http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0719missingteen-ON.html#

I for one can not fault him.

When I was younger and owned a motorcycle, some of the stupid, stupid things I did make me wonder why and how did I manage to live this long.

Bountyhunter

The last lines in the article get me.

"...Authorities advise people who venture into the desert to be prepared and to use extreme caution, especially during the scorching summer.

Among other things, they should let people know where they are going, carry plenty of water and avoid being out in the worst heat of the day.

In addition, they should carry a cellphone so they can call for help if something were to go awry."

The first two make sense, but the last is just another general public "help I've fallen and can't get up". Yes I carry a cell phone whenever I am out. Yes dialing for help is a great benefit where you have signal, but this is just a panacea for the masses. My cell barely works at my house and I am not that far off the beaten path.

The reporter should be stressing outdoor training of some sort (NOLS, REI offerings, etc) so the knowledge is imparted, especially when in a hostile enviornmental climate.

Rant mode off, Bill.

Agreed. Then again, the reporter must write the article to cater to the lowest common denominator: the general public. Just getting my family to carry cell phones and Photon II's on their persons at all times is freaking exhausting.

How about the Buddy System. We preach it in scouting but it makes sense all the time. Many lost person fatalities occur when they are alone. Remember the poor youth bicyclist in Utah who rode ahead and got lost?

The article mentions he left the main group to return to the pickup becasue he was dehydrated. Sounds like he already had one strike against him yet did any of his "friends" offer help? A sad and uneccessary lose as is too often the case.

Agreed, but his buddies were probably as clueless about the dangers as he was.

Nevertheless, I think anyone who would allow a travelling companion to go anywhere alone in the desert, especially when that companion was already starting to have problems, was extremely irresponsible.