post follow the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=205&t=6662&sid=b9a7750f8

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Tennessee Preppers Roll Call

The Tennessee Preppers Network is conducting a Roll Call on our forum.  If you are a prepper please check in.

* Here is a link to the Roll Call:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=492&t=6176


You have to be registered to check in.  If you aren't registered please join here:
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* If you are a HAM Radio Operator check in here:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=143&t=6219


* If you are an A.N.T.S. member please check in here:
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TSA Enhanced Screenings - Drawing The Line

I'm a believer that preparedness activities take place in mindset as well as in physical activities like food storage, learning skills, etc. So, I frequently spend time thinking about "what if" and run through what responses I might have for various situations - for myself, my children and my family.

This week I had a huge dilemma put before me regarding flying and the new enhanced security procedures being conducted at our airports across the country.

My husband is currently serving on Active Duty with the U.S. Army Reserves. He completed a year of active duty orders in September, and has been extended for what it appears will be an additional year. We are fortunate he is state-side, and we did get the chance to visit him in Kentucky quite often this past year.

This new set of orders has him serving at Ft. Jackson, SC. Quite a bit further from us than Kentucky - not a huge deal, but with 3 young children and no extra drivers - makes you think about the best way to travel.

In trying to make it easier for us to visit him over the Thanksgiving holiday, he purchased tickets for the four of us to fly to see him instead of me having to spend 2 days driving. A trip we were looking forward to, until all of the news started hitting this weekend about the advanced screening techniques being used in the airports.

I hadn't given the security process a lot of thought - I assumed go through the metal detector, don't set if off and you're good to go. I've traveled extensively in my past - at one point having about 2 million frequent flyer miles. I haven't traveled since 9/11 and boy, did I have an eye opening experience learning about the new security theatre and I am appalled that we stand for this in America under the guise of believing it makes us safer.

I learned that I could ask at the ticket counter to have my children "deselected" from enhanced security screenings if they are under the age of 12 (mine are 11 and under). But that apparently is no guarantee they won't be "randomly" selected for additional screening once we are in the security line. Or if they set off the metal detector twice for some reason. And you don't get to choose which security line you end up in. It is purposely set up as a maze so you can't figure out which line leads to which machines.

So red flags are already going off in my head as I'm watching these videos of the new aggressive "pat-down" procedures in place if you "opt out" of the naked body scan or if randomly selected.

There is no way this is a "pat down" people. Try full body cavity search - or not far from it. As a Christian, stay-at-home, homeschooling mother - I've spend a lot of time reinforcing to my girls what kinds of touches are acceptable, especially from strangers. And there is NO WAY the government of this country has the right to "pat down" me or my girls in this fashion.

I do not lose my constitutional rights just because I choose to take a flight. So I have drawn the line in the sand and will not be flying this weekend. I cancelled our flight and let the airline know exactly why I was doing so. Not that they really care - I mean after all, they've already received my non-refundable money.

But we have to take a stand. And we've let too many things slide by already. Every time we give an inch, they take a mile. Until one day we wake up and there is nothing left for them to take.

Here are some links where you can join the fight against these TSA security measures, where you can learn more about what travelers are experiencing and where you can even report your own security screening incidents. The time to act on this is NOW.

LINKS:

Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) - provides information and a place for you to record any scanner incident you would like to report.

We Won't Fly - These are the people pushing for the National Opt-Out day on November 24th, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.

Fed Up Flyers - Website run by Michael Roberts, the Memphis pilot who refused the body scanner and pat down procedure who has now found himself without a job thanks to his "disobedience".

World Net Daily - Ron Paul introduces legislation to stop these intrusive TSA screenings.

Ann Coulter article - Napolitano: The Ball's In My Court Now

Forbes article about MOBILE scanners in vans that can see through walls, vehicles and clothing - coming to a city near you.

Oh, and guess what? Although Americans are not allowed to be exempted from any of the screening process based on religious grounds, Homeland Security is considering an exemption for Muslim women in burkas. Isn't that special? Read more:

Greely Gazette - Napolitano considering allowing Muslim women to pat themselves down at airports. . .

and

Chandler's Watch - Muslim "women" soon to be exempt from TSA invasive screenings . . . look for Muslim men to follow . . .

Comments to this post will be moderated. Let's keep our discussions civil.


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Welcome New Members

Welcome our new member:

lovie_5

Hello to eveyone! I am lovie (that is the name my grandchildren call me) I am married, mother of 3 adult children and grandmother to 5 young ones. I have always had an interest in prepping but it is only in the last several months that I have gotten serious about it. Right now, I am scared out of my mind after reading "One Second After" the fictionalized account of life after an EMP. I and my daughter are really prepping in earnest now. Unfortunately, my husband doesn't seem to take it seriously. Any advice on this? I am looking forward to learning everything I can here on this site.

Please welcome our new member by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=563&t=5639&sid=fd2e4fbbebfb92878b572833f3a280f7


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About Grain Grinders

There are many different grain grinders to choose from out there and I think it can get really confusing when trying to decide which one to purchase. After all, the good ones are usually $250 and up, so you don't want to enter into the purchase lightly.

First you have to decide if you want an electric grinder or a hand grinder. Each serve their own purpose.

Electric grinders are quick and easy to use - you can leave it on your countertop and therefore be more likely to use it daily. There are even attachments you can purchase to grind grain using your KitchenAid Mixer.

Hand grinders take a bit more to set up and are a bit more work to use, but if you had no electricity or were trying to limit the use of your electricity or generator, then this would be the way to go.

Our opinion is it is good to have both.

