Back40 Wilderness First Aid Training

12/23/2025

A great post with an example of many things done right. This is also another reason why I suggest you have all that you need to spend at least 24hrs in your car in the winter - so you can ALWAYS stay with your car! Your car will always be found first! Glad this young man will make it home to his family!

12/22/2025

This is why when I ski on/across lakes I have my ice spikes in my pocket close to hand.

What would you do if…..?
- the skier self rescued but is now exposed and hypothermic?
- do you have means to make shelter or fire and change clothes?
- do you ski with your inreach? And other survival essentials?

A good outcome to a scary situation! Be safe out there!

Incident #290
At approx 11:15 a.m. on Dec 20th, Lakeland Fire was dispatched to an ice rescue on Emma lake. Crews arrived on scene to find a skier had fallen through the ice about 150 meters from shore. Crews donned dry suits and using our RescueAlive equipment, crews were able to successfully bring the patient safely to shore to the waiting ambulance.

12/17/2025

Travel not recommended.

Yet here they are.

It takes ONE driver to start a catalyst of events.

I only drove home from work in the city and it was INTENSE. And I’m not afraid of winter driving (small town girl here who is likely to be someone on the highways on days like this because of “work pressures”), but as I get older and wiser I now know my clients will wait for me. We can re-book. Because THIS is absolutely not worth it.

If you can’t spend the night in your car on the highway - comfortably & safely - don’t go out. Because as this event goes on and the night settles in……they may not actually get to you at all.

And turn your damn headlights on!

Every single year this is the same story. Every. Single. Year.

Tell me again how your classroom first aid prepares you for this scene????

12/15/2025

Some things just can’t be understood until you go out there and play. Train where you play/work, with what you have, and through all the organic complexities!
That is where the real learning is!

7 cyclists who frequent our community group rides/events, have more miles on two wheels than I will ever achieve in my life, who lead club rides with shared passion, and who know our city trail network like no other all took to the snow today to challenge their skills and scenarios. Learning through experience gives insight into the stress the hurt person may be experiencing but also gives us a chance to practice when things are not real. Everyone got cold, gear was used, problems were solved, solutions were implemented and we all walk away with more insight and preparedness.

“What if…?” allows us to work through the stressors and complexities in a safe and exploratory way. The skills we practice in this environment link build confidence in our own good sense and make us quicker to respond and problem solve when it’s real. There is no wasted opportunity here!

this was an excellent opportunity for these riders! All season long the learning can change and adapt to the type of riding we do and the risks in each environment! This is a start of more to come if the community is interested! The more we all train/play - the better prepared we are when things happen! Thank you for allowing me to share this day with you!

Ride safe! Have fun! Be prepared! NO ONE PLANS TO GET HURT! 🥴

Your first aid matters. How you train matters too! THIS is our classroom!

12/08/2025

If you’re looking for a gift idea, a way to save money on a course, and an excuse to finally get into a Remote First Aid….this auction item is still at an amazing price! Bid now while the auction is open!

The first aid kit is pretty solid if you ask me! 😉 but the training is next level worth your time, money and support of this fundraiser.

Auction item 'Back40 First Aid Kit & 20 Hours Remote First Aid' hosted online at 32auctions.

12/04/2025

What would you do? Discuss in comments.

Scene: You haven’t heard from your co-worker all day. You all work alone and everyone was busy today. It’s well past home time and he hasn’t showed up at the office. Multiple calls to his phone go to voicemail. Your text log with him shows he last texted you at 1:45pm - it’s now 5pm. You offer to drive out to the site he was at today….the pit of your stomach knows something is wrong.

45min later you arrive at the site. You can see him up in the bucket, not moving.

You call your other co-worker and tell them to call 911 because you already know you’ll be busy. He can get the call done with the complexities of location details and will likely drive there too to show EMS how to find you. You trust your team to get it done - it will at least an hour + before they get here (if you’re lucky).

Safety survey: There’s no electricity in play at all. You don’t see blood on the bucket. A quick walk around the truck shows no sign of anything. He STILL hasn’t answered you.

