Elite Traveler Spring 2023

This page, clockwise Guests were put through their paces; team training exercises; a specially selected bottle of Jack Daniel’s single barrel select Opposite page, from top Training on the beach; evenings always included a sit-down dinner with world-class chefs preparing the meals

small teams of six or eight explore the Everglades to spot bombs, trip wires, snipers or other things out of the ordinary. It was a lesson on staying alert, looking out for your buddies, using signals without talking, passing the signal down, and having the ‘last man’ move up to pointman — all in a way that keeps you on guard and extremely aware of your surroundings. It wasn’t easy, especially carrying MK ri fl es in the extreme heat. Perhaps one of the most strenuous events was the Escape and Evade training, where groups of two at a time were let loose in the middle of the Everglades as though they had just escaped capture and had to evade their captors while running to an extraction

we experienced what it felt like to be kidnapped. Then, plumes of smoke came up all around us and we were ‘rescued.’ That afternoon, we broke into teams and began exercises that, over the next day and a half, would give us the necessary training for the end mission: fi nding and rescuing ‘hostages’ in a remote cabin in the Everglades. Tactical training included combative hand-to-hand training and subduing suspects, range ri fl e training, pistol training, close-quarters battle, and lessons on approaching and clearing buildings. Other exercises — which all involved a ride through the deep waters of the swamps on big military buggies — included running pointman training, where

under 10 minutes and 30 seconds, and so much more), I panicked. I couldn’t do any of it; I had just had surgery. Luckily, Panerai invited me as an observer — although, in the end, I did participate in excursions that weren’t too strenuous. Upon arrival in Florida, we received medical checks and clearance, and were issued standard gear and given a brie fi ng. Early in the morning, as we boarded a bus to the base camp cabins, the cadre of retired SEALs leading the Xperience took turns sharing storiesof their experiences on missions over the years. As the bus came to a stop, we were invaded by ‘insurgents,’ who placed bags over our heads and tie-wrapped our hands. For the next 30 minutes or so,

Photos Chris Garrison Photography, Inc.