Ray Mears vs Bear Grylls

Paulie Gualtieri

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-470155/How-Bear-Grylls-Born-Survivor-roughed--hotels.html

Wompa1

I think Ray Meagher is better. Why not have him as an option. Watch how he deals with a slippery gypsy trying to poke his daughter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEaBcdIfNMU

willmunny1990

If you want to be entertained watch Bear Grylls, i think his shows are far more entertaining but if you want practical advice and techniques on survival Ray is your man.

Jesus Wept

Wompa1 wrote: »

I think Ray Meagher is better. Why not have him as an option. Watch how he deals with a slippery gypsy trying to poke his daughter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEaBcdIfNMU

Surprised he didn't put them in the rape dungeon tbh.

discus

KeithAFC wrote: »

So? I very much doubt the SAS NEED Ray Mears to train them or they would be up sh*t creek without a paddle.

He does train them. Some of my SERE training in work was done by Ray.

HE SAID I COULD BE ANYTHING NOW I'M A JUNGLE MASTER

Sykk

All the defenders of mears posting daily mail links are giving me a rash..

happyman81

Both are probably equally useful in the wild, but I would have a pint with Mears over Grylls any day. So being stuck with Mears sounds like a better prospect.

kylith

Mears any day. He'd have a house built and a 3 course meal laid out before Grills had even finished filling his water bottle with urine.

Paparazzo

kylith wrote: »

Mears any day. He'd have a house built and a 3 course meal laid out before Grills had even finished filling his water bottle with urine.

Mears builds a house he goes along the lines of "use a tent pole to support this bit. Use some rope to hold this here. Take a break and use your tilly kettle for a cup of tea"
Bear Grylls rips the guts out of a camel with his bare hands and climbs inside.

the purple tin

You have to ask yourself, why would the SAS hire Mears to train their troops in outdoor survival if he wasn't the best there is?

Wossack

the purple tin wrote: »

You have to ask yourself, why would the SAS hire Mears to train their troops in outdoor survival if he wasn't the best there is?

he's cheap

rumour has it he works for short bits of rope, and stones with little bits of quartz in them

Sykk

the purple tin wrote: »

You have to ask yourself, why would the SAS hire Mears to train their troops in outdoor survival if he wasn't the best there is?

Mears is overweight. He likes to chat and tell stories of the old days whilst sipping a nice cuppa. Construct his shelter from a tent and eats a nice marinated dinner.

What happens when you're in a Serbian wasteland of -40c? Wheres your tea and crumpets then? The chaps a joke tbh, I've never seen him do anything that patches him on bear.

the purple tin

Sykk wrote: »

Mears is overweight. He likes to chat and tell stories of the old days whilst sipping a nice cuppa. Construct his shelter from a tent and eats a nice marinated dinner.

What happens when you're in a Serbian wasteland of -40c? Wheres your tea and crumpets then? The chaps a joke tbh, I've never seen him do anything that patches him on bear.

So how come they don't hire Bear then?

the purple tin

Wossack wrote: »

he's cheap

rumour has it he works for short bits of rope, and stones with little bits of quartz in them

The SAS are probably the best trained forces in the world. The top brass aren't going to risk their soldiers lives just to save a few bob.
They are going to hire the top man.

Sykk

the purple tin wrote: »

So how come they don't hire Bear then?

Who says he wants to do it? He's the youngest chief scout in history, and the youngest Briton to climb Everest. Mears would break a hip climbing the hill of Tara.

Chuck Stone

Ray Mears would kick the living shit out of Bear Grylls and then quickly fashion a roasting spit out of nearby branches and start a fire by staring at some tinder and cook the bastard.

In other news:

Vanilla ice cream is better than chocolate ice cream.

Paparazzo

I'd like to know more about Ray Mears "training the sas". Did he give one talk to a few lads one time? I find it hard to believe that the SAS get him in to train them and they don't have their own specialist trainers that work with them full time.

the purple tin

Sykk wrote: »

Who says he wants to do it? He's the youngest chief scout in history, and the youngest Briton to climb Everest. Mears would break a hip climbing the hill of Tara.

Not sure what point you're trying to make about him climbing Everest.
He was 23 when he did it.
A 77 year old man has climbed Everest, now that's impressive.
A 23 year old in his prime- a little less so.

couldntthink

Who would you rather go on a session with? I reckon if Bear got drunk he would be a proper nut job and you'd have a lot of stories the next day.

discus

Sykk wrote: »

Mears is overweight. He likes to chat and tell stories of the old days whilst sipping a nice cuppa. Construct his shelter from a tent and eats a nice marinated dinner.

