Over the last year, I’ve been commuting between South-East Washington State and East Texas. Generally, on a weekly basis, the round trip includes 8 hours of flight time, 6 hours hanging around various airports and 5 hours on the road, not to mention the 1 hour daily commute between the motel, the job site and back again. It’s quite obvious that I’m at the mercy of the airlines when flying but the road time, that’s mine.
To make my time on the road more convenient, safe and enjoyable, I carry several accessories that have saved my butt on more than one occasion. Before I get into any details about all the neat technologies that are available, there are several things that are FREE that can turn a frustrating life experience into a well executed plan and, as we all know if it’s planned it’s a heck of a lot safer.
The first order of business is to KNOW WHERE YOU'RE GOING. Break out that old Rand McNally or ‘Google’ up the area you are traveling to. Print out or copy maps on 8 ½ X 11 so you’re not dinking around with folds or books. Study your maps and get familiar with the Interstates and major highway systems that are local to your destination. Know where north, south, east and west take you. Be prepared. Study, study, study………
Second, once you're there if you need to reference your map, use your cell phone or get involved with any accessory your not familiar with, PULL OVER. You’re not in friendly territory and you instantly become a road hazard if your full time attention is NOT ON THE ROAD.
Maps are a must if you spend any time on the road. Don’t wait until you land and hope the rental car agency has a decent map. Generally those maps will get you out of the parking lot and onto the nearest freeway but that’s about there limit. If you did your homework, once you’re out the gate there are always enough signs to get you started. If you copied or printed out your maps, make sure they’re accessible prior to leaving the parking garage. If you have a cell phone with data access, ‘Google’ offers a ‘map download’ for a good number of phones and plans that will allow you to bring up almost all areas of the U.S. Besides the map feature, the ‘Google’ map download provides directions, REAL TIME TRAFFIC conditions for most metropolitan areas and can even bring up local business phone numbers. Just remember, if you need to reference a map albeit paper or electronic, PULL OVER to establish your bearings.
Another must have non-techno gadget for any road trip are your glasses. During daylight hours, there is no replacement for a good set of sunglasses. I prefer glasses that wrap around because they have a bit more coverage in the peripheral areas. My choice here is Ray-Ban, mostly because of the styles available but also because of their good heavy quality, they are very scratch resistant (glass lenses) and they have little or no distortion. For those that need prescription lenses, get a pair of prescription sunglasses or at least a good set of Clip-On’s. I wouldn’t depend on photochromic (gradient) glasses; they just don’t seem to get dark enough during the day and seem to be on the dark side at night. If you have over 50 eyes, remember to bring your ‘cheater spec’s’ so that you can read your directions and maps. I carry a credit card magnifier just in case.
As for the electronics, my selected weapons are;
- a cell phone with internet access (data plan)
- a hand held CB radio
- a radar detector
- a satellite radio (XM or Sirius) receiver
- a GPS device
- a 12 volt splitter and extension
One of the handiest items you can pack along is your cell phone. As long as you’re NOT driving and talking or fumbling with the key pad simultaneously, it has the ability to keep you connected to the rest of the world. I’ve had one of these pretty much since they were carried in a bag, you remember the ‘bag phone’ don’t you? My choice these days is a Blackberry. It’s one of the older units but it works very well and the larger screen is easy on older eyes. Besides the phone, text and e-mail functions, my subscription plan includes a data package. This gives me access to the internet and allows me to use the ‘Google’ map download, access NOAA weather reports and keep myself up to date as far as airline (flight) information. As I mentioned earlier, the ‘Google’ map download includes REAL TIME TRAFFIC conditions for a good number of U.S. metro areas. Over the last year, flying in and out of Dallas, on the return trips where missing a flight means not getting home for the weekend; I’ve gotten in the habit of pulling off the Interstate about 30 miles out and dialing up the ‘Google’ map for Dallas and selecting ‘Show Traffic’ on the menu. Red lines on your route indicate traffic at a stand still, yellow lines indicate traffic moving less than 25 MPH and Green Lines less than 50 MPH. The traffic status automatically updates approximately every 5 minutes, e.g. real time traffic. Since there are quite a few alternate routes trough Dallas to DFW, either make sure your selected route is clear or go for a different one. The real time traffic indications from ‘Google’ combined with the CB chatter from the trucks coming out of Dallas and the XM radio traffic reports for the Dallas Metroplex have been more reliable in getting me to the airport on time than Delta actually getting a plane off the ground on time.
The next must have accessory item on my list is the handheld CB. Mine is a Cobra HH38WXST and besides the 40 channels of citizen band, you also have 10 channels of weather band (WB). WB is an automated NOAA system of regional repeaters that gives you a pretty good heads up as far as local weather and what you’re driving into. In an area prone to ice storms, severe thunder storms, tornados or any winter driving through the mountains, having a WB receiver is valuable option. Cobra also sells road ready version of this radio that includes a magnetic mount antenna but drops the WB. The truth is the magnetic mount is kind of large to pack (plus it could raise havoc with nearby hard drives) and I think having WB is a worthy trade off. The weakness of any handheld radio is the antenna location. To get any kind of reception range, the antenna needs to be mounted vertical and high inside the vehicle or better yet, outside above the roof line. Since I ditched the magnetic antenna mount option, I found that hanging the radio by its wrist strap to the passenger side sun visor clip a good reception compromise. In this location you’ll get about a 3 to 5 mile range. The problem now is that you have 2 to 3 lbs. of radio hanging from the overhead. Hit any good size bump and the radio is on the floor with the batteries going everywhere not to mention the missile hazard if you’re involved in an accident. For another $20.00, go to universal-radio.com and get yourself a dual suction cup antenna mount. This mount will include 5 ft. of coax so that not only can you park the radio snugly in a center console cup holder, the antenna can be stuck to the windshield or a side window inside or outside of the vehicle. With the addition of a suction cup antenna mount, you’ll get a reception range as good as it gets with a handheld plus convenience, flexibility and easy storage. Note that channel 19 is still the ‘drivers’ channel and channel 9 is still used for emergencies. As with anything good, there may also be some bad. One major negative to listening to a CB is the sometimes crude nature of the other driver’s chatter. Besides the colorful use of most four letter words, racial and sexual slurs are not uncommon. If you have sensitive ears or small ones that don’t need the exposure, then you may not want to use this accessory. If you can personally suffer through the obnoxious side of the CB’s chatter but wish to spare your passengers, a ‘Bluetooth’ transmitter to an ear bud receiver or just a simple ear bud on a wire works well; the Cobra does have an earphone connection.
