What is the best mode of transportation for when SHTF?

Honestly guys, in a SHTF scenerio where you have to bug out, your main objective is to go quick and to stay alive. This means getting somewhere where you can think properly, observe, listen and logically figure out your next step. Each individual unit or family has for the most part different situational and geographical variables to deal with.

E-ville's rig looks awesome for the long haul and I definately want E-ville on my team, but I'm not sure the benz/blazer would have the hp needed when fully loaded in the mountains.

Since we're talking about the Pacific Northwest with the OP's question, I'm going to have to re-iterate my sailboat idea. A sailboat is going to get you away from people immediately. This has to be one of the most important things to do if there is a society wide mass panic going on. It's reliable, available (in the PNW) and sustainable. It can hold a substantial load of supplies and being on the water with other mariners is in my opinion much safer than any highway or small town your going to encounter on land. Passage on someone elses boat could also be bartered for and again, I'd try this idea over many others. Last but not least, "finding" an unused boat is also a desperate possibility.


[edit on 25-6-2010 by The Undertaker]

reply to post by The Undertaker


My rig is setup for my situation.. so results will vary, my situation is i'm in the midwest.. no massive mountains to deal with, also the benz blazer is only the small half of my rig.. the big truck, is a 1 ton dually crew cab turbo diesel (all mechanical also) with a off the grid equiped camper on the hitch.. I also live in a remote area already, but have 1 other more remote place locally I can go if I need to get even more "in the boonies". And if i really need to get out of dodge, i have a very isolated place in Texas, that is setup and ready to go.. including food water power systems and structures..

When I picture TSHTF, I see mass hysteria by the "sheeple" for about a month .. then I see society settling back into a more pre 1930's situation.. to me cities are death traps and I'd never live in any city, heck I work in a town of 12,000 people and feel thats to big to work or live in. And I live in a village with a population under 100 and feel thats to many people around when the SHTF.. I witnessed this this winter, we had a power outage and my home was the only one with lights and heat for over 3 hours in a blizzard.. no one else was prepaired for even a simple power outage in a snow storm and home temps were dropping 20 degrees a hour easly.. we fired up the wood burner and were toasty warm.. and had lights going and smoke rolling from the chimney, our home was like lighthouse.. every one in town would have known whos home to goto.. in a SHTF situation thats not good, I didn't stockpile enough food for 50 extra people.. nor do I want hungry cold people knocking on my door asking for handouts.. Remember if your prepaired, and non prepared people see it, you are now the target.

I live my life in a multiple personality mode.. I have the typical "american dream" life.. a decent home a couple newer cars in the driveway, a 401k etc.. However, I also lead this hermit survivalist life.. our family vacations consist of off-gridding for a month a year (totally off grid, no power, no water now utilities), so I actually know how to do it and what I need, I have properties that are paid for free and clear in different locations, I have many extra vehicles that are paid for free and clear and equipped for SHTF situations and bad economic problems. I have solar power systems and I have 800 gallons of fuel stored away and a years worth of food ect..

However most that survival stuff is used in our regular life.. the off grid camper is used for recreation and fun, the bug out vehicles are used regularly (letting vehicles sit is hard on them) I'm not afraid of a SHTF situation.. I'm more afraid of what the non prepared people will do in desperate times. Most people I know are not prepared and don't have the skills to cope in a society thats crumbling , they rely on the store on a daily basis to provide there food needs, they rely on services that they have no control over.. and they have no idea what to do when those things disappear or don't exist.

My modo to live by , expect the worst, hope for the best. either way I'm setup for either one.

Originally posted by SpeedBump
I'm looking for reliability. Availability. Sustainability. Etc.
.

TPTB have you scared. They are doing a great job because it seems to have you all scared. What is it that you're running away from? Natural Event (solar flare CME)? Nuke? Military? Your neighbors?

Fear is the worst way to live. Not intended for you, but the ignorant always live in fear and flee from something, whether it be their shadow, the government or the dog.

If your faith is to die, it does not matter whether you hide in DUMB or stand outside. The universe will get you.

We are all on a journey on this planet to learn - what we are learning is that our physicality is not significant, what we take with us is our lessons to the next life.

let us look at the fears:

Being attacked by External Military
- studies have been done that in order to overpower a population you require 20% of the size of the population to police / military the populous into submission - for 300 million US, that is 60 million military - there is no such force present, even if it was the Chinese, they would encounter so many guns that they would not be able to last long. The logistics alone to move such military force would require a year, to support food, etc.

