Originally Posted by
SoSmellyAir
In my area most of the main roads have a 50 mph speed limit. Taking smaller roads means not having a bike lane and/or crossing more intersections. If someone was driving at about that speed would the Varia detect that as a high speed approach? I ask because if almost every car triggers a warning, my brain would most likely learn to ignore that. Also, I don't think speeding is the issue; the issue is distracted driving.
That’s a good point. Most roads I ride on have a 60 mph limit, but are quite narrow with lots of bends. So normally a vehicle approaching from behind would need to slow down before pulling out to pass me. If they don’t slow down then I normally get the more aggressive warning. But I’m not sure what the speed criteria actually is for the higher warning level. If you are riding on busy roads with a lot of constant traffic then it would probably not be worth having a Varia. Even if they don’t trigger the full warning, every single vehicle that passes you will still make it beep. So if it’s just a constant stream of traffic then there isn’t much point.
It’s value is when you are riding in very light rural traffic. Typically I’m being passed maybe only once or twice in a 5 min period so I’m fully aware of any vehicle approaching and it’s relative speed. The radar bleeps when it first picks up a vehicle and then I can monitor its “dot” on approach and confirm it is actually slowing down for me. But if the dot is racing toward me I will get the red alert warning and that’s when I really do pay serious attention to what is bearing down on me! If it looks like an idiot and not moving over I will unclip and pull off the road until it passes, but that’s thankfully a very rare situation. Usually it’s more a case of just adjusting my line and making sure I don’t swerve outward just as a vehicle is about to pass. I also never try to reach for my bottle or snacks when there is a vehicle on approach. Simple stuff like that which can make all the difference.