Riding at Night

Perhaps you should check with your local police department/sheriff's office to see if they have had any reported problems along the route you will ride.

That might be the place to start..

bike lights are designed to allow cars to see you but do not light up small potholes or other hazards which can cause a nasty crash in the dark. I learned the hard way. Be careful!

I've used a NiteRider light for years and it's great. It really lights the path up well. But, as far as riding by yourself at night, use common sense. A young female riding alone on a path could be bad. Is it a well lit path with a lot of people jogging or are you secluded with a lot of trees and very little foot traffic? You may want to alter your route home so your not by yourself. Hope that helps.

Don't forget to buy yourself a rear blinking light to go along with your front light.

80% of my training rides are at night. Less traffic, less pollution, more peaceful...and it's when i have time.

be safe.

IMHO.For a teenage girl....night riding alone of course is not a safe idea. 🙄

Day riding alone on a secluded path (if that`s what it is) isn`t a great idea either.

The world isn`t a nice place unfortunately.

There have been three reported rapes on the trails north of Cincinnati,OH(low crime area),two which occurred during daylight hours and one in the early morning. There have also been several sexual assualts. This is all in a span of five years. All of these incidents have occurred to women riding or jogging alone. If you want to ride after dark on a fairly secluded trail, be sure to have a riding partner. It is too dangerous for a single teenage cyclist to be out there alone in a area that is fairly urban.

Bike paths are usually safe areas to ride...but if you live in an area or passing through an area where there is known gang problems then you should check with the local law enforcement to find out if the section you'll be on is safe at night.

As far as lights go, there are plenty of lights on the market that will show small potholes for not a whole lot of cash. Cygolite has a model called the Rover II LED (they have 5 versions of this depending on your needs) dual beam light for under a $100 and each version puts out as bright as a 25 watt halogen...this is very bright because I ride at night with and older 13 watt halogen and can see every small pothole without any problems. I like dual beams just in case one bulb dies you still have one left-and LED's do burn out contrary to popular opinion, all one has to do is look at cars and big trucks that are 1 to 2 years old and you will see some of the led's burned out, and these have way less then 100,000 hours they claim they can last.

In addition to a head light you should get a front flasher, either attached to the bar or on your helmet. Bike lights are small in diameter unlike a car light and a lot of people just don't see them or can't figure out how far it is from them; the flasher will at least draw attention to you before the headlight would.

Also don't forget your taillight. The Blackburn Mars 4 is the brightest self contained battery unit on the market, even brighter then the acclaimed Planet Bike SuperFlash. Plus the Mars 4 can be seen from the side while the Superflash cannot. I had/have both of these lights and can tell you that the Mars 4 is better then the Superflash; also the Superflash quit working after only 8 months which I sent back about 3 months ago and never received a new one back even after many phone calls and emails...I gave up because I spent more time trying to get it replaced then the dang thing was worth!

CdnRider said:

Don't forget to buy yourself a rear blinking light to go along with your front light.

80% of my training rides are at night. Less traffic, less pollution, more peaceful...and it's when i have time.

be safe.

In many US states, if you have only one rear light, it has to be a solid red light - you can only have a blinking/flashing light as an additional light. As of the original poster - check with the local police dept or take a look at their website. You might find an incident log or report, similar to the ones that some local newspapers may carry. Throwing choice keywords into google might pull up some info too, especially for more serious events. A local bike shop probably has all the gossip on local bike news too - ask the next time you're in. Riding on regular roads is probably a better idea at night - at the hours you mentioned there's a lot less traffic but still enough people out to have a good chance of been seen if something should happen - even something like a fall or bike problems.

I do a lot of night riding - go buy some red and white reflective tape. You should be able to get it anywhere auto parts are sold. I cut out patterns that match my frame paint job and put it on the rear, sides and front. You can also put some on your rims and helmet. This stuff increases your visibility to approaching traffic several times over and requires no batteries and is not too noticeable in the daytime. I also put a fair amount on the kids bikes.

Quoted post said:

Originally Posted by swampy1970 [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

Quote: Originally Posted by CdnRider [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

Don't forget to buy yourself a rear blinking light to go along with your front light.

80% of my training rides are at night. Less traffic, less pollution, more peaceful...and it's when i have time.

be safe.

In many US states, if you have only one rear light, it has to be a solid red light - you can only have a blinking/flashing light as an additional light.

As of the original poster - check with the local police dept or take a look at their website. You might find an incident log or report, similar to the ones that some local newspapers may carry. Throwing choice keywords into google might pull up some info too, especially for more serious events. A local bike shop probably has all the gossip on local bike news too - ask the next time you're in.

Riding on regular roads is probably a better idea at night - at the hours you mentioned there's a lot less traffic but still enough people out to have a good chance of been seen if something should happen - even something like a fall or bike problems.

Actually your incorrect concerning the rear light. Most, if not all states, only require a red reflector NOT a light. All 8 states I visited lights are mentioned in the vehicle code but are NOT required if you have a reflector. 6 of the states I visited didn't made any mention as to whether or not the rear light needed to be blinking or solid thus either or is fine, 1 state mentioned that either flashing or steady light is fine, and 1 mentioned a flashing red light. The only requirement is that the lamp be seen from either 300 or 500 feet depending on the state. Color of lamp is mentioned, the only lawful color for the rear is red, and white for the front. And if you have a red lamp you do not need a red reflector and vise versa.

You need to look up the code for your individual state you live in and see what the law says specifically.

