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Old 12-17-2010, 07:49 AM
 
Location: Metro Washington DC
15,394 posts, read 25,628,292 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jtur88 View Post
If it's on or near a road, there will be others using the road, or I can walk to where there will be someone. If it's not on or near a road, my car won't be there. I can walk 20 miles in a day on terrain that my car can drive on. There are always at least two milk jugs full of water in my car, sometimes untouched for years.
I'm not so sure that's a good way to look at it. Remember James Kim and family that got snowed in on logging roads in Oregon a couple of years ago? In the bitter cold and deep snow, on those confusing roads, you ain't walking 20 miles in a day. If he had stayed with his car, he would be alive today. There were no other cars going the way they went. Sometimes walking is the smart thing, but sometimes it isn't.
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Old 12-17-2010, 08:08 AM
PDD
 
Location: The Sand Hills of NC
8,773 posts, read 18,292,121 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by moskiter View Post
24 posts of nothing... Why AAA?
So your not hearing what you want to hear. Why don't you post your thoughts and see if you can get internet approval.
Lets be honest here a lot of poster are looking for approval not ideas.
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Old 12-17-2010, 10:11 AM
 
Location: Victoria TX
42,618 posts, read 86,565,652 times
Reputation: 36637
Quote:
Originally Posted by dkf747 View Post
I'm not so sure that's a good way to look at it. Remember James Kim and family that got snowed in on logging roads in Oregon a couple of years ago? In the bitter cold and deep snow, on those confusing roads, you ain't walking 20 miles in a day. If he had stayed with his car, he would be alive today. There were no other cars going the way they went. Sometimes walking is the smart thing, but sometimes it isn't.

The OP didn't say anything about getting snowed in in a blizzard. If his car had broken down in decent weather, his inconvenience would have far overshadowed his danger.

The reason you even know about James Kim, is because this happens so rarely, it is national news when it does. "That happens all the time, I saw it on the news once" is an oxymoron.

Last edited by jtur88; 12-17-2010 at 10:42 AM..
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Old 12-17-2010, 11:45 AM
 
33,387 posts, read 34,617,896 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jambo101 View Post
Hopefully you've prepared for this scenario by keeping in your car
a blanket or two,
some candles and a way to light them,
a few chocolate bars,
a small tool kit including shovel,and some form of traction bars/chains,
and also are dressed for the possible eventuality of being stranded in the middle of no where in the winter in temperatures that could be life threatening for the unprepared ,,
i also try to keep my gas tank as full as possible and top it up when it gets to half full as you never know when you may have to spend the night in the car and if the problem isnt with the engine you have heat till you run out of gas..
In summer pack
a gallon of water and a bag of nuts and grains and an umbrella for sun protection as standing or walking in 95 degree heat can be as life threatening for some as being caught out in the cold..
A membership in AAA and a fully charged cell phone are also recommended..
Also keeping your car well maintained goes a long way to preventing unexpected break downs.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Narfcake View Post
A couple nits ...



Granola bars instead (won't melt), and a cel phone would only be fine if you're in an area with a signal. So if you're venturing into very rural areas, common knowledge of how a car works and some hand tools will help out a lot more than the cel phone.



This, but even then, one can still face the unexpected.

Years back, on a road trip near Mt. Lassen, the water pump on my car decided to crap its seal. 31k miles on the pump - so much for buying German made. No cel signal. No houses nearby. But I did have time (to let the engine cool down), and there was a stream nearby, which meant that I could at least fill up the radiator. So that's what I did. About 6 miles later, I stopped at a general store and used the pay phone to call AAA. Got towed into Redding, where the next day, I changed out the water pump in the motel parking lot.
i would add some kind of meat stick for proteins that will be needed that granola bars or candy bars just dont provide. beef jerky is good for that.

Quote:
Originally Posted by moskiter View Post
Actually I was looking for different advices. Water, food and cell phone are obvious but who should I call with cell phone? Police? What would they do? Would they get towing for me? If it was 500 miles from my home it wouldn't pay off to tow my car which is worth less than I would pay for towing And how to get back home? Are there any insurance coverages that would cover such a towing from a middle of nowhere?
Quote:
Originally Posted by moskiter View Post
24 posts of nothing... Why AAA?
actually you got a lot of good information. if you have a cell phone, you can call AAA, or if your insurance policy contains road side assistance you can call them. AAA is the better choice because they will cover all cars not just those back to a certain year like some road side assistance policies.

if your cell phone is web capable, then you can use yp.com to find the closest repair/tow facilities and call them. in the end however, a few properly selected spare parts and an assortment of common hand tools, and you can usually get your vehicle going well enough to move along the road until you can find a proper repair facility, or a parts store depending on your level of competence in auto repair.
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Old 12-17-2010, 02:34 PM
 
