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There are certain things that we do as we get older that aren’t necessarily cool or exciting. Grownup stuff, like telling people who aren’t your mom where you’re going riding and when you expect to be back. Like packing enough water and food for a ride. Like keeping your insurance current. Road ID fall squarely into that category. As important as carrying a some form of ID, if things go horribly wrong most identification doesn’t really doesn’t contain all of the information that emergency responders want- or need.

Road ID’s premise is simple. Provide riders with important identification in a package that’s durable, attractive, and easy to wear. With the bump in road and night rides that training for a 24 hour race demands, it seemed like a good time to do the adult thing and start riding with one. Billed as the sexiest ID in the company’s lineup, the Wrist ID Elite combines a rubberized band and a solid deployment clasp with a laser etched stainless steel plate containing six customizable lines of personal information. A number of colors are available, but I figured that orange would catch first responders’ eyes more than black (though the black would probably be more likely to stay on my wrist while off the bike). And because I like orange.

Road ID offers either straight emergency contact information or, on a subscription basis, the ability to have your personal medical information stored in a database. That database is accessible by phone by first responders and is an excellent idea for anyone with specific allergies or other known medical conditions.

With the molded-in cut lines, trimming the one-size-fits-all Wrist ID Elite to size is easy- but not reversible. Anyone who rides with a watch will find the Wrist ID Elite refreshingly light. Not used to riding with wristwear myself, I experienced a couple of rides’ worth of hair-pulling discomfort- but that went away quickly. Beyond that, there’s little to say. The clasp is solid. The band itself doesn’t seem to attract grit and is easy to clean once grimy (check behind the laser-etched plaque if things get funky).

Considerably more durable and more likely to stay with you in an accident than a laminated sheet of paper, the Wrist ID Elite is a good idea in a well thought-out and attractive package. While it might bounce around a bit more than the original fabric Road ID, the Eilite is a bit more grown-up looking and less likely to Just as with health insurance and that spare tube, it’s better to have a Road ID and not need it than to not have one and need it.

marc

www.roadid.com