visibility in dark commute

[NadiaMac]

Apologies if this has been covered recently, but I've been riding in in the dark in the am, and once the time changes, will be riding home in the dark in the pm. I have a primarily urban commute and I've noticed that cars pulling out of driveways don't see me even though I can see them-- I think my handlebar-mounted light is blocked by parked cars. I want to get a helmet mounted light to increase the chance that this type of vehicle will see me coming. Any suggestions on a helmet-mountable light (brand, and how to mount)?

Ideally, it is something that's easy to take on and off since I won't use it for weekend daytime rides (just for the commute).
thanks!

[Catrin]

Whatever light you decide upon, make certain you know how long the battery will last before you purchase it. I've the Stella Vis 360 helmet light (http://www.lightandmotion.com/bike/vis360.html) that I use - but the charge really only lasts about 55 minutes. It is USB chargable and comes with a large red flasher for the back of your helmet. It is very easy to put on/take off your helmet.

Bottom line, if your commute is under 1 hour this wouldn't be a bad choice. If it is longer, then you would need to use one of the lower light settings to conserve the charge and I wouldn't be comfortable with that. It is bright enough at the highest setting, but not so bright that I would be comfortable using it in the country away from ambient lighting. There is lighting on the side of the front light as well, which helps to increase side-visibility.

[soprano]

Do you have drop bars? I do, and I find that the brake hoods block the line of sight between my headlight and cars coming up on side streets. I supplement my big main headlight with a little blinking Spok light (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0015R40MQ/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_1?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B0015R9Q4S&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1NXPPX8FPYFH10523YF9) on the drop of my right handlebar and way fewer cars pull out in front of me.

Or you can do a helmet light. I recently bought a new headlight, and while I was shopping around I noticed that most of the headlight manufacturers seem to be making a helmet mount these days. Sometimes it's included with the light and sometimes you buy it separately.

[ZenBiker]

I have a helmet mounted light that I love. Three out of the 4 employees in my office who ride to work this time of year use the same kind. It was made by GeoManGear but when I went to get a link for this message, I discovered they went out of business over the summer, which is really too bad. So all I can do is echo the advice to find a nice, bright, rechargeable light for your helmet. It lets you make "eye contact" with any driver that you think might be overlooking you - and gets an instant response!

The one I use is pretty heavy, and a little bit of a hassle to take on and off. In fact the light unit plugs into a battery pack that you carry in a pocket, so there's a cord running up my back and into my helmet. Not exactly elegant but worth it for the long battery life and brightness it produces. I put it on an older helmet, one that still has useful life in it but that I opted to replace with a better vented one for summer use. So instead of taking the light on and off, I just switch helmets for weekend rides.

edited to add: I also use these for side visibility - and because they're fun: http://www.rei.com/product/774213/nite-ize-led-spokelit-bike-wheel-light

[Jones]

When I put a blinking light on the front of my bike I realized I became much more visible to cars. Far fewer close calls. I use this light to see http://www.rei.com/product/826129/niterider-minewt-pro-750-bike-light and this light to be scene http://www.rei.com/product/843467/niterider-lumina-350-bike-light. I never realized how much money I had invested in bike lights. Yikes.

[ZenBiker]

After discovering GeoMan Gear was out of business (see earlier post) I looked around and found that the light I bought from them is basically a Magicshine light like this one:
http://magicshineusa.com/products/lights/mj-808e-magicshine-1000-lumen-bike-light

The specs on mine are very similar. The battery will operate 180 minutes at the highest brightness setting. I like how the power button on the light changes color to show how much charge you have left, and the brightness and span of light thrown. Like I said earlier it is kind of heavy and you deal with a separate battery pack and cord. But it's a lot of light for the money and can be mounted on a helmet or handlebars.

[Giulianna23]

I got this one on ebay...I love it...the actual light has about 7 differet settings and the laser lines has the normal solid setting and blinking setting as well.
15618

[Sky King]

had to laugh at the DH last night so am bringing this up. He reset his generator powered light on his commuter and in the process cleaned the light. So he comes home and said "huh, amazing what cleaning your light will do to improve brightness" So on that note, grab the alcohol or windex or whatever you use and wipe off all your lights. I know it is something I don't think about.

[Eden]

I'll second all the suggestions for helmet, down lighting and side lighting. I look like a traveling carnival, but no one should ever be able to say they don't see me....from the front, behind or the side. I have a helmet light (Stella 200) a small flasher on my handlebars (Flea) Two rear red blinkers (Flea on my messenger bag, Dinotte on my bike), A blue bar LED on my downtube and a green flasher on my valve stem (cheapo from Toys R' Us, with overpowered silver calculator batteries put in it) Not to mention various reflective bits here there and everywhere. Most of this comes off pretty easily for daytime training rides - just the downtube light is zip tied on pretty permanently.

