10 Things You Need To Know About Competing On Alone

Alone is a reality competition show that typically isolates ten contestants in the wilderness, and the last survivalist to ‘tap-out’ wins a $500,000 cash prize. The History Channel series makes for some binge-worthy suspense and drama, as well as a few laughs. Alone can be streamed on both Netflix and Hulu.

Outdoorsmen, hunters, scientists, and many other nature-oriented professionals have competed on the show, but several notable contestants have come from unlikely lines-of-work, so anyone could feasibly have a chance. If you were to attempt to compete on Alone, here are some things to keep in mind.

10 Boot Camp Before Filming

After going through a copious number of applications submitted prior to each season, the makers of Alone select twenty potential contestants to attend a boot camp. The boot camp does not occur in the same area that the following season is filmed, and this is no ‘sneak-preview’ for contestants.

Instead, hired survival experts will take the twenty contestants through various tasks and tests and evaluate both their physical and mental skills/weaknesses in an isolated, ‘wild’ context. After evaluations, half of the potential contestants are cut while the other ten advance to the show.

9 Thousands Of Hours Of Footage Will Be Cut

One of the most innovative aspects of the reality competition series’ format is how contestants film themselves. The thousands of hours of footage that result from Alone having ten contestants constantly film themselves for an indefinite amount of time is difficult to assimilate into a coherent lineup of episodes.

Nevertheless, editors scrounge through the ten contestants’ allotted footage—some seasons go on longer than others—and develop a small fraction of everything shot into a season. Alone’s editors do a pretty fantastic job of deriving entertaining storylines and amusing jabs of humor out of the plethora of captured footage.

8 Massive Competition For Being Selected

As mentioned earlier, Alone’s showrunners receive a massive count of applications from survival enthusiasts prior to each season. Competition for getting on the show has stiffened due to the series’ growing popularity after seven seasons. Alone is certainly one of the more difficult reality competition shows to be considered for, even when it comes to making boot camp.

Nevertheless, fans shouldn’t be entirely discouraged, as people from all kinds of disciplines have made it on the show. Additionally, many former competitors appeared to compete for ‘inner-gratitude’ rather than the promise of a cash prize. Perhaps this kind of internal motivation is something the producers are looking for in contestants?

7 Contestants Are Not As Far Away From Civilization As They Think

According to numerous savvy viewers, Alone’s contestants are sometimes sent to destinations that are fairly close to ‘normal’ people. For instance, some fans pointed out how, in one season, every contestant was an hour’s walk from a road or town.

Potential contestants can take this in several ways. They may find it comforting that civilization is so close by, or they might be annoyed that the remoteness of the experience is somewhat ‘artificial.’ Nonetheless, viewers have yet to see a contestant make his/her way to civilization.

6 Some Of Your Biggest Moments May Not Be Shown

Many former contestants have voiced their slight dissatisfaction with some of the footage that editors chose to cut. Contestants see the final cut of the show at the same time as the general public, so it must make for a total buzz-kill when a big moment they filmed isn’t included.

For instance, contestant Sam Larson said that “there are a lot of things that I wish would have made the cut. I went on a multi-day fishing trip where I walked about a mile upriver to catch the spawning salmon. I found them, got one, and lived off of it for a few days. I remember being so proud of that salmon.”

5 Past Winners Say Mental Training Is Just As Valuable As Physical Training

Some past contestants have given pieces of advice they wish they had received prior to competing, while others who were more successful on Alone have offered public tips they followed while tapping-out later than others. However, both types of former contestants seem to always mention mental preparation.

A commonly-cited symptom of a contestant’s experience is missing loved ones and growing homesick. Season six runner-up Woniya Thibeault claimed this was the reason for her tapping out on her birthday. It’s important to note that both the mind and the body have to persevere through the indefinite time.

4 Safety Items Are Given To Contestants In Case Of Emergency

One factor that should reassure potential contestants is the issuance of emergency safety items. On top of routine medical checkups, each contestant is given “one air horn, one emergency flare, one canister wild animal repellent, one satellite phone—the brick phone they use to tap out of the contest—one first aid kit (which includes a tourniquet, wadding, ace bandage, alcohol, etc.), one personal emergency flotation device, one small mirror, a headlamp, a GPS tracking device, and one portion of emergency rations of water and food.”

3 Items That Aren’t Allowed

Some of the show’s detractors have poked fun at Alone for the considerable number of tools and utilities that contestants are allowed to take on the show. It is worth noting how difficult the depicted experiences are, regardless of the tools, and that many of the allowed items are administered purely for safety precautions.

There is a list of approx. 30 items that aren’t allowed on the show, such as sunscreen, chapstick, beauty products, decoys, and mosquito repellant.

2 Expect To Lose Weight

A predominant symptom of Alone contestants is undoubtedly the loss of weight. Contestant Alan Kay lost an eye-opening 60 lbs. during his time competing on Vancouver Island. He also mentions how the loss of fat contributed to a tremendous decline in energy.

Contestants often advise survivalists to gain weight in preparation for the competition in order to counter the effects of adjusting one’s digestive cycle.

1 Sleep Is Key

Going hand in hand with mental preparation, quality sleep while competing is imperative to success. The side effects of sleep deprivation only lead to trouble in the wilderness, especially when you are solely responsible for acquiring food.

As a result of sleep being so important, it is important for contestants to establish a secure structure and bring a warm, weather-resistant sleeping bag. It is important to check the scores and ratings of your sleeping bag, as well as the climate of the expected destination before committing to a model.