Portugal

Attending the “Always Ready” event (and some touring on the side)

(November 2024)

Catharine and Andrew decided to attend this 5-6 day event in Portugal while also taking in some sights during other days. Flying into Lisbon, they stayed the night in the city before grabbing a rental car and heading north to Nazare along the coast about an hour and a half way. Staying there for the night, they returned back to Lisbon the following day and stayed there for the night again. The following morning, they headed south on a three-hour trip to Lagos where the event was being held.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Andrew checking out some sights)

As the event got rolling, they both were impressed with the Denning Family (mom, dad, seven kids) who’ve lived a life of adventure in over 60 countries so far. (you’ll find lots of information with a Google search on the family) The beach house where they stayed was communal in nature – many (if not all) the attendees of the event lived and ate together. Lots of healthy, organic meals ! Catharine mentioned how impressed she was with the involvement amongst the Denning Family kids – always there to help out and handle things.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(Catharine taking in a beautiful coastal view)

The event is all about making yourself an “Asset” to yourself, your family, and to humanity. It’s called “Always Ready” for good reason – it involves the following training areas: (below is from the Denning Family website link “extraordinary life – asset training“)

(more pictures from Catharine & Andrew’s trip at bottom)

Basic Medical Knowledge

Anatomy & Physiology

Body parts

Basic injury and disease processes

Basic First Aid & Emergency Medicine

Emergency scene management & patient assessment

Airway management

Recognizing & managing trauma — circulation & shock, catastrophic bleeding, etc.

Recognizing and managing medical emergencies in pre-hospital care

Basic Wilderness Medicine

Medical emergency simulations and scenario practice

Situational Awareness & Prevention

Situational awareness to prevent dangerous situations

Basic personal safety & security skills

Permissive vs. Non-permissive environments (what they are and why they matter)

Understanding typical and A-typical violence and it’s role and usage

Kim’s Games simulations to develop memory, awareness, and attention to detail

Self-Defense Combatives

Identifying violent & non-violent options for self-defense

Hands-only combative training

Weapons-based combative training and strategies

Mental resilience – Utilizing your most valuable weapon (your mind)

Improvised Weapons

Blunt vs. stabby

Every day objects as weapons

Airport security ‘approved’ weapons

Functional Fitness & Self-Rescue Training

PRACTICE in a safe envrionment

Self-rescue skills – lock picking, handcuffs, zip ties, duct tape

Exercises for functional fitness

Survival mindset & mental resilience (with case studies)

Scenario (simulation) based skills tests

Basic Travel Preparedness

Travel preparedness packing

On the ground improvisation

Airline approved tools & ‘weapons’

Build your own medical first aid kit (Level 1)

Preparedness travel tips

Philanthropy & Leadership

Purpose-based travel

Asset-based leadership skills

Human trafficking prevention

Mindful tourism

Simulation/Scenario Based Testing

Practice scenarios

Classes & case studies

Simulation-based skills testing