I remember when he lost a toe a couple of years ago to frostbite. It seems he would have learned his lesson from that incident and started to carry some firemaking gear. It is truly better to be lucky than good--or in his case, smart.

Rulon Gardner

He also might consider flying with somebody else next time.

Maybe when you learn to build the fire. Remind me to not ever be near this guy.

Natural selection usually takes care of guys like this eventually, hopefully we don't lose any SAR people trying to bail him out before that...

Somebody send this guy the http://www.equipped.org/ link. He's needed it several times apparently. Hell, I was just watching a show this weekend that detailed his specific case with the snowmobile incident.

I already know that that guy is one tough SOB. I watched his olympic match against the Russian wrestler, aka "The Experiment" (undefeated for 13 years). Is wasn't a pretty match, heavy weight matches rarely are, but they beat the hell out of each other.

It seems he's just one of those lucky guys that can take a beatin' and just manage to keep breathing. Actually might not be a bad person to have around in an adrenaline situation...

J

Oh, and just to demonstrate this guy's attitude toward life and attempting to learn from his mistakes:

After his snowmobile calamity caused him severe frosebite on his feet and he had one of his middle toes amputated, he kept said toe in his freezer for several years.

I saw his match with Karelin too. It was one of the biggest upsets in Olympic history. Now it seems he has become a bit of a buffoon. One of these days his luck is going to run out.

Not exactly the brightest light in the harbor, is he?

I used to work with a woman who was "accident-prone". Knowing her made me realize that the term "accident-prone" means flat-out stupid. She was in so many car accidents she couldn't keep count (Daddy paid for her insurance); she never wore a seatbelt; she didn't lock her doors at home; the only temperature she cooked with was High. I wonder where she is now, if she's still alive. Maybe her last name is Gardner now.

Sue

May I ask what this has to do with an American Olympic Legend? An olympic gold and an active outdoor life. He is only missing a toe. Maybe your friends last name is Kim.

The misquote aside, I'm not really sure what your point is. Lots of us live active outdoor lives and still manage to keep all of our toes. Why? Because we choose not to go unprepared. An Olympic gold medal is indeed impressive, but here we discuss being Equipped to Survive. I for one would have been much more impressed had he grabbed some survival gear out of the still-floating plane. Or maybe if he had built a fire on the shore using the small psk he began carrying after his snowmobile mishap 5 years ago. Or even if somewhere in the article he mentioned his newfound determination to start carrying one.

You can't rely on dumb luck and sheer bulk forever.