I don't make a habit of grinding grain daily for my baking, but I have a friend who freshly grinds her flour for her baking every day. And I can tell you from first-hand experience her baked goods are absolutely fabulous.

Since I wasn't grinding grain daily, I always just used the grain grinding attachment for my Vitamix whenever I needed small amounts ground for baking bread, etc.

But this year as part of my preparedness budget, an electric grain mill made it on the list. I want one that is dedicated to grain grinding that I can leave on the counter so I'll use it more frequently.

Electric Mill

I did my research and decided to go with a WonderMill. WonderMills are similar to the WhisperMills that are no longer made. It is supposed to be very quiet and very efficient. The makers of the mill say it will grind 100 pounds of flour in an hour. It has a 1.75 horsepower motor. It will grind wheat, rice, small grains, legumes and beans as large as garbanzos. It also has a lifetime warranty. Sounded good to me and came highly recommended from several of my friends.

And, as luck would have it, our friends at FunderFarm sell these and have been running them on sale recently from $239.95 (retail $269.95). I placed my order last week and my mill arrived late yesterday afternoon. I will definitely be posting again to let you know how well it works!

Hand Mill

There are just as many different kinds of hand mills out there too. You really have to look at what you want to grind and in what quantities, how much room you have, where you want to set your hand mill up, how fine will it grind the flour, etc.


Many people agree that the king of hand mills is the Country Living Hand Mill. I also have several friends who have this mill and say it is the best one they have ever had. I can't personally say, since I don't own one, but I can say that it is on my list for future preparedness purchases. You'll have to do your research to find a price on these that fits your budget, as you can sometimes find them on sale various places online. The website above for the mill has some good videos on their product as well.

These are the two mills that I've done the most research on and that come most highly recommended by friends of mine who use them on a daily basis. I'd love to hear from other readers who have used different mills that they really love!
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Hand Operated Washing Machine

My husband found this interesting information about a very nifty hand washing machine device - and it looks like it would be really easy to use. It's a great price it seems at $14.95 at Emergency Essentials website (beprepared.com - mobile washer).

Here's the blog link: Preparedness Pantry - Mobile Washer (Hand Operated Washing Machine)

And the video showing it in action:


Let me know if you've ever used one of these!

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Storing Grains

As we've mentioned before, grains will store for a much longer period of time than ground flours, if you store them properly.

There are many ways to store grains, depending on your needs and how you use them.

Many bakers I know keep some of the grain they are using often in their freezer to keep it fresh and to keep the grain at a cooler temperature when they grind it fresh from the freezer.

This works if you aren't storing a lot of grain or if you have a dedicated space in your freezer for keeping your grain.

We keep our grain in a couple of categories: immediate-use, short-term storage and long-term storage. The key is to keep your storage grains so they won't get bugs or rodents in them, and in a relatively temperature-stable condition in order to get a long storage life from your grains.

Our immediate-use grain is in a 5 gallon bucket with a gamma seal lid. I keep this grain handy so I can scoop out of it for use whenever I need it.

Our short-term storage grains are in sealed 5 gallon buckets. We put the grain into mylar bags with oxygen absorbers, sealed the bags (we use a hair straightening-iron for sealing our bags, you can pick one up at any discount retailer in the hair products section), then sealed the buckets. They are stored in an accessible area and are used to replenish my immediate use grain bucket when it gets low or runs out.

Our long-term storage grains are also in sealed 5 gallon buckets. Some we did ourselves using the mylar bag and oxygen absorber method mentioned above and some we purchased already sealed. These are stored in an out-of-the-way area that we only access about twice a year for rotation purposes and these grains are intended as part of our long-term food storage program.

You can purchase grains from many, many different places and it is best to research food co-ops in your local area as a starting point for purchasing your grains.

We have purchased many of our long-term storage buckets of grain from Emergency Preparedness - they will ship the 5 gallon buckets of grain to you with a minimum order of 6 buckets. They come via FedEx on a pallet delivered right to your door. This is one of the best ways we've found to get our long-term storage grains; shipping is only a flat $12.00 for any order over $120.01!!! This is an very cost-effective way to get heavy items like buckets of grain delivered to you.

Another option we have in West TN is a local farmer who places a bulk grain order twice each year for customers who pre-order. He does a spring and fall order and then you pick up your order from him in North Mississippi when it arrives. You can order in sealed food grade pails (not in mylar, but in sealed buckets) or in bags. We've known the Funderburk family for awhile now and they are fantastic to work with: FunderFarm is the link to their website. They also sell grains and mixes already ground and ready to use, as well as different grinders.

In another post we'll talk about the different grain grinders and what we've found that we like best.
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Grain Basics

Grains are a basic staple for your preparedness pantry - but many people who aren't used to grinding their own grains get confused by the different types and how they are supposed to be used.

Grains when properly stored will last much, much longer than flour that is already ground. But how do you know which type of wheat you want?

The three most common types of wheat that we use in our home are:

Soft White Wheat, Hard White Wheat, and Hard Red Wheat

It's really not that hard to know how to use the different types.

A basic rule of thumb to remember is this:

If your recipe calls for flour and BAKING POWDER - use SOFT WHITE WHEAT. This would be items like cakes, cookies, muffins - most sweets or dessert type items you want to bake that are supposed to be light and fluffy.

If your recipe calls for flour and YEAST - use HARD WHITE WHEAT. This produces a wheat bread (or pizza dough or the like) that is lighter in texture and closer to what most people are used to from the grocery store when they think of wheat bread.

