Road Sense vs. No Sense

Probably since the dawn of time have two things been a decidedly dangerous combination. Men and directions and men and technology. Now being a man I think it's okay for me to talk about both of these since I'm something of a snob when it comes to these two subjects. I am decidedly stubborn when it comes to getting directions to a destination and I like to think that I can figure out most pieces of technology given sufficient time and (more importantly) interest. Hence it is not with a lot of surprise when I read an article in the paper about a couple in the high desert of eastern Oregon that ended up getting stranded in snow for three days.

Apparently the couple who had gotten a new GPS as a Christmas gift just a few days before, decided to use it on their way home. Now programming the destination was a snap and getting started was easy, but the GPS was smarter than it really needed to be. Now most people choose 'shortest route' or 'fastest route' when the GPS asks them about the route they want to take. Now choosing 'shortest route' can often be a chancy proposition because a GPS will take you by whatever route reduces the distance by the greatest amount regardless of the terrain or land features you may or may not have to overcome. In this case the road that the GPS requested the couple to take ended up being more 'road-esque' than actual road and as they proceeded down the indicated path in their four-wheel drive SUV, they managed to get themselves stuck.

Now thankfully there is a happy ending to this tale since despite being in the mountains in a particularly remote area, they had just enough signal on their cell phones that they could call for help after two-and-a-half and they had more than enough supply of food, water and warm clothes in their SUV to stay safe until rescue arrived. Apparently the couple explained that they managed to go nearly 35 miles down the path that was indicated by the GPS before getting stuck in about 18 inches of snow. That itself proves two things to me; (1) four-wheel drives don't always overcome any terrain, and (2) technology isn't always the best of guides.

Perhaps it's wrong to blame technology for the couple getting stranded but I do feel (as I have often expressed on this blog) that technology has made us a bit lazy. I say that because in times past, we wouldn't rely on something like a GPS to tell us where we were and where we're going. Reading a map was something worth learning and it was necessary. I have always believed that even if you have a GPS, you should know in general where you're going and what route you have to take. Having the general directions in the back of your head can help you figure out where you're going and where you need to be at any given time. But these days due to things like GPS, cell phones and the like you end up relying on them for information. Why memorize numbers if you can just scroll through your phone list in your phone and get it.

Similarly why bother looking up directions when your GPS will show you the route. There have been plenty of stories that could give you ample reason to at least have a little trepidation when deciding whether to use a GPS or not; stories of people ending up driving into rivers because bridges weren't completely built yet or taking roads that weren't open to the public yet. We tend to check our brains at the door as technology improves and it can have decidedly negative consequences. Now the good thing is that this story has a happy ending but I would think it would serve as inspiration to the rest of us to keep our own mental GPS tuned when going on a road trip.