“It’s better to be prepared than scared,” said Michael Brimmer, who leads the museum’s education division. “Survival is about keeping cool, calm and realizing what you have with you, and that’s your wits, your ability to think through.”
Created by Imagine Exhibitions, Inc., the exhibit is said to be the world’s “first and only traveling exhibition that provides practical, real-world, and science-based techniques to prepare visitors of all ages for survival situations they may actually face in their lifetimes.”
The exhibit has two main sides.
The first is a walk-through, interactive gallery with nine “zones,” each devoted to a different environment or scenario — the forest, the desert, the mountains, on the water, even in one’s own home during extreme weather or environmental events.
Here, you’ll be told that you should leave the ear buds off while hiking through bear country. You’ll get an introduction to distinguishing between safely edible and dangerous vegetation, a video tutorial on how to kick your way from an icy pond, tips on how to build a fire and a lot more.
The exhibit’s other side is an Adventure Zone Ropes Course and Zip Line, operated by the Air Force Museum Foundation.
If you’re up to navigating course obstacles, testing your balance and coordination and flying down a zip line, this side is for you.
While the walk-through portion is free, Adventure Zone requires tickets, available for purchase at the museum. It will be open from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
For more information about Adventure Zone tickets, visit www.afmuseum.com or call (937) 253-4629.
With a million square feet of exhibits, the museum can be accessed at gate 28B off Springfield Street in Riverside.
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