SHTF Scenario Planning - When you still have a job

As you explore survival community topics, you’ll find a wide variety of situations including economic collapse, viral epidemics, solar EMPs, etc. With each situation, people are preparing in a variety of ways. The one scenario that has the most credible evidence by experts throughout the field is economic collapse. While people are preparing by storing food, water, and other essentials, I see “bugging out” as an incredibly popular topic…but how practical is it? In this article, I explore some more practical considerations as to what an economic collapse will be, and why bugging out may not be a reality until later stages of the collapse.

In this video, Greg Hunter of USA Watchdog is interviewing John Rubino – a market investor, author of “The Money Bubble” and creator of www.dollarcollapse.com. Considering the collapse, John sees it going one of two ways – Deflationary crash or hyper inflationary currency…both of which are detrimental to The People. Refer to 4:18

“It’s going to be pretty horrendous. We don’t know the exact shape of it because we don’t know whether it will be either a debt driven deflationary collapse or a currency crisis-driven inflationary spiral. It’s going to be something that resolves our debt problems by getting rid of a lot of this debt. But we don’t know whether the debt will get rid of by defaults where businesses fail and they can’t pay their debts anymore and people lose their jobs, or by the currency collapse and prices going through the roof so that maybe you still have your job but the cost of everything goes up dramatically faster than your income.”

So, imagine this for a second. A deflationary crash happens and many people lose their jobs. However, you are personally spared from this round of layoffs. As a result, the Federal Reserve bolsters the quantitative easing program, thereby causing inflation and possibly hyperinflation. Your wages do not increase, but everything around you gets more expensive. Those that were unfortunate and lost their jobs may be rioting, but this is only happening in isolated pockets across major cities. Is this the scenario you prepared for? Are you going to run off to your bug out / retreat location to ride out the storm? My suspected answer is no, you will do no such thing. More than likely, you are saying “Better them than me” and are grateful for still having a job. You will still slave away at your job because you have yourself and family to take care of, regardless of whether your current income is as good as it could be.

Are you prepared for this scenario?

Sure, you may have essential food, water, shelter and other necessities of life because you have been stocking them away prior to the crash. But one thing you can’t store in bulk and is not easy to replenish is gasoline. Sure there are some that have diesel cars and are attempting to make recycled biofuel, but this is not practical for the average American . As American’s have enjoyed cars and cheap gasoline prices, we have migrated further and further away from our jobs. Most of us commute in the average of 20-45 minutes. If you are one of the “lucky” people that still have a job, will you still be able to afford the inflationary prices of gasoline and still make ends meet?

For this situation, I am preparing my bicycle and bicycle knowledge. I’ve been a road cyclist for the past decade and know the ins and outs of my physical constraints as well as my bicycle maintenance. Do you have a bicycle to rely on if this situation happens? If not, I highly suggest you purchase one either used on craigslist or new. Other options are fuel efficient scooters, mopeds, or the like, however the bicycle is truly the most self sufficient form of transportation.

Choosing a Bicycle

In choosing a bicycle, refer to this REI article on bike choices. Road bicycles are much more efficient for road travel but cannot be used off roads, mountain bikes are exactly vice versa of the road bikes, and hybrids are somewhere right in between.

How much can you carry?

You have three choices depending on how much you want to carry:

Small loads – Use a messenger bag
Medium loads – Panniers (saddle bags) rear, front or both
Large loads – Child carrier or other trailer

Stock up on spares & tools

Some of the most important hard goods that will deteriorate on a bicycle are tires, tubes, handlebar tape (depending on bicycle type), and chain. Purchase extras of each of these. Additionally, its good to have extra chain lubrication and tube patches.

For tools, take a look at the advanced Park Tools Bicycle Kit. Even if you do not purchase the kit, find cheap alternatives to the items listed and start your own tool bag. Additionally, have some mobile tools for when you are on the road. This Crank brothers multi-tool is one I own and has been very good to me. Also have some tire levers and tube patches.

Obtain knowledge and develop skills on how to maintain and fix bicycles

The best source to obtain hard copy training for bicycles is BicycleTutor.com. For $40, you can purchase a DVD set that explains all the most common mechanical processes for the bicycle.

ENJOY!

Besides preparing, bicycling is an incredibly enjoyable activity! There is a cost associated with all these items, but when you pair it up with a hobby / leisurely activity mindset, it is more manageable.

bicycle bug out bugging out dedollarization deflation Dollar economic collapse finances hyperinflation inflation prepping SHTF transportation

SHTF Scenario Planning – When you still have a job

Choosing a Bicycle

How much can you carry?

Stock up on spares & tools

Obtain knowledge and develop skills on how to maintain and fix bicycles

ENJOY!

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