You know... I just did a trip on my bike the week of 25-APR, and I put a little over 2000 miles on it.

PTL203: I hear what you're looking for. For me, I have a Gamin Zumo 660. I made sure to clear out the current trip log, and went on vacation. When I was done each day, I used the laptop and the BaseCamp app to take the track files, condense them onto my laptop, then upload them to google maps where I ended up being able to showcase my route day by day. It doesn't do anything to let someone know where someone is, but if you have an iPhone, you can allow someone to know where you are. I have a whole write-up on how to do this here... http://www.arpaia.com/journey.html.

Shanebo: I love this tidbit you put in on Spotwalla.com - really makes the tracking and post reporting pretty simple.

Deucedog: Another awesome app to use to share your location, even if there is a time limit. Honestly, 4-5 hours maximum should be ok, because I don't know anyone who can ride that long. You'll need to stretch and refuel, let alone hit the head. Just remember to check your phone and reset the clock before you get back on.

I know of another Android App that allows you to track wherever you want to go, and it can send SMS or Emails if you want. I have it on my Android tablet. It's called GPS Logger for Android. It also saves files in GPX format so you can later import them to Google Maps or some other online utilities.

Say you want to see some statistics from your route, or see something a little interactive... I have three more sites which you can upload your GPX tracks to.

1 - GPS Vizualizer will take your files and create a map, or a graphic file, and even export/transform your data into a text file. www.gpsvisualizer.com/.

2 - uTrack will take your data, and create our Garmin tracks and have the site break everything down segment by segment, or put everything together in one continuous segment. It gives you a bunch of speed, distance, and elevation charts. http://utrack.crempa.net/

3 - MAPLORER claims to offer free maps, but I want to focus on one cool feature. This link http://maplorer.com/view_gpx.html is where you can upload your GPX file, and it creates a bit of an interactive map. If you place the mouse cursor near the blue bars, a green pin-dot appears on the map between the start and end points. I find this very useful if one of your routes goes in circles and you intersect a road throughout the day.

Enjoy!

 

To the OP - you now have plenty of options. From complex ways to map your ride, upload, transfer, interpret, etc . . . and simple "Turn the app on, somebody can see you" options!

 

Wow, some of these options seem above my technical skill. It seems Glympse is exactly what I was looking for so I will use that. Thanks everyone for their input

 

Some folks take it to the extreme. I figured that Glympse would be exactly what you needed!

 

Another app you can use and just run in the background is called MotionX-GPS. You can send your track to anyone via email at anytime and also your current position, a waypoint/location and send updates at different intervals from 30 seconds to 10 minutes. I used this on a couple of trips now, a 10k mile solo trip and also last summer with my wife on a 7500 mile one.

Here is a couple of screen shots...

 

I use Eat, Sleep, Ride...easy to use, no time limit, share with only who you want to.

 

I know you said you decided on an app but wanted to throw another vote for Spotwalla and Bubbler. I use it everytime I go on a ride out of town, takes 2 minutes to setup the trip and send the link to someone in case I go down. Another huge aspect for me is that you can set Bubbler to turn on anytime the phone is turned on. When I stop for gas, I sometimes forget to send a message, I can see me forgetting to reset a timer.

Here is another example of a trip using bubbler and spotwalla: https://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php...c556cfa6632c74 each of the green numbered spots are "we're done for the day and safe" messages. When I click the OK message a text goes to all the wives that we made it safe and sound for the day.

 

Spotwalla is the shiznit!

I have a Spot Trace on my bike thats basically tracks the bike every time that it moves.

My 2016 Trip Report.

and my current 2017 report as of today.

 

Of course all these devices and phone apps use GPS satellites to find your location. Then the phone apps use cell phone data service to send your location out to the world so it can be mapped on Spotwalla.com. How does this Spot Trace send your location out? Satellites? Is there a monthly fee to use it? Spot trace sounds good but the phone app is free. I don't like the idea that Spot Trace has AAA batteries. It would be nice if it used power from the cycle.

 

The SPOT Trace uses GPS satellites and SPOT send the GPS data over the internet. No cell phone is ever required for it to work and you can buy a power adapter to wire it to your bike. I have my Trace mounted under the front fairing on top of the radio and it's hard wired to the battery. For me, the device internal batteries are just backup incase the battery on the bike fails.

Granted theres the cost of the unit and theres an annual fee to SPOT as well, but for me, it's worth it.

I don't even think about the fact thats it on my bike anymore. No app to start, nothing to power on. I just get on the bike and go... and it tracks. I also have a movement alert set. So if the bike sits still for 30 minutes, I will get an email message the next time it moves. I like that when I am work, kind of like a security pager that works wherever you are. Even when on vacation.... you know your bike is at home safe and sound. I also have it setup to send a status message via email every 24hrs, this just lets me know that the device is still working and that it self-tested OK.

I am not a fan of SPOT as a Safety device such as the Gen3 is promoted to be. But the Trace as an asset tracker.... rocks! Two Thumbs up!

Kind of cool story. There was this one time that I couldn't pick up the bike from the dealership after a service so I had them deliver the bike back to the house. When they loaded it, I got the email alert that it moved so I started following it on the map. When the truck was about 2 miles from my house, I went outside and opened the garage door just as he pulled up to the curb. As I was talking to the driver, I remarked that he had my bike in his truck for quite sometime and that I "watched" him driving all over town picking up and delivering other bikes until he got to my house.