It was fun

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers said:

Nathan stayed late at school yesterday, and was avec velo. As it was going to be night by the time
he left school, he asked if I'd cycle over & accompany him on the journey back. Thinking was, two
cyclists lit up like Christmas trees are more visible than lone cyclist lit up like Christmas tree
- especially along unlit country lanes at night during rush hour where too many think winding &
bumpy country lanes are their own private race tracks.

So I set off for school. I was *bright* in the dusk as I set off. I used;

helmet mounted LED two front lights (BS) front flashing LED two rear *bright* lights (BS) one LED,
one "normal" reflectives on bike - on spokes, on rear mudguard, on pedals, on rear pannier box
(front & side of said box) Fluorescent/reflective waistcoat over fluorescent jacket (front, side,
back, shoulders all with reflective stripes) reflectives round ankles.

I was bright as the fluorescents still had an effect in the dusk light, as well as the reflectives
and my lighting.

On the way there, a car approached from the front - male driver, full of passengers, all little
girls. Car slowed down & was really slow as it passed me. It was full of little girls waving madly
and smiling. Perhaps they really did think I was the fairy from the top of the Christmas tree? At
least I brought a smile to them as opposed to the all too often aggression from motorists & their
passengers these days :-)

Cheers, helen s

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Hey, I drove past you. I had to pull over I was so dazzled 😉

I cycled to my school Govs meeting last night (like a good boy) - had the Hi-Vis waistcoat, lights
and reflectors, but you would have put me in the shade for sure.

Better to be seen than be dead I guess...

--
Chris

Quoted message said:

Hey, I drove past you. I had to pull over I was so dazzled 😉

heh ;-)

Quoted message said:

I cycled to my school Govs meeting last night (like a good boy) - had the Hi-Vis waistcoat, lights
and reflectors, but you would have put me in the shade for sure.

Which reminds me that from little acorns...

When I got to the school, I noticed that next to Nathan's bike (his Nigel Dean tourer) was a lovely
old and very light-looking Raleigh race bike - in very good condition. Not locked at all. Turns out
the bike is not locked as to the local yoof, any bike that's not a mountain bike is An Undesirable
Lump Of [censored]. Isn't ignorance a wonderful thing ;-)

Anyhow - I digress. The lad who owns the bike wandered over and I told him he had a lovely classic
bike. Cue conversation on bikes. The lad was given the frame by an uncle and he spent the school
holidays refurbishing it. Cue conversation about restoring bikes - much discussion about
refurbishing of bikes - and what was done to get the Raleigh up & running & refurbishment of
Nathan's Nigel Dean. On to conversation about cycling generally and it seems that this lad and
another lad at the school are considering having a go at some time trialling via the club The Unfit
Family belong to! So I told him that they'd both be made very welcome if they did. I must print off
a copy of the club events' calendar and get Nathan to give them a copy. It would be good to see a
few more relative youngsters getting involved and enjoying cycling.

Cheers, helen s

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dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers <[email hidden]> wrote:

: helmet mounted LED

I thought I wouldn't say this in the h*****t threads, but I'm very dubious about helmet mounted
lights. What happens when you crash?

: two front lights (BS) front flashing LED

The thing that has made the most difference to my safety on unlight lanes is realising that one
really decent light is far better than upteen [censored] (ie BS) ones.

Most motorists drive to approaching car headlights. If they don't see a beam ahead, they don't
slow down.

I was amazed at the difference going from a 2.4W BS light to a 12W one made to the way I felt on
unlight lanes at night. Motorists suddently started dipping their lights way in advance, slowing
down round corners etc.

: two rear *bright* lights (BS) one LED, one "normal"

Yup.

: reflectives on bike - on spokes, on rear mudguard, on pedals, on rear pannier box (front & side of
: said box)

I'm not convinced by reflectors on the side. Rear ones, yes. Side no.

The argument is that if your front light is good enough, they are redundant (you want people
approaching from the side to see you long before they are directly to the side of you) and if your
front light isn't good enough you should get a better one.

: Fluorescent/reflective waistcoat over fluorescent jacket (front, side, back, shoulders all with
: reflective stripes) reflectives round ankles.

I'm a big fan of reflective ankle bands. I've got some respro ones that are high-vis yellow on one
side and super-reflective (that grey stuff) on the other. Excellent.

