Night Riding

[pink monkey]

I'm looking to do some night riding this summer but i've noticed that lights range from 30 bucks all the way up to 500!! I was hoping i could get some recommendations on what lights to buy. I can't afford to spend much but I want adequate vision on the trails... is that possible??

Also, Any tips on night riding would be greatly appreciated!!!

[crazycanuck]

Funny you ask..I just picked up a copy of the Aust MTB Mag & they discuss this exact thing. Don't scrimp on cheap, heavy lights as you'll spend more time swearing & wondering why you bought them. Are you thinking about doing a 12hr or 24hr on a team?

I and many many many mtn bikers in Perth & Aust have fell under the spell of Ay-ups. They're a great light set for night riding & are very very light. I think most of the riders at our 12hr in Dec used them www.ayup.com.au The battery is as light as a small kleenex box & easily mounted.

Night riding-an idea would be to ride the trail during the day to get a feel for it and possibly memorize it. Ok, that's what I do Then, depending on your skill level, go out towards dusk & do the trail as slowly as you feel comfortable. Think about where your lights are positioned.

Have fun

[pink monkey]

wow! those actually look really neat. do you know what exactly i'd need if i didn't buy the kit? would it be cheaper this way? I need to minimize costs as much as possible so i'd like to be able to just buy what I want/need. I'd just like a light to mount on my handlebars, i think that will be sufficient for me right now.

[crazycanuck]

A friend of mine bought a flashlight & used that as his bar mounted light. No idea how it worked though.

Do you want to make your own set of lights? You realize how heavy some of the batteries are... We went down that path a year or so ago & it's not worth the hassles Ian went to an electronics hobby store & purchased the lighting items, batteries etc.

The AMB mag also had an article about making your own lights. I'd be more than happy to scan it & send it to you if you'd like.

If you're going to use the lights all the time for road or dirt, then investing $ into a set might not be a bad idea? If you're doing regular night riding during the year & say a 12hr (ours is at night..) then there's another reason.

Cateye Double shots or Triple shots might be another idea. They're more expensive than ay-ups.

[pinkbikes]

wow! those actually look really neat. do you know what exactly i'd need if i didn't buy the kit? would it be cheaper this way? I need to minimize costs as much as possible so i'd like to be able to just buy what I want/need. I'd just like a light to mount on my handlebars, i think that will be sufficient for me right now.

Like CrazyCanuck I am also a huge fan of the Ay-ups and have done a couple of dusk2dawns and a couple of 24hour races with them. I have looked at other lights that people have recommended here and thought - oh yeah, they look great - but when it comes down to the lightest, brightest bang for your buck, the Ay-ups win that for me.

I think that some of the others have some neater features in terms of flexibility (like flashing capability and lower light setting for longer battery life etc) but if you don't mind simple and you want something light, bright and reliable (and in pretty colours too) then the Ay-ups are really great.

In terms of what you'd need..

- A light set (this is the twin light with a socket on the back for the lead from the battery) in colour and beam width of your choice
- Mounting bracket with rubber strap (for helmet or bars or both)
- Battery (3hour or 6hour, switched or unswitched)
- Battery pouch or gecko mount depending where you want to put it
- Charger with local power plug lead

Then if you want to run two lights you need to double up on the first four but don't need another charger. All the other stuff in the kits are "nice to haves" like the little neoprene bags to protect your lights when they are not on the bike and extra extension leads if you want to wear your battery in your backpack instead of on your helmet, or extra batteries to be able to do longer races without charging, car charger plug etc.

I note you are only considering riding with a light on your handlebars. If you are only planning to ride on the road or paved bikeways then that would be fine and I often do that with one set of my lights (although usually the helmet ones for convenience - I have a "night helmet" that has the lights mounted on it all the time).

But if you are planning to ride MTB trails in the dark I would suggest that it may be a mistake? From one who has done quite a bit of riding trails in the dark now (and truly loves it even though the idea had me a bit scared at first) I would not like to do it without lights on both bars and helmet.

