Rear View Mirror

[anne_77]

I've noticed that you can buy rear view mirrors for either your handle bars or helmet. Any thoughts on which is preferable?

[RoadRaven]

My brother in law has them for commuting in the city;his attach to his glasses and he says they are invaluable

Personally, I have not used any since I have come back to cycling...

[DeniseGoldberg]

I tried one attached to my glasses last year, and I hated it. I suspect I would have the same problem with a mirror attached to my helmet. The mirror is in my line of forward vision. It only gave me a vague idea of what was behind me, and I decided that it didn't help enough to make it worth losing a spot in my forward vision.

I haven't tried one on the handlebars, I keep thinking that there would be a shaking sensation there.

Just my bad experience, lots of others like mirrors. Guess I'll have to keep on looking behind me when I need to move to the left. Not as convenient as a mirror, but I've been doing that for years, so I suppose it works!

--- Denise

[latelatebloomer]

Anne, that's a great question. I'm a newbie, too, so I've wondered. One person swore I had to get one right away (he uses the helmet kind) but I have this fear that if I crash, I'm gonna wind up with that rod in my eye!. Gruesome, I know. But so far, I feel that if I'm keeping my back and neck really limber, I can do a quick check behind me without much effort. But I don't know if that works at higher speeds than mine.

[Veronica]

I tried the helmet kind years ago and hated it. Currently, I'm not riding with one. But Thom is trying out the handlebar mounted one this week on his commute. He's added a space pod and it's on that - since we use bar end shifters.

V.

[Dogmama]

Ditto, tried the helmet one & hated it. Very distracting. I've ridden a long time by listening to traffic and looking around, so I don't feel I'm at a disadvantage.

When you turn to look, be sure you keep your handlebars straight.

[Grog]

I've seen someone with small mirrors that replace the caps at the end of the drop part of the handlebars. They're about 2 X 1 ", ellipse shape, slated. She really liked it. (Sorry, couldn't find any on the web to show you.)

Other option is one of those small mirrors that clip on to your glasses/sunglasses. A friend of mine has worn his forever and can't live without it.

I however use none. I wish I could listen to music while I ride, but no. I try to remain extremely aware of the sounds around me and have practiced a lot at turning around to glance at my angles without swerving. That's an important skill I think. Even when there's no noise at all I glance back once in a while as there could be another bike behind me and that could become a security issue too (plus I'd hate to blow my nose or spit and then realize there's someone behind me!!! haha).

[bikerHen]

Add my name to the Take-A-Look fan club. I started riding with it mid-summer and won't leave home without it! Mine is attached to my helmet cause it works OK on my sunglasses but not my regular glasses. It does have a learning curve, but once through that it's great. I ride in traffic alot and like to know what's coming behind me.

It would also be handy for walking through parking lots. I've caught myself glancing up for my mirror on more than a few occasions! BikerHen

[newfsmith]

After years of restraining pit bulls I have some neck mobility problems. For me mirrors are important because it lets me reduce the number of times I have to look over my shoulder. I use the Take a Look mirrors also, one on my sunglasses and one on some polycarbonate farm safety googles that are clear, but are also UV coated. Both my sunglasses and the googles have fairly thick temple pieces. I found that my wire frame bifocals were too light to use with the Take a Look. Both my sunglasses and the googles are also equipped with reading lenses that are attached with water (Optx20/20) so I can read a map while riding.

[newrider]

I used the Take a Look mirror on my old helmet, and loved it. My old helmet had this little black visor thingy sticking out in front that the mirror hooked onto.

I just bought a new Giro Pneumo helmet, and I don't see any way to make the Take a Look Mirror work on this helmet- no visor.

Anybody use the Take a Look on a Giro type helmet? Am I missing something? I miss the mirror! I like seeing cars coming up behind me.

[newfsmith]

I used the Take a Look mirror on my old helmet, and loved it. My old helmet had this little black visor thingy sticking out in front that the mirror hooked onto.

I just bought a new Giro Pneumo helmet, and I don't see any way to make the Take a Look Mirror work on this helmet- no visor.

Anybody use the Take a Look on a Giro type helmet? Am I missing something? I miss the mirror! I like seeing cars coming up behind me.

My last 2 Take a Look's came with a plastic patch to apply to the helmet for helmet mounting. I rumaged around on my desk and found one of them. If you want it PM me with a mailing address & I will stick in the mail for you.

[emily_in_nc]

Anybody use the Take a Look on a Giro type helmet? Am I missing something? I miss the mirror! I like seeing cars coming up behind me.

Can you put it on your sunglasses (or regular glasses)? That's where I wear mine and love it there. I know it doesn't work with every single style of glasses frames, however.

Emily

[sydney_b]

I had one that mounted in my bar end and it ended up breaking because I kept bumping it with my hand. After that I just went to looking behind me, but miss a review mirror. I think it's good tho, that I'm getting a chance to practice the glance-behind tho. It's one of those skills that must be learned.

[makbike]

I have a mirror which is mounted on my helment and love it. I rode for many years without a mirror and having to glance over my shoulder to check traffic certainly provided me with some very scarey moments. With the helment mirror there is no more turning around to see what is behind me for all I have to do is glance into my mirror. I will admit it took awhile to get use to it and fine tune its adjustment for the best view behind me. I simply can't image riding without a mirror today. I commute to work 3 days a week and must travel a busy two lane road for much of the trip, the mirror allows me to see what is behind me at all times.

Hope this helps,
M.