Bushwalk Australia

They say a dog is a mans best friend, not in my case! SPOT will be my best friend for the time taken to walk The Melbourne 2 Sydney Walk and the only thing SPOT can't do is fetch.

The SPOT is a revolutionary device with a built-in GPS receiver that uses satellite phone technology to send GPS position data to friends, family and / or emergency personnel. It is the world’s first satellite messenger, and works virtually anywhere in the world, in places where your cell phone won’t! http://www.piplus.com.au/

I feel extremely lucky to have been donated a SPOT to take with me for the duration of the walk, courtesy of P.I. Plus who are the Australian distributor of SPOT to retail stores. Not only have they provided the device, but the very same day that it was offered they programmed and set it up for me, and have also provided the data coverage plan for the journey.

Best of all, the SPOT has Live Tracking, or “SPOT Casting”, which sends an updated location every 10 minutes, allowing people to follow my progress in real-time and saving waypoints so I can review the entire journey later down the track!

P.I. Plus are a major distributor of quality products through Australia and New Zealand. Their range of products is fascinating and quite unique – everything from Drunkbusters Alcohol Impairment Goggles to the SPOT and other Satellite technology. I would recommend P.I. Plus to anyone looking for safety, GPS or other equipment as their customer service is fantastic and their range of knowledge is… SPOT on!

Thanks P.I. Plus!

P.I. Plus P/L is a major distributor of quality products throughout Australia & New Zealand
Authorised Australian Distributor of these great products: http://www.piplus.com.au/

The Melbourne 2 Sydney Walk links:
http://themelbourne2sydneywalk.com (under construction)
http://www.facebook.com/themelbourne2sydneywalk
https://twitter.com/Melb2SydWalk
OSA Brands Expedition Life blog/ article: http://www.osabrands.com/expedition/page.php/1/13/70

There are some here who prefer PLB type emergency beacons, but for a fundraising walk such as you are contemplating, the real-time tracking of a Spot is a definite plus.

Thanks for your reply madmacca:) I was originally after the good old PLB as they have been the trusted, loyal safety device everyone has relied on for many years just like you mentioned and many people, like I was, are unaware the Spot satellite tracker exists and or don't know enough about it.

What GPS devices have is a failure to communicate, the traditional GPS devices tell you where you are but only SPOT uses communications satellites to tell emergency responders or your contacts where you are and how you’re doing and they don't need to understand GPS. The Spot uses the Google Maps technology which is the same familiar technology used everyday for driving direction and maps. You can even save and view messages with Google Earth or other GPS data formats.

I also want to point out that the Spot satellite tracker weighs approximately 7 grams less then a ACR ResQLink + 406 Buoyant GPS PLB which is the smallest buoyant Personal Locator Beacon available today and Spot is also smaller in dimension.

Whether you prefer one over the other is up to the individual, just be sure to have one of these devices when out and about as it could be your line between life or death.

Cheers