Anybody have a backup plan?

[baileyboy]

Fixed the title for ya.

Phone charger in car, ciggy lighter adapter. Difficult to conceive that you did not think of this.

^^^^This^^^

Can't you just bring a phone charger? Charge your phone in the car on the way to the gig, even charge it while at the gig. There really is no reason for what you are describing if you are on the ball.

 

[Roxbororob]

For driving directions?

What would you do if you were 2 hours from home at 2AM, in the middle of nowhere, and your phone crapped out?

I drive all over the place for my gigs, and rarely know anymore where I am or how I got there. After my phone dying on me more than once (at good times, thankfully), I've become a bit concerned about the above happening.

My car doesn't have a GPS, and I was considering picking up one of those old fashioned Garmins or something. Just as a backup. I'm not sure if any of them even work anymore though . On Amazon, they all seem like the last ones bought were a decade ago.

Has anyone done this? If not, what's your B plan?

"old fashioned Garmin" Really Joe? I have old fashioned road maps in my car as backup!

EDIT: I didnt read the thread befor posting, pedroims advice for a full tank of gas is solid.

EDIT 2: Advice to myself, read the thread before posting!

 

[FirewalZ]

For driving directions?

What would you do if you were 2 hours from home at 2AM, in the middle of nowhere, and your phone crapped out?

I drive all over the place for my gigs, and rarely know anymore where I am or how I got there. After my phone dying on me more than once (at good times, thankfully), I've become a bit concerned about the above happening.

My car doesn't have a GPS, and I was considering picking up one of those old fashioned Garmins or something. Just as a backup. I'm not sure if any of them even work anymore though . On Amazon, they all seem like the last ones bought were a decade ago.

Has anyone done this? If not, what's your B plan?

Well there is this thing called an Atlas I remember being in nearly any car growing up

 

[Winslow]

2. THE TITLE OF THE THREAD WAS VERY WELL THOUGH OUT, AND IT SERVED ITS PURPOSE EXACTLY AS I HOPED IT WOULD.

Guys, we've had this all wrong... The "purpose" was apparently to set everyone up by asking a deliberately vague question, mock and sneer at anyone who didn't give him the answers he had already decided were "correct," then red-text-shout at us to shut up. In summary:

"Hey TB, what's your plan for being lost somewhere?"
(A range of perfectly reasonable and intelligent answers covering a variety of navigational techniques)
"OMG YOU ARE ALL SO WRONG AND STUPID AND U DON'T EVEN GET IT!! I AM THREAD KING KTHXBYE!!"

Someone was asking about troll threads the other day. Looks like we got one.

Sure hope we can find our way out of here without a map.

 

[ThinCrappyTone]

For driving directions?

What would you do if you were 2 hours from home at 2AM, in the middle of nowhere, and your phone crapped out?

I drive all over the place for my gigs, and rarely know anymore where I am or how I got there. After my phone dying on me more than once (at good times, thankfully), I've become a bit concerned about the above happening.

My car doesn't have a GPS, and I was considering picking up one of those old fashioned Garmins or something. Just as a backup. I'm not sure if any of them even work anymore though . On Amazon, they all seem like the last ones bought were a decade ago.

Has anyone done this? If not, what's your B plan?

I keep a paper atlas in my car for that reason. My friends think I’m a nerd. But I like having some sort of backup.

 

[Blue_Whistle88]

Get a map book. They don't break, and they don't run out of battery power.

 

[CB3UK]

Im honestly a bit confused as to why you wouldn't already have a car charger and a road map OP. Its already been addressed I realize, but maybe this thousandth post saying the same thing might help drive the point home.

 

[obimark]

For driving directions?

What would you do if you were 2 hours from home at 2AM, in the middle of nowhere, and your phone crapped out?

I drive all over the place for my gigs, and rarely know anymore where I am or how I got there. After my phone dying on me more than once (at good times, thankfully), I've become a bit concerned about the above happening.

My car doesn't have a GPS, and I was considering picking up one of those old fashioned Garmins or something. Just as a backup. I'm not sure if any of them even work anymore though . On Amazon, they all seem like the last ones bought were a decade ago.

Has anyone done this? If not, what's your B plan?

