Just done first aid course….im gunna put first aid kit & foil blanket in my mule….anyone else carry any?… its wise….?…although i havnt for past 20 yr!!

not for local hour or 2 rides I don’t – I can bodge if I have to with bike spares and whatever is around.

Bigger days out in remote areas, yep, I do.

Alcohol wipes, steri strips, small bandage, bit of tape and a few ibuprofen stay in there all the time – all flat and light.

Always have and always will.

i have one in my camelbak, quite small but has a few plasters, antiseptic wipes, wound dressing, sling and a saline wash, not had to use it in 3 years.

Was prompted by a mate who sliced his knee open at the top of Avoriaz and had a couiple of friendly walkers not been around could have been a bit nastier!

Yep when doing the slightly more technical stuff.
Nope when doing a quick 2 hour fire road blat.

Chose the one with a tick remover included (which has been needed before), as well as all the usual contents.

Mys first aid kit consists of some big dressings, some gaffa tape, some compeed and some aspirin. Anything that needs more than that is beyond my ability to fix.

Which first aid course did you do?

Yeah small bandaged alco wipes, tape, painkillers and especially a foil blanket.
Never had to use it thankfully.

I carry a small FA kit, with a few essentials in it. Bought it at Go oudoors IIRC, cheap as chips, used it once or twice and daren’t take it out now as the inevitable WILL happen 😐

Nice!… cant help thinkin al this first aid stuff is inducing accidents?… or is it me?

Yes why would you take it out?

Haha!

Bigger rides or groups then yes I carry one. Only basic, but better than nothing

Two ‘brufen and a packet of RICE 😉

Rice…. ye most important!??

Yes. Mostly consisting of wound dressings although there are some other bits and bobs.

Its well worth supplementing a first aid kit with a down jacket and a bothy bag. Better to look at it as an emergency kit, not just a first aid kit. A bit rubbish to patch up a mate and then both freeze waiting for help.

Indeed…why i put foil blanket in,keeps 90% of bodyheat…….apparantly?

I have a foil blanket, that’s it. I take the view that anything else can be bodged/MTF’dU until you get back to civilisation or the emergency services arrive.

Similar to most, small kit and a shiny blanket. Mine lives permanently in the Camelbak though, not just big rides. That way I can;t forget to put it in there when I should. This is also the reason that my (mostly road) commute sees me carrying a compass and distress whistle.

I’ve lost count of the number of times a walk or ride was delayed waiting for a shop to open so I could buy yet another compass….

I was so relieved that a passing rider had some steristrips and a crepe bandage when I degloved my knee last year.

I’ll be making sure I carry a basic kit including steristrips, small bandage, dressings, wipes when I can ride again.

I always carry a first aid kit, i think i need to get one of those foil blanket thingys too.

Foil blankets are useful, but try using one on a windy hillside or heavy rain. Too many gaps and hard to keep covered in the wind.

I carry one of those too but in bad weather I’d get the bothy bag out first as a shield and then get the foil blanket or jacket. They come in different sizes, the biggest I have is 6 – 8 people.

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgVzeZyxpAQ[/video]

Have got a few rolls of bandage, some antiseptic wipes and some tie wraps. Also a couple of those ice packs that you break to activate.

Never used to carry anything until I had a couple of flesh-grating offs one after the other there was quite a lot of blood. Some first aid might not have actually had any effect but it probably would’ve made me feel better.

Always carry a reasonable sized kit; like you I am a qualified first aider and I would not like to be unable to help someone due to a lack of kit.

like you I am a qualified first aider and I would not like to be unable to help someone due to a lack of kit.

I’m mildly trolling, but a qualified first aider would likely be able to find/make/bodge whatever would be required to provide essential first aid from the general paraphenalia of riding (tubes, pumps, jackets, jerseys etc).

Ibuprofen, alcohol wipes, plasters, steristrips etc may well make the victim feel better after a minor off, but they’ll basically do bugger all, especially if it’s a proper injury.

This has all been done before but, IMO obviousl, generally an injury is either minor enough that the victim can make it back to civilization (maybe with a lot of aid, slowly and in pain), or it’s severe enough that it’s all about stabilization until the emergency services arrive. In neither of these cases will the contents of your average first aid kit make that much difference.

Yes I always carry one. I also carry a very light emergency bivvy bag thing.

In neither of these cases will the contents of your average first aid kit make that much difference.

That’s like saying, “if you’re having a heart attack, it won’t make much difference if the ambulance is a couple of minutes late.”

Or knowing that someone’s going to die anyway even if you perform CPR, so not bothering.

