Reflections on my first darkness “commute”

[GulfCoastAmy]

I ADORE riding in the dark/wee morning hours! Much less traffic in my area, which is key for me. My setup:

- 2 headlights - these are cheapy Scwinn's but work great as long as I'm diligent about keeping fresh batteries in them
- 2 tailights (one flashing, one static)
- 1 firefly on my camelback
- 1 firefly attached to each wheel (zip tied to the spokes)
- reflective tape on my helmet and bike
- reflective ankle straps

Riding in the dark makes me feel SAFE. With my rearview mirror I can see cars/headlights way earlier than I can in daylight. Barely any traffic means I can be seen by cars WAY in advance as well. It's also rare that I would have cars passing me in both directions at once. This means cars coming up behind me usually pass all the way into the other lane which is really nice. Some people think I'm crazy when I say I'd rather ride in the dark, but I love it! If I'm not on the road by 4 or 5am, I don't go.

ETA: The silence of darkness is also great. I love being able to hear a car coming before I even see headlights.

[Melalvai]

I have an amber Down Low Glow from Rock the Bike.

Me too! And mine is amber too! I like night rides just to show that thing off.

I've focused on lights that don't require AA and AAA batteries, because those were always dying on me. I have reelights (magnet powered) on my wheels, front & back, and a generator-powered hub light, and the downlow glo which has a rechargeable battery.

[PscyclePath]

I was a little intimidated, but I’m thinking – “I’ve got my LCI, what’s the big deal”.

This was a good experience to make me comprehend what it really takes to do a real commute.

Preston should have taken you guys out in the dark for a bit to play with the lights and reflectors ;-) I remember though that when I got my LCI, the night ride turned out to be around 9 miles, because that's how far we had to go to find somewhere that was really, really dark. It was good though, since Chris & Barry took the time to teach how to lead night rides for the Commuter course.

I ride a lot in the dark, and with a lot of rednecks motoring around here, I like lights that burn holes in the ozone layer. Typically I run a Stella or a Dinotte 200 in the front, with a Dinotte 140 and/or a SuperFlash in the back. Then I like reflective stuff, too ;-)

Lights be good...