What happens when you're in a Serbian wasteland of -40c? Wheres your tea and crumpets then? The chaps a joke tbh, I've never seen him do anything that patches him on bear.

That's because you sit at home watching their exploits on TV and internet. Bear makes his money on the motivational speaking / after dinner circuit. Mears trains Army/Navy/Airforce in SERE (survival/evasion/resistance/extraction) training, for all circumstances and environments, which doesn't really make it to telly for obvious reasons.

squadro

ah bear is good for the shock value but i would say he would be **** all use without the camera to play up to. id probably end up battering him with a club of some sort. would prefer to dine on wild salmon and juniper berries cooked on an open fire by ray and we could feed bear to the bears attracted by the delicious aromas wafting over the glorious alaskan wilderness.;)

Zulu

It's simple.
End up stuck in the wild with Bear Grylls - you'll survive but you'll be eking out a miserable existence on eyeballs, urine, and raw insects.

End up stuck in the wild with Ray, and he'll have you in a solid, warm shelter. A feather down bed. And you can expect culinary delights - 3 course breakfasts, fresh breads, deserts, etc..

In summation: Ray can create fire out of water, Bear drinks his own piss.

garysully1986

Im gonna go with Les Stroud on this one!

Tar.Aldarion

They are for totally different situations? Franks Grylls stuff is more useful to life and death situations whereas Ray is for living off the land with equipment you brought with you to...camp.

And who cares if Grylls stays in a hotel, wouldn't you? It's about teaching. Do you think he sits there on his own making the shelters too?

Zulu

Wossack wrote: »

he's cheap

rumour has it he works for short bits of rope, and stones with little bits of quartz in them

...which he quickly fashions into an oil derrek & refinery.

Sykk wrote: »

Mears is overweight...

Exactly! A fat survivilist is a survivilist I want to end up with. Sourcing food clearly isn't a problem.

Canis Lupus

My favorite Bear clip.... dangerous stuff people....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UpSlpvb1is

kylith

Paparazzo wrote: »

kylith wrote: »

Mears any day. He'd have a house built and a 3 course meal laid out before Grills had even finished filling his water bottle with urine.

Mears builds a house he goes along the lines of "use a tent pole to support this bit. Use some rope to hold this here. Take a break and use your tilly kettle for a cup of tea"
Bear Grylls rips the guts out of a camel with his bare hands and climbs inside.

That's what you want, though. Have you seen Mears in the arctic? he has a shelter built, some comfy spruce beds, some mugs made from bark, and a nice brew up on within an hour. While Grills heads down into the fecking middle of ice caves where you're guaranteed to get horribly injured and freeze to death.

I'd love to do a Mears Vs Grills thing. Drop 2 normal people into a situation, one with Mears' TV advice and one with Grills' and see who does best.

Quazzie

Its very simple folks. This is the pecking order:

Survivorman
Ray Mears
Bear Grylls' Cameraman
Bear Grylls

Mousewar

These are two different people?!

Tar.Aldarion

Quazzie wrote: »

Its very simple folks. This is the pecking order:

Survivorman
Ray Mears
Bear Grylls' Cameraman
Bear Grylls

cameraman does have quite a tough time doesn't he!

Agricola

Is Ray Mears the middle aged fat guy that wears the boy scouts outfit?
Ive only seen Bear Grylls programme. If I was to turn ghey it would be for him. Feckin fit bit of British toff he is.

clashburke

Quazzie wrote: »

Its very simple folks. This is the pecking order:

Survivorman
Ray Mears
Bear Grylls' Cameraman
Bear Grylls

The cameraman can do all Bear Grills can but with a camera on his shoulder so id say most of it is easier than it looks!!:rolleyes::rolleyes: Drinkin piss is not hard done just sick:o

Ray Mears FTW

blatantrereg

kieranfitz wrote: »

Ray Mears all day every day. What teddy bear fails to mention is that he was 23 SAS(R), not 22 SAS, he's a stab, a sand bag and border line walt. There also the fact that if there was a path down the side of a mountain he'd throw himself off the top. OP you do realise that the "crazy stuff" he does is more likely to cause survival situation the aid one.

Five unfamiliar terms in a row. Here's a translation I made with the internet:

he was only in the reserves, not the proper SAS, he's a stupid territorial army bastard, he does things in a dumb way to make himself look better, and he is a borderline walter mitty [ie: someone who imagines themselves as a heroic soldier when in fact they're not well-suited for the military]

dfx-

the purple tin wrote: »

You have to ask yourself, why would the SAS hire Mears to train their troops in outdoor survival if he wasn't the best there is?

Those who can, do. Those who can't, teach..