If you want a artisan-type bread that is heavier - you'll use HARD RED WHEAT. Most times that I've made bread using freshly ground hard red wheat, I mix the flour with a hard white wheat flour so the dough will rise properly and will be a little lighter.

If you have recipes for artisan-type breads that are hard and crusty - hard red wheat will usually work really well for you.

In addition to these wheat grains, I sometimes also mix in a little ground spelt or kamut when making bread just to give it a multi-grain texture.

You can experiment to see what you and your family like best and that is part of the fun of working with different grains - finding what you like!

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Following the Foreclosure Issues

Although most of the posts for this blog are written to help you with your preparedness goals or share how one family or other is doing things to give you ideas; it is never-the-less important to stay abreast of issues going on in our nation that could impact you personally, financially, etc. Issues in the news can also impact the urgency of your preparedness activities or could make you change your focus of priorities for purchases, etc.

If you have not been following the events related to the Foreclosure nightmare that is unfolding, or if you have just been going by the blips of information you have received from the main stream media regarding it, then you really do not have a good picture of the urgency of this situation and how significant the impact could be for all of us financially regarding this mess.

I highly recommend the following blog - The Market Ticker - for putting the information out about this for the past 3 YEARS and telling people that this would all blow up one day - and for keeping it real and letting us know what's going on in terms and definitions we can all understand.

So, if you haven't been keeping up, please go do some reading and educate yourself. My thought is while I can't be an expert about everything myself - I can better prepare for myself and my family if I keep up with important events around me by reading about them from the experts that are out there.

Here is a good place to start - and you can search his blog for Foreclosuregate to see all the past entries that will spell it all out for you in understandable detail.

The Market Ticker on Foreclosuregate

Excerpt:

" . . . .These events sure look like black-letter crimes to me. Selling someone crap instead of chocolate, when you tell them it's chocolate, is plain old-fashioned fraud. So is selling someone called a "Mortgage-backed security" without the mortgage backed part. In both cases, if and when this happened, you have people who took someone's money - some $6 trillion of it over the "go-go" years - and sold them crap that was certified as Grade "AAA" chocolate. In each and every case where the sellers lied, they committed a serious crime.

Who got screwed? You. Your pension fund. Your annuity company - an insurance company that might not be able to pay 10 years down the road when you're old, gray and frail.

You are the one who got screwed.

And if these clowns have their way, you'll get screwed again. The Senate knows, and is holding hearings on how to steal your 401ks - your private money - to make up the money the banks stole from Union pension funds. That's right folks - they know, and they're trying to figure out how to make it "more fair" - which is code in Washington DC for taking money from those who didn't get robbed by the banks and giving it to those who did, instead of making the robbers pay back what they stole and unjustly bonused out to their much-vaunted "talent."

Through all this we can't seem to find a prosecutor, perhaps because they're all bought and paid for by those same banks, who threaten "the end of the world" if they would be forced to eat their own cooking - or in this case, their own packaging of the dogcrap they foisted off on you.

What's worse is that we're letting all these people cover it up, even though the game had to go right through the executive suite of these big banks - you simply can't make the argument that which comprises "how one makes their money" wasn't known to the guys at the top.

Everyone talking about this in the mainstream media - with a handful of exceptions like myself on Dylan Ratigan's show, is trying to play this down as a mere technicality.

It's not.

It's a coverup that is now coming unraveled.

Why now?

Because the cash flow - or rather, the lack there - on these defaulted instruments is now becoming a serious problem, and as such you have banks furiously attempting to keep from coming to light the entirety of what happened - and they sure as hell don't want you to look closely at their practices over the last five years!

I said three years ago and have maintained since that in the end the cash flow would kill these games, because while all sorts of lies can be put on a balance sheet, you will never get away with falsifying the deposit ticket.

Guess what? That day has arrived.

Wake up America.

You've been robbed - by the bank."

The Market Ticker


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One Year of Food for Approximately $220

Found this informative blog posting showing the possibility of purchasing a year's worth of food for one person for as little as $220 - and as the writer mentions, that is less than the cost of many technological items we spend money on all the time!

Here's the link:

Modern Stronghold: Societal Collapse: $217 of Survival Food Storage for One Year



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Dehydrating Foods

Quick post this weekend to let you all know about a good video on YouTube about dehydrating foods.

You don't need a really expensive food dehydrator to start making your own delicious dehydrated foods. You can pick up basic food dehydrators many places; we've found that the ones with the clear trays don't seem to work as well as all the others, but you can experiment on your own.

A family favorite at our house is dehydrated banana chips - we slice ours and let them soak briefly in lemon juice to keep the bananas from turning brown, then lightly pat them with a paper towel before placing them on the dehydrator trays that have been lightly sprayed with no-stick spray.

We dehydrate ours until they are crunchy - the lemon juice seems to bring out the sweetness in the bananas and homemade ones taste delicious compared to the bland ones you buy in the bags in stores.

Of course, the king of dehydrators is the Excalibur and everyone I've talked to who owns one absolutely loves it. We have one on our list of future purchases.

You can dehydrate lots of fruits and veggies - just remember that the more water content in the item the longer it will take to dehydrate. We've done blueberries, bananas, onions, apples and made lots of our own fruit leather.

If you haven't investigate dehydrating foods as part of your preparedness activities - learn more about it through this video and then give it a try!

Video Link:




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We have new members in Tennessee

Paradigm_Shift

Just wanted to come in and say hello to all. I am a newbie to this site, but I am looking forward to talking with everyone, etc

Welcome this member by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=563&t=5276&p=50231


zerohour ranch

hello from tennessee

Welcome this member by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=563&t=5229

riverrat30

slbmatt


Welcome our new members by following the link below:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=563&t=5032

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How To Join The Tennessee Preppers Network

Come learn survival, preparedness and sustainable living with us!

