How about Escape From New York as a training video?

Yelp,

Nice kit. One thing I might think about (and did when I travelled for business a lot) ...

In airports there are people. LOTS of people.
I would have a couple of the flat folding 3M medical masks in that bag. Some of what we may face is dust, etc from disaster. But also flue scares etc. and transport centers are high risk.

Hope this helps,

Awesome! Never miss the opportunity to train! I'll bundle it with "The Warriors." Thanks!




Thanks, MedB - good suggestions. A couple of masks and goggles (if I can fit 'em) definitely have a place. And some more hand sanitizer - I go though lots of that in airports and on the train.

One very handy item in a Urban BOB (or any BOB) would be a compass. Getting lost in the concrete canyons is as easy as getting lost in real canyons. A compass can (at least) let you know if you are traveling in the right direction in unfamilier areas.

+1! A lot of people assume a compass is only to be used outdoors. But it's very easy to get lost in an unfamiliar city, especially abroad. My compass has made life a lot easier on many occasions even though some of my buddies thought I was a little crazy carrying one in the middle of a city. That is, until we ended up in some maze of poorly signposted streets.

I am glad this thread got bumped up again; it is a favorite of mine and worth reading again.

Another +1 on the crank radio/flashlight. Eton makes one now (FR150) that runs on USB cable, crank, and solar, and has a replaceable battery. It is actually small and shaped like a flashlight (instead of a large radio with a light on it). It has AM/FM/NOAA bands on the radio. You can use it to crank-charge a cell phone, but you don't get much talk time for your effort (I have a phone charger that takes AA's instead). At about $30, it was cheap enough for me to get one to live in my EDC bag.
Eton Microlink FR150

Disclaimer: No affiliation to Eton, just a fan.

I was pleasantly surprised when, after not visiting the forums in a while, I saw my BONY BAG post was still alive. In reading the recent comments there continue to be a lot of good suggestions. But what keeps going through my mind is that when you're doing a kit for someone else you've got to keep their skills, ability, willingness and interest in mind.

For example, I agree a compass would be very useful and I seriously considered putting a real one in the kit. But I know my daughter, and she doesn't know how to use a compass, nor would she remember if I tried to teach her.

Weight is also a factor. I had to balance what I thought she needed vs. what I thought she would consider a reasonable weight to carry.

She is home this semester and before she goes back next semester I'm going to review the suggestions and make some changes to the contents, and post the changes here.

-Kurt

re: Compass. A compass is no substitute for familiarity with the city, and NYC makes it very, very easy to tell general directions. No idea about NJ though, but a heavy duty compass would be quite redundant in the city.

For NYU, when I was there the SOP was for the main gym to serve as the main shelter. During 9/11 students were told to go there, and they were provided with blankets, food, and water. If she ever needs to bug out, tell her to stop by there first and load up on whatever she's missing, maybe leave a message if possible (I *think* that was also the main communications center during 9/11), then head out. I had a few friends who did this, and it worked well enough for them.

Bug out bag. Try to take foods that do not take water to prepare, I see so many bug out
bags with things like, instant oatmeal, hot chocolate & soups. The water should be for
drinking & take vitamins & protein bars. I also take a bottle of fiber, not only is
fiber needed but it also swells for a full feeling. I came across what is called
Lifecaps. They are a capsule that has everything needed to survive without food with
the exception of water. It is full of vitamins & minerals plus Iodine. Anyway, you take
three of them a day & drink water. I can actually take enough food in one backpack to
last 6 months because of these little Lifecaps, protein bars, fiber & water. I will run
out of water in a week so I do carry a small filter & a couple of those straw water
filters that filter the water as you suck.
You do not always have the ability or time to heat water to make soup or oatmeal. Anyway,
after I bought 25 bottles I found a coupon code & bought 75 bottles more. The coupon code
is... healthcap It will get you 33% off. There are also sites that have those filter straws
that are cheaper than any of the stores around here. (SLC) I think they are a really good
idea along with some purification pills. I cannot remember the sites off the top of my head
but you can Google for aquamira filter straw. Aquamira is the manufacture but do not buy
off there site because I have found them for almost 1/2 what they want on their own site
on other sites. Good luck, Gods speed & get serious about your bug out bag!