About
Thomas Coyne Survival Schools offers hands-on courses in wilderness survival, emergency medical skills, disaster preparedness, bushcraft, primitive technology, traditional living skills, backpacking, mountain climbing, white water rafting, combatives, MMA, Brazilian jiujitsu, stone tool making, stone knapping, and firearms training. The program’s mission statement is that it is there to get participants ready for real situations and to train them to act as their own first responder.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
Thomas Coyne Survival Schools has been operating since 2008 and notes 15 years of instruction, and it was formerly known as Survival Training School of California under the same ownership and leadership. The school offers what it describes as California’s largest catalog of survival courses, with options ranging from elite field training in Alaska to all-ages bushcraft weekends in the California mountains, and courses are available for all ages and skill levels. Its methods are based on national training standards and real-world experience, and it is described in the program’s materials as California’s highest rated and most respected survival school and a nationally recognized authority in survival and outdoor skills training. The program states that it uses a practical approach to training that has set a standard the industry has followed for nearly 20 years, and it maintains a TCSS Qualified Instructor List that details instructor experience, training, and qualifications.
Instructor and founder Thomas Coyne has experience as a firefighting helicopter crew member (HELITACK), EMT, helicopter hoist rescue team member, helicopter rappeller, search and rescue technician, fire crew squad leader, and in confined space rescue, technical ropes rescue, and swift water rescue, as well as HAZMAT operations and emergency aircraft underwater egress (“dunker”) training. He served on the helicopter rescue team for the first civilian space shuttle launches (X Prize Launches, 2003), is trained in the ICS and NIMS disaster management systems, and has provided training to US Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Center instructors, US Navy helicopter search and rescue and special warfare, US Air Force special operations, US Army aviation, the US Department of Defense, the California Department of Justice, and others. Instructor Adam Mayfield is a certified instructor of Wilderness First Aid, Basic First Aid, CPR/AED, Bloodborne Pathogens, Emergency Oxygen Administration, Child and Babysitting Safety, and Pediatric CPR, AED, and First Aid through the American Safety & Health Institute and the American Red Cross, with years of field experience treating outdoor emergencies. Lead Instructor Justin Garfield is a US Marine Corps veteran and US Coast Guard Auxiliary veteran, an EMT, and a physical security specialist who has served as a combat lifesaver program instructor to the Peshmerga Kurds of northern Iraq and has trained soldiers and law enforcement from around the world, and he has trained extensively with Ed Calderon of “Ed’s Manifesto” in counter custody and anti-terrorism techniques.
Firearms Instructor and partner Daniel Valencia has 20 years of active duty U.S. Navy service, including special operations, and has worked as an NSW armorer, firearms instructor, weapons technician, and combat support personnel, including training foreign nationals and participating in logistics, convoy operations, and joint special missions. He has been designated a Range Safety Officer by the Commanding Officer of SEAL Team One, served with SEAL Team 17 in South Korea, worked on ship boarding teams and as a weapons instructor, and performed maritime interdiction on non-compliant boardings as part of a Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS) team, including work related to piracy and trafficking. Firearms Instructor Richard Kuan holds a master’s degree in Leadership and Organizational Studies, is Chief Firearms Instructor at Azone Defense LLC, shoots competitively in USPSA and IDPA 3-gun matches, and has been a certified firearms instructor for pistol, rifle, and shotgun since 2019 with credentials from the NRA, USCCA, CRPA, and CA-DOJ, and he has earned the Winchester Pro-Marksmanship “Distinguished Expert” qualification and competed on Surviving Mann Season 2. Lead Instructor Carl Eather is a professional lead ship’s engineer, mountaineering instructor and guide, TCSS Survival Expedition alumnus, TCSS Field Instructor Program graduate, and TCSS Alaska Field & Skills Course graduate and instructor, and he has spent decades exploring remote outdoor destinations internationally.
Combatives and MMA Instructor and partner Adam Lynn is a professional MMA coach and gym owner, former professional MMA fighter, and Marine Corps veteran who became a Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP) instructor while in the Marines and taught close-quarters and hand-to-hand combat. He is a Brazilian jiujitsu black belt, has trained at Jackson/Winklejon Fight Gym, and runs full fight camps at his Orange County gym SubFighter MMA. Primitive skills and stone knapping instructor Gary Pickett is a nationally respected stone tool maker who has been teaching his craft for over 20 years and serves as program coordinator for “New Advances For People With Disabilities,” working with mentally handicapped youth. The leadership team includes Thomas Coyne (Instructor/Founder), Adam Mayfield (Instructor), Justin Garfield (Lead Instructor), Daniel Valencia (Firearms Instructor/Partner), Richard Kuan (Firearms Instructor), Carl Eather (Lead Instructor), Adam Lynn (Combatives/MMA Instructor & Partner), and Gary Pickett (Primitive Skills & Stone Knapping Instructor).