Buy 2 cheap phone battery backups- (About $20 on Amazon) charge them and put them in your car and your gig bag. I've taken them on vacation, and they are GREAT! You can get 3 charges typically out of them (and then if you recharge them you can go again)
Worst case you could buy a cheap car charger at ANY gas station.
Short of that, I guess you could go full native and try to forage for food and shelter in the wilds of wherever you are gigging.

 

[DaveAceofBass]

There used to be these things called maps.

^ This!

 

[BooDoggie]

I'm astounded how many feel that maps are the best way to go. And the suggestion keeps getting given with an attitude behind it, too ...

Here's a thought... Don't travel to places that you are unfamiliar with. That way you can never be lost at 2 AM without a clue of how to return home. Problem solved...

I've been all over the east coast, west coast and everywhere in between. I never got lost. And I never had a smartphone or a GPS to guide me just good old paper maps. We were taught in school how to read a map. How to find north, south, east, and west without a compass day or night. BUT it does require some degree of brain power not electrical power.

Oh, and we actually knew all of our friends and business contacts telephone numbers and addresses in our heads.
It sucks to see that all the generations of "smart people" may be about to die out only to be replaced by people that can't find their way out of a paper bag without type written instructions... (I had to put it that way because I can read and write in this old fashioned thing called cursive writing...

 

[arbiterusa]

Thank you for reminding me that one of my goals is to get some paper maps for the car soon.

I got turned around once going home across the desert and couldn’t figure out which way I was going. Had to get out and use the stars to figure it out.

 

[arbiterusa]

Oh, and we actually knew all of our friends and business contacts telephone numbers and addresses in our heads.

Nobody did that. That’s why you had your “little black book” like all us other old timers did. I still have mine somewhere, it is very entertaining reading.

 

[ElectroVibe]

My phone is a phone. It's actually a smart phone but I pay for no data and certainly do not rely on it for orientation. I only use it to make phone calls and send texts. I use maps and mapbooks and before I go somewhere new I look it up on google maps if necessary, make notes and even sometimes print pages off.

I also go hiking off road in the bush with a compass.

I hope you also carry antivenom and a syringe.

 

[iwearpumas]

I actually have 2 cell phones and an iPad that I carry with me. If one phone dies, I have another phone that I will use, or my iPad.

 

[Bikeguy57]

“Buy a map”. Thanks Mr Obvious!
You might want to go to YouTube and check out a song called “Freebird”, it’s really cool!

 

[ElectroVibe]

I strongly agree with the person who said to research the venue destination thoroughly by "Street view" if possible. That's really the only way I can (almost) trust that the map is correct. If I can see the front of the venue with my own eyes.

How many times have you been directed to the middle of a residential neighborhood when looking for a business online? Honestly, I don't know why anyone would trust GPS and internet mapping.

 

[ColonelZulu]

For driving directions?

What would you do if you were 2 hours from home at 2AM, in the middle of nowhere, and your phone crapped out?

I drive all over the place for my gigs, and rarely know anymore where I am or how I got there. After my phone dying on me more than once (at good times, thankfully), I've become a bit concerned about the above happening.

My car doesn't have a GPS, and I was considering picking up one of those old fashioned Garmins or something. Just as a backup. I'm not sure if any of them even work anymore though . On Amazon, they all seem like the last ones bought were a decade ago.

Has anyone done this? If not, what's your B plan?

Dang Joe...I thought you played around NY.
Are you playing out in PA or something now?

As long as I know which parkways/highways are nearby, and I can get to them, I’ll make it home. There’s also the handy dandy gas station attendant.

But, legit, I will sometimes do the old MpaQuest printout turn-by-turn method (so 2008).

 

[Kitsapbass]

Slept in my car more than once. It’s not ideal but it works. Also normally I gig within 100 miles from home and Washington State isn’t that big.

 

[mac10]

My son plays soccer national league so we are always driving to some new field in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Illinois or Kansas. I use my phone to get the new fields, I never look at it just follow the voice instructions
but I never use it to drive back home.

There is Michigan map in the glove box. However , my rule #1 is to fill the gas tank as soon as I can on my way back so even if I get lost in the middle of the night there is enough gas to drive till the morning or to keep the car running in case I slip into a ditch on winter.

I’m from Battle Creek and lived near South Bend for a time. That whole region is easy to navigate. Roads go N/S and E/W, set up like grid squares

 

[MultiScaleMale]

I hope you also carry antivenom and a syringe.

‘Cause if not, “Doc said you’re gonna die.”