Road ID is one of those products that you hope you never need, but if you ever need it, you're darn glad that you've got it with you. It's a little thing, but it can make a huge difference. Basically, the Road ID is a bracelet (they have other versions that go around your ankle or tie onto your shoe) that communicates your name, emergency contact info and everything from one line about a penicillin allergy to your entire medical history on a serialized badge.
Road ID was started by father and son Mike and Edward Wimmer after Edward was almost run down by a truck while training for his first marathon. After the close call, Edward and his father Mike decided to come up with a way to let emergency professionals know an unconscious athlete's contact and medical information.
The resulting product was the Wrist ID ($19.99), which consisted of a nylon bracelet and a metal plate that allows for up to seven lines of text. Later iterations included an anklet version and one that ties directly to your running shoes, as well as an interactive version, which allows wearers to build a full medical profile that paramedics can access via phone or Internet. The interactive version displays a website and phone number that medical professionals can contact. They can then enter the serial number on the back of the bracelet to access the patient's full medical profile.
I run long distances on trails and back roads, so my sister gave me a Road ID Elite ($29.99) for Christmas one year. While I don't have any medical allergies, it'd be good for a paramedic to be able to contact my next of kin just in case I'm nailed by a bus during a training run. I've been wearing it ever since.
The Elite carries all of the same information that the Wrist ID Sport carries, but it comes with a clean-looking rubberized band and watch-style buckle that looks just as good indoors as it does outdoors. At first I just wore it during workouts, but it looked so good I just started wearing it all the time.
I thought that it was a considerate gift when I got it, but then I realized that it wasn't actually a gift for me — it was a gift for my wife, my sister, my mom, my friends, and anyone else who would like to know if I'm found lying in a ditch somewhere.
Take a closer look and read an endless line of testimonials over at RoadID.com.
Road ID was started by father and son Mike and Edward Wimmer after Edward was almost run down by a truck while training for his first marathon. After the close call, Edward and his father Mike decided to come up with a way to let emergency professionals know an unconscious athlete's contact and medical information.
The resulting product was the Wrist ID ($19.99), which consisted of a nylon bracelet and a metal plate that allows for up to seven lines of text. Later iterations included an anklet version and one that ties directly to your running shoes, as well as an interactive version, which allows wearers to build a full medical profile that paramedics can access via phone or Internet. The interactive version displays a website and phone number that medical professionals can contact. They can then enter the serial number on the back of the bracelet to access the patient's full medical profile.
I run long distances on trails and back roads, so my sister gave me a Road ID Elite ($29.99) for Christmas one year. While I don't have any medical allergies, it'd be good for a paramedic to be able to contact my next of kin just in case I'm nailed by a bus during a training run. I've been wearing it ever since.
The Elite carries all of the same information that the Wrist ID Sport carries, but it comes with a clean-looking rubberized band and watch-style buckle that looks just as good indoors as it does outdoors. At first I just wore it during workouts, but it looked so good I just started wearing it all the time.
I thought that it was a considerate gift when I got it, but then I realized that it wasn't actually a gift for me — it was a gift for my wife, my sister, my mom, my friends, and anyone else who would like to know if I'm found lying in a ditch somewhere.
Take a closer look and read an endless line of testimonials over at RoadID.com.