[NadiaMac]

Thanks for all of the suggestions! I currently have a niterider mininewt mounted on my drop bars and a cateye red rear light mounted on my tool bag. I definitely want to improve side visibility as well as getting a helmet light. I'm pretty happy with the niterider, though it doesn't do a terrific job at illuminating the actual street surface (a problem on darker streets).

Can't wait for the time to change so my longer morning ride is in the light! Or more of it, at least.
thanks again,
NM

[Eden]

Here's my commuter in all of it's light show glory (sorry it's just a bad ipod photo though). This doesn't include my helmet or messenger bag lights of course. The dinotte rear light is pretty thermo nuclear bright.....
The green on on the front spins with the wheel as well as flashing, so it's pretty eye catching. The blue one puts a pretty good light pool on the ground and also catches my front fender.
15621

[redeyedtreefr0g]

I'm currently using a flashlight mounted to my handlebar with an innertube. Its remarkably sturdy and a very good way to have a light. But, soon I'll have to replace the batteries in the flashlight. I also don't have a rear light, which concerns me. I figured I should just buy another bottle generator- the cheap plastic one I got for free off a free mountain bike quit on me- it had seemed pretty abused to start with, but I loved it while it did work.

So, any suggestions for a generator light set? I think LED bulbs might be brighter or last longer, and I've heard some sets have a way to keep the lights lit as you stop pedaling to wait for a red traffic light or something, so I'd prefer those features I think.

Edit: I also have some spoke lights! Two green ones, since that is my favorite color. They are simply circles and you twist them to turn on or back off. The only time that becomes a pain is when its raining and they are wet- i might cut little notches int he edges to give some grippy texture to them. I mounted one on each wheel opposite from the reflector. I've only seen one other bike with wheel lights like these, but s/he looked fantastic! My roommate was driving us and he saw the bike a long way off and we had no idea what it was at first. It made me so happy to realize that my cute little happy lights might be so much more useful than I'd thought.

[Melalvai]

In addition to lights, try a different lane position. If you are being hidden by parked cars, you may be riding too close to them. That puts you in the "door zone" and you can be hit by an opening door or run into an opening door.

I love my generator hub, but it doesn't help with side visibility. I have monkey lights & a downlow glow for that. I had a helmet light a few years ago, but it kept slipping off my helmet. It wasn't a cheap light either, so I would think it wasn't just a matter of quality. I was really disappointed because it sounded great for side visibility. But maybe they've improved the design since then.

[tothepeak]

I do a lot of night mountain bike riding, so have good lights from that, but I actually love them for commuting as well...I used to just use a few blinky lights, $20.00 bucks or so from the local bike shop...but I recently bought a few Exposure lights for night riding, and my night commuting has gotten way more fun...my bar light is the 1200 lumen Toro and helmet light is 1100 lumen Diablo...I also use a rear blinky just for extra lighting. It might seem excessive, but I think there is nothing better than being 100% confident that I am seen and I have a lot more fun, and feel that I have more freedom to ride around at night...they are pricey, but definitely worth it to me

[JermainePeter]

Apologies if this has been covered recently, but I've been riding in in the dark in the am, and once the time changes, will be riding home in the dark in the pm. I have a primarily urban commute and I've noticed that cars pulling out of driveways don't see me even though I can see them-- I think my handlebar-mounted led lighting (http://www.niceledlights.com) is blocked by parked cars. I want to get a helmet mounted light to increase the chance that this type of vehicle will see me coming. Any suggestions on a helmet-mountable light (brand, and how to mount)?

Ideally, it is something that's easy to take on and off since I won't use it for weekend daytime rides (just for the commute).
thanks!
Hello friend were you able to get helmet light with long lasting battery.. I am just facing same problem and I like your thought of using helmet lig
Waiting for reply thanks in advance:)

[Geonz]

I don't think color matters so much on the spoke lights; they're going round and round and that's what speaks "bicycle here!"
(I have had 'em all at some time or another. Oh, and you can put one 2032 battery in there and it does as well as the two 2016 that are stock; our bike project sells 2032 for a dollar so I do that).
Lane position is pretty important, too...
You can do lights much much cheaper -- a five dollar flashlight and rubber bands... a head lamp from a camping store... rear blinkies are a little harder to come by, tho', and IMHO they're really important.

