T.M.H.N.E.T
Rainbows aren't just for world champions
- Location
- Northern Ireland
No.
Is riding on unlight country roads at night suicide?
- Thread starter MacLean
- Start date
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Tom B
Guru
- Location
- Lancashire
As many others have said no.
My commute takes me out into the sticks into the early hours.
I feel far safer than riding in the day, especially safer than riding into a low sun during the day which also occurs during a few weeks of the year for me.
Lights. Several they don't have to be super expensive, I have a big bright one and a couple of marker/secondary lights.
My commute takes me out into the sticks into the early hours.
I feel far safer than riding in the day, especially safer than riding into a low sun during the day which also occurs during a few weeks of the year for me.
Lights. Several they don't have to be super expensive, I have a big bright one and a couple of marker/secondary lights.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
Only when its likely to be icy. If it isn't icy with a decent set of lights you are more noticeable than you would have been in the daylight.
froze
Über Member
- Location
- Fort Wayne, Indiana
Riding dark country roads at night is actually fun! But you do need to take safety precautions.
A lot of posts here and I don't have time to read all of them so this may have been already mentioned. Obviously, you will need lights, and reflective gear, duh! LOL!!
Here is the lights and reflective gear I use at night, not saying mine is the best, just saying this is what I do, you have a lot of opinions already, just find the one that appeals to you and follow it.
I use two front lights and two rear lights. I live in America so flashing lights are legal, not sure where you live but in some countries flashing lights are not legal, so the lights I mention may or may not be available where you live.
Having said that I use an old but very good Phillips Saferide 80 light on the handlebars, this light is fantastically bright, a little dated now but I have no problems with how much light it puts on the road, this light I put on steady mode, but that's the only mode it has since it was made for the European market. The front bar light should be your brightest light, you don't need more than 1,400 lumens, but you need at least 600. Ravemen makes great lights for the money, it's what I would buy if I was looking for a new light, they have several different models depending on how bright you want it, how long you want it to run, and of course how much you can afford to spend.
The second front light needs to be a small light that can fasten to your helmet. I use the Lezyne Mini 400xL, not horribly bright but I use it on the strobe mode to attract attention. If you live where a strobing light is illegal then find a small light you can mount, then simply move your head toward an oncoming car back and forth to attract the driver's attention.
For the rear your main light needs to be as bright as you can find, I use a Nite Rider Omega 300, I think they up'd the lumens to 330 now so it might be called the Omega 330? Anyway, this light is extremely bright and it has a larger surface area making it more visible than those pinpoint type of small lights. That light I use that in the steady mode. That light mounts to my seat post.
The second rear light I use is a Niterider Sentry Aero 260, that light has extremely good side visibility, and that light I put on alternating mode that switches from the rear to the sides and back. This light mounts to my helmet.
The reason I use a combination of steady and flashing is due to studies, Canadian and American studies have shown that flashing is the best because it attracts attention; Euro studies showed that steady is the best because people can judge their distance to a cyclist better with a steady light. So I decided to use both!
Reflective wise, I use reflective ankle straps. According to studies old people could not see motionless reflective items, but the up and down motion they could, so I use those. I also have the usual reflective stuff, but I did have to buy reflective tape for the helmet. My clothing and shoes already come with reflective stuff built in, yes even though my shoes have it, the reflective area is quite small which is why I went with the straps. My saddle bag also has reflective piping. And I wear a reflective work vest I got at a home improvement place for $15; mine is a mesh style so air can pass through it, it has very wide reflective bands on it, and it is a neon green color, though in the summer with tree leaves out yellow or orange is better, but at the time I bought it I didn't know that, but it's used mostly at night so the neon color isn't that critical.
I do not rely on passive lighting, it's just an added thing for a bit of added safety; I count on my active lighting for my main safety.