Fear of natural disaster
What can we do to avoid a Solar CME? all electrical would be done, that includes all power lines, all electrics, magnetics and electronics. Unless you lived in a Faraday cage waiting for the event you would not survive. If it is the gamma ray or tachyon particles, it has higher penetration than the X-ray lead shield. It can go couple of thousand feet underground through all barricades. If it is an earthquake, you would get warning from animals.



All in all, living in fear, you will avoid learning. Although preparing is a good idea, you can not and will not be able to prepare for all. The best chance you have is to meditate and get more in touch with your intuition.

TPTB want us to live in fear zone. This is the only most effective tool that they have. Don't give your freedom away. Don't let fear rule your life.

Just my 2 cents to my friends here.

Originally posted by crazydaisy
Bicycles, horses and some with buggies for those that are unable to ride.

Covered wagons were a great mode of transpotation at one time, and they are cool! We could bring those back as they are good for sleeping in, hauling supplies and weather protection.

That's right! I remember the Bonanza episode where everyone saw a brite flash of light and everyone hid behind Hoss. Then they jumped in the the ol' Connistoga, after taking two or so hours to load it, and made thier way up the Oregon Trail in about three months time. Hey, if it worked for them!

In certain cases less is more ,depending on situation if you look like you have nothing you may be left alone by marauding gangs .Eventually your going to walk so each person must be self contained and watch Rambo First Blood and become like him or do nothing wait for everyone else to leave and become the new city mayor.

It seems to me the situation at hand is going to dictate the best transportation. If cops or military aren't working road blocks then whatever vehicle you can get that does the job you're looking to do will be fine. If I saw a road block and had to use my vehicle still, I would scout a doable trail around it in the day and sneak it across at night (don't forget, no lights, heh!) I would most definitely stay off main roads and acquire a Mad Max attitude if confronted by strangers.

TPTB have you scared. They are doing a great job because it seems to have you all scared. What is it that you're running away from? Natural Event (solar flare CME)? Nuke? Military? Your neighbors?

Fear is the worst way to live. Not intended for you, but the ignorant always live in fear and flee from something, whether it be their shadow, the government or the dog.

I beg to differ, if your prepared you don't have any fear because you know how to handle the situation at hand..

Since becoming prepared for TSHTF I've had the least stressful time of my life.. I have food stored fuel stored and skills needed to survive in any situation.. if its just the economy getting bad.. Im set for a long time before I even need to get worried about how im going to feed my family or pay for that next tank of gas etc..

Fear is a motivator and its only when you don't take action that its bad .. if you fear something and don't do something about it.. thats bad.. It's actually built in to our nature.. fight or flight.. either you address the fear or run away.. Being repaired is the addressing it .. running away will be what happens to most of Americans when TSHTF, they will be running around like crazed animals.. just like Katrina.. they will turn into animals the moment there TV doesn't work and they actually have to take care of them selfs.

Lets ask Mikie, or in this case, Protoplasmic Traveler.
He would know which bicycle is best when tshtf

Horse or mule is going to be the best mode of transportation if/when SHTF. If you live in the city, and don't have access to a horse or mule, prepare and find a place (a farm, a ranch, commercial stables) where you can go to and get a horse post catastrophe. That way you can load up your vehicle with your supplies, get out of town, but then have a mode of transportation that doesn't rely on gasoline--cuz eventually, you're gonna run out.

Honestly a bike is your best bet, gasoline is not going to be easy to come by, and many roads will be rendered impassible by vehicles out of gas, violence and government patrols.

Preposition your supplies. The Military does this and uses what they call leap frogging.

If you know you are only going to make 15 miles the first day, well 15 miles up the road you want some pre-positioned supplies stashed. If you know the second day you can make it 30 miles, well there is your next stash waiting for you.

This way you can travel light, and you are not a target for robbers.

The bulk of your supplies will have been long pre-positioned at your final destination.

This strategy will allow you to travel all the way there, and to travel light, and more safely. Plus it will give you multiple meet up points if one of your party is delayed or detained in passage.

reply to post by SpeedBump


I would say a submarine because if communication goes down it is still able to communicate with other vessels using haarp & eiscat antenna arrays.

