It was a fine day, good conditions, and I was riding a grade 4 trail that I knew well. Nothing out of the ordinary—just one of those things. At high speed, I crashed. I have no memory of the crash itself. I came to with a mouth full of dirt, disoriented, alone, and very confused. I lay there, badly injured, with no one around to help.

I phoned 111 on my cellphone, but the operator had trouble understanding exactly where I was. That’s when I remembered my ResQLink. I activated it. That beacon made all the difference.

Incredibly, both the Whangamata Volunteer Fire Brigade—the local rural first responders—and the rescue helicopter arrived at about the same time. From the moment I activated the beacon to the helicopter’s arrival, I estimate around 30 minutes passed. I was stabilised on-site, winched up through the trees with a medic, and flown to Waikato Hospital in Hamilton. That leg took another 30 minutes or so, with about 15 minutes needed to prep me for the lift.

The final tally of injuries: a broken clavicle, multiple broken ribs, significant bone bruising to my femur and pelvis, and most seriously, a traumatic brain injury with three small brain bleeds. I spent four weeks in the hospital, and I’m still recovering from the brain injury four months later. But I’m steadily improving and expect a full recovery.

Looking back, it’s obvious how crucial that PLB was. Without it, I likely would’ve been facing a long wait, a complicated stretcher carry out through rugged bush, and a much more delayed arrival at emergency care.