How many of you have had to actually use your cell phone for emergencies while riding your bike. I don't have a cell phone but am thinking if getting one, with a prepaid phone card for emergencies.

Last spring I took a header off my bike and broke my left collarbone. The only reason I didn't reach for my cell phone was the fact that there were two other people there offering to call the ambulance for me.

If you don't need a cell phone then don't "sign up" for any plans. You can, by law, get an
old used WORKING cell phone and carry it for emegency use of 911. ALL companies must
let ALL 911 cell calls go through at NO CHARGE. Your only expense will be the phone, charger
and ,maybe, a new battery. If you can't get 911 service then your local comany is in violation
of federal law.

I have a cell phone--but I leave it turned off 99 percent of the time and don't give out the number. That way it really is for emergencies (or at least letting the wife know I decided to ride an extra 10 miles and will be a little later getting home). Technology is a good servant but a bad master.

When I got my cell phone 5 years ago, I disconnected my home phone. Disconnecting the home phone was the best move I ever made to step away from technology . It's more practical to turn off a cell phone than a home phone.

I almost always carry my cell phone while riding, but always have the ringer turned off. In 5 years, I can only remember using the phone once or twice for personal emergencies. I have let strangers use it in emergencies a few other times.

I've used it far more often to report things to law enforcement. Wreckless drivers usually get called in by me. I also have reported dogs running loose, and other unusual activities i have witnessed in my thousands of miles of riding.

I NEVER go on a ride without the cell phone and a can of pepper spray. Pepper spray is mainly for the dogs but you never know...

It's also very convenient if a ride runs long and you need to call home etc.

Always bring it, out in the woods it isnt like you can use a prepaid calling card. Sometimes i order a steak + cheese when i know im almost done riding so that I can ride right by and pick it up

Fortunately I haven't had to use mine on a ride but I feel naked if I go on a ride without it. I've also ruined one by getting caught in a rain storm. Rain + cellphone = bad things . Now the cellphone goes into a plastic lunch bag, along with a couple of dollars in case I decide to stop at a store along the way.

Very true! FCC (Federal COmmunications COmmission ) rules require this.

Few things to remember though if using this method of carrying around 911 access.

1: The 911 operator can NOT call you back if they need to as you have no number for them to call.
2: They may have no electronic feedback at all on your location so be ready to give explicit directions
as to your whereabouts.


I use a pre-pay Virgin fone. 20 bux a month every 90 days and no more needed unless one uses up the time which works out to 25 cents a minute. The left over dollars carry over if not used.! One thing I like about the Sprint network (and there is another though I forget the carrier) is they use cell phone based location (GPS ON the phone) to give the 911 network more accurate location information then the other type, tower based locator system (or triangulation type, if you will). Virgin uses the SPrint network.

Only a few national provider cell networks offer/use cell phone based GPS location system.

In any event, no matter what type cell phone one has always be ready with location information.

Oh, one final caveat on cell phones and 911. Just because YOUR cellphone /carrier may be in current
compliance with FCC rules regarding 911 Enhanced phase 2 services your local 911 authority may NOT be
geared up to use the information the local cell network can provide as to your exact(more or less) location. The only help I can offer there is to do your research on the web. Contact your local 911 emergency services authority if there is any doubt. I emailed mine and got a clear answer as the information the local government authority had on the web was dated and WRONG.


Oh, edit. On topic I meant to add I got my cellphone for 911 and also so I could call the animal
control authorities ( I programed several in the call book as I ride in a wide range). Nothing gives me more
joy than to see some run amok dog locked away and behind bars on way to the local ... okay I'm getting
carried away. I've yet to do it but if they give me enough trouble I got a weapon in addition to my pepper spray and a well hidden Bowie knife. I also got that fone with me so I could call in anything unusual
I may see to the local police. Nuff said.

So how many emergencies do you have? I'd be too scared to ride if I thought that all of the stories that I read about on the board were the norm. I don't carry a cell phone with me when I ride, and can't recall an incident when I wished that I had one with me. In the interest of full disclosure, I don't feel like a 2 or 3 mile hike-a-bike is the end of the world. That's just another part of life's experience to be embraced.

