I Just ran into another pertinent article on the safety issue, published today, in one of my favorite blogs, and hasten to share it!

Nine Essential Ultralight Backpacking Skills.

As pointed out by Andrew Skurka in the comments, these skills are needed not just for "ultralight" hikers but for every hiker!

Re the "Super-Ultralite" gear list I linked to above--it doesn't show prices, but if you look up a few, you'll go into real sticker shock, perhaps requiring CPR!