Say you’re on a long hike, it’s getting dark and you’re lost. Or there’s a fire in your hotel and you’re on a high floor. Know what to do?

Retired Navy pilot and plane crash survivor Mike Stock does, and this winter he’ll be sharing his years of knowledge in an NMC extended education class.

In “Emergency Survival Skills,” TC resident Stock will teach the basic skills, techniques and equipment required to keep you alive in various situations until help arrives.

“I think people in general – even those who are fairly savvy in terms of outdoor skills – don’t always come up with the right answer,” says Stock, a graduate of five Navy survival schools. “I like to share my enthusiasm because we never know when we might be thrust into a life-threatening situation.”

The class will cover proper equipment packing, signaling, first aid, cold weather/water survival, and the five basic necessities to sustain life: “The will to live, shelter, fire, water and food. I talk about why those are important and in that order. In one hour, I can convince people of this order.”

Stock will take students through the most extreme life-threatening situations, such as fires and tornados, airline safety and crash survival, animal attacks and earthquakes. But he’ll also cover dangers close to home, like falling through the ice or driving into a lake.

“We have a lot of water and water activities, and in the winter we have more of a hospitable environment and more people outdoors. You don’t have to be doing something extreme; things can go south very quickly and if you aren’t prepared, you can find yourself in a bad situation.”

Stock has survived three aircraft crashes - two during his Navy service and one as a test pilot for the Navy after he retired. In the 1980s, he taught survival courses at Purdue University (students were sent into the wild for three and a half days with only a pack of Lifesavers and water) and later he taught adult-ed classes for the Saudi Arabian Oil Co.

When he left Saudi Arabia in 1994, he spotted an ad in an aviation publication for a chief flight instructor at NMC. “I had heard of Traverse City, but I had to look it up on a map,” he says, with a laugh.

He landed the job and retired from NMC in 2006. He still lectures there and will teach a private course in the spring.

Stock’s survival class will be held one night per week (length to be determined) during winter term. He’s purposely keeping the cost low so more students can afford to take it. Keep an eye out for NMC’s winter schedule online or call (231) 995-1700.