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune clune.orgclune.orgOpen ↗ "Technolibertarians make a philosophy out of a personality defect"
- Paulina Borsook

Quoted message said:

I thought I wouldn't say this in the h*****t threads, but I'm very dubious about helmet mounted
lights. What happens when you crash?

It comes off - it's only on its mount by means of a less than robust clip mechanism. What would be
left on the helmet would be the elastic and a flat plastic rectangle. Possibly a plus point of
having a Lidl cheapie LED headtorchOf course, I would not consider going caving with this particular
headtorch ;-)

Quoted message said:

Most motorists drive to approaching car headlights. If they don't see a beam ahead, they don't
slow down.

The helmet mounted LED has a definite WTF factor and I really do keep the batteries in the normal
lights up to scratch. As soon as they start to dim they are replaced. Of course Vernon whinges like
mad but I have pointed out that I like to be seen and really would like a couple of the nice 5LED
Cateye front lights...

Quoted message said:

I was amazed at the difference going from a 2.4W BS light to a 12W one made to the way I felt on
unlight lanes at night. Motorists suddently started dipping their lights way in advance, slowing
down round corners etc.

Iused to use a couple of Smarts with the bottlecage battery. What I did like was the brightness.
What I didn't like was the very limited battery life and then, one night, the battery, even though
fully charged, decided to give up the ghost after being on for less than 10 mins. It was not
pleasant cycling in the pitch black of a Norfolk country lane with only one BS light (I kept it as a
standby - and boy was I glad). hence I now use two BS front lights and carry spare batteries etc. I
will be nagging, sorry, encouraging Vernon to see I really do require better lights.

Quoted message said:

I'm not convinced by reflectors on the side. Rear ones, yes. Side no.

Well, I have to make some turns - so any extra forms of being visible I can get, I'll have
thank you ;-)

Quoted message said:

The argument is that if your front light is good enough, they are redundant

As far as I am concerned - the more lighting/reflectives the better.

Cheers, helen s

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On Wed, 11 Feb 2004 09:17:31 +0000, dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers

Quoted message said:

Nathan's Nigel Dean. On to conversation about cycling generally and it seems that this lad and
another lad at the school are considering having a go at some time trialling via the club The
Unfit Family belong to! So I told him that they'd both be made very welcome if they did. I must
print off a copy of the club events' calendar and get Nathan to give them a copy. It would be good
to see a few more relative youngsters getting involved and enjoying cycling.

Hmmmm... so this year it won't just be the maternal bosoms heaving. The group will have to think of
another phrase.

(Runs away very quickly)

(dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers) said:

Quoted message said:

I thought I wouldn't say this in the h*****t threads, but I'm very dubious about helmet mounted
lights. What happens when you crash?

It comes off - it's only on its mount by means of a less than robust clip mechanism. What would be
left on the helmet would be the elastic and a flat plastic rectangle. Possibly a plus point of
having a Lidl cheapie LED headtorchOf course, I would not consider going caving with this
particular headtorch ;-)

You hope.

Even in coming off it's going to impart some energy to the helmet, causing spin. If you hit
something flat on with it, it's going to be crushed through the helmet into your skull.

There is something intensely superstitious about wearing a helmet for 'safety' reasons, and
then festooning it with things which will negate the small increment of safety it may possibly
afford you.

--
[email hidden] (Simon Brooke) jasmine.org.uk~simonOpen ↗ "This young man has not the
faintest idea how socialists think and does not begin to understand the mentality of the party he
has been elected to lead. He is quite simply a liberal" -- Ken Coates MEP (Lab) of Tony Blair

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers <[email hidden]> wrote:

: Iused to use a couple of Smarts with the bottlecage battery. What I did like was the brightness.
: What I didn't like was the very limited battery life and then, one night, the battery, even though
: fully charged, decided to give up the

How old was the battery? If it was less than a year old then I'd send it back. Smart replaced my
battery with no quibble via my LBS.

Any NiCAD-type recharable needs to be backed up with something else in case the battery goes
flat though.

: As far as I am concerned - the more lighting/reflectives the better.

Pointless reflectives are just that though.

--
Arthur Clune clune.orgclune.orgOpen ↗ "Technolibertarians make a philosophy out of a personality defect"
- Paulina Borsook

Arthur Clune said:

I'm not convinced by reflectors on the side. Rear ones, yes. Side no.

