What Emergency Gear Should You Store in Your Glove Box?
Intro
Your car just broke down. Your cell phone battery is dying. Even worse, the stretch of road you’re currently on appears to be completely deserted.
The sun is setting and the temperature is dropping. Until someone comes along, or you find a way to call for help, you’re on your own.
This is going to be a long night.
Luckily, you’re prepared. You made sure to store a few essential pieces of road safety equipment in your car.
Are you really ready for an unexpected road emergency?
If you read the above scenario with a slight sense of discomfort, there's a chance you could be doing more to make sure you're ready for a road emergency.
You probably have a spare tire, jumper cables, and maybe even a first aid kit in your trunk, but it’s a fact of life that most people aren’t truly prepared for a roadside emergency.
While you can (and should) store some emergency survival gear in your trunk, your glove compartment is actually an even better place to store basic survival equipment.
A prepared traveler understands that their glove compartment is more than just a place to toss your insurance information and owner's manual.
Are you really ready for an unexpected road emergency?
If you read the above scenario with a slight sense of discomfort, there's a chance you could be doing more to make sure you're ready for a road emergency.
You probably have a spare tire, jumper cables, and maybe even a first aid kit in your trunk, but it’s a fact of life that most people aren’t truly prepared for a roadside emergency.
While you can (and should) store some emergency survival gear in your trunk, your glove compartment is actually an even better place to store basic survival equipment.
A prepared traveler understands that their glove compartment is more than just a place to toss your insurance information and owner's manual.
What Emergency Gear Should You Store in Your Glove Box?
Keep the right stuff in your glove compartment, and you’ll be better equipped and prepared than 99% of drivers on the road today.
Before you hit the road again, ensure your glove compartment is fully stocked with all of these essential pieces of emergency gear.
Rain Poncho:
When stranded on the side of the road, setting out on foot could become your only option. A tedious hike to the nearest gas station could become truly dangerous if it starts to rain or snow.
It all boils down to perhaps the most common pieces of survival knowledge: If your clothes get wet, the chances of hypothermia increase drastically.
A rain poncho is a must. We recommend the Go Time Gear Life Poncho set.
This tiny little sack comes packed with two hooded ponchos to keep you warm and dry. Each poncho is made of a waterproof material that blocks rain and reflects 90% of your body heat back to you. They also feature heat-sealed seams to lock in warmth, even in freezing weather.
This set of two weighs only 3oz and is roughly the size of a can of soda, making it perfect for glove box storage.
Life Bivy Sleeping Bag
Countless survival stories begin with someone forced to spend the night in a broken-down vehicle. Often, the difference between life and death (or comfort and discomfort) comes down to the ability of the stranded person to stay warm throughout the night.
Even if you live in an urban area,this hypothetical could easily become a reality, as residents of the nation's capital learned not long ago. Residents of Washington, DC were stranded for up to 11 hours when inclement weather and traffic combined to bring rush hour traffic to a complete stop.
The Go Time Gear Life Bivyis a waterproof, windproof sleeping bag uniquely suited for car emergencies. Crawl inside of one and you’ll stay safe and warm, even if you run out of gas and the temperature inside your vehicle begins to drop.
Much like the life poncho, our life bivvy is lightweight and tiny, so you can bring BOTH and still have plenty of glove box storage space left over. You can even use them at the same time for added warmth!
Flashlight:
A light source is an incredibly handy, yet often overlooked, piece of survival equipment. If your car encounters an unexpected emergency or breaks down at night, you’ll absolutely need a flashlight to navigate the situation.
Even a tiny pen light can make all the difference if you’re caught in the dark during an emergency. Use it to inspect under the hood, find your way to safety, or simply wave it around to signal rescuers.
Many modern flashlights have a USB connection, which means you can charge your phone (and countless other devices) with your flashlight.
Keep your flashlight charged and it’ll be there for you when you need it most.
Power Bank:
In the modern world, most drivers will hesitate to pick up a stranger waving for help on the side of the road, even if they look friendly.
If you're stranded on the side of the road without a working cell phone, finding help becomes a huge obstacle. The longer you're unable to call for assistance, the more dangerous a situation can become.
Luckily, modern power banks are affordable, compact, and fit easily inside of a glove compartment. As mentioned above, they often also come in flashlight format, so you can check off two glove box essentials in one.
Multi-Tool:
Chances are you keep a few basic tools in your trunk, just in case you’re forced to change a tire or make a minor repair. Adding a multi-tool to your glove box is a great way to multiply your options when it comes to roadside maintenance.
As the name implies, a multitool combines a knife, screwdriver, scissors, pliers, and sometimes even a flashlight in one useful package. They can be used for anything from making minor repairs to opening a beverage. You just never know when it’ll come in handy!
First Aid Kit:
If you’re injured in a road accident, there’s a chance you won’t be able to walk to your trunk to pull out a first aid kit, and you might not have time to wait for paramedics to arrive. In a less intense example, you might have a bit of a headache and need a pain reliever on a long road trip.
A compact first aid kit can be a literal life-saver in such a scenario. The Thrive First Aid Kit is an excellent, compact option that can fit in any glove box.
The ability to bandage a wound or treat an injury is well worth keeping at arm's length. We recommend storing a small first aid kit in your glove box, and a larger one in your trunk.
Safe, Ready, and Prepared:
There's a good chance that you'll still have some leftover room in your glove box, even if you've packed everything we recommended in this blog post. You're now ready for whatever the open road sends your way.
Get out there and start having road adventures!
Paul
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