A Note on Safety

I had initially made this note on the Track Us! page, but thought it would be better as a separate entry and linked.

A lot of folks have questioned the safety and security of a trip like this...and for good reason. It's a big undertaking and will take us not only far from home, but also into places that are rumored to be unsafe as well as places that are actually unsafe.

That said, I hold to the opinion that the world is not generally as dangerous as it is often viewed from the safety and security of home. The USA is a great place to live and thrive...a lot of great freedoms...a lot of stability. It also definitely has its issues. Peering out at the world, there's a lot of strife. There are also a lot of folks living their lives.

Nick and I have been kicking the idea of this trip around for a long time now, watching political climates, connected with folks who have done similar trips, and working to understand what it will take to pull this thing off. There are no guarantees, of course, but we've taken efforts to understand the risks and mitigate them. And truly...there are way more folks that you might think who make Pan-American treks. Encouraging because we know it can be done; discouraging because it makes us less unique. haha.

These are the things -- in order -- that should reassure you of our safety and security during this trek:

• Our planning and preparation. We didn't enter this lightly. We're both experienced motorcyclists and travelers. We've selected well-suited machines for the trek and equipped them appropriately. We've made trips together on these motorcycles to accustom ourselves to traveling together and ensure that the bikes are suitable. We've overcome issues while traveling.

Our bikes in Mexico in June 2017.

• Our individual skills. We've each done long trips in the past. We've both motorcycled and we've both traveled domestically and internationally.
• Our companion's skills. We're on this trek together because we work together well and have demonstrated that we can overcome hurdles well. If something comes up while we're adventuring (as it already has), our first resource is our teamwork (which has already succeeded more than once.).
• The goodness of the world. It's easy to look only at the bad things that happen in the world and become jaded or afraid. Indeed, bad things do happen. But the world is full of good, too, and one of the most awesome things about trips like this is encountering all of that good! If you're in doubt, check out any number of travel series. My favorites: Lyndon Poskitt's "Races to Places"; Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman's "Long Way Round" and "Long Way Down" (Netflix?); Rosie Gabrielle's YouTube; the woman who biked across the 'stans...if I could find the video.

The places Lyndon has been!

• Spot's "OK" button. We are equipped with Spot GPS device (Ryan's Lassie) and InReach GPS device (Nick's thingamajig). On travel days (most of them), I hit the "OK/Check In" button when we start traveling, when we finish traveling, and after we cross any international border. This sends a pre-programmed message to our safety crew (a small group, to keep it agile) to let them know all is well.
• Spot's "help" button. Failing all of the above, our GPS locators are capable of reaching out to our safety crew to request help. Not only is this the small, agile group back home, but also any local contact wherever we currently are who may be better equipped to provide immediate assistance. 
• Spot's "SOS" button. In dire circumstance, failing every other thing, we have the emergency eject button on my Spot device and Nick's InReach device. Helicopters come and find us, in the wilderness or in the city. They see to our health and well-being, and they notify our emergency contacts.

Notice that the Track Us! info is conspicuously absent from the list above.

The Track Us! page is not intended as fodder for further fretting. As a matter of fact, the tracker data isn't even really part of our safety plan: it's just to satiate curiosity for those wondering where in the world we are. There are myriad reasons that it might not show up for awhile or might be stationary for awhile, ranging from me forgetting to replace the batteries to meeting another interesting traveler and having a chat to poor coverage through a given area...the list goes on.

We have a solid plan for this trip and an excellent safety net. May minds rest at ease.