If they make drivers notice a cyclist, any cyclist whether or not they are close to hitting them,
it will raise awareness in the mind of the driver and he might just look out more carefully for
other cyclists.

--
The Reply & From email addresses are checked rarely. mseries.freeserve.co.ukmseries.freeserve.co.ukOpen ↗

[email hidden] (dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I must print off a copy of the club events' calendar and get Nathan to give them a copy. It would
be good to see a few more relative youngsters getting involved and enjoying cycling.

Absolutely. No youngsters = no future.

--
Dave...

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers <[email hidden]> wrote:

: say it *will* be crushed through the helmet into my skull. As I do know how flimsy the object is,
: I think, on this occasion, I may just know a bit more about my circumstance than you do.

Very hard to see it going through a helmet. Helmets are designed to deform fairly easily though - do
you think it would snap off before compressing the foam at all?

Arthur

--
Arthur Clune clune.orgclune.orgOpen ↗ "Technolibertarians make a philosophy out of a personality defect"
- Paulina Borsook

[email hidden] (dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

The helmet mounted LED has a definite WTF factor and I really do keep the batteries in the normal
lights up to scratch. As soon as they start to dim they are replaced. Of course Vernon whinges
like mad but I have pointed out that I like to be seen and really would like a couple of the nice
5LED Cateye front lights...

Have you considered using NiMH rechargeables? You'll save a fortune in batteries and you can put
fresh ones in every day if you choose.

Quoted message said:

Iused to use a couple of Smarts with the bottlecage battery. What I did like was the brightness.
What I didn't like was the very limited battery life and then, one night, the battery, even though
fully charged, decided to give up the ghost after being on for less than 10 mins.

I had a pair of those and I was very pleased with them for a short while. The bulbs didn't last very
long and it was awkward to get replacements. The reflector in one of the headlight units lost its
silvery coating, and the bulb holder eventually melted. The bottle unit fell into two pieces, but
apart from those little quibbles the endurance was very good. I could go a good 2 hours with both
bulbs on, and at least 6 with just the 2.5 watt bulb. Something wrong with yours I think.

--
Dave...

"Arthur Clune" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers <[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Pointless reflectives are just that though.

I agree - but I have yet to see a pointless reflective. I even put reflective tape on my frame. The
more surfaces which have reflectives on them, the better the chance that there will be some at the
right angle of incidence to shine back.

It makes you look like a Fred, but who cares? I'm with Helen on this.

--
Guy
===

WARNING: may contain traces of irony. Contents may settle after posting.
chapmancentral.co.ukchapmancentral.co.ukOpen ↗

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers said:

So I set off for school. I was *bright* in the dusk as I set off. I used;

helmet mounted LED two front lights (BS) front flashing LED two rear *bright* lights (BS) one LED,
one "normal" reflectives on bike - on spokes, on rear mudguard, on pedals, on rear pannier box
(front & side of said box) Fluorescent/reflective waistcoat over fluorescent jacket (front, side,
back, shoulders all with reflective stripes) reflectives round ankles.

I was bright as the fluorescents still had an effect in the dusk light, as well as the reflectives
and my lighting.

You got a mention on people.netcom.co.uki.readOpen ↗ by the way

Tony ;-)

Arthur Clune said:

dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers said:

say it *will* be crushed through the helmet into my skull. As I do know how flimsy the object is,
I think, on this occasion, I may just know a bit more about my circumstance than you do.

Very hard to see it going through a helmet. Helmets are designed to deform fairly easily though -
do you think it would snap off before compressing the foam at all?

Arthur

But have you allowed for the fact that any light might fall off in a crash and then you land head
first on the light lying on the road? For those who say "Tosh" I refer the honourable reader to the
not to be scoffed at Murphy's Law

Tony ;-^)

Quoted message said:

You got a mention on people.netcom.co.uki.readOpen ↗ by the way

Tony ;-)

I'm not a UFO, I'n an ICO (Identifable cycling object) ;-)

Cheers, helen s

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dirtylitterboxofferingstospammers said:

Quoted message said:

You got a mention on people.netcom.co.uki.readOpen ↗ by the way

Tony ;-)

I'm not a UFO, I'n an ICO (Identifable cycling object) ;-)

To the average person they are both inexplicable bright lights that move extremely fast and
frighten them ;-)

Tony