# GPS tracking App for riding alone... for personal safety.



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

I am not sure if this is the right forum for this, so let me know.

I am self employed and can go ride trails during the week by myself quite often. I try top avoid riding alone but this cuts back to much of my ride time. I usually text someone before and after a ride just in case. I would like to have an app that is a live GPS tracking feed (not sure what to call it) to show my location on a trail where my father or someone whom I trust (not the GF, thats trouble:crazy can check on it periodically or if I don't text them after a certain time frame. Additionally in the worst case situation it will show my exact location on a trail. I would also like to be able to turn the app on and off. 

I have had / witnessed some serious xc motocross injuries in the middle of nowhere and its no joke.

If anyone has any apps they recommend or experience doing something similar to this let me know.


----------



## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

There are a few out there. Honestly, though, using your phone for this purpose is a pretty major battery suck, and requires a data connection over the course of your ride (which is why it's a battery suck). How much of a battery suck depends on your phone and how many charge cycles the battery has been through.

For more reliable use (though not 100% reliable...just moreso than a phone), you can use something like a SPOT or a Delorme InReach that connects via satellites, eliminating cell reception from the equation entirely. There are models that will pair with most smartphones so you can expand the capability to more detailed messaging.


----------



## bloodpuddle (Jun 15, 2007)

If you're running an iPhone, then Find My iPhone will do all of that and it's free. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## girlonbike (Apr 24, 2008)

bloodpuddle said:


> If you're running an iPhone, then Find My iPhone will do all of that and it's free.
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It's really kind of amazing. Found friends at a casino in Vegas using that app. Super accurate.


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

I have been using Garmin LiveTrack with my Garmin 510 for a little over a year and have been quite impressed. Of course, this requires a Garmin GPS product. Once a LiveTrack session has started, you'll be asked to give permission to track your mobile device for each workout. Those you invite via email, Facebook or Twitter will receive a link to a webpage that includes the position of your phone or connected Edge. They'll also be able to track your time elapsed, distance, speed and elevation in real time. And if you have any ANT+ sensors, they also can see that data, such as heart rate or cadence.

Garmin | LiveTrack


----------



## deoreo (Aug 26, 2005)

I have been keeping an eye on this- ICEdot crash sensor.

https://icedot.org/site/?lang=en

I like the idea that it would call or text if you are incapacitated- like in a crash. I think the ICEdot with a smartphone and something like a Delorme InReach would be perfect, that is you would be connected anywhere.

If you can't tell, I like to ride alone


----------



## Thatshowiroll (Jan 30, 2009)

Cleared2land said:


> I have been using Garmin LiveTrack with my Garmin 510 for a little over a year and have been quite impressed. Of course, this requires a Garmin GPS product. Once a LiveTrack session has started, you'll be asked to give permission to track your mobile device for each workout. Those you invite via email, Facebook or Twitter will receive a link to a webpage that includes the position of your phone or connected Edge. They'll also be able to track your time elapsed, distance, speed and elevation in real time. And if you have any ANT+ sensors, they also can see that data, such as heart rate or cadence.
> 
> Garmin | LiveTrack


Do you know if this works with the old Edge 705?


----------



## BrentP (Jul 6, 2007)

Thatshowiroll said:


> Do you know if this works with the old Edge 705?


The Edge 510 and 810 are the only two Garmin cycling devices with real-time connectivity. You need to be paired with an iPhone or Android phone to upload the data in real time, so if you don't have either of those, or you're riding out of cell phone range, then do don't have a data link.

If you have a Blackberry, you can track it's location on the web in real time using "View Location" in Blackberry Protect. As others have stated, there is a similar way to track iPhones.

My wife worries about me when I ride alone, so I'm thinking of upgrading from the 500 to the 510 to give her peace of mind.


----------



## campergf23 (Aug 4, 2013)

There's a app called view ranger and it can send your location out, but it drains your battery like crazy. I think that a SPOT as mentioned above would be perfect


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## raymondy (Jul 16, 2013)

2obscura said:


> I am not sure if this is the right forum for this, so let me know.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Find my iphone does this for the iphone


----------



## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

I use the free app Glympse. Works great, but of course it needs to see satellites to know where you are and have cell data connectivity to send out the info. Rides of around 3 hrs uses less than 15% of my Galaxy S4 battery.