This is a good point. Both of my "emergencies" were to call a friend to pick me up because of non-fixable breakdowns. I probably would have been a better person if I'd walked home
Having a line of emergency communication is a nice luxury; one I don't feel guilty about....

Hah, so true Retro. I managed to go 48 years without a cell phone lurking about.

That said, I decided in my case I wanted one around. I got rid of the land line too and saved money to boot in long run *a lot really). Also I ride as much as 35 miles a day and on weekends upward of 50 if I'm feeling up to it. So, some of us put on more than a few miles, lol.

Always carry it, never have had to use it.

As it's my only phone (no land line), I always have it with me.

I have used my cell phone to help others in accidents. I think it's a great idea. I would make the decision based on how isolated from others you're likely to be when you ride. I also think a female traveling alone in an isolated place should have one. Unfortunately this has been proven a couple of times around here.

Where I live you don't need a plan to call 911, I think it is a law now that you must have access to this.

Knowing nothing about cell phones, I have asked different merchants about them and seem to come up with different answers each time. I am just looking for a cell phone I can use in emergencies and still use a pre-paid phone card (that won't expire-if they exist). I have been told that if you buy a Verizon cell phone you have to use their phone card, or Nextel etc. Is there any cell phone company that will give you minutes and then have them roll over so if you don't use them for 6 months you still have them?
I don't want to end up paying $30 a month for something I don't use.

Try a Trackphone. I don't know the details but a close friend has one and he says he does not have to keep using it and the miuntes do not expire. He saved some minutes over nine months and when he sailed on a ship, when he came back he used them. He did have to buy the phone outright at full price. It was not cheap.

If you're going to use a cell-phone and ride, don't be like those idiots I see riding with one hand, weaving all over the road, being just as foolish and reckless as motorists who insist on using their cell-phones when they drive: use a headset. If you get a phone with Bluetooth technology, you can purchase a wireless headset so it is unobtrusive (no cord attaching the headset to the phone), comfortable and easy to use. Both hands can be on the handlebars. Voice-dialling might even help for making emergency calls.

There's nothing wrong with getting a monthly plan so long as you are prepared to be responsible and make the commitment. You can save a lot of money off the cost of the hardware and enjoy other benefots like unlimited free time for a specific duration.

I haven't had a landline in eight years and haven't missed it in the slightest. I even fashioned cell-phone holders on my various bikes and always use a wireless headset. The extra cost has been well-worth it. In many jurisdictions, it's illegal to ride without both hands on the handle-bars and I run no risk of being cited for that infraction should a cop decide he's running low on his quota for the week.

haha...I talk on the my cell phone while riding at times (hands free of course)...but I feel naked without my cell phone...and I've never had a home phone, being 20 the house phones were always in my parents name.

I used a cell phone once when I had two flats 20 miles from home. I called a cab to take me to a Metro/subway station. So it wasn't really an emergency. I was less than half a mile from a little corner store when I had the second flat, so if I had not had my cell phone, I probably could have used their phone, but I was glad to have my own. There were also other cyclist going through regularly and I was asked at least twice about the condition of my bike and whether anyone was coming to pick me up.

my buddy had to use his on sunday's group ride. we thought we were going out for 50-55 miles and when he (we) noticed that the ride was going to take us 70+ miles, he had to call his wife, who thought he was going to be home @ 10am.
now that's an emergency, for those who are married.

I'm gonna be that awesome guy who says it's OK to pack heat, but wrong to bring a cellphone.

I had forgotten that I had to call a cab with the cell phone when I used up all my patch cement and a tube when I was 70 miles from home. The cabbie did not believe I started at home. But he was very nice. I took both wheels off carefully and put my bike in the trunk of a sedan with no scratches. I was VERY glad to have the phone that day. The signal was lousy, but good enough.

After my first major accident when I was hit by a car I always carry a cell on long solo rides where I will not have access to a phone... save me once, will save me again...

Ditto

I did one time, but I am much happier when I ride to a) carry my own b) be in the company of another rider who has one. When we cycling in groups, we round robin who carry's the phone. Another tip is to go to a copy machine, copy you license, medical card, allergy items, contacts, on and on and stuff it into your carry pack. This way if there is an emergency, the EMT's have all the supporting items to ensure you get the best care.