You may not be able to CURE someone with a basic first aid kit and/or basic first aid knowledge, but you can improve survivability, even if only a tiny bit, which in some cases can make all the difference.

As anyone who has done a first aid course will tell you, the creed is the Three P’s – Preserve Life, Prevent Deterioration and Promote Recovery.

Personally, I’d rather carry the basics (after all, how much does it weigh??) and know that I might be able to help if it comes to it than just not bother.

In a real situation, all this “MTFU” bull$h!t doesn’t wash. I’ve seen people become hypothermic, or start slipping in and out of consciousness through blood loss and it’s isn’t easy to deal with, but if you have basics at least you’re part way there.

I’m mildly trolling, but a qualified first aider would likely be able to find/make/bodge whatever would be required

How would you bodge a bothy bag for 4 people out in the hills?

If I, say, fall and scrape my thigh, for example. I have a few deepish wounds and a gravelly-type rash and it’s continuing to bleed. Surely it’s better to slap a large dressing patch on to stop it getting clogged-up with dust and stuff and more importantly, to stop my fine-looking threads from looking like I share wardrobe space with Jack The Ripper…?

like you I am a qualified first aider and I would not like to be unable to help someone due to a lack of kit.

I’m mildly trolling, but a qualified first aider would likely be able to find/make/bodge whatever would be required to provide essential first aid from the general paraphenalia of riding (tubes, pumps, jackets, jerseys etc).

Agree with the sentiment, but who wants their £60 shirt cut up if it can be avoided?

I’ve got a kit with all the usual bandages, dressings, wipes, antiseptic, plasters etc. And a Foil blanket and survival sack usualy live in the bladder pocket of my camelpack.

Having broken my arm before there’s a world of difference between trying to move with a broken arm, and trying to move with a broken arm in a sling. If I did it again I know which I’d rather for the effort of carrying round a couple of hundred grams of kit!

Agree with the sentiment, but who wants their £60 shirt cut up if it can be avoided?

Maybe I’m unusual but when I did my arm I was all for cutting everything off. Maybe I’m just pre-disposed to getting naked with nurses but I was beyond careing whether they cut me out of my armour or not, as long as it stopped the pain!

After seeing too many nasty injuries I carry a few bits.

Aspirin and Ibroprofen
A couple of sanitary pads (good for deep cuts and grazes)
Bandage
Tube of Savlon and some wound cleaning wipes
Superglue for sticking cuts back together.

All that packs down to nothing and is useful.

Frankly I’m more likely to need this stuff than a tool kit.

(1) Foil blankets are shit. They do not keep in 90% of heat (if you are lucky they might reflect 90% of RADIATED heat loss.
(2) There is not much you can carry in a first aid kit which will make the difference between life and death that can’t be improvised from other stuff you may be carrying anyway.
(3) Knowledge/skill is likely to be more important than equipment.
(4) BUT I do carry one on long distance trips, and shorter trips with family. Here is what is in it:

– ibuprofen
– cocodamol

combined they might offer enough pain relief for a fractured collar bone or dislocated shoulder to walk out without too much screaming!

– some steristrip (takes no space / weight)
– some plasters (stops sweat getting in minor cuts and nipping /ruining a day over something trivial, and keeps children happy)
– some wipes
– one conforming bandage.
– zip ties, and small amount of duck tape for bike repairs also useful!

On long trips in wilderness carry a bothy bag

Superglue for sticking cuts back together.

I like that one, very ‘Nam-esque.

I got a thunderbug in my eye one time out on my own, the eye coated itself in gloop and I couldn’t see much out of it. Since then I’ve had a small mirror and Q-tips in my kit.

I’m not sure how I might improvise them.

Just a vial of EPO

Got a sensible sized kit of ebay and replace it every couple of years. Got some extra sterile wipes and a few other bits. Always had a kit with me and has been used for first aid before emergency services cart the candidate away. Also have a thermal blanket.

Triangular bandage and one dressing. If it needs more than that I’ll bodge what I can (usually with clothing) and send someone for an ambulance.

FWIW, I’ve done an outdoor first aid course.

Triangular bandage and one dressing. If it needs more than that I’ll bodge what I can (usually with clothing) and send someone for an ambulance.

Sounds like the right approach to me.

The cheap foil blankets are ideal for the “Camalbak”. Obviously not water proof and its difficult to wrap one around you on a wind hill. BUT, open jacket, wrap around casualty, put a second one their head like a nun, pull on beanie hat to keep it on, tuck it all in to the jacket and zip up. Simples.