----------



## Empty Mags (Jan 30, 2014)

If on Android check out GPS Tracking Pro 
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fsp.android.c

You install on your phone and whoever else you invite to it's buddy list can ping for your location. Have noticed no difference in battery with it on vs having the battery off, as it's not continuously updating your location.


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

Thanks for all of the suggestions I am going to have to do some more research on the actual gps tracking devices and a little extra savings as well, they seam to be a little pricey. Worth it I am sure, as you get what you pay for, so I may have to make due with a app for a couple of months.

I am on an Iphone and the find my phone app also has a find my friends feature that I am going to look into. My main concern with these type apps is being able to turn it off and on. I do not want people seeing what I am doing all the time, hell I still don't use social media.



deoreo said:


> I have been keeping an eye on this- ICEdot crash sensor.
> 
> https://icedot.org/site/?lang=en
> 
> ...


This is the one I am really intrigued with, I have only found really old articles on it. and not much first hand stories about its use. It would be better than well I ate **** and eventually someone will figure it out, and call help.

Most of my trails are local inside the DFW, Tx area, and have good cell coverage. I know from stopping to "work" when absolutely unavoidable for a moment here and there while on the trail.


----------



## bloodpuddle (Jun 15, 2007)

2obscura said:


> I am on an Iphone and the find my phone app also has a find my friends feature that I am going to look into. My main concern with these type apps is being able to turn it off and on. I do not want people seeing what I am doing all the time, hell I still don't use social.


You can turn find my iPhone on and off in settings-privacy-location services.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

2obscura said:


> Most of my trails are local inside the DFW, Tx area, and have good cell coverage.


DFW? What trails do you do ride there?


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

Cleared2land said:


> DFW? What trails do you do ride there?


Rowlett Creek, Boulder, Cedar Hill SP, and Arbor hills. I havent had a chance to make it out to Grapevine northshore (I think) weather permitting I am going to try that next week. It has been years since I have been there and love that trail. I just started riding again recently.

Are you in the Dallas area as well?


----------



## laherna (Jun 14, 2009)

I use Glympse from time to time. Sounds like it's exactly what your looking for.


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

2obscura said:


> Are you in the Dallas area as well?


Yeah, near DFW Airport. Northshore's riding nice right now. Enjoy it. It's nice that you have the flexibility to ride off times, because N.S. can get crowded on nice weekends.

Concern getting stuck or injured on most any of these trails around here is somewhat diminished because of the numbers of riders around here that will look after each other is nice. Unless you night ride solo, there's almost always someone else on trail close by to assist.


----------



## DennisF (Nov 4, 2011)

Wife and I use Glympse to keep track of each other. Good fast real-time position update. The Google Maps that it uses even shows the various departments in our local Wal-Mart, and the GPS works well enough in there that I can find her.

What is really neat is that, given the proper URL, anyone with a web browser can watch your track, with no need to sign up or install anything. So it's great if you are on the way to someone's house or meeting up at the trailhead -- just send them a "glimpse" via text message or email. They open the link in their browser and watch you.

For something you install on your phone and forget, designed for families to keep track of each other, check out Cygic Family Tracker. It is a bit of a pain to sign up family members and only updates every 5 minutes, but uses almost no battery, and you don't have to do anything to allow family members to track you. You can set up zones and get an alert when someone in the family enters or leaves the zone. I named our home zone "Girlfriend's place", so when I arrive home, Wife gets a message saying "Dennis has arrived at Girlfriend's place".

Along the same lines is Life360. It is easier to use than Family Tracker, and has more features, including the ability to easily set up a temporary group -- great for group rides. However, on our Galaxy S2s the positioning doesn't work half the time, showing you miles from where you really are at someplace you've never been. Don't trust your marriage to it . It is probably just a Galaxy or S2 issue. It is a very popular app apparently.