Thomas Coyne Survival Schools notes that since 2008 it has been chosen by multiple organizations for official training, including the U.S. Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center, U.S. Navy helicopter rescue and EOD, U.S. Air Force EOD, U.S. Army aviation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the California Department of Justice, the Los Angeles Police Department, Palm Springs Police Search & Rescue, the Los Angeles County Sheriff, Stanford University Vaden Mental Health Services, Craftsman Tools, Ford Motors, Women In The Outdoors, Wounded Warrior Foundation, Regal Entertainment Group, the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, Los Angeles Parks, and Riverside County Parks. The program also lists training provided to US Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center survival and sniper instructors; US Navy helicopter rescue, EOD, and special warfare; US Air Force EOD and general staff; the United States Department of Defense; the California Department of Justice; the California State Guard; the Southwest Research Institute; LAPD; Palm Springs PD; Women In The Outdoors; Stanford University Vaden Mental Health Services; Los Angeles County Sheriff; Buzzfeed; Regal Cinemas; the Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park; Facebook; CNN; Craftsman Tools; Ford Motors; the History Channel; and the Discovery Channel. One testimonial from J.J. Carroll Jr., Commanding Officer of the USMC Mountain Warfare Training Center in 2012, states that the instruction during the course was extraordinary, exceeded expectations as a survival instructor, and earned the respect of the Marines, and another testimonial from the Commanding Officer of VX-31, United States Navy, thanks the program for expert delivery of lifesaving information and states that it will benefit VX-31 and staff for years to come.
The program materials also note that instructor Adam volunteers with the New Earth Organization, a Los Angeles–based nonprofit that works with formerly incarcerated youth re-entering their communities, and that as a counselor for the Beyond Boundaries program he leads youth on outdoor expeditions focused on personal identity discovery, including backpacking, mountain climbing, and white water rafting.
Last updated July 15, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
Thomas Coyne Survival Schools has been operating since 2008 and notes 15 years of instruction, and it was formerly known as Survival Training School of California under the same ownership and leadership. The school offers what it describes as California’s largest catalog of survival courses, with options ranging from elite field training in Alaska to all-ages bushcraft weekends in the California mountains, and courses are available for all ages and skill levels. Its methods are based on national training standards and real-world experience, and it is described in the program’s materials as California’s highest rated and most respected survival school and a nationally recognized authority in survival and outdoor skills training. The program states that it uses a practical approach to training that has set a standard the industry has followed for nearly 20 years, and it maintains a TCSS Qualified Instructor List that details instructor experience, training, and qualifications.
Instructor and founder Thomas Coyne has experience as a firefighting helicopter crew member (HELITACK), EMT, helicopter hoist rescue team member, helicopter rappeller, search and rescue technician, fire crew squad leader, and in confined space rescue, technical ropes rescue, and swift water rescue, as well as HAZMAT operations and emergency aircraft underwater egress (“dunker”) training. He served on the helicopter rescue team for the first civilian space shuttle launches (X Prize Launches, 2003), is trained in the ICS and NIMS disaster management systems, and has provided training to US Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Center instructors, US Navy helicopter search and rescue and special warfare, US Air Force special operations, US Army aviation, the US Department of Defense, the California Department of Justice, and others. Instructor Adam Mayfield is a certified instructor of Wilderness First Aid, Basic First Aid, CPR/AED, Bloodborne Pathogens, Emergency Oxygen Administration, Child and Babysitting Safety, and Pediatric CPR, AED, and First Aid through the American Safety & Health Institute and the American Red Cross, with years of field experience treating outdoor emergencies. Lead Instructor Justin Garfield is a US Marine Corps veteran and US Coast Guard Auxiliary veteran, an EMT, and a physical security specialist who has served as a combat lifesaver program instructor to the Peshmerga Kurds of northern Iraq and has trained soldiers and law enforcement from around the world, and he has trained extensively with Ed Calderon of “Ed’s Manifesto” in counter custody and anti-terrorism techniques.