Next on my list and generally the first electronic item I plug in during any road trip is my Radar Detector. Keep in mind that this item won’t get you pointed in the right direction or provide any real useful purpose, until you’re out on the open highway. Once it’s mounted you can forget its there until its shrill little warning beeper goes off. My weapon of choice in this area is the Valentine One. The Valentine One is the unit that all other radar detectors are compared against. The unit is a bit expensive but I feel is worth the money. Get pulled over in some little town where the speed limit sign is in a ‘less than obvious’ place and it just paid for itself. The units are very dependable and ‘repeatable’ with a number of features that can be adjusted by changing the internal programming. Today, most law enforcement agencies are using ‘instant on’ Ka band. Sometimes you bump into laser, X or K but generally, I’ve found Ka to be the frequency of choice. Don’t make the assumption that Ka is easily detected. With its broadband signal that takes precious seconds to decipher and it’s focused and directional transmission; it is a challenge to all detector manufacturers to get any advanced warning. As far as Ka, the Valentine One works well as long as the shot is within your line of sight or there is enough traffic or visual congestion to provide for a reflected signal. Where have I had first hand experiences with Ka ambushes that exploit the Valentine’s weaknesses? An officer located in an open area on the other side (blind side) of a drop or the down hill side of an overpass. Why? With the shot pointing up hill, because of the focused beam plus the quick ‘snapshot’, any signal is shot above your line of sight and if there is no reflected signal, there is no warning until you pop over the hill and he ‘paints’ you. Then ‘blaaaaaaaaaaaaaat’, you’re busted. In this case it doesn’t matter how much money you’ve spent, the odds are in favor of law enforcement. Areas like these just need to be watched for and if you have your CB tuned to channel 19; the drivers coming at you are most likely talking about it.
A satellite radio receiver sounds more like an indulgence than a road warrior’s tool but there are several stations that go hand in hand with your driving mission. The system I use is the RoadyXT XM receiver. Within XM’s spectrum of well over 150 entertainment, sports and news channels, there resides a whole group of Weather and Traffic information channels for a almost all of major cities in the U.S. Unlike AM or FM, no matter where I’m at in the country the same stations are always broadcasting Weather and Traffic. Using the real time information provided from the XM traffic reports plus the data gathered off my cell phone from ‘Google’ and what’s coming out of the CB, you can make last minute decisions on your routes that allow you to avoid traffic snarls and make your flight with a comfortable time margin. All of these satellite radio systems work pretty much the same; magnetic mount antenna, small receiver and power cord. Most transmit a low power FM signal that can be picked up by tuning the vehicles radio to that FM frequency. The biggest difference in what’s available is the size and mounting. Go for the smallest with suction cup mounts. I had to modify my RoadyXT ‘sticky tape’ mounting to accept suction cups. I like the cups because they give you versatility in mounting. I generally mount mine to the left side of the vehicle’s rear view mirror.
The last major item on my list is a Global Positioning System (GPS). The unit I have today is a Garmin Forerunner 301. This is a wrist mount unit that I originally purchased for tracking my running habits. This unit has no maps or color graphics and as far as its usefulness out on the road, as long as you record your way points as you’re going to your destination, the unit will give you all the data you need to return to your starting point. I personally rely on the estimated time of arrival (ETA) function. Once you set up a route from your collected way points, based on you existing speed and location, the unit will give you an ETA to you next way point. I have used this feature more than once to quell my anxiety in sloooooooow traffic heading to the airport. As long as you’re moving and you have dialed in reasonable distanced way points, it’s very accurate. However I will say this, my next big ticket electronics item will be a GPS that includes some sort of map feature. In fact some of the new devices integrate with the new smart phones, maybe a new cell with the GPS add on is in my future. Maybe then I won’t have to carry any paper.
And finally, the last accessory listed is a 12 volt splitter and a short 12 volt extension. Most new vehicles generally come with two 12 volt outlets. At least one will be located on the dash or the forward end of the center console. A good number of car manufacturers have taken to locating the second outlet inside the center console storage compartment. The problem, with all of the accessories plus a cell phone charger, you’re almost always one outlet shy of being able to plug in all of your toys. Also the dash mounted outlet is generally way to low and stretches any accessory power cord to the max if it’s mounted to the windshield. Because of the variations it’s best to have a splitter on hand. A splitter is nothing more then a male 12 volt plug with two receptacles wired on. The one I bought from my local auto supply has its two outlets wired to approximately 8 inches of cord. This gets me the length I need to locate all of my accessories conveniently without overstretching their power cords.
Have a safe trip and catch ya on the Flip Flop.
MMJennings
