Night riding feels amazing

[PeteXXX]

Full beam on both my front lights.. Easy to find my way home from work! 👌

 

[bobsinatra]

Absolutely. Love riding at night for all the reasons you said. I virtually always ride on my own on day rides, but there's def a more intense solitude when ploughing through pitch black lanes.

I try and do a sunset to sunrise ride every year - and a long night ride on bonfire night - it's an amazing feeling when you've ridden through the night and you see the sun come up.

If it's not a really familiar route, it makes me realise how much I rely on what I can see when climbing - gradient, how much of the climb is left. Have always found climbing at night, which you have to do completely on feel, more difficult. Maybe not being able to blast downhill and use that momentum is a factor too.

Where I am in Hertfordshire, deer can be a real hazard though! Have had a few near misses

I am in St Albans, so don't come across many deers, but do see plenty of well fed foxes.

 

[bobsinatra]

You forgot the doggers in secluded lay-bys.

Edit: Oops! The ever-vigilant @Drago got his notebook out first.

Dogging has exploded in lockdown sadly.

 

[RichardB]

I'm thinking of venturing off road into the darkness of the forest. Alas I've never been alone in the forest so that'll be a first; previously I've always been with a group.

Edit: typo. Blxxdy heck i make a typo in every one of my psots.

Make sure you have a phone or other backup plan if you are in the wilderness at night doing something like cycling. A good friend of mine was a forester and was doing some surveying of forestry, alone, in Scotland. After dark and about a foot of snow. He was about a mile from his car when he tripped and fell face-first onto the sharp stump of a freshly-cut tree. His face was badly smashed up and he had no phone signal. Eventually he made it back to his car, having badly frightened an old lady in a cottage where he called for help. After that, his wife insisted on a satellite phone for him. An extreme example, but if you are doing a physical activity in a lonely and inaccessible place, it makes sense to do a bit of worst-case planning. Having sorted that, you can have fun.

 

[Blue Hills]

Dogging has exploded in lockdown sadly.

How do you know?

 

[rockyroller]

Full beam on both my front lights.. Easy to find my way home from work! 👌

beautiful

 

[rockyroller]

at nite in the snow anyone?

 

[Andy in Germany]

at nite in the snow anyone?

Rural cycle commuting in Germany features this frequently.

 

[Blue Hills]

at nite in the snow anyone?

I wouldn't.
Anything in ice territory (I know snow isn't ice) I stay off the bike.

 

[rockyroller]

Rural cycle commuting in Germany features this frequently.

👍 trying to decide if I want to do it for fun late afternoon/dusk today/tonight, for fun. have to work in the morning so I'm tempted to stay in, warm & dry

 

[rockyroller]

I wouldn't. Anything in ice territory (I know snow isn't ice) I stay off the bike.

heard that. I have a bad track record w/ ice

View: https://youtu.be/kuQpYZPUf3s

 

[Blue Hills]

I hope you hit the ground as gracefully as your bike.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Snow and ice are spiked tyre time.

 

[JPBoothy]

heard that. I have a bad track record w/ ice

View: https://youtu.be/kuQpYZPUf3s

That's the downside of two wheels isn't it. When that front end goes no amount of bike handling skill will save the spectacular dismount from happening.

 

[JPBoothy]

View attachment 561655

Full beam on both my front lights.. Easy to find my way home from work! 👌

Wow, they are awesome! Sorry if you have already said but, what brand of lights are they? How long does a charge/battery last you?