One of the stupidest @#$%ing things I've ever done for a story...

We've had some crazy-ass weather up here and many of my friends spent Christmas with no power. And those poor Georgians stranded for hours in their cars... made me realize how dependent we've become on technology, and how unprepared we are when it fails.

So, with the help of an advanced-driving instructor buddy, who has military survival training, I set out to discover how to survive being stranded in a vehicle, in -20 weather... for 24 hours. It was not pleasant.

We tucked into the piney woods in the Ganaraska forest near Mosport, in a Volvo XC60. We had half a tank of gas left, which we preserved by only firing up the engine three times: at 7 p.m., 12:30 a.m. and 3:30 a.m., for 15 minute intervals.

His "survival pack" included water and granola bars for much-needed calories, and crinkly, thermal body bags to prevent heat loss (which work better than the sheets). E36 M3 got real after midnight when the temperature dropped to minus 11 inside the car. We had very lightweight sleeping bags, which we climbed into at midnight, with the thermal heat-loss bags inside. Still, the cold seeped through any surface of the car that the body made contact with, and I found that whenever I drifted off, the drawstring on my sleeping bag loosened and I was unpleasantly awakened by the cold.

We shot plenty of punch-drunk video.

That experience really, really drove home the importance of being prepared while winter driving. Everyone I care about is getting a car-survival kit from me.

Did he get lucky? I'm pretty sure that was the whole point from his perspective... although he could have chosen a venue with a less dramatic need for hugging.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Did he get lucky? I'm pretty sure that was the whole point from his perspective... although he could have chosen a venue with a less dramatic need for hugging.

4 minutes before it went there. Impressive!

mtn wrote: 4 minutes before it went there.

You cad! Are you saying Lesley is easy?

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote: Did he get lucky? I'm pretty sure that was the whole point from his perspective... although he could have chosen a venue with a less dramatic need for hugging.

Wow dude. Just wow. I think you missed the entire point of that story and have yet again proven why you chose your screen name.

Timely. Expect excellent pageviews!

Related to the story, I've always kinda wanted to try this--not enough to actually do it, but I've wondered how I would do. In the Miata, it would be extremely hard. If I still owned the Crown Vic, not so much--we actually kept a Charcol grill in that thing for awhile.

No, it was way too berkeleying cold to even go there. Besides, I really don't think his GF would have appreciated that!

All kidding aside, it was a bit scary. The windows frosted over and my feet are still sore three days later. I'll post the story with vid link (his GF is a medical professional, and viewing the vids she remarked that we appeared to be in early stages of hypothermia).

Just because we're all thinking it doesn't mean you have to say it, GPS!

turboswede wrote: ... yet again proven why you chose your screen name.

You have obviously never read any Berkley Breathed cartoons.

Lighten up, Francis.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:

turboswede wrote: ... yet again proven why you chose your screen name.

You have obviously never read any Berkley Breathed cartoons. Lighten up, Francis.

Yeah, I have read some, but it doesn't change what I think of you.

In the immortal words of Bill the Cat: "thpppppbt!"

Actually, would physical activity have warmed the inside more? Or sharing a sleeping bag?

One of the first things I taught my kids at summer camp about wilderness survival was a simple lesson. Tell someone where you're going and how your getting there. Wilderness could be any place that doesn't have cell service.

One of the local TV news reporters did a similar story here in Minneapolis earlier this winter, but she bailed out halfway through the night. They had an ambulance standing by and everything.

Heck, I live in Florida and I have a survival kit warm enough for winter in my truck! Wool blankets are cheap, warm, and have all sorts of uses.

Lesley wrote: No, it was way too berkeleying cold to even go there. Besides, I really don't think his GF would have appreciated that! All kidding aside, it was a bit scary. The windows frosted over and my feet are still sore three days later. I'll post the story with vid link (his GF is a medical professional, and viewing the vids she remarked that we appeared to be in early stages of hypothermia).

Knowing what you know now, if you were to do it again what would you do differently? A thousand handwarmers? Better sleeping bags? Tea candles?

I love Berke Breathed, and especially Bill.

Lesley wrote: No, it was way too berkeleying cold to even go there. Besides, I really don't think his GF would have appreciated that! All kidding aside, it was a bit scary. The windows frosted over and my feet are still sore three days later. I'll post the story with vid link (his GF is a medical professional, and viewing the vids she remarked that we appeared to be in early stages of hypothermia).

When/where does the story come out? My BIL has been trying to convince me to sleep in a tent hanging from the side of a mountain as part of his mid-life mountain climbing crisis... but I can see zero fun in freezing in a precarious position only to wake up... and have work to do to survive the rest of the day. (Unless maybe there is some snuggling involved first... but he is not that apealing, frankly)

PHeller wrote: Actually, would physical activity have warmed the inside more? Or sharing a sleeping bag?

Both at the same time would work best

Oh... and for a surprising amount of heat in an enclosed space - keep a few candles and a book of matches in the car. It's more romantic too :)

I was more shocked at the lack of booze in this experiment. Vodka is nature's antifreeze, just ask the Russians!

Lesley wrote: ...We had half a tank of gas left, which we preserved by only firing up the engine three times: at 7 p.m., 12:30 a.m. and 3:30 a.m., for 15 minute intervals...

Seems very conservative. I would think a half tank of gas could run a car for many hours, why so little time running the heater?

It will probably be published next week, will post the link for sure. If it had gotten to that point, I'm sure we would have gotten closer for warmth. Funny how cultural politeness gets tossed out the door when you're fearing for your life.

One thing I discovered is just how superior wool is over synthetic fabrics for insulation. I had a very thin merino wool undershirt on, underneath several layers - which kept me toasty warm. A very itchy wool toque was absolutely invaluable at keeping heat from escaping through the top of my head.

But my damn feet were frozen blocks, even in thick thermal socks, inside the crinkly bag and sleeping bag. Shaun, my survival buddy (and my first choice of team-mate should the Zombie Apocalypse come to pass) gave me a pair of his 100% wool socks, which I exchanged for my blended ones.

Did the trick, my feet eventually warmed up. Which is a good sign, because the body shuts down circulation to its extremities to preserve heat loss when it senses a risk of hypothermia.

Why didn't you run the car more? How much gas were you limiting yourself to for that story?

This is an excellent premise, (I love watching Survivorman) but I wonder if it would have been instructive if those 24 hours had allowed you to use your supplies up, including gas. I dunno. Anyway, I feel cold now.

Aircooled - we wanted to see just how serious it could be if the car was dead, or a "stranded without gas" situation would be. Very serious indeed, there is no doubt in my mind that we could have died without the precautionary gear he'd packed.

The cool thing is that the bags folded up into tiny little pouches the size of grapefruit, the sleeping bags were about the size of a watermelon. So being prepared needn't take up much trunk space.

Webster's dictionary definition of "Dedication" - retardus dumarseous,
Use Dedication in a sentence.
ded·i·ca·tion
[ded-i-key-shuhn] Show IPA noun
1. the act of dedicating.
2. spending a night in sub arctic temperatures in an unsuitable motorvehicle with inadequate heat and failing to use the built in heating unit.