Man Vs. Wild...

[PeruvianSkies]

I am sure that most are aware that there has been some recent accusations about the show MAN VS. WILD and Bear Grylls, it's host. There have been claims that Grylls was not 'roughin' it as the show seemed to imply and that he was staying at hotels and not really exposed to the elements. The whole debate and issue is ridiculous in my mind, simply because there is no point in making a survival show if you don't survive and in EXTREME cases if you have to stay in a hotel in order to live, than so be it. A true survivalist always knows how to play-it-smart and will not test the boundaries without a certain amount of certainty and they know what those are better than anyone else.

The purpose of MAN VS. WILD is to give practical advice on what to do in certain circumstances ranging from being in blizzards, swamps, deserts, etc. These places truly show nature at it's worst and it's very easy to get killed in the process, it's no different than the Crocodile Hunter...you have to know when to call it quits.

Anyone else have some thoughts???

[JSE]

Funny story. The guy did a show on how to survive in the lava field of Kilauea on the Big Island. The show showed him barely able to traverse the cooled lave fields and made it seem like he was miles from help or other humans.

Well in December of last year my wife and I went to Hawaii and while on the Big Island we had a private guide take us onto the volcano and into the lava fields. He actually brought up the show we saw and took us on basically the same path Grylls was taking on the show. How did he know where Grylls went? Because our guide was a consultant for the show and helped out Grylls. At one point in the show Grylls made it seem like he needed to find water fast or he could be in real trouble. The show made it seem like he was out in the wild miles away from food, shelter, etc. The reality? About a mile a way was a visitor center and about 1 1/2 miles away was a main route for tour buses.

Now I know Grylls is probably a true survivalist and probaly knows more about survival than all of us combined but, can you imagine how badass his camera man must be? That guy does everything Grylls does but with a big camera on his shoulder. Now that's the guy I would want with me when I get lost in the wild with no food, water, clothing, shelter, etc.

[PeruvianSkies]

Funny story. The guy did a show on how to survive in the lava field of Kilauea on the Big Island. The show showed him barely able to traverse the cooled lave fields and made it seem like he was miles from help or other humans.

Well in December of last year my wife and I went to Hawaii and while on the Big Island we had a private guide take us onto the volcano and into the lava fields. He actually brought up the show we saw and took us on basically the same path Grylls was taking on the show. How did he know where Grylls went? Because our guide was a consultant for the show and helped out Grylls. At one point in the show Grylls made it seem like he needed to find water fast or he could be in real trouble. The show made it seem like he was out in the wild miles away from food, shelter, etc. The reality? About a mile a way was a visitor center and about 1 1/2 miles away was a main route for tour buses.

Now I know Grylls is probably a true survivalist and probaly knows more about survival than all of us combined but, can you imagine how badass his camera man must be? That guy does everything Grylls does but with a big camera on his shoulder. Now that's the guy I would want with me when I get lost in the wild with no food, water, clothing, shelter, etc.

I can understand that. I mean, it wouldn't be a SHOW if they were like...Ok, now here is this really dangerous spot (and in the background we see little old ladies with their camera taking pictures of the hot rocks). I am sure that the show needs to be a bit more hyped up in order to make it entertaining, but some of those things you can't fake...

like him eating a goats eyeball, or jumping onto a tree and scaling down it, or jumping into ice-cold water in Iceland and then running to a hot spring. Those things are real and you can see him do them. It's not unlike any other show where the illusion of safety is exaggerated. I also think SURVIVALMAN does the same thing, at least he is his own cameraman, but I think MAN VS. WILD is more interesting for some reason.

[GMichael]

Funny story. The guy did a show on how to survive in the lava field of Kilauea on the Big Island. The show showed him barely able to traverse the cooled lave fields and made it seem like he was miles from help or other humans.

Well in December of last year my wife and I went to Hawaii and while on the Big Island we had a private guide take us onto the volcano and into the lava fields. He actually brought up the show we saw and took us on basically the same path Grylls was taking on the show. How did he know where Grylls went? Because our guide was a consultant for the show and helped out Grylls. At one point in the show Grylls made it seem like he needed to find water fast or he could be in real trouble. The show made it seem like he was out in the wild miles away from food, shelter, etc. The reality? About a mile a way was a visitor center and about 1 1/2 miles away was a main route for tour buses.

