Preparedness Notes for Monday — February 9, 2026

On February 9th, 1540: The first recorded horse race meeting in England was held at Roodee Fields in Chester. Horse races are still regularly held there.

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February 9th, 1555:  My 17th great-grandfather, Dr. Rowland Taylor (born 6 October 1510) was burned alive at the stake during the Marian Persecutions, for professing that Bible scripture is inerrant. He died singing hymns. His martyrdom is described in Foxe’s Book of Martyrs. – JWR

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February 9th is the birthday of gun writer Major George Charles Nonte Jr. (Born 1926, died June 30, 1978.)

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SurvivalBlog Writing Contest

Today we present another entry for Round 123 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include:

First Prize:

1. A Gunsite Academy Three-Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 value),
2. American Gunsmithing Institute (AGI) is providing a $300 certificate good towards any of their DVD training courses. Their course catalog now includes their latest Survival Gunsmithing course.
3. HSM Ammunition in Montana is providing a $350 gift certificate. The certificate can be used for any of their products.
4. Harvest Guard is providing a 200-Piece Bulk Mix Pack of their Regular and Wide-Mouth Reusable Canning Jar Lids & Gaskets. This is a $161 + shipping value.

Second Prize:

1. A SIRT STIC AR-15/M4 Laser Training Package, courtesy of Next Level Training, that has a combined retail value of $679
2. Two 1,000-foot spools of full mil-spec U.S.-made 750 paracord (in-stock colors only) from TOUGHGRID.com (a $287 value).
3. Preparedness author Jennifer Rader is providing a $200 purchase credit for any of her eight published food storage and medical preparedness books, including the Good Eats at the TEOTWAWKI Café series, the Armageddon Pharmacy series, and the Medicine Surrounds Us series.
4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun. There is no paperwork required for delivery of pre-1899 guns into most states, making them the last bastion of gun purchasing privacy!

Third Prize:

1. A Berkey Light water filter, courtesy of USA Berkey Filters (a $305 value),
2. Two sets of The Civil Defense Manual, (in two volumes) — a $193 value — kindly donated by the author, Jack Lawson.
3. A $200 credit from Military Surplus LLC that can be applied to purchase and/or shipping costs for any of their in-stock merchandise, including full mil-spec ammo cans, Rothco clothing and field gear, backpacks, optics, compact solar panels, first aid kits, and more.
4. A transferable $150 FRN purchase credit from Elk Creek Company, toward the purchase of any pre-1899 antique gun.

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More than $981,000 worth of prizes have been awarded since we started running this contest.  Round 123 ends on March 31st, so get busy writing and e-mail us your entry. Remember that there is a 1,500-word minimum, and that articles on practical “how-to” skills for survival have an advantage in the judging. In 2023, we polled blog readers, asking for suggested article topics. Please refer to that poll if you haven’t yet chosen an article topic.