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[SDCVO]

Looking to get a emergency gps. My brother in law was riding his KTM Adventure bike in Death Valley on Friday and got in a serious "high side" and broke his back. The buddy he was riding with had a "Spot" emergency gps (they had zero chance of having a cell signal) and activated it which ended up saving his life. Of course the family is telling me I need to get one (don't disagree) and as I sit in th hotel room in Vegas where they life lighted him to after rescuing him I started to reaserch this Spot and seems like there might be some that work even better. Anyone have or know anything about these?

[SDCVO]

BTW, he is in stable condition and though he did break T3 and 4, he did not sever his spinal cord so we are hopeful he will walk again. We are all just thankful he is alive and he is a very tough and strong guy that will find a way to recover if there is any chance. Been riding motorcycles his entire life (has a 13 CVO Roadglide as well as a few other Harley's) and is a great rider. Was going down a very long straight bladed road and just kinda lost his concentration for a minute and started to get loose in the rear on top of the gravel and started to slide. We all know what happened next..

[bigchuck]

I know absolutely nothing about a GPS but would like to wish your brother a full and speedy recovery.

[tdkkart]

 A couple guys that I know that do a lot of solo long distance riding have them.

http://findmespot.com/en/

I know the one has his setup through a website so that family and friends can see where he's at while
on trips.

[JCZ]

Alan, wish your brother in law a full and quick recovery.

There are a couple of people on this forum that have the Spot tracker and a quick search pulls up these previous threads:

http://www.cvoharley.com/smf/index.php?topic=45207.msg683499#msg683499

http://www.cvoharley.com/smf/index.php?topic=45735.msg689562#msg689562

http://www.cvoharley.com/smf/index.php?topic=25566.msg465794#msg465794

[porthole]

Spot, have had one for years. The annual plan can be pricey, but if you have no other means of comms and get in trouble, the plan could be priceless.
The "one button" 9-11 call for rescue services can be a life saver.

We got them through a marketing plan between TowBoatUS and Spot for our towboats, good for when we went out of VHF range on the boats.

I used it on any solo bike trip I took to "out of cell range" locations, of which the Western North Carolina area was when the CVO group started going there.
I kept it on top of my stuff in the tour pack and I had the bread crumb feature on so my wife could see where I was and my progress.

Works good. But, you were asking about a back up GPS, what about your cell phone with a good mapping app? Co Pilot is a highly rated app

[ultrafxr]

I bought the Spot Gen3 back in the fall for a couple reasons:

If I'm solo (which is not all that often) I can send a 'checking in OK' text to my wife; and I can activate the tracking feature and she can follow my progress so she knows I'm moving and A-OK.  Just don't go anywhere you don't want her to see, lol.   

But most importantly is the 'SOS' feature which your brother-in-law's friend was able to use to get help.  Just a little 'insurance' in case we had any type problem and need assistance.  Well worth it imo.   

[SDCVO]

We (Dr's) took him off the respirator this morning and we could talk to him and one thing is very clear, Spot saved his life. Seems like a no brainer to get that but when researching it seems like the Delorme Inreach has the same SOS feature as the Spot but worked much more effectively with a much higher percentage of making the connection when in the middle of no where.

[porthole]

Positive progress for your brother that may not have been possible without the personal locator 

when researching it seems like the Delorme Inreach has the same SOS feature as the Spot but worked much more effectively with a much higher percentage of making the connection when in the middle of no where.

That had me wondering, so here are just 3 of the many links that compare the two.

http://www.jmpeltier.com/2015/04/28/satellite-messenger-comparison/

http://www.cloudbasemayhem.com/delorme-vs-spot-when-your-life-depends-on-it/

http://advrider.com/index.php?threads/spot-3-versus-delorme-inreach.970110/

After reading many comparisons I still don't know which device I would buy, although overall cost of ownership might steer me towards the Spot.
I already have a Spot, so buying anything new is probably not a consideration.

Some the negatives with the Spot regarding tracking I never experienced. What I like about the Spot version I have is the batteries. Although it comes with lithium AAA, and they last a long time, I seldom use them. Before any trip I just packed a bunch of extra batteries. IIRC I got 2-3 days use of constant tracking and not turning off the device.
It stayed on 24-7, on the bike. Figured it was a poor mans version of LOJAK if the bike ever got heisted at motel. And it will work inside the tourpak.

One more link explaining the differences between the Spot type device and a PLB (as a boater, I have a PLB as well)

http://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/personal-locator-beacons.html?cm_mmc=aff_AL-_-54241-_-71257-_-NA&avad=71257_ea662a2a&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rei.com%2Flearn%2Fexpert-advice%2Fpersonal-locator-beacons.html%3Fcm_mmc%3Daff_AL-_-54241-_-71257-_-NA%26avad%3D71257_ea662a2a&avad=71257_ea662a2a

I carry this PLB when boating. But, I would probably bring it as well on any back country motorcycle trip.

http://www.rei.com/product/804324/acr-electronics-aqualink-view-406-personal-locator-beacon

Either type of device still requires some type of user interface. So if you run off the road hot rodding on the Dragon, and no one else is around to assist, both devices may as well be bricks.

[ultrarider123]

This instance (and glad the recovery for your brother in law is progressing well) has me revisiting this option.  It's VERY pricey and makes me wonder why things like this are only for those with the funds to afford.  I'm not wealthy money wise (however, my soul is saved by the blood of the Lamb which trumps all other "things") but I would like to have this on my wrist for those times adventure takes me off the beaten path.  To me, this is the cat's meow even at $17,000...

http://www.breitling.com/en/models/professional/emergency/

[SDCVO]

After reaserching this for a couple of days, went with this.
http://www.inreachdelorme.com/product-info/inreachse.php

[SDCVO]

After reaserching this for a couple of days, went with this.
http://www.inreachdelorme.com/product-info/inreachse.php

http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Personal-Locator-Beacon-Reviews

[SDCVO]

http://www.outdoorgearlab.com/Personal-Locator-Beacon-Reviews

I thought not only does this have the SOS feature, it allows me to text for help if I am off the grid since i ride by myself most off the time and I frequently ride in BFE with no service and we all know breaking down on our bikes is not that unusual

[SDCVO]

BTW, I appreciate all the well wishes for my brother in law. Amazing guy that is closer to me than most blood brothers ever get. He is also as strong and tough a guy I have ever met and if there is any chance in the world for him to walk again, he will find it! He has ridden motorcycles his entire life and there is no doubt in my mind that no matter what happens to his legs, he will find a way to be out in the wind again whether it is on 2 wheels or 3 with a bad a-- bike that we will all envy.
I certainly don't want to come across like this is no big deal what happened to him as every bit of my heart and soul is praying for his recovery. As always, this site gives me the distraction I need right now in this difficult time.