spot how many use it

[J48cruiser]

today purchase a spot gen 3 I wonder how many other spyder riders use spot service so love one can can follow your progress on your trip and communicate with you if their is no cell service, then the sos feature in case you need medical attention and you can not use your phone do to damage our you can not physically do it

[hecoon]

never heard of it. when we go to remote areas we use a satelittle phone from global. a little pricey but well worth it

[asp125]

We had a Spot subscription when we were traveling a lot, sometimes I'd go ride by myself in a new place, and it was peace of mind for my sweetie back at the motorhome. Now that we're off the road, we turned off the subscription. Locally there is enough cell coverage to keep in touch. I also use the free Android app called (GreenAlp) Realtime GPS tracker on my phone so others can see my travels.

Depends where you ride, too. In the east, there are lots of towns and cell coverage is pretty good. Out in the mountain west or the southwest desert, you could be out of cell coverage for miles and miles. Off the interstate on some backroad is not a place you'd want to break down or crash without some way to contact help.

[Saluda]

We've had one for years. Use it mainly snowmobiling for the areas with no cell service. Never needed it in an emergency but the other parts (functions) have always worked well. To us it's cheap insurance. Can't justify the costs associated with a satellite phone for the small times we would use (need) it. Would recommend it if you feel its needed.
It definitely does not offer the functions of a sat. phone.

[GeorgiaBill]

I used SPOT 6 or 7 years ago but have let my subscription expire. I used https://spotwalla.com/index.php which grabs trips from SPOT and makes it easier for others to view your trips. I think spotwalla uses the bubbler gps but haven't investigated that yet. I suspect it is more economical than Spot.

-Bill

[Saluda]

Can that be used in emergencies (Summon help) ?

[Highwayman2013]

Can that be used in emergencies (Summon help) ?

Check it out:http://findmespot.com/en/

[murphybrown]

And absolutely consider it a must have as a lot of my ryding is solo with no or spotty cell service. Plus my law enforcement son says a must have for anyone traveling. Some feel it is pricey. But I consider it must have and if I ever use for myself or another the cost will be priceless. :thumbup::thumbup:

[Saluda]

Check it out:http://findmespot.com/en/

Not the Spot, as mentioned above I have one. Inquired about the other one (spotwalla).

[Highwayman2013]

I'm thinking of getting an adventure bike to ride the unpaved roads in the desert. I may get it for that.

[HayRog]

We subscribe to SPOT and use SPOTWALLA, have done for 5 years. Fortunately, have not had to use the "S.O.S." button.
Having family being able to track you is pretty good. Unless you're married and on the prowl :lecturef_smilie: LOL

[GeorgiaBill]

Not the Spot, as mentioned above I have one. Inquired about the other one (spotwalla).

Spotwalla is an application that takes your data from Spot and displays it on a map. I haven't used Spot or Spotwalla in 3 years so each may have been improved since then.

[BikerDoc]

I have the spot gen 3 system and have used it for tracking 7 Iron Butt Rydes so far this year. It is very accurate, and reliable. My wife loves being able to see where I am and to even know when I will be arriving home. I transmit the spot data to the spotwalla app because spotwalla stores the data indefinitely where spot may drop it after a month.. For solo riding, especially late at night and for riding in obscure areas it really seems worthwhile.
There have been several rescues this year that might have resulted in death without the ability to call emergency pick up where no cell service is available

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I had one until I forgot to put it back in the cradle and left it on the psgr seat. One concern I had was that to be most usable it needed to be readily accessible while riding, i.e., not in the frunk or trunk. That, for me anyway, meant that it was in plain sight and being in just a cradle it would be prone to theft, so I would put it in the trunk when I stopped to eat, or sightsee. That's why I set it on the seat and forgot about it, and lost it. I haven't replaced it. I came to same conclusion as others have about cell coverage. In addition, most everywhere I ride there is at least some traffic all the time so I count on a there being good Samaritans who will help.

If you're riding where there is no good cell service then it would be worthwhile to consider having one. A downside is you have to have internet connection to access your Spot account to make changes to the notification messages you have sent out, and to the distribution list they are sent to. An issue I never resolved was the Send Help notification, which is not the SOS notification. For the send help you have to send a preprogrammed message to someone and then have them get help to you. I never pursued fully how to use that feature to get BRP roadside assistance to me if I needed it. I don't know if BRP Roadside Assistance will accept a help call from a third party and if they will send help to a GPS coordinate location without having a street address.

[Fred-WA]

Have a spot but switching to InReach. Has sos, tracking and message service via satellite . A little more money than spot but cheaper than sat phone.

[MRH]

I just bought one a few weeks ago and was talking with a fellow rider on Tuesday.

He was riding in the mountains (about 30 miles of mountain road from civilization) and his friend had a serious crash.

From his group, two riders went in different directions, finding empty ranger stations and no cell signals on either end.

His use of the SPOT S.O.S. button got help there in 20 mins, which is very fast considering where they were, and in the end the guy had to be helicoptered out (it's now three months later and he is near recovered).

I programed mine with two additional messages for a list of friends - rescue me (I'm otherwise ok) and send AAA to me with a flatbed.

I'm hoping that it never needs to be used, but it adds a lot of comfort knowing it's there in an emergency.

[Abbot Spyder]

I have a spot tracker. I used it on my 48 10 iron butt ride. Every day my wife printed my travel, and it help to have the ride certified by the iron butt association. I used it for snowmobile ride also. It's fun and you can used it for emergency also. :ani29: