Riding alone precautions

I've parked numerous times and lot of friends at OB and never had a vehicle opened after sunset or late. I've parked numerous times higher up on the mountain till late at night and no one has opened my vehicle. I have never heard of this. It doesn't make sense.

I'm guessing they'd do this after you were reported missing and they matched the plate number.

One issue I've been having that I'm not quite sure how to deal with is my phone dying due to the cold. Even if kept in an inside pocket, it doesn't do well. Not good…

I've solved this one, got a new battery that lasts longer off amazon.ça for like $15 shipped, and keep the original for a spare.

And I keep a niterider lumina 650 with helmet mount in my pack all the time as well as a little cheap flashlight.

Will look at beacons too

take a look at the InreachSE if you are thinking of a spot. I had a spot it lasted a year and broke.

inreach has a lot more features(and costs more)

I've parked numerous times and lot of friends at OB and never had a vehicle opened after sunset or late. I've parked numerous times higher up on the mountain till late at night and no one has opened my vehicle. I have never heard of this. It doesn't make sense.

Tim Jones told me this a few years ago. They don't leave your car looking like it was rifled by junkies so I'm guessing your car may have been looked in more than your aware. I don't know anyone that's had their car broken into either but he assured me he's probably looked in mine at least once if it was there after dark. If it looks like you knew what you were doing (like a biker on a night ride) they let it go until your reported missing or the car is there to long (I'm guessing 24 hours). If you left your car in mushroom lot after dark with your English dictionary on the dash and your map of vancouver in the back seat they will start a search.

I prefer riding alone. It's a form of escaping from the regular life/people/stress. I take that into account and generally avoid stuff that's over my head. I've had a couple pretty good crashes but nothing that I haven't been able to limp myself out of the woods with. The only time I don't like riding alone is when I feel like I'm getting stalked by a cougar. Ever get that feeling? Gives me the fucking willies.

If you use an iphone, activate the "find my phone" app.

If you're with Rogers (not sure of the others), you can register for this service online on your account for no additional charge for any kind of phone. They will locate your phone within 100m or so.

I bought a delorme inreach last spring and am happy with it so far. I originally bought it for my trials moto rides but it's given me the confidence to do a fair bit of solo night riding in and around the cowichan valley this winter. I bring my inreach and a knife zip tied to my packs shoulder strap for quick access in case anything ever decides to jumps on my back. I'm religious about having fresh batteries and carry extras in my pack.

The new SE version is slimmer and doesn't require pairing to a smrtphone via Bluetooth for texting capabilities.

I keep forgetting to get a whistle. It's on my list of things to buy…

If you use Endomondo it uploads live giving your significant other/friend the online map visibility of where you've stopped…

https://icedot.org/site/crash-sensor/

Cool device that detects a crash and starts a count down on your phone. It sends out a message [HTML_REMOVED] co-ordinates if you do not disable the countdown.

Of course, you have to be in cell range.

Recently downloaded a smartphone app called RealTime GPS Tracker that lets anyone track your location via a web browser on google maps. Pretty slick. I do most of my riding solo so I always make sure my ride plans are shared with someone in case I don't return on time. Be prepared but don't get paranoid about riding alone. I find its the best way to roll.

I always carry a flashlight [HTML_REMOVED] one of those foil blanket thingys. When I ride alone I usually stick to a high-traffic trail like Ladies. If I have trouble, someone is bound to come along.

I just go.

If I die, well I'll be dead so not much for myself to worry about

Seems a lot of people are depending on cell phones that they HOPE will work in the bush. What are you going to do when your cell phones gets no reception? And generally when phones get no reception they drain their batteries at a higher rate searching for a signal. Keep this in mind.

I often ride solo. I leave a map of the area that I am riding in with my wife and tell her where I am riding. I always have a whistle on my pack and carry an emergency blanket, plastic poncho, lighter, flashlight, duct tape and Swiss Army Knife.

If I ride way in the outback I have a topo map in hand, a back-up topo map in a plastic bag, GPS in hand, the route on my cell phone gps, a battery back-up for my cell and flagging tape (to flag confusing intersections on a route). I’ll also carry light emergency supplies for a night in the bush if needed in addition to the items listed above.

In the last 12 years of riding the only items list above that I haven’t used are the lighter, whistle, space blanket and rain poncho.

The biggest thing to me is trying to ride a little tamer when alone to reduce the risks.