The Preppers networks are all about volunteering our knowledge and skills with each other. We share ideas, tips and basically network with each other to survive any type of disaster whether natural, man made, or economic. Information that you learn and share with others will help everyone learn how to find "Freedom Through Teaching Others Self Reliance."

Joining the Tennessee Preppers Network is simple, and most of all, it's Free! To join, just follow these few steps.

1) Register to become a member of the American Preppers Network www.AmericanPreppersNetwork.net The registration page is here: http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/ucp.php?mode=register


2) Once you have your account, go to the index page of the forum and do your first post by introducing yourself in the new members area. http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/index.php


3) Once you know how to do posts, visit the Tennessee forum and introduce yourself. The Tennessee forum can be found by scrolling to the lower section of the index page where you will find a list of states, or you can go directly by following this URL: www.TennesseePreppersNetwork.net

4) After you've visited the Tennessee forum, follow this link to learn how to join the Tennessee Preppers Network group:
http://americanpreppersnetwork.net/viewtopic.php?f=564&t=2738


APN's success depends on your contributions. If you would like to donate to our organization by becoming a Gold Member you can join the APN Gold Members club by following this link:
http://www.americanpreppersnetwork.net/page.php?p=apn-gold-membership&sid=5b241e92a767cdfbe7a345c54dd55127
Gold Membership is only $5 per month. For a list of Gold Member benefits go here

Thank you for your support!

Solar Oven Cooking

One of the latest acquisitions for our long-term cooking needs is a Solar Oven. Should the need arise to cook without electricity or propane, if you want to cook without smoke or strong smells - solar oven cooking is a fantastic choice.

We chose this particular solar oven - Global Sun Oven Solar Cooker.

It retails at the time of this writing for $201.95 plus shipping. At the time we were shopping, it was the one we thought was the best deal for the money. We wanted one that was big enough to cook a couple loaves of bread, or a casserole or something like that, but still have it portable.

The oven was shipped to us very quickly - we received it within a week of ordering. It was well-packaged and had no shipping damage. We also ordered one Water Pasteurization Indicator.

This oven folds up to about the size of a suitcase. It has a nice leveling tray inside that can be used or removed. It has a leveling leg in the back and is very lightweight for ease of movement - weighing about 21 pounds. The reflector panels fold up neatly and snap onto the oven box when not in use and there is a carrying handle, which makes it easily portable.

My oldest daughter tried it out yesterday - she mixed up a package brownie mix and put it in a dark pan - a 9" round cake pan. The directions say that dark pans work best for absorbing the heat for cooking.

We placed the oven in the backyard and lined it up so that thepanels were directly facing the sun. We put the brownies in on the leveling tray, shut and latched the glass front door and it was quickly about 210 degrees in the oven. We checked after about 20 minutes and the oven temperature was 280 degrees.

The brownie mix called for cooking in a traditional oven for about 26 minutes. We had to move our Sun Oven twice to keep up with the sun - we were cooking around 2:30 in the afternoon. The air temperature was about 94 degrees. Our oven did hit 300 degrees and the brownies cooked in about 50 minutes.

There was no burning on the edges, the brownies were crisp on the outside and very chewy on the inside - no different than what I would expect and look for if cooking them in my traditional oven.

Overall we were very pleased with the outcome. Positives include: No heating up my traditional oven or house for cooking on a hot day; no smoke or smells that would give away my location, ease of use, portability, no using fuel that might be needed for other things - just a great purchase in my opinion.

There are many styles of solar ovens out there - you can do a search and decide for yourself which one might be best for you. There are also plans available for making your own solar oven.

And there are tons of recipes on the web that people have adapted for solar cooking - although pretty much anything you'd cook in your regular oven can be cooked in a solar oven - you just have to adapt your cooking times slightly and the solar oven doesn't seem to cook out the moisture of things as much as a regular oven does, so you might have to slightly adjust your liquid measurements for things like stew, casseroles, rice, etc.

You can even cook in the solar oven in the middle of the winter on a snow bank - all you need is sunshine!

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An Appleseed Weekend Wrap-up!

Well, I FINALLY got the chance to attend an Appleseed Weekend this past weekend!

For those of you who might not be familiar with what the Appleseed Project is all about just click the link - I'll summarize here but I strongly encourage you to spend some time on their website doing some reading and finding out what it is all about and if there is an Appleseed weekend headed your way!

The Revolutionary War Veterans Association (RWVA) has the Appleseed Project that is intended to teach you the skills you need that will make you a true rifleman (or woman!), not just a rifle owner. Many of us have rifles, but few of us actually practice with them like we should - few of us ever really learn the how, the why, the what about our rifles and shooting skills that will improve our marksmanship abilities.

In a weekend, these volunteer instructors give 115% of their time and talent to teach you everything they know that will make you a better marksman with your rifle. Even if you've been shooting a rifle for years - I guarantee you'll learn something new or a better way of doing things at an Appleseed that will make you a better marksman.

You will be hard-pressed anywhere else to find the level of high-quality instruction that is present during an Appleseed weekend. And you cannot beat the pricing - Appleseed weekends are currently FREE to Women, Children under 21, Active Duty, Guard or Reserve with ID. For everyone else, it is $45 per day or $70 for the weekend if you register in advance. Many of the weekend shoots sell out, but check to see if there is any last minute "pay at the door" availability if you find a way to go to a shoot but didn't pre-register.