One of them was in the reserves, one of them teaches them..:pac:

RachaelVO

biko wrote: »

Bear Grylls has a cooler name.
Ray Mears sounds like Rainman.

Absolutely...

Can't really stand either, Teddy is just too much full of sh1te, but
Ray would put ya asleep. I'm sure he has something interesting to say, I just don't want to listen to him saying it!

Wibbs

Nodin wrote: »

Just remember lads, its really a choice between a nice fire and tea with Ray, or a hosepipe up the hole with Grylls. Up to youse....I won't judge.

This and all this talk of Ray being a chunky bastid. This is a good thing. I read one of his books on canoeing up some Canadian river or other living off the land and came back with more padding than when he left. Any bloke who puts on weight in a survival situation gets my vote, cos he ain't surviving he's thriving. Native types don't "do a Bear", indeed avoid breaking sweat if at all possible. Ray's also a lot more informative about nature and how various traditional peoples thrived in such environments. His enthusiasm is infectious on that score.

Survival wise? I dunno. Bear is usually doing his schtick minus any aids, maybe a knife(though does use a flint and steel to light fires). Ray is a bit "and take out your axe and ......" though the bugger could crank up a fire underwater. I'd like to see someone start from scratch. IE here's how you build a toolkit from materials in the wild and nothing else. Real caveman stuff. Stone tools and the like. Maybe get phil harding from Time team and ray mears in one show. Phil's an expert in flint knapping and ray could show us and him how to use the results.

I reckon if you set up a TV in the middle of any native hunter gatherer village they'd enjoy both. "jayzuz Untanga that Bear fella's a mad fook eh? Entertaining mind you". Though I'd put good money they'd ask for a translator for Ray's stuff.

Bear seems like a nice chap. Bit stiff in interviews though, bit of a sense of humour bypass and he's a bit of a god botherer to boot. Does a lot of charity work and is bloody brave too. Fair play. Ray seems an equally nice chap, but I'd say could be a bit edgy too. His criticism of Bear I felt was a bit childish. Of those type of guys I'd say oul Les Stroud(for the older viewers) would be more craic than either of them.

Ghost Buster

EdenHazard wrote: »

ray mears is a twat, bear grylls is a legend

Buried deep in the nether regions of my mind was a very very snobby elitist notion that Mears is for the intelligent viewer and Grylls is for those less so. I never intended to air this view until i saw this post.

Quazzie

Wibbs wrote: »

I'd like to see someone start from scratch. IE here's how you build a toolkit from materials in the wild and nothing else. Real caveman stuff.

Survivorman is as close to this as you'll currently get tbh.

Zulu

Wibbs wrote: »

Ray is a bit "and take out your axe and ......" though the bugger could crank up a fire underwater. I'd like to see someone start from scratch. IE here's how you build a toolkit from materials in the wild and nothing else.

I'll refer you to here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik7GbPEqljg

Ray has done this on the telly box; he's created stone tools: axe, cutting blade, cord, and bow & arrow.
Couple this with his renowned ability to make fire, makes him my winner.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik7GbPEqljgCached

AudreyHepburn

Bear for me.

Ok he's a bit of a showman but what''s wrong with that? It keeps you interested and entertained.

The way I see it is ok some of the scenarios he gets into may be be set up but to me his programs are not about whether he himself will or won't survive but about him showing us the viewers how to do so.

To those saying his methods are crazy I say desperate times call for desparate measures and that we, like every other creature on the planet, will go to any lengths to survive....I have no doubt that each person here, myself included, would under desparate circumstances resort to such methods as drinking your own urine or sleeping in dead animals if it meant the difference between life and death.

Also on a more superficial level, Bear is very easy on the eye, to me anyway lol.

retalivity

Ray Mears all day
That is if "Ray mears" means multiple 'Ray Meagher's

dfx-

Zulu wrote: »

I'll refer you to here:
Ray has done this on the telly box; he's created stone tools: axe, cutting blade, cord, and bow & arrow.
Couple this with his renowned ability to make fire, makes him my winner.

By which time, Mr. Grylls is swimming through white water rapids to get down the river 10 miles nearer to safety. But we've spent our time making a bow and arrow..

--Kaiser--

Seaneh wrote: »

They are two entirely different shows.

Mears is a bush-craft expert, he tells people how to make pine needle tea at their camp fire with their billy cans, how to tell good from bad mushrooms, how to use your clothes and netting to leech toxins from yams in a river, these are all great if you happen to be going out for a few days, with equpitment and are planning on living off the land a little, great for adult boyscouts.


