I only have a small car, a Smart Roadster. In the rain it leaks and in the Winter it gets icicles on the inside of the convertible roof. I wouldn’t change my car but I’d like it a bit warmer. This Winter it’s been a bit of a nightmare. If you’ve been away and didn’t know, we had some snow.
There’s no way I’d have been able to get home if I’d been out when it began. My car just doesn’t have the ground clearance. When it leaks, water seeps into the SAM unit and fries the electrics. If I had been out I could have been in a real spot of bother.
HYPOTHERMIA SYMPTOMS
Hypothermia is no laughing matter. It only takes a drop of one or two degrees in core temperature for the first symptoms of hypothermia to become obvious. Feeling cold, shivering, low energy.
If no action is taken then more severe symptoms become apparent as the body loses the ability to control internal temperature. Slurred speech, memory loss, poor judgment, confusion, lack of coordination, drowsiness – the last things you want to have happening in any survival situation, even in a relatively minor one like getting stuck in your car in the snow.
As the body’s internal temperature fluctuates and drops further, muscles stiffen, pupils dilate and consciousness is lost. Not the best scenario.
Our bodies lose heat in a number of ways: convection, conduction, radiation, evaporation and respiration. The clothes we wear create pockets of warmed air that insulate us; they provide a barrier between our skin, cold objects and the weather. If we move at a correct pace for the clothes we wear and the heat of our environment we can reducing sweating and minimise evaporation. By sinking deeper into our jackets we can breathe air that has already been warmed by our body, reducing respiratory heat loss.
Surviva Jak Heat Reflective Jacket
The snow made me think. What could I do to prevent hypothermia if the worst came to the worst? What can I keep in the car and where could I keep it? There is no boot space to speak of – just enough for an overnight bag – and I use it occasionally so don’t want a permanent bag or big coat in there. There’s a briefcase depth storage area at the back above the engine that I use for…well…my briefcase and a further few inches behind the seats. The glove box can just about manage a pair of gloves and an ice scraper.
Well, at least it fits the gloves in...
Then Lurch sent me this nifty little package. Just about big enough for my glove box and it might just save a life one day. Handily, it comes in a waterproof vacuum sealed pack with a big red strip on it that makes it very clear – this is a Heat Reflective Jacket.
The Surviva Jak Heat Reflective Jacket’s claims that it reflects up to 90% of radiant heat would be difficult to prove outside of lab conditions. But apparently it is “proven to warm you up 4x faster” than a regular foil blanket.
The Surviva Jak’s Ergoflex™ seams mean heat can be generated quickly through unrestricted movement and the Vistifast™ re-sealable fastenings are high visibility.
Oh, and it’s waterproof and windproof. But I’ll let you know if any of this is true in a couple of weeks. I’ve got a kayaking weekend planned and it seems like the perfect opportunity to test the Surviva Jak out. If it does what it says on the tin, then there’s one in the glove box and two in my pack. You know, for just in case.
Just in case....
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Picture Credit: Don McPhee
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