MASAR Conference May 16, Saturday Afternoon 2-hour sessions 13:30 - 15:30 Workshop Choices

Shelters for Search and Rescue (2 hours)

Have you ever had to get out of the weather in a minute's notice due to Rain, Cold, and/or Wind? This seminar will consist of both a classroom and practical hands-on piece. Participants will be given a scenario, then asked to construct an appropriate shelter (in a limited amount of time) with items from their ready packs and/or additional, supplied materials. Discussion will follow and include the key points of the Basic Search and Rescue (BASAR) module, The overnight bivi and shelters.

Taught by Franklin Search and Rescue members, Barry London, a veteran ski patroller at Sugarloaf and a Master Maine Guide, and Sebastian Tooker, survival school trained and a seasoned outdoorsman. This seminar will encourage discussion and analysis of various short term shelters that provide protection from the elements using limited resources and minimizes environmental impact.

Intro to Slopes Rescue Workshop (2 hours)- Paul Marcolini, Evie Marcolini & Melissa Shea

The slopes rescue workshop will cover a variety of topics involved in basic, non-technical litter raises and lowers.  Topics will include: litter packaging, litter management on a variety of slope angles, accessing the patient in steep terrain, equipment use, and rescue systems.

Equine & K-9 These are 2 separate 60-minute workshops offered back to back as one workshop choice for the longer Saturday afternoon (2-hour) extended session.

Horses as Search Partners, an Equine Field Demonstration  (60 minutes)

Mounted teams offer several unique advantages in Search and Rescue endeavors. Some of these will be demonstrated by various rider and horse teams. They will show: their full dress and all equipment carried, their capability to search off established trails (bushwhacking), their alertness to detect an unseen person in the brush, their calmness in emotional situations, their willingness to go over/through/around obstacles, and their steadiness to carry an injured person a distance. A variety of horses (Arabians, Fox Trotters, Quarter Horses, Rocky Mountain Horses, Walkers) will be presented to illustrate their usefulness and adaptability in field operations.

The horse has played many important roles in our history as both work animals and reliable companions. Although they have been domestically bred for over 2000 years and have evolved well into our culture, they are nevertheless a prey animal, one that is always on the alert for a predator that could harm it. All of their senses are far more profound than ours, including their sense of smell which can rival that of any canine and a very wide range of vision. 

Note: While our horses are well-mannered and well-trained, new situations and/or places can heighten their senses so we ask that no one approach the horses unless permission is granted by the owner.

K-9 A Searcher’s Guide to Search and Rescue Dog Teams (60 min.)

How search and rescue dog teams work can be confusing.  What exactly do they do?  How are they trained?  What do you do if you are a searcher and the dog “finds” you?  How do you act around search and rescue dogs or law enforcement dogs that may be at an active search?  How do you become a search and rescue dog handler?

This hour long lecture and demonstration session will attempt to answer the common questions that people and searchers have about search and rescue dog teams. 

Presented by MESARD.