Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Packing List: Survival

What does survival mean?  I'm sure it means differnt things to differnt people, Webster's II New College Dictionary says:

Survival n. a. The act or process of surviving, b. The state of having survived.
Surviving v. To remain alive or in existence.

So at the very least my packing list should help to keep me in existence.  I'm sure there are some in the world who can't imagine surviving without their iPhone and a double grande fat free mocha chino...something or another and others that would be content with a pointed stick and the occasional mud puddle.  Myself, I see someplace in the middle, probably leaning away from the pointed stick guy.  The following list is geared towards traveling alone on everything from the Interstate highway system to jeep trails / forest roads.

  1. Membership card of Road side assistance/towing (My 650 is still under warranty which includes road side assistance/ towing, otherwise I'm not sure if I would have it or not).
  2. Mobile phone to call for road side assistance (also see Packing list: Digital / Analog).
  3. Spot personal tracker, for worst case situation.  extra battery's, and people set-up to receive "I need help" message.*
  4. Basic first aid kit.  No chest-tubes, sutures, etc.
  5. Tool Kit (see Packing list: Fix and Repair)**
  6. 1 liter fuel bottle (with fuel in it...).
  7. Shelter, such as a tent and sleeping bag or bivy sack.***
  8. Food and water.  Including a Camelback with 1.5L plus 1L bottle, more if crossing Nevada.  Trailmix 1 lbs bag, and a handful of energy or granola bars (won't spoil and doesn't need cooking).  Bear bag if needed, not sure on that.
  9. BMW MOA Anonymous book.****
  10. Paperback book, to keep me occupied while I'm waiting for help to arrive.
There you have it.  Did I leave any gaping holes?  What would you add or leave at home?

*The Spot personal tracker has a couple of way it can help.  1. You can hit the help button and it will send a message to people of your choosing telling them you need assistance and your gps coordinates.  2.  You can hit the 911 button and they will send a search and rescue team to find you.  3.  If you subscribe to the tracking  feature and you use it, you family will have a good idea of where to search for you if you just don't show up.

**Tool kit,  being able to make temporary repairs and get to civilization is preferred over calling in SAR.

***I haven't yet decided if I will be camping along the way or not.  I'm not a gung-ho camper, but I might tent it every other day or so, if not I would probably throw in a bivy.

****If you're not a member of the BMW MOA you may not have heard of the Anonymous book.  It is a book of phone numbers listed by state, next to each number is a list of what that person is able or willing to do for a rider in distress.  It's a great thing to have.

Enough for now.  See you on the road.
GAW

2 comments:

Conchscooter said...

Yours must be a remarkably gruelling commute.

682202 said...

Yes, through wilds of suburban St Louis, most grueling.