----------



## Bruce in SoCal (Apr 21, 2013)

I use find my friend on my iPhone. It can be turned off or on.


----------



## p08757 (Mar 15, 2012)

There are several apps on the market. I use Endomondo Pro. My wife created an account and I added her as a friend. She can follow me with real time tracking if she wants. I have android, and I'm sure there is an iPhone version as well.

There is lots to choose from. Try some out and stick with the one that works for you.

Good luck!


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

I tried glympse, it worked pretty good, and was very easy for the person tracking to use as well. used it on three rides totaling 38 miles, the last three days to test it. It stayed accurate within 100 ft. The timer feature worked perfect to just incase I forget to turn it off. It also ran at the same time with strava running and I still had plenty of battery after each ride.

I am going to work my way through these simple apps suggested in this thread until I can afford either a Spot or Icedot. I am leaning towards the Ice dot....


----------



## TwoTone (Jul 5, 2011)

Cleared2land said:


> I have been using Garmin LiveTrack with my Garmin 510 for a little over a year and have been quite impressed. Of course, this requires a Garmin GPS product. Once a LiveTrack session has started, you'll be asked to give permission to track your mobile device for each workout. Those you invite via email, Facebook or Twitter will receive a link to a webpage that includes the position of your phone or connected Edge. They'll also be able to track your time elapsed, distance, speed and elevation in real time. And if you have any ANT+ sensors, they also can see that data, such as heart rate or cadence.
> 
> Garmin | LiveTrack


This, I'm somewhat like you. I work from a home office with trails near by, but I always worried about what would happen if I crashed. I love live track, my wife can keep an eye on my ride from work, if I'm not moving for a long period of time, she knows something is up and can get help coming.


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

Update.... I used glympse again and it completely failed to track my position accurately. I was on a 6 or so mile ride Sunday, and I would say it was useless after the first 1.5 miles. the tracking showed my path in a straight line out from the trail head and then showed me follow or shadow it back. THe trail is a very obvious large loop snaking around back to the trail head, I would say it was off by at mile or more for the most of the ride when i reviewed it at the end of my ride. When standing at my truck after the ride it showed my position at a point I figured by the landscape to be about 150 yards away.

I am going to try Endomondo Pro for a ride later this week. regardless of its performance, I will be purchasing Icedot, it seems to meet all my needs the best Especially if I get knocked out.


----------



## Zoo1424 (Jul 20, 2010)

Let us know how Endomondo Pro works. I'm messing around with Glympse but do not have enough rides in to give it a review yet. I'm thinking Icedot maybe the way to go through. 

sent from my Galaxy Note 3


----------



## CadMon (Feb 11, 2014)

*GPS tracking*



2obscura said:


> I am not sure if this is the right forum for this, so let me know.
> 
> I am self employed and can go ride trails during the week by myself quite often. I try top avoid riding alone but this cuts back to much of my ride time. I usually text someone before and after a ride just in case. I would like to have an app that is a live GPS tracking feed (not sure what to call it) to show my location on a trail where my father or someone whom I trust (not the GF, thats trouble:crazy can check on it periodically or if I don't text them after a certain time frame. Additionally in the worst case situation it will show my exact location on a trail. I would also like to be able to turn the app on and off.
> 
> ...


I don't know of an app other than the iphone finder mentioned in other replies. However there are personal GPS tracking devices available that will show real time where you are on a website so that you could be tracked by others. This could provide entertainment for your fans during a race as well as personal safety. USA GPS Store provides such personal trackers. Good luck!


----------



## Lone Rager (Dec 13, 2013)

2obscura said:


> Update.... I used glympse again and it completely failed to track my position accurately. I was on a 6 or so mile ride Sunday, and I would say it was useless after the first 1.5 miles. the tracking showed my path in a straight line out from the trail head and then showed me follow or shadow it back. THe trail is a very obvious large loop snaking around back to the trail head, I would say it was off by at mile or more for the most of the ride when i reviewed it at the end of my ride. When standing at my truck after the ride it showed my position at a point I figured by the landscape to be about 150 yards away.
> 
> I am going to try Endomondo Pro for a ride later this week. regardless of its performance, I will be purchasing Icedot, it seems to meet all my needs the best Especially if I get knocked out.