Grylls's show is about worst case scenerio stuff.
You're plane crashes off the coast of central america, you are the only sourviver and all you have are the clothes you are wearing, no knife, tools, nothing.
If you were actually lost in the middle of a desert/thundra/whatever and had no tools or food, Grylls's techniques would give you a few extra days to either be found or get to a town/river/road and have a better chance of getting home.


Two totally different situations.


Both are excellent at what they do.


Grylls sleeping in hotels is besides the point, the stuff he teaches is legitimate. If you were ever in those situations, the stuff he teaches would help you.

Post of the thread, these are two completely different TV shows, something most of tools whining about piss-drinking seem to have missed

Zulu

Why are you in a rush? While your risking your neck, getting wet...

Ray will have whipped me up shelter, he'll be roasting some pork & crackling, and be starting on making us a 2 man boat to get you down the river safely, dry & with a full tummy.

Way I see it, while Bear might get you out in one piece, with Ray you'll defo get out, but you'll have had a nice holiday in the process! Beside, when are you ever going to have as good an excuse to get & enjoy "force majour" leave in work?

Ghost Buster

AudreyHepburn wrote: »

Bear for me.

Ok he's a bit of a showman but what''s wrong with that? It keeps you interested and entertained.

The way I see it is ok some of the scenarios he gets into may be be set up but to me his programs are not about whether he himself will or won't survive but about him showing us the viewers how to do so.

To those saying his methods are crazy I say desperate times call for desparate measures and that we, like every other creature on the planet, will go to any lengths to survive....I have no doubt that each person here, myself included, would under desparate circumstances resort to such methods as drinking your own urine or sleeping in dead animals if it meant the difference between life and death.

Also on a more superficial level, Bear is very easy on the eye, to me anyway lol.

One person, alone in the wilds, would be very fool hardy to run flat out through rough terrain, leap gorges and tackle poisonous snakes when one sprain, fall or bite could be the end of you. Desperate times call for calm reasoned measures.
But this is besides the point. It is just telly and i do watch both but i take Mears as 'documentary' and Grylls as 'fiction'.

Ghost Buster

Ghost Buster wrote: »

You have seen the disclaimer at the start of Bear Grylls 'show' stating that these are staged scenarios havent you?
TBH I like both but its not really comparing like with like. All the have in common is the outdoorsy / survival aspect in the same way that Star Wars and Steven Hawkins 'A brief history of time' have space in common.
You can guess which is which in regard to Grylls and Mears

--Kaiser-- wrote: »

Post of the thread, these are two completely different TV shows, something most of tools whining about piss-drinking seem to have missed

Not me mate;)

leggit

Ray is a black belt in judo and makes an excellent pine needle tea and would have plenty of spare pairs of khaki shorts for you to wear.

Bear would just piss on you and then tell you to jump across a gorge while throwing a squirrell at you.

Ray wins hands down

Sykk

leggit wrote: »

Ray is a black belt in judo and makes an excellent pine needle tea and would have plenty of spare pairs of khaki shorts for you to wear.

Bear would just piss on you and then tell you to jump across a gorge while throwing a squirrell at you.

Ray wins hands down

So what you're saying is if he were in the middle of the desert and there were no pine needles, and he didn't have his lorry full of supplies, that he's screwed?

--Kaiser--

leggit wrote: »

Ray is a black belt in judo and makes an excellent pine needle tea and would have plenty of spare pairs of khaki shorts for you to wear.

Bear would just piss on you and then tell you to jump across a gorge while throwing a squirrell at you.

Ray wins hands down

If I was to decide which of these men would be more useful in a survival situation I would base it on their expiriences and credentials and not on whether or not their TV show is dramatised.

Bear Grylls was in the Special Forces Reserve (not quite the SAS but not to be sniffed at), he was the youngest person ever to climb Everest, which he did after severly injuring his back after a parachuting accident. He's crossed the Atlantic in a rubber dinghy, jet-skiied around the UK etc....

Opposed to this we've got a chubby, floppy haired dude who makes great wild mushroom soup. But please, continue to make moronic comments about piss-drinking

Ghost Buster

--Kaiser-- wrote: »

If I was to decide which of these men would be more useful in a survival situation I would base it on their expiriences and credentials and not on whether or not their TV show is dramatised.

Bear Grylls was in the Special Forces Reserve (not quite the SAS but not to be sniffed at), he was the youngest person ever to climb Everest, which he did after severly injuring his back after a parachuting accident. He's crossed the Atlantic in a rubber dinghy, jet-skiied around the UK etc....

Opposed to this we've got a chubby, floppy haired dude who makes great wild mushroom soup. But please, continue to make moronic comments about piss-drinking

Indeed. Food, good food and morale is quite unimportant. Stunts will always be crucial however.