Is it advisable/safe to ride open country on your own?

Kaise

yeehaamcgee wrote:

darpots wrote:

Even when I am on my own I am never alone.

AAARGH, that sounds like a nightmare.
One of the things I enjoy most about biking, or photography, is the solitude of being in the middle of nowhere, all by myself.

^^This!

just let people know where you are going and when you expect to be back, and just be prepared for the weather and you will be fine.

I lived in glossop and used to disappear up to jacobs ladder and kinder scout on my own, i'm still here!

Mojo_666

Do you have a Smartphone with inbuilt GPS? If so you can use Endomondo to map your route etc and have it publish on Endomondo site (This can be used to share routes and use other peoples routs and just get social with sporty people)

However (This bit is of use to you)

Once you have an account each time you fire up Endomondo to track your workout it will notify all people on your friends list that you have "Started a Workout" and publish a link to the workout you are doing along with your current location and the route you have taken. This will be updated in real time.....REAL TIME!!!

So if you have a trusted person get them an Endomondo account as well, show them how it works and advise them when you go out....they will be able to track you and see where you are......if they look at the map and see that you are not moving they can text or call you, if you do not respond or start to move they can alert the authorities to your location or come looking or whatever they need to do, but the main point is people will know your exact location as long as your phone is still on.

Anonymous

Why the panic about being alone, or having an accident alone?
You all seem very obsessed with your own mortality.

milk

Mojo_666 wrote:

Do you have a Smartphone with inbuilt GPS?

Yep, and I currently use the runkeeper app to track running / cycling etc which is pretty similar to Endomondo i think.

However I think I will draw the line at letting my girlfriend track me in real time. She would just get ideas

I think the moral of this thread seems to be - understand the risks and be prepared. sounds sensible to me...

luv2ride

+1 for night riding on your own. You'll never ride faster

As for the subject of the original post, I've had the same concern but for mountain and road biking. My other half has provided the solution - ENDOMONDO!

It;s a free application for Android Smart Phones which works as a GPS-enabled training aid. However, you can make your routes viewable in real-time to chosen friends and family so, if the worst was to happen, they could check their smartphone and see where you were.

Trouble is, they can also send you "inspirational" training messages, such as "...isn't it time you left the pub dear and got back on your bike?"

Duggan13

I quite often go out in the Peak District on my own and I must say not very prepared either. I don't even have a multi-tool or a chain splitter/powelinks so anything more than a puncture will see me embarking on a very long walk. This isn't some kind of weird boast as I would actually like to have these things and some more kit really but I've never got round to buying it and always spend my money on other stuff.

I think on Jacobs Ladder or anywhere like that you wouldn't be waiting long for someone to come by if you stopped for a short while. I don't think you're very far from civilisation in the peaks.

Please note before I get flamed that I'm not suggesting this is a good idea- just letting the OP know that I go out in the Peaks pretty light and it hasn't caused any issues (yet). That said if it was snowing/freezing cold or at night I would make more of an effort.

tsenior

yeehaamcgee wrote:

Why the panic about being alone, or having an accident alone?
You all seem very obsessed with your own mortality.

i'm guessing you dont have dependants yeeha......that you know about anyways

edit: ive just realised its probably impossible to have dependants you dont know about...unless they are tiny people who live under a cupboard and steal small ammounts of your food when you're asleep...or possibly some sort of parasitic entity that sucks a little of your life force at a time or something...i think i'll have some more wine now.

Chinley Churner

@Mojo_666

Cheers for the Endomoto tip...brilliant.

Tried it last night on the road bike and it works a treat. Plan now if I'm over my ETA is for my wife to log on and see where I am and if I'm still moving.. any probs and she can give me a bell or text me.

PapaLazar0u

Trouble is, they can also send you "inspirational" training messages, such as "...isn't it time you left the pub dear and got back on your bike?"

Or my favourite when tracking/being tracked by wife or friends - 'get moving you fat b*stard'

Endomondo is brilliant - i've been using it for ages. Friends and I use it for posting upcoming rides or generally taking the piss out of each for slow rides etc.

Mojo_666

Chinley Churner wrote:

@Mojo_666

Cheers for the Endomoto tip...brilliant.

Tried it last night on the road bike and it works a treat. Plan now if I'm over my ETA is for my wife to log on and see where I am and if I'm still moving.. any probs and she can give me a bell or text me.

Great Stuff

It is a very nice feeling having the "what if" covered and knowing that you can be found, it has also stopped my wife telling me to be carefull 10 times before I go out.

Also to those who copmment about the "inspirational" training messages you can turn those off via your handset, I doit to preserve battery life on my iphone.