Location: Victoria TX
42,618 posts, read 86,565,652 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by rbohm View Post
if you have a cell phone, you can call AAA, or if your insurance policy contains road side assistance you can call them. AAA is the better choice because they will cover all cars not just those back to a certain year like some road side assistance policies.
Cell phones don't work over maybe half the geography in the USA, and that is the half you are almost certain to be stranded in. There is no cell service in or near quite a few national parks, including, as I know from experience, Glacier and Big Bend. There are dead areas on I-57 in the middle of Illinois. The number of people that have no coverage in their living room is almost equal to the population of California, and AT&T says so in their TV ads. And the cell phone companies are not breaking their necks to get coverage out there, either. So if you're not within 5 or 10 miles of a fairly large town, forget your cell phone.

There are auto repair shops, where a cell phone won't even get service if you're pulled up to their front door and you want to phone the owner eating lunch at home. Like Arrington Auto Repair in Plato, Missouri, as one I picked at random from the many dead zones.

I highly recommend the road-service rider from your insurance company. I've had excellent service from mine ("Just ask her" which one). I call whomever I want for road service, and then get immediate cash from my agent upon presentation of a receipt, and my car is 15 years old.

Last edited by jtur88; 12-17-2010 at 03:08 PM..
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Old 12-17-2010, 02:52 PM
 
2,516 posts, read 5,663,997 times
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I want to know where this location is thats 500 miles from a single town. Then I'm going to pack a bag, grow a beard, chose a large wooden staff, and set out to establish the area and break it down from 500 to 250 miles. Each month, with every vehicle that breaks down at this location, I will convince the dreary traveler that there is no getting home. I'll convince them that radio and/or cell phone contact is impossible and that if they want to survive, they should stay at my village. I will teach them how to build shelter and basic survival skills. Each one having at least one key component that we can use to survive, such as a tube of toothpaste, bottled water, fruit roll ups, and a 6 pack of Dos Equis. One of the first travelers will be a Dr. Dr. Quinn Middle of Nowhere will take care of our residents as we attempt to grow. Delivering babies, treating common illnesses, etc will all be part of her job. Fortunately one of the first dozen newcomers will be a teacher. Vital in establishing our first school and teaching the newborns once they are of age. Over time, the village will grow. As our village grows, we'll establish jobs, a post office, open up a Mcdonalds, starbucks and Wal-mart and even have a used car lot stocked. however, none of the cars in the lot will be serviceable as these are the same vehicles that brought our residents to this remote location that is now flourishing. Unfortunately I will be caught up in a scandal in my final term as Mayor when I'm caught with Dr. Quinn Middle of Nowhere's daughter. Later on though, after I pass, all is forgiven and a statue is raised in my honor.
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Old 12-17-2010, 03:06 PM
 
Location: Richardson, TX
8,734 posts, read 13,756,402 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ankhharu View Post
I want to know where this location is thats 500 miles from a single town.
He wrote that he is 500 miles from his home. He may just be 20 miles from another town.
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Old 12-17-2010, 04:14 PM
 
2,516 posts, read 5,663,997 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by PanTerra View Post
He wrote that he is 500 miles from his home. He may just be 20 miles from another town.
Buzzkill
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Old 12-18-2010, 08:11 PM
 
Location: Metro Washington DC
15,394 posts, read 25,628,292 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jtur88 View Post
The OP didn't say anything about getting snowed in in a blizzard. If his car had broken down in decent weather, his inconvenience would have far overshadowed his danger.
No, he didn't mention that, but do you really get to choose where your car is going to break down? It seems to me that weather could be a factor in the OP's situation and maybe this is a reminder to remember that.

Quote:
The reason you even know about James Kim, is because this happens so rarely, it is national news when it does. "That happens all the time, I saw it on the news once" is an oxymoron.
This happens a lot more often than you hear about in the news. I did more than see it on the news though. I'm not going to get into how much that I was involved in supporting the search and rescue in this case, but one thing I learned is that search and rescue teams regularly save, or find, people in exactly the OP's scenario, and sometimes far worse (James Kim). Whether the media picks up on the case or not, is irrelevant.
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Old 12-18-2010, 08:19 PM
 
Location: Victoria TX
42,618 posts, read 86,565,652 times
Reputation: 36637
Quote:
Originally Posted by dkf747 View Post
No, he didn't mention that, but do you really get to choose where your car is going to break down? It seems to me that weather could be a factor in the OP's situation and maybe this is a reminder to remember that.

.
Not to belabor the point, but Kim's car did not break down. It was in perfect running condition when it got stuck in heavy snow. A completely different circumstance than the one addressed by the OP.

It would be interesting to find a statistic reflecting the number of families who perish because their car broke down, in otherwise driveable road and navigation circumstance. I'll wager very few. If your car mechanically breaks down, you will not die.
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