Improvised Stretcher Rescue Carry
A backcountry emergency simulation where a team builds a stretcher from two poles and their own jackets, loads an injured person and carries them along a course. Students work on cooperation, coordinated strength and responding responsibly to accidents outdoors.
How to play
- Spend 3 minutes on Check, Call, Care and when to move an injured person and when not to: only if there is immediate danger.
- Demonstrate building the stretcher: two parallel poles and three zipped jackets with the sleeves tucked inside, poles slid through. 3 minutes.
- Form groups of 5; each builds its stretcher and tests it on the ground over a mat, loading the lightest student who volunteers. 5 minutes.
- Practice the lift on the leader's call ("ready, lift"): four carriers, knees bent and backs straight; lift to hip height and lower. 4 minutes.
- Carry along a 30-yard cone course at a walk, switching carriers halfway without setting the stretcher down. 6 minutes, rotating who plays the patient.
- Discuss for 4 minutes what went wrong and what you would do differently in a real situation.
Rules
- Only volunteers are carried, and always at a walk, never running.
- The stretcher never goes above the carriers' waist.
- The leader gives every command; no one lifts or lowers without the call.
Variations
Easier
Carry a loaded backpack or a medicine ball instead of a person.
Standard
Pole-and-jacket stretcher, volunteer patient and a 30-yard carry with a switch.
Harder
Add a stretch with low obstacles and an initial patient check before moving.
Adaptations
- A student with limited mobility takes the leader role giving commands, or the role of calling 911 and assessing the scene.
- For students with autism, explain each step beforehand with a visual sequence and let them choose a role, never forcing them to be the patient.
- Students with less strength take the head position, which carries less load, or guide the route.
Learning goals
- Build an improvised stretcher from available gear.
- Coordinate a safe lift and carry.
- Apply Check, Call, Care to a backcountry accident.
Equipment for a class of 25
- poles: 10
- mats: 5
- cones: 10
Teacher tip
Make sure the poles are sturdy and the jacket zippers work. Watch every group's first lift closely and stop it if anyone rounds their back.
PatioLab has "Improvised Stretcher Rescue Carry" and 1299 more activities ready to drag into your lesson and run from your phone in the gym.
More activities like this
More main activities for High School
10-20-30 interval running in pairs
The 10-20-30 method strings together 30 seconds of easy jogging, 20 at a moderate pace and 10 at top speed, in five-minute blocks.
1v1 Ball Volley Matches
1v1 ball volley: singles games on a small court with a low net, hitting the ball over the net and allowing one bounce.
2-on-2 Volleyball with Blocker Hand Signals
2-on-2 volleyball modeled on beach doubles: the net player uses hand signals behind their back to tell their partner which area they will block and which the partner…
4-on-4 Volleyball with a Setter and Outside Attack
Small-court 4-on-4 games where each team has a setter at the net and builds the pass-set-hit sequence toward the outside hitter.
4x50 Relay: Blind Handoff in the Exchange Zone
Teams of four learn to pass the baton without looking inside an exchange zone marked with cones, with the receiver taking off at speed so no time is lost.
Acrosport Flow: Linked Stunt Transitions
Groups of four link three simple acrosport stunts, moving from one to the next without fully coming down, with safe builds and dismounts.