[BirdStuff]

1. DO NOT POP BLISTERS! Use the thread trick.
Assemble a needle with thread on it. Run it through the meat of the blister at a angle as to not stab your foot. You want to have the string just inside the inner circumference. Trim off the string so you have about 1 in. to 1/2 in. hanging out. Put a CLEAN sock over and elevate. By the next day all the fun stuff inside the blister that makes them enjoyable should have drained out via the thread.

2. Put a strip of 100mph tape on the hot spots you develop. Helps to relieve some of the friction going on inside your boot. You may have conditioned your feet for long walks with weight but a rain tends to erase all that hard work.

3. As an alternate to the above mentioned kit bag. Acquire an empty MRE box and cut off the top flaps; Use it as a storage box for items you want easy access to, store it under your cot.

4. Bring a loofah and scrub the hell out of your legs when you get to shower. I saw allot of guys get staph/merca infections because they only brought a bar of soap.

5. Freezer bags.

6. If attending a winter course; put your canteen inside your sleeping bag with you. When your moving put one inside your top. Alternate every hour to keep them from freezing. Same goes for your compass.

7. Do not put the electrolyte mix you may receive in all your water sources when going out. You may end up looking like you got in a fight with a box of powdered donuts before you find a clean water point.

8. Take your DLAB and TABE before attending.
*Not sure if this is still a permitted practice or not. May need clarification.

9. Gut a strip of 550 cord and separate the black/white strand. Poke a hole "the cross hair" in the center of your protractor. Tie a knot 3x the size as the hole you made and run the string through. Once the string is through tie another 3x size knot on the running end so the protractor is wedged by the knots. Use a lighter on the "bottom side knot" of the protractor; heat it so you can press it flat up against it - DON'T MELT YOUR PROTRACTOR! Put the cross hair on your start point and run the string over your end point. No lines drawn on your map and you save time! Note: the strings width adds a potential 50m drift to your path, so use this method with plenty of close attack points.

SFAS 06-05
Selected May 2005