British Army 24 hour ration packs or USA MREs?

[Punkypink]

Because most of us are pansy airsofters?? Plus if your using them as a way to save the amount you have to transport down somewhere, ie GroundZero, they are pretty handy if your just going to use them to replace normal meals that you'd be able to eat warm had you brought a hefty gas cooker thing and normal food.

Thats the point. It's even more space-saving and less of a hassle to eat them out of the bag cold.

 

Why eat cold food when you can eat hot food? When you wake up freezing cold at stupid o clock am, it's just nice to have a hot breakfast and a brew

I can never stand hot food in the mornings. I get very grumpy if I wake up and am expected to eat hot food. I've been known to wake up and have ice cream for breakfast during winter, and I love eating food cold out of cans.

[Lance Jackass]

I used to eat them cold back in the cadets, but sod that. If you've got time to heat them up, you might as well. The only thing worse than sausages and beans is cold sausages and beans.

[starburst]

Thats the point. It's even more space-saving and less of a hassle to eat them out of the bag cold.

 

 

I can never stand hot food in the mornings. I get very grumpy if I wake up and am expected to eat hot food. I've been known to wake up and have ice cream for breakfast during winter, and I love eating food cold out of cans.

 

If your not/havent been one, you would make a really good student

 

Ive heard/read hot food can be a moral booster, but that might be aimed towards long cold nights not long warm summer days, then again I went to a weekender once where there was lots of very cold and wet weather, so some hot food was great (DT06 for anyone who remembers being there a very wet early September weekend)

[rwoodcock01]

Its heating the mess tin full of water that does it though. The hexi sticks to the bottom forming a layer of grime that'll stop bullets. Anyone whos done more than one weekend event will have a shiny mess tin from brillo'ing the bottom of the mess tin to death Gas stoves are the way forwards.

 

 

You made me laugh with that, so true. I use the jetboil that I brought on a whim, turned out to be a fantastic buy and fits in my all-arms vest nicely.

 

Cheers

 

Rich

 

[Punkypink]

I used to eat them cold back in the cadets, but sod that. If you've got time to heat them up, you might as well. The only thing worse than sausages and beans is cold sausages and beans.

But why heat them up? I HATE hot food... I regularly throw ice cubes into noodles to chill them down.

 

If your not/havent been one, you would make a really good student

 

Ive heard/read hot food can be a moral booster, but that might be aimed towards long cold nights not long warm summer days, then again I went to a weekender once where there was lots of very cold and wet weather, so some hot food was great (DT06 for anyone who remembers being there a very wet early September weekend)

I've been one and will be again I love cold sandwiches, pastries, rice, noodles esp those microwavable rice or noodle dishes from supermarkets like Sainsburys or Tesocs? I love eating them cold as well.

 

Hot food generally makes me grumpy. Mildly warm is acceptable, altho I do like a bit of a hot drink now and then, like tea or soup. I went to Nepal in 1998, to trek around the Annapura range. Hot soup or tea was lovely up in the mountains. But I still liked most of my meals cold.

[Gadge]

You get more energy from hot food IIRC correctly cos your body has to covert less chemical energy to heat energy.

 

Pretty sure thats the case.

[Dentonboy]

I had a 'Chicken Salsa' MRE at Beltring this year - £6 all in.

 

And I thought the whole lot was excellent for what it is. It took about 20mins to cook/heat up and I just really enjoyed it. Probably because it was a change from Nutra-grain bars and Pot Noodles.

 

I would buy a caseload, I think they are brilliant - keep them in your car, take them skirmishing for those prolonged ambushes.

 

I have heard the UK issue rations are slightly less-digestible, but I guess it is all down to personal choice.

 

I would give 'Chicken Salsa with Mexican rice' 8/10. The shortbread biscuits were excellent too. The drinks were nice. The vegetable crackers and cheese spread were a 3/10 though...