Firearms Instructor and partner Daniel Valencia has 20 years of active duty U.S. Navy service, including special operations, and has worked as an NSW armorer, firearms instructor, weapons technician, and combat support personnel, including training foreign nationals and participating in logistics, convoy operations, and joint special missions. He has been designated a Range Safety Officer by the Commanding Officer of SEAL Team One, served with SEAL Team 17 in South Korea, worked on ship boarding teams and as a weapons instructor, and performed maritime interdiction on non-compliant boardings as part of a Visit Board Search and Seizure (VBSS) team, including work related to piracy and trafficking. Firearms Instructor Richard Kuan holds a master’s degree in Leadership and Organizational Studies, is Chief Firearms Instructor at Azone Defense LLC, shoots competitively in USPSA and IDPA 3-gun matches, and has been a certified firearms instructor for pistol, rifle, and shotgun since 2019 with credentials from the NRA, USCCA, CRPA, and CA-DOJ, and he has earned the Winchester Pro-Marksmanship “Distinguished Expert” qualification and competed on Surviving Mann Season 2. Lead Instructor Carl Eather is a professional lead ship’s engineer, mountaineering instructor and guide, TCSS Survival Expedition alumnus, TCSS Field Instructor Program graduate, and TCSS Alaska Field & Skills Course graduate and instructor, and he has spent decades exploring remote outdoor destinations internationally.
Combatives and MMA Instructor and partner Adam Lynn is a professional MMA coach and gym owner, former professional MMA fighter, and Marine Corps veteran who became a Marine Corps Martial Arts Program (MCMAP) instructor while in the Marines and taught close-quarters and hand-to-hand combat. He is a Brazilian jiujitsu black belt, has trained at Jackson/Winklejon Fight Gym, and runs full fight camps at his Orange County gym SubFighter MMA. Primitive skills and stone knapping instructor Gary Pickett is a nationally respected stone tool maker who has been teaching his craft for over 20 years and serves as program coordinator for “New Advances For People With Disabilities,” working with mentally handicapped youth. The leadership team includes Thomas Coyne (Instructor/Founder), Adam Mayfield (Instructor), Justin Garfield (Lead Instructor), Daniel Valencia (Firearms Instructor/Partner), Richard Kuan (Firearms Instructor), Carl Eather (Lead Instructor), Adam Lynn (Combatives/MMA Instructor & Partner), and Gary Pickett (Primitive Skills & Stone Knapping Instructor).
Thomas Coyne Survival Schools notes that since 2008 it has been chosen by multiple organizations for official training, including the U.S. Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center, U.S. Navy helicopter rescue and EOD, U.S. Air Force EOD, U.S. Army aviation, the U.S. Department of Defense, the California Department of Justice, the Los Angeles Police Department, Palm Springs Police Search & Rescue, the Los Angeles County Sheriff, Stanford University Vaden Mental Health Services, Craftsman Tools, Ford Motors, Women In The Outdoors, Wounded Warrior Foundation, Regal Entertainment Group, the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, Los Angeles Parks, and Riverside County Parks. The program also lists training provided to US Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center survival and sniper instructors; US Navy helicopter rescue, EOD, and special warfare; US Air Force EOD and general staff; the United States Department of Defense; the California Department of Justice; the California State Guard; the Southwest Research Institute; LAPD; Palm Springs PD; Women In The Outdoors; Stanford University Vaden Mental Health Services; Los Angeles County Sheriff; Buzzfeed; Regal Cinemas; the Desert Institute at Joshua Tree National Park; Facebook; CNN; Craftsman Tools; Ford Motors; the History Channel; and the Discovery Channel. One testimonial from J.J. Carroll Jr., Commanding Officer of the USMC Mountain Warfare Training Center in 2012, states that the instruction during the course was extraordinary, exceeded expectations as a survival instructor, and earned the respect of the Marines, and another testimonial from the Commanding Officer of VX-31, United States Navy, thanks the program for expert delivery of lifesaving information and states that it will benefit VX-31 and staff for years to come.
The program materials also note that instructor Adam volunteers with the New Earth Organization, a Los Angeles–based nonprofit that works with formerly incarcerated youth re-entering their communities, and that as a counselor for the Beyond Boundaries program he leads youth on outdoor expeditions focused on personal identity discovery, including backpacking, mountain climbing, and white water rafting.
Last updated July 15, 2026.
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