Perhaps a problem with the gps reception of your phone? The app only reports the coordinates it gets from the phone's GPS receiver. Glympse has worked fine for me on a Galaxy 4S. Newer phones receive both GPS and GLONASS satellites so do better than ones that receive only GPS, especially in the woods or with other obstructions. It helps to keep the phone in an upper outer pocket of a backpack/Camelbak or otherwise exposed so as to see as much of the sky as possible. Also, when I use it it's pretty much the only active app on the phone.


----------



## bbeltramo (Aug 7, 2012)

Lone Rager said:


> Perhaps a problem with the gps reception of your phone? The app only reports the coordinates it gets from the phone's GPS receiver. Glympse has worked fine for me on a Galaxy 4S. Newer phones receive both GPS and GLONASS satellites so do better than ones that receive only GPS, especially in the woods or with other obstructions. It helps to keep the phone in an upper outer pocket of a backpack/Camelbak or otherwise exposed so as to see as much of the sky as possible. Also, when I use it it's pretty much the only active app on the phone.


This. Consumer GPS chips and devices are going to see a huge rise in reliability over the next 2 as newer chips come out with GLONASS accessibility. AND the Chinese are quickly installing their own system of 35 satellites, which will provide even better accuracy, and should be done in the next few years. Once these are complete, there will be almost no reason unless you are in the steepest of valleys why you shouldn't have gps connectivity. Going from 24 potential satellites to 73 will solve many of thes inaccuracies.

Doesn't help your tracker app problem, but it is still exciting haha


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

bbeltramo said:


> This. Consumer GPS chips and devices are going to see a huge rise in reliability over the next 2 as newer chips come out with GLONASS accessibility. AND the Chinese are quickly installing their own system of 35 satellites, which will provide even better accuracy, and should be done in the next few years. Once these are complete, there will be almost no reason unless you are in the steepest of valleys why you shouldn't have gps connectivity. Going from 24 potential satellites to 73 will solve many of thes inaccuracies.
> 
> Doesn't help your tracker app problem, but it is still exciting haha


*While China has ambitious plans to expand Beidou (Chinese GPS System), it won't go truly global until 2020 at the soonest. And while China is seeing dollar signs in being able to publically market its access, that remains elusive at best and will be fully subject to the Chinese government as to its access.

GLONASS is currently available on Garmin and numerous other units. I use both GLOSNASS and GPS, but it reported that the GLOSNASS uses more battery power. I dunno on that...I haven't noticed this as a problem. I do notice greater connectivity in valley areas by incorporation of GLOSNASS.*



2obscura said:


> Update.... I used glympse again and it completely failed to track my position accurately. I was on a 6 or so mile ride Sunday, and I would say it was useless after the first 1.5 miles. the tracking showed my path in a straight line out from the trail head and then showed me follow or shadow it back. THe trail is a very obvious large loop snaking around back to the trail head, I would say it was off by at mile or more for the most of the ride when i reviewed it at the end of my ride. When standing at my truck after the ride it showed my position at a point I figured by the landscape to be about 150 yards away.
> 
> I am going to try Endomondo Pro for a ride later this week. regardless of its performance, I will be purchasing Icedot, it seems to meet all my needs the best Especially if I get knocked out.


*Garmin's LiveTrack offers everything 2obscura could possibly want in a tracking device with the possible exception of the price. I'm not quite sure that his decision to go forward with the Icedot purchase to meet all of his needs. He made reference that Glympse failed to track his position accurately. So this sounds as he DOES seek a tracking device. Icedot does not offer tracking. And, it's not cheap at $150. That's a chunk of the cost of a Garmin.

Icedot offers some protections, but it's not a tracking device unless the impact was severe enough to switch the impact sensor on. It does not allow friends or family to live track your progress. The jury is still out as to whether or not the impact will trigger the sensor appropriately.