[TheFull9]

Main reason for heating of rat packs meals is to give you warmth from the inside, which is a lot more useful than just rubbing your hands together or whatever, that's what the raf reg always told me anyway, and it does work I feel. Personally I never drink the hot drinks in the packs so I've found it quite important when out on ex. (and it's a bit chilly) to eat the food hot.

[Gadge]

Uk rations depend on the menu.

 

When our section got ten man packs and broke em down there was always a lengthy bartering/arguing/stealing session to get your favorite bits which always resulted in the following things happening.

 

1) no one got enough meatballs and pasta

2) there was a huge mound of 'fruit dumplings in butterscotch sauce' left that no one wanted.

3) a smaller mound of 'soups' were left

4) There was always a massive surplus of brew kit

 

 

One of the best bits about MREs (apart from the heater) is that they come with a spoon... some donkey always left his eating iron back in barracks meaning you were always lending someone a spoon

 

My fave breakfast was always hot porridge with the oatmeal block crumbled into it with a sachet of sugar and a good chunk of the chocholate drink... hot choccy porridge used to get me going with half a pint of screeech.

 

 

edit: and forget the treacle brick, sorry pudding, unless you have the luxury of an hour to boil it in.

 

A lot of lads favoured the 'train smash' approach to the rat pack where *everything* is thrown in one mess tin and wolfed down to save time regardless of taste or appearance.

 

Oh and word of warning to those unaccustomed to British Rations, they are designed to slow down your bowell movements, eat them for a whole week(end) and you're going to know about it in a day or two...

 

 

[Punkypink]

I guess iwarm food makes sense if you're the sort who likes being warm and toasty. I like being cold... I guess I'm a prime candidate for hypothermia. I actually have terrible outfield eating habits. I tend to not even bother with proper meals and just munch biscuits and chocolate bars.

[Gadge]

Problem with that is you're going to get massive energy spikes and troughs.

 

You need something that slowly releases energy through out the day really - especially if you're exerting yourself physically.

[Punkypink]

To make things worse, I'm diabetic >.< But then again I always make sure I pop a tiny snack bar or grab half a can of coke or something between each game and that seems to work for me in keeping my energy levels constant and at a safe level. Is GZ a massive day-long event? If it is, I'll bring some bars in my pack and nibble them at regular intervals.

[Fatal]

I don't see why anyone would want to eat that damn meal. MRE's are horrible while I was in Iraq, and I knew we would be gone for days. I would buy a bunch of pogey bait ( px food ) and eat that until I ran out. I would wake up at zero dark stupid for watch and the other guy would be eating some stupid MRE trash, while I would pop open the pringles. MRE is like a last resort food, yuck don't do that to your stomach.

[Manxmadman]

To make things worse, I'm diabetic >.< But then again I always make sure I pop a tiny snack bar or grab half a can of coke or something between each game and that seems to work for me in keeping my energy levels constant and at a safe level. Is GZ a massive day-long event? If it is, I'll bring some bars in my pack and nibble them at regular intervals.

 

If you mean the weekender, it can be whatever you want. If you want to go out all day at 10 (or whenever it starts) and come back to your tent at 5/6 in the evening and eat out in the field, you can. Or, like most probably will do, you can just return to the safezone/your tent and grab yourself a proper lunch and go back out nicely refreshed for the afternoon. I don't believe there is any restrictions on when you can leave the game zone, its not at all Mil-Sim at all, although I believe the objectives and storyline will be rolling throughout the event whether you in the game field or not.

 

So in your case, it would be easy just to pop back to your kit bag, grab whatever snack(s) you feel you need, and then get back gaming.

[blackb1rd1]

Did you ever try EPA (EinmannPackung- German Dayration for one man and day)? You have two meals, bread, jam, cheese, dessert... But you need an extra heater.

[Fizzy]

I don't believe there is any restrictions on when you can leave the game zone, its not at all Mil-Sim at all, although I believe the objectives and storyline will be rolling throughout the event whether you in the game field or not.

 

So in your case, it would be easy just to pop back to your kit bag, grab whatever snack(s) you feel you need, and then get back gaming.

