Bear Grylls or Les Straub? Survivor Poll
Feb 16th, 2008 by Admin 1
Wilderness Survival
I know this debate is played but it still gets to me somehow. I wanted to get your take on it so please let me know what you think. Up until recently I have been a fan of Bear Grylls’ style while realizing that some of the stuff he does is not entirely necessary. When I saw some of the following videos I must admit I didn’t know they were shortcutting as bad as they appear to be, but what can you expect, after all it is just a tv show. It does appear from the videos that Les Straub was a little more on the up and up. If you watch Survivor Man and Man vs. Wild you know he says he films all the footage himself while Bear admits to having a camera crew with him but they can not interact unless its a life or death situation right?
What they are obviously not admitting to on Man vs. Wild is how wild the location actually is.
At the same time some of the episodes show Les Straub being coached by locals on the location where he will be staying for the week. He is schooled on what foods are edible, what animals are indigenous to the area, and what all to look out for so he can sound versed and educated on the various areas. Oh, and have you seen some of the shelters Les puts up? Or the one or two Doritos he happens to have in his pocket? Bear only has a flint and a knife. Having viewed the youtube videos, it’s obvious that he has access to much more than it looks like on his show, but I always liked his show because he doesn’t have food magically appear out of nowhere (on screen), and I like the fact that he’s trying to show you how to find your way to civilization.
I have been reading others opinions on this topic and I think that I am of the camp that they are both just tv shows and should not be relied on so dogmatically. They are both shows centered around the outdoors which I enjoy. With all the junky shows out their I guess I can handle a little misrepresentation if it keeps my interest. What do you think? Leave your two cents in the comment section.
You have to consider that Bear does have a crew with him and maybe the show producers make him fake some stuff for their safety. Don’t know, but he does have these survival skills, and he is trying to teach you something. On the other hand, Les, who I’m sure is skilled as well, might not be into the trickery that Bear is, isn’t as interesting to me. He’s kinda whiney. Maybe next time I drive my truck into the Kalahari on fumes with naught but a full jar of peanut butter and a half gallon of water(who doesn’t keep those in their truck bed) I’ll regret saying that Man Vs. Wild is better.
I think that Survivorman is better personally. I like how real it is. The reason he may seem “whiney” is because he actually IS stranded. Being stranded and all alone without food (I would like to see that episode you claim he has Doritos) really gets to your head and in a REAL survival situation that’s what would happen. Also, Les Straub is more like a typical guy who would be stranded. I don’t know about you but I’ve never been apart of the military and I’ve never climbed Mount Everest. Most people wouldn’t be able to do some of the things Bear does on a physically demanding level. I don’t mind Man vs. Wild, I just like Survivorman better.
Sarah,
Thanks for your comment. As far as the Doritos, I can’t remember which episode that was, but he often seems to “find” some sort of food in his stuff. My favorite was the Kalahari episode where he “found” a full jar of peanut butter and half a gallon of water in the back of his truck. I realize these shows are intended to show you what can be done in certain situations, and most people wouldn’t parachute into the wilderness with no food or water. I just think the marketing is funny…so intense…life or death…but really they both have a crew available. Les just has to call his. I still like both shows.
Hey, i think Man vs Wild is a better show because his show is overall much more entertaining and he’s got that Australian accent which really adds too the experience. Also because many of the things that he does are physically demanding it encourages younger people who watch his show to become stronger and healthier.
Blaze,
I totally agree with you that it might encourage people to be stronger and healthier. Wether it’s staged or not, he is constantly on the move, and trying to show you how to get back to civilization. Thanks for your two cents.
Bear Grylls is going to get some kid or thrill seeking adult killed with some of his antics. Have you ever seen him simply jump into a pool of water ? I have not and to beat it all, this idiot always does a back flip or something else an olympic diver would attempt. In a show filmed in Utah, he swims under a pile of brush deep in a gorge without a clue of how long the swim is or what he may encounter. This cat does not need to be viewed by younger audiences.
Yeah, I remember that episode! I remember thinking the exact same thing! That kinda crap wouldn’t work in real life would it. I guess maybe it would if everywhere you went you had a crew to go ahead of you and make sure everything was safe!
I was a huge man vs wild fan, but have since switched to Survivorman. The reason being is Les is less about showmanship and more about how to actually survive in a variety of scenario’s. I remember one episode of man vs wild where bear is determined to cross this stream. Does he build shelter because a storm is coming in? No, well does he get a fire going, yea he tries with his trusty flint in the rain for about 30 minutes and nothing happens. So he takes bamboo and vine and the crew help him make a ladder to cross the river. He doesn’t even set it down carefully, he just drops it and wait for it, big surprise, it breaks and gets washed away…. so he just bundles up in his rain jacket and that’s it. At least with Les he is quick to point out in any survival situation first you need to think about shelter, water, warmth and food. Not only that but he shows you several shelters to build and the importance of each. Both Bear and Les each have their things they always have, for les its a harmonica and multitool, sometimes knife or ax and random stuff someone might have in their pockets or such. For Bear its a flint (nice to always have a readily accessible fire source), knife and canteen. I have learned more about survival from Les, how to trap animals, actually eat cetain plants, (not just grab a spider and eat it, or eat some leftover zebra like Bear) how to start a fire various ways (in case i dont have a flint right there). Various clean and safe ways to collect water( evaporation, solar still, etc.) besides carrying in a canteen, peeing in my canteen, or squeezing camel poo like Bear. Not to mention to top it all off, Bear always has a safety net right there within a few feet of him, Les has a support team, but they are 10 miles or more away, so if something happened instantly he would be out of luck for at least a little bit of time and i think this is part of the reason he is more careful. Yes Bear is an experienced climber, but im not and how many people are going to think oh well Bear did it I should be able too. Not! The common person is more like Les, in moderate shape, but not a seasoned climber.
JD,
We still watch both shows, and I think Bear is more entertaining, but you’re right, not many would do some of the things he does. In some ways Les is more realistic. It’s always good to hear opinions on the subject so thank you for your comment!