When an impact occurs, the accelerometer will trigger the ICEdot app on your Bluetooth-enabled iPhone (a version is on its way for the Bluetooth-enabled Windows phone), which begins a countdown that can be tuned to ring for between 15 seconds and two minutes. If you're not coherent enough to turn it off within the window of time you set, your emergency contacts will be notified of the incident and your location via text, call, or email. If the impact was accidental - dropping your helmet or similar - simply stop the timer before it counts all the way down, and your emergency contacts will be none the wiser (and no more worried than usual).

Garmin's LiveTrack allows not only live, real-time tracking, but also provides some biometric information too. Heart rate, cadence, etc. At least they can not only see that you're stopped, they can monitor heart rate.*


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

Cleared2land said:


> *While China has ambitious plans to expand Beidou (Chinese GPS System), it won't go truly global until 2020 at the soonest. And while China is seeing dollar signs in being able to publically market its access, that remains elusive at best and will be fully subject to the Chinese government as to its access.
> 
> GLONASS is currently available on Garmin and numerous other units. I use both GLOSNASS and GPS, but it reported that the GLOSNASS uses more battery power. I dunno on that...I haven't noticed this as a problem. I do notice greater connectivity in valley areas by incorporation of GLOSNASS.*
> 
> ...


I had planned on using a tracking app as their is no other alternative really to my situation. Either have someone monitor me or something send out an alert when I crash. Which is also better for others who don't have to be burdened by my riding.

The phones gps is accurate within other tracking apps such as strava, it was a problem with a free app. As far as purchasing a garmin, even with a hefty price tag and all it's claims it still does me no good if no ones watching and I am knocked out. So that is why I ordered something that notifies emergency contacts when I eat ****. Something that does what I may not be able to do when it's needed.


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

2obscura said:


> I had planned on using a tracking app as their is no other alternative really to my situation. Either have someone monitor me or something send out an alert when I crash. Which is also better for others who don't have to be burdened by my riding.
> 
> The phones gps is accurate within other tracking apps such as strava, it was a problem with a free app. As far as purchasing a garmin, even with a hefty price tag and all it's claims it still does me no good if no ones watching and I am knocked out. So that is why I ordered something that notifies emergency contacts when I eat ****. Something that does what I may not be able to do when it's needed.


Ok, that clarifies your point and I see and understand your logic now. I used Strava from my phone app for a good while before getting my Garmin and was very pleased with that connection.

I see that you rode Big Cedar last week. Great place to ride even if getting turned around is a factor. Several good loops there with a mix of terrain. Did you get a chance to ride North Shore yet?


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

Cleared2land said:


> Ok, that clarifies your point and I see and understand your logic now. I used Strava from my phone app for a good while before getting my Garmin and was very pleased with that connection.
> 
> I see that you rode Big Cedar last week. Great place to ride even if getting turned around is a factor. Several good loops there with a mix of terrain. Did you get a chance to ride North Shore yet?


Yea I missed out on a section there without having a proper gps, but I also rushed out the door to the nearest open trail and went... Usually I find a map and do some research but as you know, the weather here is nuts and I had to go while I could. Perfect example of how accidents happen.

Yea I have ridden north shore more times than I can count since the mid 90s up until around 2005 when I quit ridding. Since getting my new bike I haven't had the chance to get out their but the forecast for this weekend looks good. I think I will finally be able to go ride it. I have not ridden it since it was still a two way trail. It should be a blast not having to worry about head on collisions on the downhills and climbs.


----------



## Cleared2land (Aug 31, 2012)

2obscura said:


> I have not ridden it since it was still a two way trail. It should be a blast not having to worry about head on collisions on the downhills and climbs.


There's only one section that is a two-way and it prolly wasn't there last time you rode there. Off of the West loop, there is a nice singletrack that goes north through Twin Coves. It's the only two-way trail. The East and West loops are one-way. Have a good ride.


----------



## MTBeing (Jan 11, 2012)

Real Time GPS Tracker for Android. Free (ad supported). Before I leave, I fire up the app and email my wife a URL (through the app). All she has to do is click on the link and it shows where I'm at at any given moment. This app also doesn't drain battery that badly at all.