You have to find the remote controls. You’re cursing this new truck and the new mechanics. You’re frustrated and your hands are shaking. Your phone keeps ringing but you left it in the truck.

Finally - you got the bucket moving down. But you need to play with the angles to get it to the ground. It feels like it takes FOREVER! As the bucket comes to a rest on the ground, he slumps into the bottom of it.

You open the man door of the bucket and see his large body awkwardly slumped in the tiny space. You tilt his head back, screaming at him to answer you. He’s cold. Grey.

Option 1: You struggle with all your might to get him unclipped from his safety line and drag him out. Moving 220lbs of dead weight out of the tiny man door comes at toll. You try to tip the bucket too but that doesn’t give much benefit. He has to come out with brute strength - you’re grateful for his harness. Once on the ground, you move s**t around until you can get good positioning and then you start CPR. Where are they!?

Option 2: You see his face. You know. It’s been way too long. You quietly sit beside the bucket, head in your hands and cry. He is dead.

12/03/2025

Thinking of a gift idea for someone?!?! Experiences are truly a great gift especially for those you don't know what to get or for those who seem to already have everything they need!

Gift Certificates are available! For a specific date or for a future date! Give the gift of training, adventure, and preparedness!

Email me: back40training@gmail.com to set up a surprise for someone you care about!

12/01/2025

So if you happen to be shopping for a Xmas Gift (like a 20hr Remote First Aid and fully stocked first aid kit!?!?) - you could bid on that and many other things in this FUNDRAISER!

My youngest graduates this year and we were happy to donate to their auction. This might just be a great Xmas gift for you or someone else! Lots of other good things too!

Silent auction 'Centennial Collegiate Fundraiser- Class of 2026' hosted online at 32auctions.

12/01/2025

Nothing will get better if you’re exposed.

Your preparedness matters.

Your experience and training gives insight into priorities you cant possibly know exist if you haven’t struggled through it before. These scenarios reinforced the need for shelter. And shelter is not always easy to come by.

Those in the alpine or rocky areas may not be able to put a tarp up….a bivy wall and/or a Bothy Emergency Shelter are amazing solutions…:but you need to know their quirks and limitations too. Tarps, bivys, group shelters, and snow caves etc all take time, experience, and engineering. All while dealing with a sick or injured patient.

You are one broken ankle/leg/body away from not making it to the car by dark. Are you prepared to provide care and shelter your group until help arrives? Are you equipped to recover for a few hours before trying to self rescue?

Your gear matters. No one PLANS to get hurt.

This is our classroom.

11/24/2025

Do you cycle (fat tires or commuters) in the winter?

Do you need first aid certification for work/volunteer/activities? (or recertification)

Do you want to learn first aid but want to take it outside the confinement of a classroom box?

No one plans to get hurt!

I am STOKED to be hosting a SFA (Standard First Aid) with a winter cycling focus. This is a great opportunity to get SFA certified with less time & financial investment than our Remote First Aid. 100% Participation in our evening classroom & full day outdoor session is mandatory. New certifications must complete an online learning program to fulfill the Blended Learning certificate components.

✅Outside.
✅With bikes & gear.
✅Reality based scenarios for genuine learning.
✅FUN!

This event is NOT on the website so if you would like to register please email back40training@gmail.com to start the process!

Your first aid matters!

How you train matters too!

11/09/2025

Real life example of someone’s worst day. But it won’t happen to you right?

I want to do a slot canyon in Utah some day! What an adventure! But like any other trip we take into the backcountry - the things we do in preparedness and the things we take with us are for the day we hope never happens. Not the day everything is amazing and we make it home with no mishap.

You are one slip and fall away from a complete change of plans. And you do NOT have to be in a slot canyon for that to happen.

Your preparedness matters.

Happy Sunday!

Two brothers face a frozen nightmare in a remote Utah canyon when one falls into icy water. Injured and miles from help, can they escape the sub-zero trap be...