Not only do you get some very top-quality marksmanship instruction, much of it one-on-one - but you will also learn more about the history behind the founding of this great country - the importance of rifle marksmanship skills during the times of our founders - and the sacrifices and significant events that built this nation. Things I guarantee you never learned in school and probably haven't heard before. Important things we all need to know and pass along to the generations coming after us.

If you attend an Appleseed weekend - you'll be in the company of other fine citizens there to learn and in the company of fantastic instructors there to teach. The instructors have all been through many phases of training and have shot many, many Appleseed weekends themselves before earning their instructor hats.

This past weekend our group was full of men, women and children all eager to learn everything they could to become better marksmen and to learn and share information about the great history of our nation. Some had been to previous Appleseed weekends; others were attending their very first one - but we all came away with lots of great marksmanship practice, a better understanding of our history and much improved shooting skills.

You can find a List of Things to Bring and Ways to Prepare for an Appleseed weekend at the link - just click on the wording and you'll find what you need to know to get ready.

Now for some details about this past weekend (26-27 Jun 2010). It was hot. I mean super hot. Temps around 95-98 with humidity making the heat index each day way over 100. We had a grass area for shooting and a covered area for magazine re-loading and lunch break - but we were in the sun the majority of the day. Everyone was a trooper in the heat - even the children - which was amazing.

So, when you review the list of items to take with you to an Appleseed weekend - make sure you have plenty of fluids for hydration. Even if you don't go during the heat of the summer - you are going to be working, concentrating, walking, shooting - you will be active the whole weekend and you'll need to stay hydrated. Not staying hydrated will affect your vision, will give you headaches and will take away from your concentration and you won't be able to do your best. So bring plenty of water and electrolytes. For food, bring light snacks that you can munch on all day to keep your energy up. Most people had lots of fruit, granola bars, energy drinks, jerky, chips, light sandwiches - but nothing too heavy.

Appleseed weekends are held all over the country - you can visit this Appleseed Schedule link to find out if there is an Appleseed weekend coming up near you.

I've had a decent amount of experience shooting handguns, but not a lot of practice shooting a rifle. So I was anxious to learn and improve my rifle skills. Trust me when I say it pays to already know a bit about your rifle - how it works, how to safely load and unload it, how to adjust your sights, have a sling for your rifle - it will save you time working out kinks on the range that is time much better spent practicing your skills.

I had taken my Ruger 10-22 that I've had forever - only to find out that it really didn't fit me well (stock too long) and I ended up using another .22 that was graciously loaned to me by instructors KYJam and her husband, Brad. If I already spent some time really practicing with my rifle, I would have known it didn't fit me well enough for an entire weekend of shooting.

We had a first-rate group of instructors - Mudcat was the Shoot Boss with his family of instructors assisting, Brad and his wife KYJam were a great team and Rich was there for his first Appleseed as an Instructor. The first thing they had us do was to shoot at a target they call the "redcoat" target. Without any instruction before shooting, this gives the instructors a good feel for where everyone is on the learning curve.

Then we got down to business learning just what makes a good rifle marksman - six steps to firing the shot, how to use a sling properly, shooting while standing, shooting while sitting, shooting prone, transitions from standing to sitting and prone, how to make sight adjustments - lots and lots of information expertly taught by instructors who truly care that you understand and learn the information so you'll be a better marksman.

One thing I really enjoyed was the fact there was no competition among those in attendance. The only person you were ever "competing" against was yourself. Always working to make yourself better - relaxing into the sling, learning how to breathe, concentrating on the front sight, learning trigger control and follow-through, learning not to "muscle" the shot, finding your natural point of aim (NPOA) - everything it takes to make you a better marksman no matter the target distance.

Although I didn't earn my rifleman patch this weekend, I came really darn close with a 202, 205 and 209. I thought it was going to be a reality - but I kept dancing around the magic 210 number and then had a scope failure on the last qualification target - so it wasn't to be this weekend. I'll definitely go for it on another weekend though! My husband did get his - it was his 2nd Appleseed and he shot a 222 twice in a row to earn his patch.

I can't say enough good things about the Appleseed Project. If you haven't been you absolutely must go. And take all your friends. Those you know love shooting and those on the fence about it. Those friends you know have a rifle they never shoot. Your wife and your wife's friends. Your boyscout or girlscout group. Your 4-H group. Your hunting buddies. Your girlfriends. The guys or girls at work - EVERYONE needs to see what this program is all about. And I can't think of a better way to introduce our youth to rifle marksmanship and our heritage than to take them to an Appleseed Weekend.

I'm hooked for sure - and plan to follow the instructor program just as soon as I get my Rifleman patch.

Here are some photos from the shoot this past weekend - thanks to the instructors who took these shots and graciously allowed me to re-post them here. Now, when you're done looking at these photos- head on over to get signed up for an Appleseed Weekend!

Instructors timing AQT:


KYJam - The Six Steps:


The Firing Line:


D - Sitting:


D - Prone:


N - Standing:


Youth prone:


Me prone:


Me standing:


Lessons In History:





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Homestead How-To Series

This is a GREAT series that might be of interest to those of you who home school or who want to learn more about any of these particular topics - and through this week only the 10 CD set is only $99.

I just received an email about this through my home school group - this list of CDs was on my wishlist for my anniversary and I just ordered them!

Thought I'd share the sale info for anyone else who might be interested.

