Introduction
Does your emergency communication plan for hiking, off-roading, overlanding, etc include a Baofeng UV-5R or similar ham-radio, GMRS radio, or FRS walkie-talkie? Or, is a Baofeng UV5R or similar ham radio or GMRS radio part of your SHTF communications? In this video I go over the things you need to know about using a UV-5R, or any ham-radio or even a GMRS radio for emergency, life-saving radio communications.
What you might actually need is a satellite communicator such as the Garmin InReach Mini2 shown at the end of the video - you can learn more about a satellite communicator here: amzn.to/3E8NbfM
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Content
In this, video I am going to explain to you how and why using one of these in an emergency situation could be a deadly mistake.
I've touched on this topic many times in many previous videos, but apparently not everyone watches all of my videos, so I am touching on it again in this video, because here at the not a Rubicon Institute, our mission is to save lives, one radio at a time.
The problem is not that these are cheap, 25 radios.
The problem is not that the batteries don't last very long, and the problem is not that anyone relying on one of these cheap little radios to save their life is an idiot.
The problem is that many people toss a couple of these radios into their Jeep, their backpack or their bug out bag, with the assumption that in a life or death situation, they will call for help by doing something like this hello, my friend, that is not how it works.
That is not how any of this works.
Now, as most ham, radio operators will tell you.
The boothwang uv5r is one of the best engineered radios ever in the history of forever, but the uv-5r and similar radios do have one fatal flaw, and that fatal flaw is that all of this type radio require that someone else be listening with a similar Radio and on the same frequency and within range of the radio so to overcome this fatal flaw.
All you need is a plan a plan consisting of at least.
Two things number one.
You need to know how to operate the radio B.
You will need someone listening.
That will be able to get you the help that you so desperately Crave in a emergency situation and see you need to ensure that that person listening.
Will be within range of your little 25 radio, so for item a and by the way, this is apparently the hardest part for most people.
Knowing how to actually use the radio I? Would recommend that you read the [ __ ] manual? Now since you probably already tossed the manual in the trash? Thankfully, the manual is available online and there are numerous videos on the YouTubes and websites with web pages.
With words on them explaining fully how this, radio or whatever radio you happen, to have explaining fully how.
The radio works how to use it and what.
Its limitations are for item number B of your plan.
You need to ensure that.
Someone will be within range, of your radio.
That can hear your cries for help and if you completed item a of your plan, you would know that for most radios such as this boothwang uv5r and most other similar handheld radios, the range, the number of fars that you can talk directly from one of these radios to another.
One is roughly 10 to 20 miles at best and by at best, I mean if you're standing on top of a high mountain and there's nothing between you and that other person you might be able to talk.
10 to 20 miles to another.
One of these radios if, however, you are at ground level.
The range the number of fars you can talk to.
Another radio.
Will be anywhere from half a mile to two or three miles.
Maybe if you are stuck at the bottom of a ravine with your arm, hopelessly stuck between two Boulders you'd, better just start sawing that arm off now, because this will be useless so to combat the limitations of the radios.
Your plan, remember: you need a plan.
Part of that plan should be locating all of the repeaters in range of where you are going to be or where you plan on needing help.
Locating those repeaters and programming them into your radio before you need to use them, and that is because a repeater will greatly extend the range of your radio, but your radio still must be within range of that repeater.
Now, because most repeaters are at the top of tall mountains and have giant antennas, you may be able to reach a repeater using one of these little radios from 50 or 75 miles away.
If there is nothing between you and that repeater, such as another mountain or the walls of a ravine, if you're stuck at the bottom, because again, if you are stuck at the bottom of a ravine or a canyon, this ain't gonna help you at all.
So this means that part of your plan remember you need a plan.
Part of that plan should be going online to repeaterbook.com or radioreference.com and locating all of the repeaters in the area that you will be in and programming those repeaters into your radio and and testing them to ensure that you program them in correctly and that those repeaters are still working and online.
Just because you see it listed on a website doesn't mean it's still in operation now remember: the range of most repeaters is at best around 100 miles, or so maybe a little more, usually a little bit less.
So you probably will not be able to test the repeaters from your couch unless you happen to live near where you plan to be when you need help.
So that means that when you get to the general area of where you will be, when you may need help, you should test those repeaters.
Then, while you're in the area before you need any help, not when you're stuck at the bottom of a ravine or after your car breaks down or when you trip and fall and scrape your knee and finally should the worst happen, and you need to call for life saving help.
You need to know that someone will be listening for your cries for help and will be willing and able to do something.
If you're with a group and part of your plan plan, remember you need a plan if part of that plan is just having your friends nearby, with similar radios all set to the correct frequency and having them listen for your cries for help then you're all set.
However, if you will be alone and assuming that you have properly programmed in all of the repeaters for the area in which you will be in, hopefully someone will be there listening to that repeater.
That will be able to get you.
The help that you sow crave, but remember just because you can connect to a repeater from your radio does not mean that anyone will necessarily be listening.
There are no guarantees, so, in summary, what I mean to say is that you might be better off carrying something like this.
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