Interview: Ask a prepper – John Beck

In another installment of ask-a-prepper we get a chance to hear from John Beck of Geek Prepper to find out a bit more about him as well as learn a few things in relation to preparing for the unknown.

How long have you been prepping for?

I come from a fairly rural background, so we’ve always gardened, farmed and hunted. We store the extra harvest and foods by canning, so we can enjoy it later on, during the winter or during leaner times.

I’ve been prepping and blogging about it for about 5 years, once I moved from the rural midwest to the suburbs of Washington DC.

Any reason why you began prepping? A specific event?

I got a lot more serious about preparedness and self sufficiency after my daughters were born. I couldn’t imagine not having something put aside to get us through, or not having equipment if a bad scenario happened.

Do you live in an Urban setting or a rural one?

I live in a suburb of Washington, DC, so it’s right on the line between urban and rural. If there was ever an incident in DC, my area would be flooded with urbanites.

If the time comes are you bugging out or in?

I would much prefer to bug in. In that situation I’d have all my gear, all my stored food, and could leverage my small solar setup to recharge batteries and power my HAM radios.

I am fully prepared to bug out and head west though. As I said before if the SHTF this area will be flooded with people leaving the city.

I do have a pretty modular bug out setup, so depending on if we can take our truck or have to head out on foot, we’ll have a similar setup, but just smaller.

Has prepping changed your lifestyle?

Prepping hasn’t changed my lifestyle as much as you’d expect. I was already living by the old adage “Be prepared”. It has caused me to learn some new skills which will come in handy even if SHTF never happens.

Do your preps include an underground shelter or bunker?

Does my basement count? No I don’t have an underground shelter or bunker, if I was rich, I’d probably have something like that. I will admit that I have researched the locations of caves in the Maryland and Virginia areas.

If times ever got tough would you work solo or with a support group?

If times got tough, I’d really prefer a full support group, but many times you can really only count on yourself and your family.

I have started assembling a small group with some diverse skills, but I will have contingency plans in case we can’t all meet up or coordinate after an incident or natural disaster.

If you could give a new prepper some advice based on your past mistakes, what would they be?

Go camping, sleep outside, learn to cook over a fire. Go light. I started out building bigger and bigger packs. I realized that speed is survival, so having a light pack that allows you to be agile and to keep moving is very important.

I’d also tell them to get some martial arts or other fighting arts training and firearms training. If they can do those things and maybe tack on a few tactical training classes. You may never be a Navy SEAL, but if you have an idea about the tactics that others will use against you, it could save your life.

Did your significant other have a problem with your prepping? Did he/she back you?

My wife is on board. We’re not doomsday type people. We do have a bit of stuff put away and we have a healthy pantry.

Kids. If you have any are they incorporated? If so how? Were they hesitant on doing so?

The kids are incorporated, but they don’t realize it. We do a lot of outdoors stuff, that they think is fun, but it’s really to teach them. We camp, we cook out, we build fires. When they are old enough, we’ll get into hunting, trapping and foraging for wild edibles.

Can you share any tips for the elderly or low income families who wish to prep but are unsure of how to start based on said age or income level?

You don’t need to be rich to prep. I always tell people to focus on the immediate 2 needs. Water and Warmth. You can live weeks without food. You can live a couple days without water. You can freeze to death in a couple hours.

Get a decent sleeping bag and a water filter, like a Lifestraw or a Sawyer Mini. Those 2 items will give you a good start, then you can start building out and adding to your gear as you can.

Doomsday Preppers. Has the show hurt or helped the prepping community?

I think it paints all preppers in a really negative light.

Does your extended family or friends give you slack about prepping?

One of my coworkers has outted me and refers to me as a “Doomsday Prepper” when he’s talking to others about me. I say let them scoff, because it doesn’t take the end of the world for me to use my prepper supplies. I’ve changed jobs in the past and sometimes they hold a paycheck or two as part of their policy. You pretty much end up with no paycheck for a month, or more, sometimes.

It’s nice to know that you can dip into your pantry and not have to worry about where your next meal is going to come from, or juggle money, from savings, trying to decide between paying the utility bills, mortgage payment or eating.

If nothing happens in your lifetime or children’s lifetime for that matter, would you feel that you wasted your time and money?

Funny, I’ve actually written about this on my blog. I’m learning skills and techniques that our grandparents and great grandparents used. We’re rediscovering a lost way of life. We’re not wasting our time, we’re keeping knowledge alive.

Want to give some advice to a new prepper?

Don’t buy a ton of emergency food, just add some extra regular food to each shopping trip. Our pantry is just the same foods we eat normally, we just have a system to ensure that we keep it rotated to avoid waste.

Here is a fun question. If you had to pick one item to aid you on an deserted island… what would it be?

A good knife. You can craft almost anything you need, but if you have a good, solid knife, it’ll make things so much simpler.

Last words or thoughts you wish to share?

Throughout history, it was normal to put away a little bit extra food, or money, for a rainy day. Don’t let the media and the unprepared masses make you feel bad for doing it. They are the foolish ones.

How wise is it to live day to day and not have a buffer? We do it with our money, why not with our food and other stuff? Never brag about prepping, keep it quiet so noone knows that you have stuff!

We thank John for his time and if you the reader feel inclined, please visit his excellent webpage at GeekPrepper.org and Facebook page fb.com/GeekPrepper.