THERE IS ALWAYS A BETTER WAY:  Every single day we strive to find that better way. We focus on doing things faster, safer, and with less equipment.  We often hear and see instructors teach the “right” way of doing something, but we don't look at things in terms of right and wrong, we strive to find better and best in every rescue aspect.  There is always a better way, and teaching without change is falling short of maximum potential.   Every person and department has demands on them that limit the amount of time they can spend on technical rescue. With that in mind, we look for ways to maximize the time spent in the discipline. The challenge is to find ways that can be remembered and repeated with ease, and we continue to rise to that challenge as we develop new methods of instruction and support.

WE DON'T KNOW EVERYTHING:   Our instructors spend every day learning new techniques, methodology, and principles, but they just don't know everything. We are not a company that believes we have all the answers for every situation, and will never pretend that we have reached the end of the learning road. What we do have is an extensive base in real world and training experience that has offered us a huge head start down that never ending learning road. Everyone of our instructors have attended schools all over the nation from many rescue instructors. Each company has something to offer, and we glean bits and pieces from each one of them, but that is only the beginning. This is where we separate from the pack, as we question every single technique, piece of equipment, and concept. As said before, we know there is a better way, and we strive to find that way. Our classes are dynamic not static, we don't teach the same old thing over and over. Does that mean you have nothing to offer us, NO WAY, we are always listening to those we teach, because we know they have something to offer as well.

TRAIN CONCEPTS & FUNDAMENTALS, NOT LINE ITEMS:  When you spend your time training to sign-off a skill sheet or practical exam, you miss the overall concepts that will carry you through real world emergencies.  If we train you to understand the overall concept, when faced with something that was not on your skill sheet, you will adapt. For example, mechanical advantage systems are often taught with specifics, place a pulley here and a progress capture device there. We teach you the concepts behind the system, and without showing you how to build a 5:1, you will be able to figure it out in a manner of seconds. We teach and test concepts, not memorization skills.

ELIMINATE THE EXCESS:   If having gadgets and equipment on scene was the determining factor in an effective rescue, don't pay us to come teach you, buy a whole bunch of equipment instead. Equipment in your inventory must have multiple uses or get rid of it. That is a bold statement, but a true statement. Teams are spending too much time and money on equipment that meets the “cool” factor, but not the practical factor. Teams carry this same attitude to scene, where they spend too much time setting up elaborate systems that are really not necessary. Nearly every company claims to “keep it simple and safe” (KISS), but then they turn around and do the exact same thing they did before they used the catch phrase. Often, you will hear the term “wheel barrow rescue”. This is where a rescuer puts everything he has in a wheel barrow and brings it with him. Although companies claim they don't teach using this methodology, most still do. If you ever want to know for sure, you can ask one simple question. Ask them how they will train to do a pick-off of a conscious, suspended victim. If they respond with, “a rescuer will descend to the patient and put him on their system” (or something along those lines), chances are they are still teaching the same old wheel barrow techniques. Did you know you can build a 5:1 and a 7:1 with three pulleys? We hope you do, but if you don't we can show you how to eliminate the excess and think about concepts and fundamentals instead of gadgets.

IT TAKES MORE THAN ONE CLASS:   We feel very passionate about this philosophy. To become a technician in rope rescue it will take more than 40 hours of training. The terms awareness, operations, and technician have been diluted by instructors all over the world. If someone tells you they can teach you Awareness and Operations in 20 hours or Technician in 20 hours, beware, you are not getting what you need.  You can not become a competent technician with 10 days of training.  Does every company do that, absolutely not, there are several instructors that bring credit to those words. If you are certified as a “Technician” under their hands, you have earned that title. We don't believe in time limits, class titles, or paper. If you see a “Technician” course syllabus that has “knot tying” as one of the learning objectives, you are not receiving a technician level class.  Our Fundamental Foundation of Rope Rescue, our entry class, exceeds most companies "Technician" level class.  We refuse to lower the our standards to meet time limits or to attract new customers.

FOLLOW-UP TRAINING IS AS IMPORTANT AS INITIAL TRAINING:  How many times have you attended a class, learned a whole bunch of information, and then did nothing with it after the class? This happens all of the time and with each passing day, week, and year more of that information is loss. In a matter of time, the information is gone along with the money you spent to get the information. Secondly, when you teach so much information in a small block of time it requires follow-up. Recent studies show that we only retain 10% of the information 90 days after a block of study without follow-up. What we do to help you combat this, is we help you create a follow-up schedule that reinforces the concepts of the class schedule.

DON'T LOVE THEM & THEN LEAVE THEM:   It seems we always here, “we loved coming here to teach you” or “we loved working with your department”. After those words, it is the last you hear from them until you request another class. NOT US. We are not a love them and leave them kind of company. We developed a method to help you stay in touch with the latest and greatest. We will contact you at intervals that you establish to answer any questions and help resolve training concerns. Every individual will have access to our instructors to ask questions and receive information from us. Our company will help you develop a training schedule that will carry well beyond the class, and help you modify it as the dynamic world of rescue changes. Once we have built the bridge of information and support, we will maintain it unitl you tell us to remove it.