Dual Survival star closes one TV chapter, begins afresh with new partner

After a long hiatus, due to the Discovery Channel's searching for just the right partner for primitive survival expert Cody Lundin, Dual Survival will soon be back with Lundin and his new partner, Joseph Teti.

Lundin, the barefoot, 20+-year survival veteran who has made his life his profession, living in the deserts and mountains with few modern tools or conveniences, teaching his indigenous survival strategies in his Aboriginal Living Skills School, LLC, seems more than prepared to accept a new partner in the form of Teti. After the Discovery Channel announced Lundin’s new partner to the public, Lundin released the following statement to the press and on his school website:

As has already been publicly confirmed, Dave Canterbury is no longer a part of Dual Survival. This fact has been true since September of 2011.

I have faced many questions regarding this change and much has been said on the Internet as well. Any inquiries regarding this matter should be directed to Discovery Channel. However, since I have no doubt that the questions will continue, and I have an ethical and professional responsibility to do so, I am making the following statement.

The goal of the survival instructor is to keep people alive. To accomplish this goal, honesty, integrity, trust and competence must come first. These core values cannot be compromised or people’s lives are needlessly put at risk. In a profession where human lives are at stake, dishonesty about one’s background and experience is an inexcusable breach of trust.

I have dedicated my life to this profession. It is my passion and livelihood and I have spent the past 23 years developing expertise in it. I hold the responsibility of being a survival skills instructor as sacred. It is incumbent upon all of us in this field to insist that the highest standards of honesty, integrity and honor are maintained at all times.

For all of the aforementioned reasons, I am proud to work with my new Dual Survival partner as we take the show to even greater levels. This is my final statement on the matter at this time. To my fans and to those who have offered support during this very challenging time, I offer my greatest gratitude and thanks.

Shutting One Chapter, Beginning Afresh

Although Lundin and Canterbury were great foils for each other on-screen, Lundin’s statement, “In a profession where human lives are at stake, dishonesty about one’s background and experience is an inexcusable breach of trust,” seems to relate the answer that viewers have wanted to know for months. And, although Discovery Channel has never confirmed the many rumors swirling around Canterbury’s departure—specifically whether or not he lied about his survival experience background—Lundin’s statement, although not specifically calling out his former partner by name, will no doubt sufficiently close the Lundin-Canterbury chapter for many Dual Survival fans, and hopefully begin a new Lundin-Teti chapter for one of the more informative, as well as entertaining, reality programs on television today.

Dual Survival, with the new pairing of Cody Lundin and Joseph Teti, will make its debut on Tuesday, January 1, 2013, on the Discovery Channel, with the one-hour special, Dual Survival: Unbraided, beginning at 8 p.m. E/P, and the first episode of the new season, “Mars on Earth,” following at 9 p.m. E/P.

UPDATED: Will fans give Joe Teti a chance?

UPDATED: Is Joe gaining traction with fans?

Image: Discovery Channel

Video: Discovery Channel/Dual Survival