Now I know Grylls is probably a true survivalist and probaly knows more about survival than all of us combined but, can you imagine how badass his camera man must be? That guy does everything Grylls does but with a big camera on his shoulder. Now that's the guy I would want with me when I get lost in the wild with no food, water, clothing, shelter, etc.

What I want to know is this. When Gryll was out of water, why wouldn't his badass camera man share his water with him?

[Kam]

Now I know Grylls is probably a true survivalist and probaly knows more about survival than all of us combined but, can you imagine how badass his camera man must be? That guy does everything Grylls does but with a big camera on his shoulder. Now that's the guy I would want with me when I get lost in the wild with no food, water, clothing, shelter, etc.

That reminds me of an AWESOME spec commercial someone made about running shoes. It shows this badass runner running up and down this gorgeous sand dune, having trouble with the moving sand but still managing his way up the dune.
Narrator: "This all purpose runner is wearing nike shoes to train in the desert."
Cut to wider shot. You see the steadicam operator running behind him holding the massive steadicam rig.
Narrator: "The steadicam operator following him, is wearing addidas."

[dean_martin]

Can't comment on the accusations. I do know in the credits the show does not hide the fact that they get assistance from local park rangers, nature societies, etc. Plus, he's truthful about when he gets help from his crew. The crew helped him build a shelter in a tree in the Everglades episode so that he could get in it and out of the water before dark. I couldn't blame him for that.

I enjoy Man vs. Wild, but I was a fan of Les Stroud on Survivor Man first. Survivorman appeals to me more for some reason. My son is just the opposite. He found Man vs. Wild first and prefers it over Survivorman. We have pretty funny exchanges where my son will say "Bear can do this or that" (always something outrageous) then I'll try to one-up him with "Survivorman can do this or that" (even more outrageous-like use his penis to repel down the face of Mt. Rushmore).

[PeruvianSkies]

Can't comment on the accusations. I do know in the credits the show does not hide the fact that they get assistance from local park rangers, nature societies, etc. Plus, he's truthful about when he gets help from his crew. The crew helped him build a shelter in a tree in the Everglades episode so that he could get in it and out of the water before dark. I couldn't blame him for that.

I enjoy Man vs. Wild, but I was a fan of Les Stroud on Survivor Man first. Survivorman appeals to me more for some reason. My son is just the opposite. He found Man vs. Wild first and prefers it over Survivorman. We have pretty funny exchanges where my son will say "Bear can do this or that" (always something outrageous) then I'll try to one-up him with "Survivorman can do this or that" (even more outrageous-like use his penis to repel down the face of Mt. Rushmore).

I agree...not about the penis part, the other part.

[PeruvianSkies]

I like both shows. I think both are very interesting and quite informative, which is helpful for the next time I am stranded in Iceland. I think they both have different appeal factors to them as well, Les Stroud (of SURVIVALMAN) tends to put himself into more realistic situations and tries to survive with minimum materials, only what he typically brings of things that would be natural to have with him. The Dog Sledding Episode he had to be rescued from and he also had to do a few things he didn't think, like eat the dogs rations. Anyway, the appeal factor of this show is that it's more probable situations that normal people might find themselves in and Les doesn't gloss things up, he carries his own cameras, he doesn't enjoy sleeping or not sleeping in nasty conditions, he is real.

Bear Grylls on the other hand is appealing for other reasons, mostly because he is more adventurous and does more exotic situations that not EVERYONE might get themselves into, but every year a few do. The survival tactics between both shows are virtually the same, but I think Grylls is more Indiana Jones-like in his approach. He also gets into nasty spots and doesn't skirt that either. Both men are highly trained, highly experienced, and would most likely out-survive me by a long shot.

[Rich-n-Texas]

I like both shows. I think both are very interesting and quite informative, which is helpful for the next time I am stranded in Iceland. I think they both have different appeal factors to them as well, Les Stroud (of SURVIVALMAN) tends to put himself into more realistic situations and tries to survive with minimum materials, only what he typically brings of things that would be natural to have with him. The Dog Sledding Episode he had to be rescued from and he also had to do a few things he didn't think, like eat the dogs rations. Anyway, the appeal factor of this show is that it's more probable situations that normal people might find themselves in and Les doesn't gloss things up, he carries his own cameras, he doesn't enjoy sleeping or not sleeping in nasty conditions, he is real.