[NadiaMac]

hi all/responding to Jermaine's question
I checked out this thread again now that my morning ride is in the dark again, and evening ride will soon be in the dark!

Here's what I am currently using for visibility (still a work in progress):
1) two industrial light and motion lights, one on bars (the urban 400, which is on the low end of lumens for their line but seems to work pretty well for my commute) and rear red light.
-I haven't gone to a helmet mounted light, but the ILM lamp came with an elastic strap for helmet mounting and their website has a whole section devoted to helmet mounts
-I'm really happy with these lights which hold charge well and have a variety of intensity/blink or nonblink settings. plus charge indicator (I never remember to charge lights without this feature). I'm still using the niterider/cat eye light combo (see original post) on my rain/pannier bike, but I think my visibility- and ability to see the road- is fantastically better with the ILM lights

2) lighter clothing- white arm warmers, white helmet, white vest, bright red gloves. I think this helps. My route has a few segments where I am going under freeways and I think the light helmet/clothes make me more visible even if I am not running my lights

3) to address the "I feel invisible from the side" issue:
-I got a set of sliver reflective bike wrappers -- reflective "wraps" that you can wrap around your top tube, seat tube, down tube, thus turning the entire tube into a reflective surface. I use these occasionally, and usually just use the top tube wrap. I think this helps, eg, when riding across a dark 4-way stop with cross traffic that isn't necessarily looking for a bike. The wraps are easy to put on and off, so I usually use just for my evening commute segment, which is where I have more traffic and more four-way stops with traffic coming at me from the sides. I don't use them in the am

- the ILM lights project light to the side as well as towards the front- clever!

4) I am considering putting more reflective tape onto my backpack, but haven't gotten to it yet.

ANy new ideas from the list on this topic?

[Thorn]

I regularly commute in the dark and, quite frankly, prefer it over riding in traffic during the day. I'm lit up like a Christmas tree, or, as a runner pointed out to me last week, "a strange alien being." If a car were to hit me, they would not be able to claim they didn't see me.

I have a generator hub on the front that drives a German LED headlight and taillight. It is bright enough by itself to ride on an unlighted MUP. Because the taillight is German, it is a solid light.

So on the rear, that isn't enough for me so I run dueling Planet Bike Turbo Flashes. They're irritating and with the 2 strobes running out of sync, I cannot be missed. I've had cars roll down their window at stop lights to ask about the lights and thank me (I'm sure a few cuss me out, too, but those I ignore).

As for side lighting, I added reflective tape to the spokes (http://www.rei.com/product/808967/lightweights-for-wheels-power-reflectors ). When I put them on, my attitude was "it can't hurt". They work well even 2 years later with a coating of road dirt and mud. And, of course, my panniers and jacket have reflective tape (but note: reflective tape only works at a short distance. By the time a car sees your reflective tape, it is probably too late -- use lights if you can).

I also ride with a light and motion 360 on my helmet. Better than a horn -- focusing the headlight into the interior of the car/truck coming at you from the side makes you immediately visible. I've had cars coming from cross streets clearly not have seen me slam on their brakes after I "flash them"....of course, if they had *stopped* at the stop sign...but I digress. The L&M is nice because it is a USB charge -- I can easily recharge it at work if I run down the charge (one charge gets me about 2 hours).

Anyway....there is a lot of great lighting out there. Some of it expensive (the Light and Motion isn't cheap, nor was my generator setup), but there is a lot of less expensive kit (like my Planet Bike Turbo Flashes) that aren't that expensive and work well.

[carlotta]

I prefer a dark commute as well (other than the getting up early part :) ). Overall, I'm pretty comfortable with my setup:

-Front: main light is a Busch & Muller Ixon IQ. Battery powered German light that I LOVE. Nicely shaped beam and plenty bright for unlit trail. Right now, it's on my bars, but I have a fork mount that I'll try whenever my new bike shows up-- the fork mount and the cantis on my current commuter don't play nicely together. I also have a Flea that I run on strobe since the big light is solid only.

-Rear: Flea on the rack and some kind of little Knog in one of the vents on my helmet. Both running on different flash patterns.

-Passive: reflective trim on shoes, jacket(s), helmet, pannier. Reflective tape on the legs of my rack and reflective strip on my tires (more visible when they're clean...).

The only things I'm contemplating changing is adding some kind of annoyingly bright helmet light for the 6am zombie drivers and a more sturdy rack-mounted tail light (Flea is currently held in place by a velcro strap and a paperclip...). I'm on the fence about the helmet light since it really would be for about 15 minutes of apartment-to-trail distance in the mornings but I suppose if I can find something cheap and rechargeable I may give it a shot.