Both lights perform a different function. I use a wider angle shorter throw light on the bars to see where the bike is currently going - more a peripheral vision thing. The helmet light is a narrower and more penetrating beam for looking ahead to where you will be going - where you really need to be looking. This is most evident when you go through switchbacks and you are looking around/across the curve to the exit. Without your helmet light you are unable to do this because your handlebars are still pointing somewhere halfway around the curve! I learnt this firsthand when I forgot to charge my helmet battery once and it went out on some singletrack, leaving me looking at a bunch of dark across the curve!

I don't think it matters what set of lights you end up getting, I think you will enjoy the experience of riding MTB in the dark and come to grips with it much quicker with two set of lights. And if you really had to limit yourself to one set, I would make them the ones on your helmet, as they are the more critical IMHO.

In terms of tips - I actually find that I do one of two things when I take people for their first rides in the dark. Either I go riding with them in late afternoon and we turn our lights on and keep riding as it gets darker and darker until they find themselves riding in the dark (in familiar territory). Or I meet them after dark at my place and take them to the forest from there. It is a nice ride along a concrete bikeway for about 2km, getting progressively less well lit. Then we go into the forest and up a long fire trail which is a bit steep but not technically difficult, and finally we do one of the easier single tracks. By the time we get to the singetrack they are pretty comfortable in the dark and are usually having a great time and I have to drag them back the same way!

Remember your helmet is the height of the light taller than usual and you have to duck a little more!

Don't forget to charge your helmet light battery!

Relax, go slow and enjoy it. It really is beautiful. And sometimes when you don't see all the big scary things it is easier to do them in the dark! You might be surprised.

[Selkie]

If you are serious about riding after dark, invest in a good headlight and tail light.

I highly recommend Lights and Motion lamps, and currently use L&M's Seca Ultra model. It is not inexpensive; however, it's reliable, efficient, has three levels, plus a flash mode. I found that I can see well on low, even riding on unlit trails. Battery life, particularly on low setting, is incredible. The battery is not heavy and during the winter, I noticed no decrease in run times even below freezing. The Seca's handlebar attachment is super easy to use, too, and the lamp easily switches between bikes. In addition to a handlebar mount, you can mount it on your helmet. The battery recharges quickly, too. By the way, L&M products are made in the USA!

If you don't want to spend that much, L&M makes the Stella lamp which is more economically priced. I haven't tried it yet, but based on my experience with L&M lamps (I used to use their ARC-LiOn lamps before upgrading to the Seca), I would recommend the Stella. When my backup lamp goes, I probably will get a Stella.

L&M's website is www.bikelights.com

[ridebikeme]

Ahhh night riding, it's one of my favorite times to ride! We host night rides here, adn have for many years. The difference between your $30 lights and the mosre expensive is enormous. The less expensive lights are something that really are designed to get you home, something where you might have been caught at sunset but not something that you would ride intentionally at dark. The more expenive lights are something that generally have a longer run time, easier to charge, brighter etc... I have a set of Turobcat lights and have been extremely satisified with them!! Their customer service is absolutely wonferful!! I was riding with a group and we accidentally rode into water that was above our waists while sitting on the bike, obsviously the lights are not intended to be on while in water, so needless to say, I was a bit worried. I took them off the bike once home, let them dry for several days and am still using them several years later. I also own a set of the new Princeton tech lightsl, although haven't had the opportunity to use them a whole lot.

At any rate, make sure to ride with a tailight and anything reflective that you own... it helps others to see you from several angles. I also use a helmet light, the handlebar lights give me light in the direction that the bike is moving, but if I need to see something BEFORE I turn the handlebars then that's where the helmet light comes in. It's extremely helpful. If your lights have a low and a high beam, I set the low beam directly in front of the bike and the high beam further ahead, that way when traveling at a faster speed you won't out run the light. Obviously, you'll need to time the amount of light with the amount of time that you ride so as not to outrun the available light.

Have a great time riding in the dark, it's loads of fun!!