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Show Page October 13, HILL TOP TIMES 28 197S SPORTS' Put s safety" first By R. Gayle Anderson It can lead to excessive Item 3. Watch out for body heat loss without your even being aware of it. You might even aggravate the problem by shedding a coat or sweater when the exertion makes you warm. Your body temperature will gradually lower and you'll collapse, a victim of hypothermia, without even recognizing you have a problem. You can beat hypothermia by moving slower and resting often to allow your body temperature to stabilize. Don't remove clothing to cool down after a period of exertion. Allow yourself to cool to a normal temperature before removing unnecessary clothing. over-exertio- n. When old Mother Nature wraps up the golden days of fall and decides it's time to paste the landscape with snow, most of us head for the warmth and comfort of the indoors. SOME, HOWEVER, ignore chills and take to the hills at the first drop of a Fahrenheit. To the folks who plan to sample the grandeur and beauty of a winter campout, we dedicate this article. Your campout may be in conjunction with skiing, hunting, fishing or just sightseeing. The important thing is to remember that regardless of the reason for the campout, the same rules of safety will apply. TO MAKE OUR JOB easier, and to make it easier for you, too, let's put our safety tips in the form of a rambling sort of checklist. That way you can snip this article out and keep it for review before you strike out on that safari. sub-zer- o Item 1. Personal Clothing: Do you have everything you think you'll need? Plenty of extra socks? Cold, wet feet can be a physical and spiritual disaster. Besides, if you don't need those extra socks for your feet, they can be used as emergency mittens. How about some form of head covering? Remember that body heat escapes from your head faster than any other part of the body. Don't worry about the fashion value of your hat ; just make sure it's warm and protects your ears, too. Ear muffs without anything to cover the top of the head won't cut it. We could go on and on, but you know pretty much what you'll need. Take plenty of extra clothing, though ; you can't go back for it if you're snowbound somewhere out in the boonies. Water resistant outer clothing is a must. Item 2. Don't go out alone. If ever there was a time when safety in numbers counted, it's when you're out in the winter elements. Stick close to camp. Don't wander around without company. It's easier to find lost groups than a missing Item 4. Camp sites. Choose with real caution. Look over your chosen spot with particular attention for access in and out. Can you make it up that steep road when it's covered with snow or awash in rain? Did you make note of cabins, homes or other campers you might have passed on your way in? Point out potential rescue or shelters to all members of your party. Pick out good landmarks, too. Remember, after a heavy snow, everything changes, so use landmarks that won't be affected or lost to recognition under a snow disguise. Item 5. Camper or trailer. Make sure your furnace is in good shape no leaks, propane or carbon monoxide. Take an extra propane bottle. Sure, I know a bottle will last you all week at some chilly mountain top camp during the spring or fall, but it's going to take a lot more to keep the chill away when you're snowbound in minus 30 degree weather. I know, because friends of mine spent three days and nights caught in a snowdrift, and the best their camper furnace could do was to keep the temperature at 35 degrees. It's doubtful if either man could have survived had their propane supply failed. Every year people are killed when the camper heater malfunctions, flooding the camper with toxic vapors. Even if the furnace is working properly, winds can push the exhaust back into the camper through open windows or vents close to the exhaust stack. Be sure you ventilate, but avoid using vents or windows near to the furnace stack. Make sure your ventilation is a dependable source, not one that could get covered snowed in, shut off the refrigerator. You won't have a problem keeping things cold, and you need to conserve that propane. Besides, that little propane flame is another source of carbon monoxide fumes. Never use charcoal or catalytic heaters to warm a camper, trailer or tent. Even the porous material of a light weight tent can trap toxic fumes when it seals itself tight with moisture or snow. Item 6. Personal safety tips: Don't crawl into your sleeping bag with wet or snowy clothing. You'll lose the advantage of the insulating qualities of the bag. Believe it or not, it's warmer to sleep nude if you can stand the cold insides of the bag when you first jump into it. If your clothes are dry, get into your sleeping bag clothed. By the time you've performed your strip-teasyour body metabolism will warm you and the inside of your sleeping bag. e, Shivering or muscular tension exercises will help elevate your body heat without producing heat energy which is lost doing outside exercises. If you do get frostbitten, warm exposed tissue in lukewarm water. Never rub ice, snow or even bare hands on frostbitten skin. Don't eat snow without melting it down first. Cold snow will chill your system. Don't drink alcohol. Alcohol causes dilation of blood vessels close to the skin, speeding up body heat loss. There are many other tips that will help you should your winter campout degenerate into a survival situation. We haven't listed them all, so add to this article (You have clipped it out for saving, haven't you?) any of your own experience-teste- d helps. 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