I've always seen those commercials showing Rob Roll begging real racers to ride with him. It never meant a whole lot to me, after all who would ride with a middle aged poser dressed like a spandex hamster?
For some, as yet undiscovered reason, I searched out Road Id to see if it made sense and it did. For 15-30 dollars you can have an ID bracelet with your name engraved and a personal medical profile linked via that newfangled interweb thing. I ordered one for myself and found it to be a pretty nice deal. I ordered the "Elite" and it arrived by USPS within 3 business days.
The envelope was protective enough and I ripped it open to find
everything of any substance in that really, really nice steel box with an embossed logo on the top.
The box was much more impressive than the product.
I ordered an orange band because I thought a 60 year old cyclotourist should wear things that compliment his hair. But I also ordered an extra black band in case I chickened out.
The Elite package, they advertise as their "sexiest" model, is a big rubber band with a very nice, laser engraved,
nameplate and even nicer satin finish, stainless steel buckle.
It comes as a one size fits all model
which required more than an inch of trimming to fit my substantial wrist.
Physically it fits well, the buckle itself is of first rate quality and the whole thing well designed.
Lance Armstrong has made it fashionable for all sorts of people to wear rubber bands and Road Id will donate part of it's profits to Livestrong, if you designate.
The real deal is the service. The nameplate contains contact and age information, but also a serial # and link to a web address where an EMT can gain access to any medical or personal information you provide.
To anybody, like myself, who has been hit by a car, this is one BFD.
If you are lying on the pavement, unconscious or unable to talk, after an accident, any information you choose can be instantly available to the medical practitioners involved.
I have no medical conditions beyond my bionic eyes, but that doesn't mean I won't have, and Road ID will let you maintain and amend a personal and medical profile indefinitely for $10 a year.
Stop at the library rather than Hooters once a year, and you are good to go.
The hardware, although not too impressive, is high quality, the service may save your life if, like me, you are out riding around the countryside by yourself for weeks at a time.
And, for some reason, they send you this really cool little stash box.
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