Bear Grylls on the other hand is appealing for other reasons, mostly because he is more adventurous and does more exotic situations that not EVERYONE might get themselves into, but every year a few do. The survival tactics between both shows are virtually the same, but I think Grylls is more Indiana Jones-like in his approach. He also gets into nasty spots and doesn't skirt that either. Both men are highly trained, highly experienced, and would most likely out-survive me by a long shot.

You can't even survive a few rounds with pencilprix!

Can somebody tell me where I can find these "shows"? I would suspect Discovery Channel or similar, correct? And... I won't be seeing the guy (and his girlfriend) getting eaten by a bear will I?

[dean_martin]

I like both shows. I think both are very interesting and quite informative, which is helpful for the next time I am stranded in Iceland. I think they both have different appeal factors to them as well, Les Stroud (of SURVIVALMAN) tends to put himself into more realistic situations and tries to survive with minimum materials, only what he typically brings of things that would be natural to have with him. The Dog Sledding Episode he had to be rescued from and he also had to do a few things he didn't think, like eat the dogs rations. Anyway, the appeal factor of this show is that it's more probable situations that normal people might find themselves in and Les doesn't gloss things up, he carries his own cameras, he doesn't enjoy sleeping or not sleeping in nasty conditions, he is real.

Bear Grylls on the other hand is appealing for other reasons, mostly because he is more adventurous and does more exotic situations that not EVERYONE might get themselves into, but every year a few do. The survival tactics between both shows are virtually the same, but I think Grylls is more Indiana Jones-like in his approach. He also gets into nasty spots and doesn't skirt that either. Both men are highly trained, highly experienced, and would most likely out-survive me by a long shot.

I think you nailed the differences in style (and similarities in survival tactics). There was one episode of Survivorman that really impressed me, but I've only seen it once. He was recreating the flooded homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. While walking around the inside of a home with water up to his chest, he showed how to use common household items, inlcuding the parts of furniture that stay the driest, to build a fire for boiling drinking water. That was a tactic that certainly related to events that were current at the time. He came across as genuinely concerned about sharing these techniques in light of what had just happened in New Orleans.

[PeruvianSkies]

I think you nailed the differences in style (and similarities in survival tactics). There was one episode of Survivorman that really impressed me, but I've only seen it once. He was recreating the flooded homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. While walking around the inside of a home with water up to his chest, he showed how to use common household items, inlcuding the parts of furniture that stay the driest, to build a fire for boiling drinking water. That was a tactic that certainly related to events that were current at the time. He came across as genuinely concerned about sharing these techniques in light of what had just happened in New Orleans.

Too bad he wasn't like SOME people in the world that can see the future...he could then have saved more lives that way. I wonder if an LCD would float?

[PeruvianSkies]

You can't even survive a few rounds with pencilprix!

Can somebody tell me where I can find these "shows"? I would suspect Discovery Channel or similar, correct? And... I won't be seeing the guy (and his girlfriend) getting eaten by a bear will I?

Hang in their soldier, it's gonna be a long war I feel, but at least I am not like Mr. Prez..I am letting you know that in the beginning.

Discover Channel is the station for both shows! You can also enjoy them in HD, on your awesome DLP!

[GMichael]

uses his penis to repel down the face of Mt. Rushmore).

Now THAT'S a REAL man!

How does he untie it and get it back down?

[Rich-n-Texas]

Hang in their soldier, it's gonna be a long war I feel, but at least I am not like Mr. Prez..I am letting you know that in the beginning.

Discover Channel is the station for both shows! You can also enjoy them in HD, on your awesome DLP!

THANK YOU!!! I'm saving up so I'll have $1000.00 for when I have to start replacing bulbs in my TV (chances are I won't be alive for that time-span though).
As things stand currently, I watch very few satellite channels since I don't have an HD receiver, but that'll change when I finally dump D*TV.

[dean_martin]

Now THAT'S a REAL man!

How does he untie it and get it back down?

uhh...that question is too rational...that's not how you play the game. You're supposed to come back with something like, "Bear crossed the Grand Canyon on a rope bridge made only of two strands of his back hair."