The dream is always the same; the vehicle goes off the road into the water and begins to sink. I try to remain calm and devise a plan for escape as the water surrounds me and I contemplate coming to terms with my watery death.
I’ve had this reoccurring nightmare throughout my life. The people, vehicle, and situations always change to reflect the current state of my life, but the theme remains. I have relived this emergency so often and in such realistic detail, I honestly wonder if it’s a premonition of my death. Every single time it is occurring, I think to myself, “This is it. It’s actually happening. All of those nightmares and now it’s really happening. Is this how I die?”
For years I traveled with a hammer in my vehicle in order to break the glass, for said emergency. But this was more for placebo effect than anything else, as it still presented problems. What if the vehicle rolls over and now I’ve got a hammer flying around? What if I break the glass but can’t get out of my seatbelt? I wanted to be prepared in case of emergency, whether it be real or imagined, for my own peace of mind. So, I set out to find a better solution and shared my fear with my local survival supply store. They had the perfect tool!
The SuperVizor XT – A Visor Mounted Lifesaver is an all-in-one life-saving tool designed by a paramedic, specifically made for escaping your vehicle. It has both a stainless steel seatbelt cutter and a carbide-tip window punch for shattering glass. The tool comes with a heavy duty sheath that mounts to your visor for easy accessibility during an emergency.
We took this handy little tool along with us on a recent 5500+km road trip and it really did give me much more peace of mind that my “trusty” old hammer. We have yet to test it out on any seatbelts or windows but plan to do so in the future and share our results.
One bit of feedback I can share at the moment is that the elastic band (attached to the sheath for mounting to the visor) does not actually fit our visor. We drive a Ford F-150 and while the visors are quite large, the elastic band is a good six inches too short. This leads me to believe that it won’t fit on many other vehicles such as vans, RVs, or other vehicles with larger windshield visors.
To solve this dilemma we installed the tool on the driver’s side door handle instead. We simply looped the elastic band around twice to get a snug, secure fit around the handle. One could also sew an elastic and Velcro extender with inexpensive supplies from a craft or Dollar Store if you were so inclined.
Be sure to check back soon for an update when we find a junk car to test it out on!
*You can pick these up or order them online from Briden Solutions in Calgary, Alberta.