Like I said, that's what I do, and those are the lights I use, not saying what I do or use is the best, it's just what I feel works the best for me. I have to ride a bit in the city at night before hitting the country roads, so flashing to me is critical in the city, not so much out on a lightly travel country road, but I think it's somewhat important there too. The problem with flashing lights is drunks are attracted like bugs to flashing lights, so there is a very small possible problem with that, but in 40-plus years of using flashing lights, I have yet to be clobbered by a drunk.
A lot of posts here and I don't have time to read all of them so this may have been already mentioned. Obviously, you will need lights, and reflective gear, duh! LOL!!
Here is the lights and reflective gear I use at night, not saying mine is the best, just saying this is what I do, you have a lot of opinions already, just find the one that appeals to you and follow it.
I use two front lights and two rear lights. I live in America so flashing lights are legal, not sure where you live but in some countries flashing lights are not legal, so the lights I mention may or may not be available where you live.
Having said that I use an old but very good Phillips Saferide 80 light on the handlebars, this light is fantastically bright, a little dated now but I have no problems with how much light it puts on the road, this light I put on steady mode, but that's the only mode it has since it was made for the European market. The front bar light should be your brightest light, you don't need more than 1,400 lumens, but you need at least 600. Ravemen makes great lights for the money, it's what I would buy if I was looking for a new light, they have several different models depending on how bright you want it, how long you want it to run, and of course how much you can afford to spend.
The second front light needs to be a small light that can fasten to your helmet. I use the Lezyne Mini 400xL, not horribly bright but I use it on the strobe mode to attract attention. If you live where a strobing light is illegal then find a small light you can mount, then simply move your head toward an oncoming car back and forth to attract the driver's attention.
For the rear your main light needs to be as bright as you can find, I use a Nite Rider Omega 300, I think they up'd the lumens to 330 now so it might be called the Omega 330? Anyway, this light is extremely bright and it has a larger surface area making it more visible than those pinpoint type of small lights. That light I use that in the steady mode. That light mounts to my seat post.
The second rear light I use is a Niterider Sentry Aero 260, that light has extremely good side visibility, and that light I put on alternating mode that switches from the rear to the sides and back. This light mounts to my helmet.
The reason I use a combination of steady and flashing is due to studies, Canadian and American studies have shown that flashing is the best because it attracts attention; Euro studies showed that steady is the best because people can judge their distance to a cyclist better with a steady light. So I decided to use both!
Reflective wise, I use reflective ankle straps. According to studies old people could not see motionless reflective items, but the up and down motion they could, so I use those. I also have the usual reflective stuff, but I did have to buy reflective tape for the helmet. My clothing and shoes already come with reflective stuff built in, yes even though my shoes have it, the reflective area is quite small which is why I went with the straps. My saddle bag also has reflective piping. And I wear a reflective work vest I got at a home improvement place for $15; mine is a mesh style so air can pass through it, it has very wide reflective bands on it, and it is a neon green color, though in the summer with tree leaves out yellow or orange is better, but at the time I bought it I didn't know that, but it's used mostly at night so the neon color isn't that critical.
I do not rely on passive lighting, it's just an added thing for a bit of added safety; I count on my active lighting for my main safety.
Like I said, that's what I do, and those are the lights I use, not saying what I do or use is the best, it's just what I feel works the best for me. I have to ride a bit in the city at night before hitting the country roads, so flashing to me is critical in the city, not so much out on a lightly travel country road, but I think it's somewhat important there too. The problem with flashing lights is drunks are attracted like bugs to flashing lights, so there is a very small possible problem with that, but in 40-plus years of using flashing lights, I have yet to be clobbered by a drunk.
brommieinkorea
Well-Known Member
Here in the US there has been so much lobbying to go after drunk drivers that if you're over the limit, you're at fault. This means the drunks are really trying to pay attention. My lights really show up in the dark, so that's a plus. I too use a reflective vest. In many states it's a $10k + fine for hitting a road worker, and road workers all wear reflective vests, I tend to think the reflective vest puts a little scare into inattentive car jockeys and they pay notice for a minute or two. Yep, probably safer late at night.