@Punkypink - Manxman's right, there're no restrictions on when you want to leave the gaming area, just pop back as and when you need to.

See you both there!

 

[Dope on a Rope]

 

Have tried the MRE's and found they taste bloody awful (IMO), the heater has to be just right or the bottom gets boiling and the top luke warm.

 

Rarely used hexi, I had an Epi Gas Alpine that worked very well.

 

Personal favorites choccy porridge, pot mess and MFP (mixed fruit pudding).

[Gadge]

I've had the german rat packs on exercise years ago

 

they were nice but a lot of sausage type meats IIRC (stereotype i know)

 

I think the menu was

 

one gold foil tin of ham and pea stew

one of something sausage based

 

a small pot of something fruit like and pot of blood sasuage

 

some bloody lovely chocolate and i cant remember the rest.

 

Was tasty though and easy to use.

 

 

[Nitemare1]

 

 

Try here for lots of info on MREs, Brit 24 packs n alsorts

 

http://www.mreinfo.com/

[Punkypink]

@Punkypink - Manxman's right, there're no restrictions on when you want to leave the gaming area, just pop back as and when you need to.

See you both there!

Yea I'll bear that in mind. Thanks

[Jenkem]

old MRE's in clear bags = NOT TOO GOOD

 

new MRE's in opaque brown bags = GREAT

 

the new MRE's are really freakin good.

you get spagetti, beef stew, chili etc. and they come with hot chocolate, fruit punch, blueberry cobbler (excellent), M&M's, crackers, nacho cheese spread, little Tabasco bottles, caffinated chewing gum, all kinds of great stuff.

I wouldn't mind eating one three times a day for a month.

[torN-]

Well i got my lot from Ebay in the end. Got a nice selection of different menus, one veggie menu (yuk) but a friend of mine whos also gunna be at the weekender is gunna be 2 boxes off me!

 

Tbh im looking forward to my fruit dumplings in sauce they rock!

[Spacemonkey]

Hmm... bear in mind that the MOD Plod are clamping down on Rat sales for some reason. Lots of stores have been raided and had them swiped.

I get mine at £4 a box and have the odd one or two 'just in case'..

 

 

One word of warning- it is quite safe, and good practice, to use the water used to heat a Brit ration to make a brew with. The sachets of instant white tea are great on a cold wet mountain, yet for some reason are totally undrinkable at home. Weird.. Anyway, the coating on the American MRE package is not safe to drink the water with. Use the heater provided.

Also bear in mind that the MRE is supposed to be one meal whereas the Brit Ratpack is for one day. And they contain Yorkie bars with the legend 'Not For Civvies' Worth buying just for that...

 

Ok, here's the two:

 

Small Brit 'Packteen' for scale:

 

MRE:

 

Brit Rat:

 

Menus:

 

 

Two meals fit in a Crusader mugand the gel of the Crusader cooker leaves no mess:

 

 

[Edmiles]

Why not just y'know, go to the meal van or bring some normal food, like most people

 

Being airsofters we get the luxury of lovely, normal food amongst other things!

 

Anyhow, see you chaps at GZ, I'll be the geardo moaning that he can't find something/something isn't working/he wants so and so gear etc.

[TheFull9]

As has been posted and I'm sure most everyone is aware (but just to re-iterate and put my own mind at rest) carbs are what you need to keep you going really, there's a reason they put baked beans in freakin' everything in british rat packs. Sugar and caffeine really aren't any good for you when it comes to long skirmishes (i.e. exerting yourself in a way not dis-similar to being on a real military exercise). Yorkies and coffee are great for keeping your spirits up and that extra boost of energy now and again, but they're not the sort of thing to be relied upon. Biscuits aren't too bad, especially if they're decent ones with plenty of oats etc in 'em, plus most types have a bit of sugar in.

 

One thing to note with brit packs (and possibly US ones as well) is that they're designed to keep even the likes of the paras, marines and raf reg going through the heaviest types of patrolling and combat, the puddings are generally sickly as hell (as one example). I do love hot burger and beans of a cold morning up a welsh mountain path though.