BILLINGS — Winter is slowly rolling into Montana, and that means it will soon be time to break out the gear. But from camp stoves to clothing supplies, some of that gear may need a little personal care before using.
Recently, Montana State University Billings students teamed up with The Base Camp to help make that a little easier, because you never know when something might go wrong while adventuring out.
Watch what MSU Billings students are sharing to maintain your outdoor gear:
"The worst thing that can happen is when you're out and something doesn't work," MSU Billings Assistant Professor Ryan Butler said Sunday.
That's why students like Chloe Barrera are giving tips and tricks to be prepared for that adventure.
"Just applying it to the area and then just applying simple pressure and if you can see you can kind of see where those bubbles are coming up and you have that hole," Barrera said.
It comes at a time when winter is approaching. Q2's Ed McIntosh says winters can be deadly in Montana.
"Part of the problem is we can get about as cold as anybody in the country can get. We certainly see some heavy snow. Plus, with the sparse population, we have areas where you don't have cell phone coverage. It's easy to get turned around, and you can really be out for quite a while in the back-country without anybody knowing about it," McIntosh said.
Butler knows the risk all too well, having his students set up shop at The Base Camp to teach a lesson. From jackets to cookware and sleeping essentials, proper maintenance is key.
"What a common thing is people will say (is), 'my jacket isn't waterproof anymore.' And that's actually false. So they teach them showing why it's false and how to actually restore that jacket," Butler said.
The students also demonstrated different cookware maintenance.
"They're showing a bunch of different types of cooking systems and they each come with their own maintenance needs," Butler said.
And of course, sleeping essentials are covered too.
"Sleeping pads. So we're actually showing how patches work, how to adhere patches to different kinds so that sleeping pads can function the way they need to," Butler said.
Butler says it's essential to maintain your gear for multiple reasons.
"It lasts a lot longer. We don't have to buy things more often. And it's just better environmental sustainability," Butler said.
Just like how you'd keep up with a car, outdoor gear needs regular attention.
"A lot of this stuff is really high use. So it's no different than your car preventing maintenance. It makes it last longer, makes it perform the way you need it to," Butler said.
So at a time when the weather is about to become unpredictable, having the right gear can make all the difference.
"Make sure that you take the winter survival kit with you so you got some basic supplies, some water, some blankets," McIntosh said.
