Our guest blogger David has been a Life360 member for the past two years. Here, he shares how he used the family safety app when their outdoorsy summer vacation took an unexpected turn.

I wanted to take my kids on one last summer adventure before the new school year began. We woke everyone up early in the morning, packed the car, and drove three hours north to a town with a popular ATV park. My wife and I both grew up ATVing, and enjoyed sharing it with our two sons over the years. This particular park was our favorite — an old rock quarry with over 1,000 acres of forested areas and sand dunes.

After we’d ridden for half the day, I stopped to help my youngest son with his dirt bike. That’s when my eldest son decided to take a solo ride.

After 30 minutes passed and he didn’t return, we started to worry. We checked Life360 and saw that he wasn’t moving and we became extremely concerned.

Life360 pinpointed my son’s location in a large green area on the map and I knew he was somewhere in the forest. I jumped back on my ATV and headed towards him using the Life360 map to guide me. After about 2 miles over multiple rivers and through steep valleys, I finally reached him. He had crashed into a tree and been launched into a nearby ravine.

He was disoriented from the crash and his knee was dislocated, so he couldn’t walk. If it hadn’t been for Life360, we would have had to hire a search party and comb through 1,000 acres.

My family downloaded Life360 a couple years ago after my brother suggested it to me — and we’ll never take it off of our phones. Since we live in a rural area, our kids often arrive home before my wife and I are finished commuting. We love the security of knowing that they’ve arrived safely. And in those moments when every second counts, Life360 has always been there for us.

Learn more about Life360 membership and find the plan that fits your family at Life360.com.