Link:

http://franklinsprings.com/allfilms/...st-ladies.html

Series includes:

The Art of Bread Making
The Art of Candle Making
The Art of Soap Making
The Art of Canning
The Art of Gardening
The Art of Herbs
The Art of Cooking
The Art of Dairy
The Art of Sewing
The Art of Quilting

You can also buy the series in individual CDs or in smaller sets.

For more info about the series, you can see a YouTube video here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPMl2jyMM5E


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TN Preps For More Severe Weather Starting Thursday, May 20th

Okay everyone in West TN - get ready for the next round of SEVERE WEATHER that is projected to head our way with rain starting this evening, Wednesday, May 19th and going through Friday.

In addition of up to another 3 inches of rain possible in a still soaked and flooded area, the chances for severe storms, wind shear and very strong, long-lived tornadoes are possible.

The time is NOW to know what your plans and preparations are in the event severe weather or flash flooding comes your way!

From NOAA:

...AN EXTENDED SEVERE WEATHER EVENT AND FLASH FLOODING APPEARS
LIKELY THURSDAY AND THURSDAY NIGHT...

WARM AND MOIST AIR WILL BUILD INTO THE MIDSOUTH LATE TONIGHT...BEHIND
A NORTHWARD MOVING WARM FRONT. STRONG THUNDERSTORMS AND FLASH
FLOODING WILL BE POSSIBLE NEAR THIS FRONT LATE TONIGHT...ESPECIALLY
OVER EASTERN ARKANSAS...WEST TENNESSEE AND THE MISSOURI BOOTHEEL.
A FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR THESE AREAS FROM LATE TONIGHT
THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING.

THE ATMOSPHERE WILL BECOME VERY UNSTABLE THURSDAY AFTERNOON...
AS WARM AND HUMID AIR BUILDS BEHIND THE EXITING WARM FRONT. THIS
INSTABILITY...COMBINED WITH MODERATE WIND SHEAR...WILL PROVIDE
FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SUPERCELL THUNDERSTORMS
SUPPORTING VERY LARGE HAIL AND A FEW TORNADOES. ONE OR TWO TORNADOES
COULD BE STRONG AND LONG LIVED. STRAIGHT LINE WIND GUSTS WELL IN
EXCESS OF 60 MPH WILL ALSO BE POSSIBLE.

THE WINDOW OF POTENTIAL SEVERE WEATHER WILL BEGIN EARLY THURSDAY
MORNING OVER EASTERN ARKANSAS AND SPREAD EASTWARD ACROSS THE
MIDSOUTH DURING THE DAY ON THURSDAY. THE PEAK PERIOD FOR SEVERE
WEATHER WILL LIKELY OCCUR THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND EVENING. THE
POTENTIAL FOR SEVERE STORMS WILL CONTINUE THROUGH EARLY FRIDAY
MORNING. THE FLASH FLOOD THREAT WILL CONTINUE THROUGH THE ENTIRE
DAY ON THURSDAY.

THIS IS A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS WEATHER SITUATION. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE
A WEATHER RADIO...THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO PURCHASE ONE. IN ADDITION...
YOU SHOULD REVIEW SEVERE WEATHER SAFETY RULES. KNOW THE DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN A WATCH AND A WARNING AND BE READY TO PUT YOUR SAFETY PLANS
INTO ACTION WHEN SEVERE WEATHER THREATENS.

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30 Unique Uses for Dental Floss | Gomestic

30 Unique Uses for Dental Floss | Gomestic

Posted using ShareThis

Found this to be very interesting and thought I'd share - some examples you might not think of:

1. Remove tight ring from finger : Wrap waxed dental floss from the tip of your finger until you reach the ring. Slide the ring over the waxed floss and you will be able to remove it easily.
2. Repair umbrella : You can fix your umbrella by using dental floss to secure the loose fabric to the umbrella ribs by sewing them up neatly.
3. Give support to climbing plants : You can tie up vine plants to a stick using dental floss to support them.
4. Fix loose parts : You can fix loose hose attached to the tap by wrapping it up with dental floss. Tie up the floss tightly to secure the hose.
5. Repair outdoor equipment : Since dental floss is made of a strong, durable material, you can use it to fix outdoor equipment like tent, windbreaker, backpack, etc. Use floss to patch up holes, sew the torn seams and secure loose hooks attached to your outdoor gear.
6. Clean in between cracks of furniture : You can floss in between the cracks of your furniture to remove dirt.
7. Clean crevices between tools : You can also floss the crevices in between tools to remove dirt.
8. Emergency shoe lace : Use dental floss to temporarily replace your broken shoe lace

and much more at the link above!

States of Awareness: Cooper Color Codes

Being aware of your surroundings - knowing what is going on around you, who is around you and what they are doing - is a key element to your personal safety and one of the most basic ways to keep from becoming a "victim" of a crime. Many of you may already know about the Cooper Color Codes - assigning a "color" so you can match your state of readiness with your state of awareness - it is really easy to learn and practice.

The color code system of awareness has 5 states of readiness:

* White: unaware, not paying attention
* Yellow: attentive, but relaxed
* Orange: focus is directed, there is an immediate potential threat
* Red: there is a definitive threat
* Black: you are actively fighting

Instead of re-writing it all here, click to this website to the Women's Self Defense Institute where you can learn all about what these are and then get busy putting them in to practice every day!

States of Awareness - The Cooper Color Codes

Vehicle Maintenance

We all know that we should keep our vehicles in good repair with regular oil changes, keeping tires with proper amounts of air, routine inspection of belts and hoses - but are you diligently making sure you do these things, not just think about them?

