To dip or not to dip, that is the question.

[ComedyPilot]

So, I went for a 22 mile ride to town and back last night to get a DVD. I ride on unlit country roads to avoid main roads and being cleaned up by murderers drivers who will be excused because they say they didn't see me.

Any hows - about 2 miles of the trip is street lamp lit (in villages/town) but the rest is pitch black.

Of the 12 or so cars passing me on the route, 7 of them did not dip their lights at all, and the other 5 only dipped them within 10 yards of me??????

The last one might have kerbed their alloys avoiding me as I wobbled around in front of them shielding my eyes.

I use 2 Cateye EL610's up front and have a hi-viz vest, and work colleagues have commented how 'visible' I am from afar. My lights are trained on the road in front of me to pick out dangers etc, but the ambient light thrown out still lights up reflective signs 4-500 yards away and my bike lights are nowhere near as efficient as dipped car lights. So why are these drivers not dipping? Can they not see 2 lights and reflective strips moving about in the distance, so they need to get REAL close before dipping?

Time to get out the million candle power hand-held torch and go hunting methinks.

 

[Alien8]

So why are these drivers not dipping?

The usual reason I guess - ignorance.

At least motorists that don't dip are just twats but I don't understand those that wait until they are on top of you until dipping - but it's common behaviour.

 

[semislickstick]

Hard to dip lights when you're on the phone!

You need a brighter light to 'remind' them. Although I've noticed some will do it to another car, so maybe they don't care or they really don't have a spare hand free to change their lights!!

 

[daSmirnov]

I get mixed response around here. Most drivers are fantastic and dip their lights as soon as they've come around a corner even a couple of hundred metres away.

Some I remind, but just by moving one of my lights left and right.

Then of course some don't bother, but then it wouldn't surprise me if they don't bother for cars either. But I'm pretty good at shielding my eyes.

 

[ComedyPilot]

I'd like to think that they don't bother for cars, but 3 of them had just passed cars, then put the lights up and blinded me for 150 yards till they got past.

 

[BlackPanther]

I have an uber bright helmet mounted torch that is perfectly angled to light up the road 10-15 yards in front of me. If someone comes towards me on full beam, a little raise of the head and it's just like they've been 'flashed' by another driver. It seems to work most of the time and they dip their beam.

 

[snorri]

If you can be sure everything is clear behind, you can drift towards the middle of the road as if mesmerised by the lights, they usually dip before you cross the middle of the road. That has worked for me......................up to now.

 

[Glow worm]

If you can be sure everything is clear behind, you can drift towards the middle of the road as if mesmerised by the lights, they usually dip before you cross the middle of the road. That has worked for me......................up to now.

Yes I've done that a few times. They soon get the message! To be fair though it's pretty rare for it to happen to me hereabouts, most drivers around here dip their lights as soon as they see me.

 

[ComedyPilot]

It must be an East Yorkshire rural phenomenon? Trust me, compared to other people on bikes round here my lights are very good and clear from a looooong way off, as is the hi viz.

On the same road a year or so ago I came to a complete halt in front of a 'motorist', got off my bike, walked calmly to the driver's window, shone my really bright Petzl headtorch in his eyes and said, "sorry for stopping you and delaying you, but I couldn't see a thing because some prat decided to blind me with their full beam headlights'. I then got back on and rode away. Whether he now dips for cyclists/walkers/horses is debatable, but that night he sure found out that it wasn't acceptable from the recipient.

 

[Crankarm]

Could it be that your lights are equally dazzling to oncoming traffic hence the large proportion of drivers who are not dipping for you? Just a thought. If not then you need to acquire an Exposure Max D Mk4 preferably x2. This will melt tarmac ...............

Round here about 50% of cars have only one head light working which is often misaligned so very bright making approaching them hazardous.

 

[HovR]

I had this problem today, and I found that angling my 5W bar mounted light from pointing to the road, to directly towards the drivers windshield, seemed to do the trick.

 

[ComedyPilot]

Could it be that your lights are equally dazzling to oncoming traffic hence the large proportion of drivers who are not dipping for you? Just a thought. If not then you need to acquire an Exposure Max D Mk4 preferably x2. This will melt tarmac ...............

Round here about 50% of cars have only one head light working which is often misaligned so very bright making approaching them hazardous.

No Cranks, my lights don't dazzle, they point to the road in front about 10-15m and are handlebar mounted (so point down) instead of fork mounted that 'might' point up.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

More likely the other way around. Many car drivers only dip the lights on a MAD basis and if you can't dazzle them, they don't give a toss about you.

^ This.

With one teeny rider. Even if you can dazzle them, they still don't give a toss about you. You're just a cyclist.

 

[MontyVeda]

When I used to cycle back roads at night near Lancaster to and from work... i had a 1 in 5 ratio of drivers who'd bother dipping for a cyclist. I assume it's because we're not a proper vehicle and therefore we don't need such consideration... or they think "I'll give this cyclist some light because the lights he has are a bit small".

However when i moved up to Cumbria for a few years the drivers were a lot more considerate, more like 4 out of 5 would dip their lights for me.

 

[Milo]

Most dip round here (WIltshire) those who don't imminently tend to once i wiggle the handlebars a bit towards them.