A Wyoming motorcyclist is lucky he had an iPhone with emergency satellite access to text for help after pinning himself under his own bike in the rugged backcountry near Little Bear and Minnie Holden Creek in western Wyoming.
It’s a place where cellphone service can be spotty and help doesn’t come easily.
Lincoln County Search and Rescue reports it was dispatched to the area about 1:41 p.m. Sunday. Because of muddy roads and snowdrifts, it took the rescue team about 40 minutes to arrive at the scene.
The rider, a 60-year-old man from the Evanston area who was not identified, was freed, evaluated and suffered only minor injuries, Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Cory Stoof told Cowboy State Daily.
He did not require an airlift or ambulance and was able to ride his bike out, said Stoof, who added that crews saw only one other vehicle on the road, and it might have been a while before anyone found him if he hadn’t been able to send that text alert.
“He was stuck pretty good,” Stoof said, adding that the man’s leg was pinned under the bike.
On later versions of iPhones (versions 14 and later), users with limited or no cell service can send an emergency text using satellite to contact emergency services and emergency contacts.
That’s what allowed the trapped motorcyclist to text his wife, who alerted authorities to send help, Stoof said.
Hundreds Of Responses A Year
Stoof also said that the area where the motorcyclist was stuck isn’t usually accessible at this time of year. However, because of unusually warm weather, riders are venturing farther than normal to see how far they can go — a risky endeavor when alone.
The incident reflects a broader trend across Wyoming’s wide-open spaces.
Search and rescue teams in Wyoming, on average, respond to more than 300 missions across the state each year, according to the Wyoming Office of Homeland Security.
Those can involve volunteers and professionals in situations where someone took a wrong turn, pushed too far, had a backcountry accident, or simply got unlucky.
The callouts follow a familiar pattern, the agency reports: hunters who don’t return on time; hikers who underestimate terrain; snowmobilers buried in deep powder; skiers and snowboarders veering off trail; and, increasingly, motor vehicle incidents like this one where machines break, trails disappear, and people get stuck.
While it’s easy to assume out-of-state visitors are most often in trouble, the numbers tell a different story. More often, search and rescue responses are for locals, people who know the land who end up needing help.
Kolby Fedore can be reached at kolby@cowboystatedaily.com.
