What are your thoughts on cycling at night for fun?
01-20-20, 04:11 PM
#51
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The safety is probably fine with a decent set of lights. What would put me off is the cold and dark, unless it's a warm night. And limited sight distance on downhills can make them slow and tedious.
01-20-20, 06:18 PM
#52
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Sorry to be the lone dissenter but I prefer to ride in daylight hours. I still use a front light and a rear blinkie but I can see the road better and the obstacles that are out there.
01-20-20, 06:37 PM
#53
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We have a local park that has access roads that are closed at night. Me and a buddy take our lights and ride those roads often. Super cool at night, especially in the fall with leaves on the road. It seems all of your senses are heightened; its sort of a tunnel vision.
01-20-20, 07:16 PM
#54
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Above the 49th parallel here, so at this time of the year, "night" starts around 4:30pm, so if I want to ride, it's going to be in the dark.
When I started, I had NiteRider ($300+) lights, but after getting sub-par products (connecting cable failed) and even worse support ("Here's another cable...oh, still doesn't work? That's too bad." The end.
), I gave up on those.
Went to cheapie $20 Chinese headlights like this about eight years ago:
2+ hours of run time on "medium" (two of the three LEDs lit up), crazy-bright, easy to mount on just about anything, they last fine, and are perfectly waterproof (west coast rider here):
After a bunch of different rear lights, I finally settled on CygoLite's HotShot Pro 150 (150 lumen flasher - daytime "HEY I'M HERE!" brightness).
Similar to others, I feel like I'm better-seen at night than I am during the day.
Only thing better than a night ride on a nice clear, cool night is XC skiing under the moonlight - no need for lights there because of the moonlight bouncing off all the snow.
When I started, I had NiteRider ($300+) lights, but after getting sub-par products (connecting cable failed) and even worse support ("Here's another cable...oh, still doesn't work? That's too bad." The end.
), I gave up on those.Went to cheapie $20 Chinese headlights like this about eight years ago:
2+ hours of run time on "medium" (two of the three LEDs lit up), crazy-bright, easy to mount on just about anything, they last fine, and are perfectly waterproof (west coast rider here):
After a bunch of different rear lights, I finally settled on CygoLite's HotShot Pro 150 (150 lumen flasher - daytime "HEY I'M HERE!" brightness).
Similar to others, I feel like I'm better-seen at night than I am during the day.
Only thing better than a night ride on a nice clear, cool night is XC skiing under the moonlight - no need for lights there because of the moonlight bouncing off all the snow.
01-21-20, 10:11 AM
#55
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If you aren't worried about running some wiring on your bike, get a motorcycle headlight, and 5630 LEDs, 10 bucks for a 20 watt headlight, 8-10 bucks for a spool of 16.4ft/5M of red or whatever color you want with 300 LEDs, I use a 12v 20AH battery and for my winter ride it can do a week of an hour a night, my summer ride I charge the battery daily, if you go with lead acid it is 8 pounds, and if you have the money to get a lithium it is much lighter, but that size usually runs around 200USD.
My winter ride.
My summer ride.
Having blue lights that face down gives you 360 degree visibility to cars.
My winter ride.
My summer ride.
Having blue lights that face down gives you 360 degree visibility to cars.
01-24-20, 10:34 PM
#57
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If you aren't worried about running some wiring on your bike, get a motorcycle headlight, and 5630 LEDs, 10 bucks for a 20 watt headlight, 8-10 bucks for a spool of 16.4ft/5M of red or whatever color you want with 300 LEDs, I use a 12v 20AH battery and for my winter ride it can do a week of an hour a night, my summer ride I charge the battery daily, if you go with lead acid it is 8 pounds, and if you have the money to get a lithium it is much lighter, but that size usually runs around 200USD.
My winter ride.
My summer ride.
Having blue lights that face down gives you 360 degree visibility to cars.
My winter ride.
My summer ride.
Having blue lights that face down gives you 360 degree visibility to cars.
01-26-20, 08:28 AM
#58
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I don't know if using blue lights in the USA is a good idea or not. Those blue lights are usually reserved for police departments. There's a helmet sold by rockbros that has blue lights on the back of the helmet. There seems to be some issues with riders being stopped while using the lights.
01-26-20, 12:18 PM
#59
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The sun energizes me, so riding in the daylight is my preference. But commuting with a mixed day/night schedule has me riding about half and half (2,250 daytime miles and 2,250 nighttime miles per year). 75% of bike accidents happen during the day, so night riding is actually safer. Because I am familiar with the highways and bi-ways during the days. speed results are similar for day and night. I use a 3,000 Lumens headlight and 320 Lumens taillight, the majority of my ride, I have the headlight on low because the streets are well lit and I do not want to blind drivers. In Seal Beach, there is a Navy Weapons Station, and about 2 miles along Pacific Coast Highway are dark going through, and the highway has a cement divider. That's when I burn the full 3,000 Lumens. I prefer riding in the daylight, but ride about half the time at night per commute schedule. The night rides on familiar roads are faster/enjoyable, and good lights are helpful. I've discovered a 1,000 Lumens headlight to be about the same as a 3,000 Lumens; the 3,000 Lumens are brighter, of course, but visible distance is similar, and 1,000 Lumens is bright enough.
And 75% happen within 20 miles of home, so you should drive that far away to start the ride!
Another point is that night riding is often on known routes, so one already accounts for hazards, speeds, etc., and mainly need to watch for animals and the odd road debris.
I finished a ride in the dark last night and descended the final 400' hill at the typical ~35 mph with a 500 lumen light, but there was a car further ahead 'lead blocking'.