Myself...I ride with my Mars 4 on steady, but my bar ends and my helmet rear red lights all flash. It has seems to me that with this combination people seem to notice me more then either all flashing or all steady, and there's no law that says I can't do that way.

i have just toyed with the idea about going for night rides as i have little or no time to train. Saying that ihave a family of 3 kids, a wife and a full time job AND still managed a century ride, this year however i am struggling and may have to ride at night.
You guys i take it are in america, in England as far as i know you can have blinky or solid lights.
Yes its quiet and i tend to stick to roads and not cycle paths as they are not super safe at night.
Be careful, be safe and ride like a racing snake.
WB

Quoted post said:

Originally Posted by Froze [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

Actually your incorrect concerning the rear light. Most, if not all states, only require a red reflector NOT a light. All 8 states I visited lights are mentioned in the vehicle code but are NOT required if you have a reflector. 6 of the states I visited didn't made any mention as to whether or not the rear light needed to be blinking or solid thus either or is fine, 1 state mentioned that either flashing or steady light is fine, and 1 mentioned a flashing red light. The only requirement is that the lamp be seen from either 300 or 500 feet depending on the state. Color of lamp is mentioned, the only lawful color for the rear is red, and white for the front. And if you have a red lamp you do not need a red reflector and vise versa.

You need to look up the code for your individual state you live in and see what the law says specifically.

Myself...I ride with my Mars 4 on steady, but my bar ends and my helmet rear red lights all flash. It has seems to me that with this combination people seem to notice me more then either all flashing or all steady, and there's no law that says I can't do that way.

You are correct in that if you have a reflector you can have a flashing light.

However, as I have had it explained to be before the start of a long event, if you don't have a reflector (and lets face it, those are normally pulled off the bike the moment you get home from the bike store) you need a solid light (non-flashing) on the back in lieu of the reflector - as a steady light (or light source - if you include a reflector reflecting light from a vehicles headlight) is required. Apparently it's an inheritance from the regular rules of the road that a solid rear red light be used on all vehicles traveling on the road at night.

As I'm not one to argue with the California Highway Patrol at 3.30am I just rolled with his advice - since failure to comply would likely lead to me getting pulled until daybreak and the organizers probably getting some greif.

Whuppingboy,

I used to ride around the roads of north west england many years ago with no issues, even on the bigger roads such as the A6. However, I hear that traffic is a lot worse and there's less tollerance towards cyclists these days.

As you pointed out, doing long rides is possible even if you only have a short time to train. In the winter months, I typically train indoors for around 90minutes twice during the week and then ride outdoors during the weekend. Normally this goes from October to March and will be enough to drag my sorry behind through some rather long hilly rides.

What the heck is a racing snake?

Quoted post said:

Originally Posted by swampy1970 [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

You are correct in that if you have a reflector you can have a flashing light.

However, as I have had it explained to be before the start of a long event, if you don't have a reflector (and lets face it, those are normally pulled off the bike the moment you get home from the bike store) you need a solid light (non-flashing) on the back in lieu of the reflector - as a steady light (or light source - if you include a reflector reflecting light from a vehicles headlight) is required. Apparently it's an inheritance from the regular rules of the road that a solid rear red light be used on all vehicles traveling on the road at night.

As I'm not one to argue with the California Highway Patrol at 3.30am I just rolled with his advice - since failure to comply would likely lead to me getting pulled until daybreak and the organizers probably getting some greif.

Whuppingboy,

I used to ride around the roads of north west england many years ago with no issues, even on the bigger roads such as the A6. However, I hear that traffic is a lot worse and there's less tollerance towards cyclists these days.

As you pointed out, doing long rides is possible even if you only have a short time to train. In the winter months, I typically train indoors for around 90minutes twice during the week and then ride outdoors during the weekend. Normally this goes from October to March and will be enough to drag my sorry behind through some rather long hilly rides.

What the heck is a racing snake?

A racing snake is one of the most aerodynamic creatures to bless the planet, its amazingly fast, deadly and no one f**ks with it!!....
LOL

WB

Quoted post said:

Originally Posted by steingang2 [IMG]/img/forum/go_quote.gif[/IMG]

bike lights are designed to allow cars to see you but do not light up small potholes or other hazards which can cause a nasty crash in the dark. I learned the hard way. Be careful!

Not sure what you mean. They have lights that are made only to be seen and not to see with, that is true and their cheap. But they also make lights that are bright enough to see where your going and they do a super job of lighting up small potholes and other hazards. Good example is the Cygolite Mitycross 400, a light that is more then bright enough even on the medium setting to see small potholes. Cygolite ExpiliOn 250 also does a great job of seeing small potholes and hazards for half the cost of the MityCross 400.

On the night riding subject i went out last night with a friend. We rode for about 35 miles in the dark through country lanes up and down dale.
It was amazing!!! We climbed hills without being able to see the summit so you pushed harder and for longer thinking it was further than it was and we descended like devils through the darkness not being able to see anything apart from following the flashing light of my mates bike.
It was dangerous, daring risky but it was absolutley fantastic!!
Will do it again soon.
Whupp

I do a lot of night ridding in the desert wilderness roads and we use Magic Shine lights. They are well under 100.00 dollars and I have one on the bar and one on the helmet. The helmet is by far the most useful. These lights are like having your own street light going with you. At 40 MPH down hill you will not out run them.
I would stay off the paths and use the roads and just for added safety you can put a can of Raid wasp spray in your water bottle holder just incase you see something suspicious. I would strongly advise using a blinking rear light on the road and reflective tape is a great idea too. I have it on my bike shoes and have had comments from motorist at a stop light, that they saw the reflective tape on my shoes from a great distance away. Good luck.