[edit on 7/6/10 by Ophiuchus 13]

reply to post by true-life
I wonder how many jews would have survived WWII had they been scared enough to run for the hills with weapons instead of not being scared and walking, without putting up a fight, into those dreaded buildings.

OP:

2 votes.

1) 4 stroke dirt bike: great obstacle work horse. usable in favorable conditions

2) bicycle (good to see bikes mentioned so well here)

Actually there was article about this very subject.. I believe my Frankenstein turbo diesel blazer is better, so I disagree, but I also have one of these, just incase they are correct.. However mine is a bit modified for better mpg and more cargo space:
www.wired.com...

Originally posted by E-ville
Iv'e built the nearly perfect SHTF vehicle.. Its' average looking, its nuke proof, it seats up to 5 and has dry cargo space inside, its got ground clearance , yet its fuel efficient and also runs on multiple fuels.. everything from motor oil to kerosene and even used tranny fluid and used vegtable oil ..

I started with a 2000 4x4 Chevy blazer (the small sized s10 version) swapped the engine with a 5cylinder turbo diesel from a older early 80's Merc benz, The vehicle is very normal looking and unassuming , until you get close enough to hear the turbo spinning and the diesel chatter.. this vehicle is 100% mechanical drive train and will run even under a nukes EMP.. and the Benz 5 cylinder diesels are very very prized for their reliability, and simplicity of maintenance. They are also are not picky with fuels, it can basically run on any combustible oily substance you can get to flow into its injection pump.. And with the addition of a 2nd heated fuel tank and a "hose in hose" fuel heating system, (you heat the fuel lines and fuel tank with engine antifreeze) you literally can run fuels like engine crank case oil, used deep fryer vegetable oil, hydrolic fluid, and even low melting point grease varieties.

The s10 blazer platform is a full framed vehicle so it has a pretty high towing capacity yet has a smaller size that allows you to get into tighter spots that a full size would not allow.

One other advantage is its economical, tires are a very common and low cost size, the engine can run on all sorts of fuels, and it's gets over 30mpg... with the dual 18 gallon tanks its got about a 1100 mile range before needing a refuel..

The disadvantages.. its not lightning quick.. it will do 90mph pretty easily, but it ain't quick off the line.. And once somebody hears it they either think the motors about to blow if they don't have a clue about diesels, But then again there was never a diesel s10 blazer, so that may throw them.. or they can recognize the diesel chatter an know you packing something special under the hood..

And just to prove it , here is video proof

www.youtube.com...

Well, maybe the vehicle will keep running after a nuclear blast (doubtful, yet to be tested) but YOU will cease to keep running. You didn't do anything to the vehicle to keep gamma rays on the outside. (Takes lots of lead to even slow it down significantly)They WILL pass through that metal and through you. Burn you right up! Hence, radiation sickness and bye bye. Besides, what if you break an axle, or a strut, shock, bust a hose or radiator, etc, or simply too many flat tires. You can't haul every part you may need. It's not to say it's a good plan if you don't encounter a close nuclear blast, it is initially. But you may encounter more rough terrain than you imagined. Best have a plan 'B' for when you're on foot, which will eventually happen. Sounds like a cool truck though.

When it happens, it's not going to matter what you have, what will matter is where you will be when it happens. If the shtf in a bad way (which it sounds as you are alluding to), you and everydamnbody else is going to be trying to "get out". You will be in gridlock amidst panic and chaos ....... with the rest of them.

[edit on 7/20/2010 by Misfit]

Originally posted by SpeedBump
I'm looking for reliability. Availability. Sustainability. Etc.

We live in the Pacific Northwest.

We have atleast three people to transport with supplies, of course.

Cherokee?

For me I use a land rover. Basically you'd be best with a 4x4 that is long wheel-based and reliable.

On foot, it takes me 4 hours to walk out of new york city on foot, I think I can get there pretty fast if I ran.

On foot, it takes me 4 hours to walk out of new york city on foot, I think I can get there pretty fast if I ran.

The best most economical, reliable, and versatile mode of transportation is on foot! a nice pair of boots add to this. After feet the next mode of transportation would be a horse although it does require food it can get you long distances fairly quickly. As for all the complete idiots in this thread talking about their jeeps and hummers and suv's ad motorcycles, they may look cool for the first little while but they are morons cuz when those SoBs run out of gas you back to walking so yes if you have it in the begining use it! But dont count on it as you main transportation because its not gonna last. the only thing it will be good for is a shelter or material for a nice cozy fire!