Almost no one I know travels with these things, but I’ve used my jumper cables and also flashlight. The main thing to do as “About.com”:http://cars.about.com/od/adviceforowners/a/ag_winterkit.htm and “Minneapolis.About.com”: http://minneapolis.about.com/cs/transportation/qt/wintercarkit.htm says is to get:

# Emergency hazard triangle. Personally I don’t like flares as things are flammable obviously and they have a shelf life. Easy to get at any auto store.
# LED Flashlight. We have the regular ones that don’t last that long. The new LED ones are truly a miracle. Up to 1,000 hours on a few AAAs. The main issue is remember that you need fresh batteries and have to check. “Pricegrabber”:http://about.pricegrabber.com/search_attrib.php/page_id=1634 has a huge selection as does the REI. “Flashlightreviews.com”:http://www.flashlightreviews.com/ is a whole site dedicated to just flashlights reviews and “top picks”:http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews_index/reviews_top_picks.htm 🙂 For instance the “Fenix L1T”:http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_l1t-l2t.htm is birght has has a great run time with 1 AA battery and is 1 watt and costs $47 but is being discontinued. For really bright, the new Cree 7090 LED like the Fenix L1D-CE is twice as bright at an amazing 90 lumens. “Fenix”:http://fenixlight.com seems to be one of those wonderful specialty manufacturers in Shenzhen you’ll only find on the Internet with an online “store”:http://fenix-store.com. For the techno nerd, the key is the LED used. The L1D-CE uses a Cree LED that are much better than the Nichia or the Luxeon
# Jumper Cables. 8 feet long. They are the thing I’ve used the most.
# First Aid Kit. You just need a basic one, but reviews are not that common. “Mountainzone.com”:http://www.mountainzone.com/gear/First_Aid_kits_Review.html recommends you get something from one of these folks: Atwater Carey (800/359-1646), “Adventure Medical Kits”:http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/ ,(800/324-3517) or “Outdoor Research”:http://www.orgear.com/ ,(888-4-ORGEAR). “Campmor”:http://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=315&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226 has pretty much the whole list of Adventure Medical Kits. REI also has the Adventure Medical Kit. Probably the traveler at $30 is the right size for cars. Also you might consider ther “Essentials Personal Survival”:http://www.adventuremedicalkits.com/kit_detail.asp?series=1000&seriesNav=&kit=1010&kitNO=0140-0709 which is for carrying while skiing and suppose you get trapped out there.
# Space blanket. You don’t have to worry about dying of thirst, but dying of cold is no fun either. These blankets are small and amazing and toss a few beany ski hats in too, they really conserve heat. Most of these are just too thin and rip too easily. “Sierradescents.com”:http://www.sierradescents.com/gear/2005/space-blanket.php likes the Space All-Weather Blanket because it is more durable and could be a ground cloth or a tarp. “Cabelas”:http://www.cabelas.com/link-12/product/0006243510214a.shtml has a similar one for $12 that is calle dthe Sportsman’s Space Blankets as does “Campmor”:https://www.campmor.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=303&storeId=226&catalogId=40000000226
# Food. Actually, you won’t die for 40 days without food, so your main worries in the cold are well, the cold and you need water too, but there is snow out there 🙂
# Tire inflater. Nice to have run flat tires, but otherwise, you need a can of this magic stuff to get going after you change your tire, unless you are one of those people who actually checks the inflation of your spare and have a $20 tire inflator at home (which I really should get!). But you need something in a can for rapid inflation. And get a tire pressure gage too while you are at it 🙂
# Shovel. A lightweight one for avalanche is great
# A bag of kitty litter for traction (hey that’s light and a good suggestion from Minnesota)
# An empty coffee can, candles and matches to melting snow
# General toolkit with screwdriver, wrenches and vice grips or maybe just a leatherman or equivalent.
# Survival kit. Amazingly there is a site called “equipped.org”:http://equipped.org that reviews survival kits and a very personal view of the “checklist”:http://www.equipped.org/srvkits.htm. For instance he likes the Leatherman supertool. “Multitool.org”:http://www.multitool.org/leatherman-tool-group/large-tools/leatherman-supertool-200.html also loves it but the “Wave”:http://www.multitool.org/leatherman-tool-group/medium-tools/leatherman-wave.html seems to be the standard regular duty tool and “Equipped.org”:http://www.equipped.org/wave.htm also liked it. While you can get the Wave at Campmor for $70, “Walmart”:http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=3544353 has it for $65 including shipping which is a great deal.

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