There is an excellent article on Survival Blog today that talks about Vehicle Preparation and Maintenance items that I strongly encourage you to read. Whether you are running errands around town with your children, taking a family road-trip for vacation or if a urgent crisis required you to head out of town, your vehicle needs to always be up to the task.

Excerpt:

Catastrophic failures often begin as seemingly small problems, which lead to increasingly large problems, and ultimately to failure. On something as critical as your G.O.O.D. vehicle, it is important to trap “error chains” and address seemingly small problems right away, or better yet, prevent them from happening in the first place. I will begin by addressing the most critical systems, where failure would be most likely, and which would bring you instantly to your automotive knees.

Sweet Potato Starts

I ordered our Sweet Potato starts last week and should be receiving them toward the end of the month. I took the recommendation from a friend who ordered hers from Steele Plant Company last year - a company right here in Tennessee. She had great success and said the company was a pleasure to do business with.

This year I decided to give them a try, as a few of my friends have said they had much better success with sweet potatoes in their tire gardens than they did with regular potatoes.

I decided to order 3 dozen starts - a dozen of 3 different varieties. We're going to try the Georgia Jets, the Bunch Porto Ricos and the Nancy Halls. The price was $24.49 for the 36 plants. They have several Pricing Specials that you'll want to review. My order will also come with a 16 page booklet with 4 pages of growing information and 12 pages of recipes. They also have a nice little Growing Tips section on their website.

The company will ship the starts to you when it is ideal planting time in your location. So, if sweet potatoes are on your gardening list for the year, you might want to give Steele Plant Company a look to see if they have something you are looking for!

Spring Means Appleseed!

Now that Spring is here, it's time to get to work and find an RWVA Appleseed event in your area! My daughter and I are attending one this year; my husband attended one a few years ago and has recommended it to everyone he knows. If you aren't familiar with Appleseed - here's what it is all about, taken from the RWVA Appleseed website:

WHAT IS APPLESEED?

The Appleseed Program is designed to take you from being a simple rifle owner to being a true rifleman. An American tradition, the rifleman has been defined as a marksman capable of hitting a man-sized target from 500 yards away - no ifs, ands or buts about it. This 500-yard range is traditionally known as "the rifleman's quarter-mile." A rifleman can hit just about any target he can see within that radius. Marksmanship skill (albeit with smoothbore muskets) was particularly evident in the birth of our country, and was the difference in winning the Revolutionary War, right from the first day.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

The fee for 2010 Appleseed Events is unchanged from last year: $45 a day or $70 for the weekend. Free for Women, Youth Under 21yrs, Active Military, Guard or Reserve with ID. "Pay at the door" fees: $50 a day or $80 for the weekend. Participants may be required to pay a range fee to be collected by the range.

NOTE : Online registration ends 24 hours prior to the event, in order to process paper work. If you miss it, you can still register at the door!

WHERE ARE THE SHOOTS HELD?

Upcoming TN shoots:
April 2010
Kingsport, TN - Apr 17-18	Information or Register
Lobelville, TN - Apr 17-18	Information or Register
Manchester, TN - Apr 17-18	Information or Register
Maynardville, TN - Apr 17-18	Information or Register
Puryear, TN - Apr 17-18	Information or Register
May 2010
Manchester, TN - May 22-23	Information or Register
June 2010
Puryear, TN - Jun 19-20	Information or Register
September 2010
Manchester, TN - Sep 4-5	Information or Register
Puryear, TN - Sep 4-6	Information or Register

Appleseed shoots are held in most states - just visit the website, click on Schedule and you can filter by state to find one near you.

HOW CAN I LEARN MORE?

Visit the RWVA Appleseed website by clicking on the link. If you decide to attend an Appleseed event, the website has great information that will tell you how to prepare and what you need to bring.

See you at Appleseed!

Severe Weather Safety Tips

Spring is teasing us here in West Tennessee this week with temperatures that are in the 70s and even into the 80s by the end of this week. Those of you who live in this area of the Mid-South know that spring storms and tornadoes can be pretty strong here - so let's take a little time to review some safety tips that I borrowed from the Texas Severe Storms Association (TESSA):

Tornadoes

Tornadoes can produce winds greater than 300 mph, and can travel across the ground at up to 60 mph. They can develop any time of day, any month of the year, but are most common in the afternoon and evening, and in the spring and fall. Tornadoes are most common across the Great Plains and Gulf States regions of the US. More tornadoes occur in the United States than any other country in the world, and more tornadoes occur in Texas than any other state.

Below-ground shelters, and reinforced "safe rooms" provide the best protection against tornadic winds.

Other options include:

In homes or small buildings, go to the northeast corner of a basement. If a basement is not available, go to the smallest, most-interior room on the lowest floor, such as a closet or bathroom. Cover yourself to protect your body from flying debris.

In schools, hospitals, factories or shopping centers, go to the smallest, most-interior rooms and hallways on the lowest floor. Stay away from glass enclosed places or areas with wide-span roofs such as auditoriums and warehouses. Crouch down and cover your head.

In high rise buildings, go to the smallest, most-interior rooms or hallways. Stay away from exterior walls and windows.

In cars or mobile homes, abandon them immediately!! Cars and mobile homes provide no protection from tornadic winds. If you are in either of those locations, leave them and go to a substantial structure or designated tornado shelter. Do not attempt to seek shelter beneath an overpass or bridge. They provide little or no shelter and have proved to be deadly options.

If caught in the open, lie flat in a culvert, ditch or depression and cover your head.

Lightning

Lightning is a threat anywhere thunderstorms occur. If you hear thunder, it is time to take shelter.

