The eye in the sky

Since my Roadside bomb encounter in Iraq in 2005, I have had a hard time with memory and recall. Usually when I tell people the extent of my Traumatic brain injury (TBI) and the specific things I have a hard time with, all most all of them have the same reply, “Hell!, I have that same problem and I never went to Iraq!” So I guess this blog post will benefit everyone.

There are certain tools and compensation techniques I use to overcome this problem. Since I am not much of a multi-tasker I rely on GPS units whenever I am traveling. It was actually the VA’s doing on getting us in the traumatic brain injury ward up on the technology. I don’t have to read a map and drive at the same time, I don’t have to take my eyes far from the road, I always know when my turn is coming before hand and it is less likely to spur some PTSD road rage incident. This is why I am opting for the Garmin Edge 800 cycling computer. Not because it is the neatest little gadget for the nerdy cyclist but simply because it will prevent a lot of problems for me. But there is one more step to my madness.

Google earth has probably been the most adaptive tool I have ever been blessed with since my injury. I have always had a knack for the “lay of the land” after 17 years of fighting forest fires all over the country using nothing but a map and compass and combined with my military training I have a well built skill set for navigation. (which any of my comrades can relate) But when I use Google earth I can honestly say I have enough information to say I have been there. Call it experience, call it calibration, call it what you may but when I can download a route in Google earth and follow it to the road level it is seared into the back of my head. It has become my greatest tool in my arsenal and I use it all the time as if I was a CIA/spec ops operator.

I use it to plan my training rides, I use it pre scout leisure destinations I have never been, but most importantly I am using it to nitpick The RAAM route. At road level I can determine the problem spots along the way and make the mistakes on the computer rather than on the bike at 3 in the morning. It enables me to make a direct correlation between the images I studied on the laptop to the actual route data that will show on the Garmin screen on my handle bars. Landmarks, surface conditions, inclines, choke points, wind breaks, and hazards are now perceived before hand and take’s the worry out of the “unknown factor” of what may lie ahead. But it can’t foresee everything…..what fun would that be?

Besides, what else am I going to do in between rides?