Fix auto ping status sequence to prevent countdown timer conflicts

[Copilot]

Auto ping status messages appeared out of order: "Waiting for API post" immediately followed by "Sending auto ping..." because the countdown timer's updateAutoCountdownStatus() continued running during the ping cycle, overwriting in-flight status updates.

Changes

• Stop countdown timer when ping starts: Added stopAutoCountdown() call at entry to sendPing() in auto mode to prevent timer from overwriting status during ping operations
• Set initial status explicitly: Display "Sending auto ping..." immediately when auto ping begins, before GPS and message operations
• Normalize status message text: Changed "Waiting to post to API" to "Waiting for API post" for consistency

Flow

// Before: timer kept running, overwrote statuses mid-ping
updateAutoCountdownStatus() // runs every 1s, shows "Sending auto ping..." when remainingMs <= 0
  → conflicts with "Waiting for API post" during 7s API delay

// After: timer stopped during ping, restarts only after completion
sendPing(false)
  → stopAutoCountdown() // lines 476
  → "Sending auto ping..."
  → "Waiting for API post" (+100ms)
  → API call (+7000ms)
  → scheduleNextAutoPing() → startAutoCountdown() (+8000ms)
  → "Waiting for next auto ping (30s)"

The countdown now properly pauses during active ping operations and resumes only when scheduleNextAutoPing() is called after the full ping cycle completes.

Original prompt

Since the last merge the auto ping behaviour is now working correctly but the status seems werid. It goes from Waiting for API post to sending auto ping... immediatly. What is sending auto ping? When the timer runs out it should go:

Sending auto ping -> Waiting for API post -> waiting for next auto ping

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