----------



## 2obscura (Jan 9, 2014)

So here is another update. After using Endomondo Pro, strava and Icedot on two trails. Rode both trails with just the Endomondo Pro this week and compaired them to previous rides with Strava. Then did both trails with over the weekend with Endomondo Pro and the Icedot running.

I tried Endomondo Pro, ($4.99 in the app store) I feel like it is just as accurate as Strava, and the only differences that I really noticed is.... 

1- Endomondo Pro app does not register ride time and actual time. So I do not see how much time I spent stopping to take a photo and a breather vs the overall time from starting to stopping the app at the trail head.

2- The map feature on Endomondo Pro shows wider line of your route on the map. This seems to make your route through tight switch backs less pronounced on the map when you look at it later. Again if I needed to know where to split off on a trail later it would still work fine, and not a big deal.

3- Endomondo Pro uses less battery life as Strava. I was picky about charging my phone and closing all apps before the rides. Every ride has started at a 100% charge and only the Endomondo Pro or strava apps where running. Strava burns the battery down to about 70% vs Endomondo Pro witch kept my phone in the 80-83% range. This was done on the same two trails with each app. Roughly 2 hour rides.

I did use Endomondo Pro with my new Icedot crash sensor at the same time. The Bat drain from the Icedot sensor was little more than a 10% additional drain. It worked flawlessly on the trail with no lost connection between it and the phone. I checked it pretty often, this slowed my ride way down but I felt like I needed to check it to make sure the device is going to be reliable. It also seems to work great with sending out a message to my contacts from my simulated crashes at home. It took about 15 seconds for my contacts phones to receive a text notifying them and containing my location. Location was accurate each time to 50 feet which is good enough for me. I used my old skate board helmet to attach it too, on the inside to keep from destroying it with my ******* testing technique's... I dropped it, shook it like a polaroid picture, hell I even kicked like a soccer ball once...... Little booger works. 

I may Post another thread with a write up on it.. I had a bit of trouble finding detailed info on them before making my purchase. Suggestion on what forum to use?

I did not have anyone track me with any app. After purchasing the Icedot I felt like this was not needed.

Thanks for everyones input, help and replies on this thread!!!


----------



## Empty Mags (Jan 30, 2014)

That crash sensor sounds pretty good. Will have to look into it.


----------



## Mordock (Jan 9, 2012)

Not sure if this was posted in the other replies because I didn't read all of them... 

However, I have a similar case so what I did is setup an additional Endomondo account for my wife a added my primary account as a friend. That way if there was trouble or something she could at least get a general idea where I might be assuming there is a data connection. Pretty accurate for me.


----------



## tigris99 (Aug 26, 2012)

Find my phone is perfect for this. Windows phones come with it, same thing as iPhones. ice thing about it on my windows phone, its only marks locations every so often unless "pinged" via website, quite literally pins phone down within a couple feet of its location. Being im married and she doesn't interfere with my riding she knows how to use it to find me. 

She also knows local trails about how long I'll be before returning to trailhead, so if im more than a few minutes late checking in when I get back to trailhead she calls. New to me trails she txts every 30mins ish where my response usually is "having a blast all good". Or in a rare case "playing hike a bike cause I have a 2" long slice in the side of my back tire, going to be late getting back to your parents" 

Never needed the GPS, having someone know where your going and simple check in plan is good, but never been anywhere that's has more than a 10mile loop set with central access and at worst usable call coverage. But things what they are I have gps, short and long term disability insurance through work just in case. Lol

Sent from my Nokia Stupidphone using Tapatalk


----------



## Bruce in SoCal (Apr 21, 2013)

How do you turn off other apps on an iPhone?


----------



## campergf23 (Aug 4, 2013)

Bruce in SoCal said:


> How do you turn off other apps on an iPhone?


Assuming IOS 7, double tap the home button and swipe up all the pages open, for IOS 6, double tap home button and hold down on an app and delete it like you would if you were deleting an app

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


----------