When inside:

- Avoid using the telephone, or other electrical appliances.
- Do not take a bath or shower, or stand near plumbing.

If caught outdoors:

- Seek shelter in a sturdy building. A hard-top automobile can also offer protection.
- If you are boating or swimming, get out of the water and move to a safe shelter on land.
- If you are in a wooded area, seek shelter under a thick growth of relatively small trees.
- If you feel your hair standing on end, squat with your head between your knees. Do not lie flat!
- Avoid isolated trees or other tall objects, water, fences, convertible cars, tractors and motorcycles.

Flash Floods

Flash Floods develop quickly. They can occur anywhere, along rivers or creeks, in low water crossings or in a dry stream bed. They can occur during any month and at any time during the day. In fact, flash floods often occur at night when it is difficult to find an escape route. Flash floods can be deceptive. Flood waters are likely deeper and moving faster than you think.

When driving:

- Avoid low water crossings.
- Use alternate routes to avoid flood prone areas.
- Leave your vehicle immediately if it stalls in flood waters.
- Move to higher ground if you can do so safely.
- Most cars and light trucks will begin to float in as little as 12 inches of water.
- Act quickly, rising waters make vehicle doors difficult to open.

If you are outside:

- Everyone, especially children, should stay away from flooded creeks, streams or drainage ditches.
- Swiftly flowing water can quickly sweep away even the strongest swimmers.
- Soggy banks can collapse, dumping you into flood waters.

March Survival Boards Giveaways Total $6000!

Here's the info for this month's fantastic giveaways from the guys at Safecastle and Survivalist Boards. There will be 363 winners and a total of $6000 in giveaways. All you have to do to enter is follow the instructions I'm sharing below. NOTE - there are some DAILY giveaways - so read carefully and GO TO SURVIVALIST BOARDS to enter, not on this post. Good luck!

~~~March Giveaway Info~~~

Safecastle Royal Buyers Club—The Premier Crisis Preparedness Buyers Club in the World

SurvivalistBoards.com is the most dynamic preparedness-related forums on the internet today, in my opinion. I’m sure many of you agree.

I’m Vic--owner of one of the fastest growing crisis-preparedness companies in the business, Safecastle LLC. I just want to say I am excited to become a supporting part of this online community. We’ve been around a good long time and we are recognized far and wide as providing some of the very best products and value anywhere in the preparedness marketplace. We stand behind our products and with our customers all the way.

Joining up with Kev and all the rest of you, we wanted to make a nice statement about our commitment. As such, I decided to go big in this March Giveaway, with retail value of Safecastle prizes awarded exceeding $6000.

Here’s the deal …

A total of 363 prize winners ...

1. Free Lifetime Safecastle Royal Buyers Club Memberships--10 awarded each day thru the month of March (value $29 each)

2. One book awarded each day thru the month – (cycling thru from among):

Tom Brown's Field Guide--"City and Suburban Survival" ($17);
"How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It," by James Wesley, Rawles ($19);
"Survival Handbook, Essential Skills for Outdoor Adventure,” hardcover ($33).

3. Two Smith & Wesson assisted opening knives--$45 value each

4. Four $50 Safecastle Royal Gift Certificates

5. Two Katadyn Vario water filters--$90 value each

6. Two Bury 'Em Tubes -- choice of 6M, 6S, or 6L-- value $175-200 each

7. One Voltaic Converter Solar Backpack—value $207

8. One 9-Tray Excalibur Dehydrator, 3900 Model, black--value $275

9. Four Cases of Storage food--winner's choice (one case for each of four winners)--each case, value of up to $325

10. One Quik-Pak Foldable Bike Trailer—value $350

11. Two QUEST Mission Rigs--value $400 each

12. One Country Living Grain Mill--$456 value


13. And for our friends in Canada—two cases of Mountain House food (one case for each of two winners in Canada) winner’s choice as listed in our Canadian MH listings – (be sure to indicate you are in Canada in your thread posts)—each case, up to a value of $220.

How it will go down …

1. Winners will be selected randomly from among those board members who post to this thread during the applicable prize period (that day or week).
2. Winners will be notified by SurvivalistBoard Private Message. You must respond within one week or your prize will be forfeited and awarded to someone else.
3. One prize per board member … except, those who are awarded a lifetime buyers club membership are eligible to also win one of the other prizes.
4. Prizes are non-transferrable and cannot be exchanged for other merchandise or cash value.
5. We respect our customers’ privacy. As such, we will only post the board name of the prize winners IF they give the OK to do so. We will, however, provide a full list of the winners’ board names to Kev to ensure that all prizes are indeed awarded fairly.

What you should do to participate …

1. Post a comment to the thread no more often than once daily. Every day, 10 winners will be selected from that day’s posters and awarded buyers club memberships, and one winner will receive that day’s survival-related book.


Also, every Wednesday evening in March, at 6pm Eastern time, weekly winners will be selected from that week’s posts and awarded prizes as indicated below:

March 3:
2 Smith & Wesson assisted opening knives
2 $50 Safecastle Gift Certificates


March 10:
2 $50 Safecastle Gift Certificates
2 Katadyn Vario Water Filters


March 17:
2 Bury ‘Em Tubes
1 Voltaic Converter Backpack
1 9-Tray Excalibur Dehydrator, 3900 Model
1 Mountain House case – Canada


March 24:
4 cases of storage food


March 31:
1 Quik-Pak Foldable Bike Trailer
2 QUEST Mission Rigs
1 Country Living Grain Mill
1 Mountain House case – Canada