Cyclist - please take care with your lights at night

Forums › Transport (cars, bikes and boats) › Cyclist - please take care with your lights at night

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kiwirock

685 posts

Ultimate Geek

#858308 17-Jul-2013 20:40

webwat:
andrewbnz:
GregV: My light is used to light up a section of road a certain distance in front of me. If my light is on my helmet, it is facing at a down-angle to hit this spot (low beam). If the light is on my handlebar, it has a higher angle to light the same piece of road (high beam).

If your head mounted light is your "high beam" do you turn it off when facing on coming traffic..?

If handlebar light is facing the road then its dipped, and will likely have a flat beam that gives you the maximum visibility without blinding people. Its worth having a flashing handlebar light too because cyclists really are that hard to see at intersections with other lights around. Head torches have a fairly wide halo around the spot beam and thats a problem too. They are not designed for road use whether flashing or not. I use a small one working under buildings, and I know that you naturally move your head sometimes if distracted (or not) regardless of where the head torch is pointing.

You have to focus on riding safely instead of where you point your light. If you try to move your eyeballs instead of moving a head torch, you will get caught out by your eye's blindspot. How on earth can you look behind you on a bike without flashing other drivers? You can't ride safely without looking around.

They should allow orange schrader valve lights. I like those tail laser lights that paint lines beside the bikes too. There's better ways to be seen than a flood lamp.

keewee01

1737 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#858532 18-Jul-2013 11:32

JimmyH:
I'm not against cyclists and think that all road users, cyclists and motorists alike, should behave sensibly and courteously. I do have an issue when some cyclists bang on about motorists when they merrily totally ignore the road rules themselves (running red lights, pedalling fast on footpaths regardless of the poor pedestrians, going the wrong way down one-way streets etc), and I have worked with a few cyclists who seem almost proud that they cycle that way.

On balance, I regard people who mount high-powered searchlights on their head because they prefer it, heedless of the annoyance and safety hazard they cause other responsible road users, as fairly similar to people who shine laser beams at aircraft.

Some road users (be they motorists, cyclists, pedestrians) always flout the rules - whether it is running red lights, getting in the way of traffic when jaywalking, not being courtious to other road users, not being observant and missing something that should have been seen, passing on double yellow lines, being somewhere they shouldn't, etc etc. But entire sections of people can't be tarred-and-feathered for the actions of individuals. It goes both ways - an entire group cannot be held accountable, or persecuted, etc just because of what some people within that group are doing.

jnawk

176 posts

Master Geek

#862291 19-Jul-2013 17:27

How hard could it be to mount the light off the headset instead of the head or handlebars? The height would be comparable to the handlebars, but wouldn't swivel with them.

Ie, think like what most motorcycles are like and follow suit).

PaulBags

809 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#862298 19-Jul-2013 18:00

jnawk: How hard could it be to mount the light off the headset instead of the head or handlebars? The height would be comparable to the handlebars, but wouldn't swivel with them.

Ie, think like what most motorcycles are like and follow suit).

The headset of a bicycle moves too, you'd have to mount to the frame. You generally have brake and possibly shift wires under the handlebars, and even if not the position of the top and down tubes connected to the headset tube would prevent any effective mounting*. You could try and mount to the top tube and come over the handlebars but it would either be big and unwieldy, or get in the way, or end up still higher than the height restrictions; or possibly all three.

*At least not in a way like with motorbikes (a single clamp around the headset tube), but then I took my idea of motorbike light mounting from a quick google image search.

jnawk

176 posts

Master Geek

#862319 19-Jul-2013 18:30

PaulBags:
The headset of a bicycle moves too, you'd have to mount to the frame.

Terminology. I meant the bit that doesn't move, as with the motorcycle. See the lights? They always point forwards.

I'm not advocating having headlights like this - these are 55w/60w each, and the bike is 209kg - what I'm advocating is headlights attached to the bike (not the helmet), in such a way that they don't turn with the handlebars.

PaulBags

809 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#862345 19-Jul-2013 19:14

jnawk:
PaulBags:
The headset of a bicycle moves too, you'd have to mount to the frame.

Terminology. I meant the bit that doesn't move, as with the motorcycle. See the lights? They always point forwards.

I'm not advocating having headlights like this - these are 55w/60w each, and the bike is 209kg - what I'm advocating is headlights attached to the bike (not the helmet), in such a way that they don't turn with the handlebars.

Yeah, I'm saying it's not as easy as just slap a clamp on there. Bicycles just arn't designed to mount anything there.

webwat

2036 posts

Uber Geek

Trusted

#862629 20-Jul-2013 15:47

I thought it was good that headlights move with the handlebars.... You generally point the handlbars where you are going and you do need to see around corners on a bike because you are close to the edge of the road.

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jnawk

176 posts

Master Geek

#862655 20-Jul-2013 16:47

webwat: I thought it was good that headlights move with the handlebars.... You generally point the handlbars where you are going and you do need to see around corners on a bike because you are close to the edge of the road.

There's a lot more side to side when the bike weighs next to nothing, especially when you are peddling, and throwing significant (overall) amounts of weight up and down (ie, your legs).

PaulBags

809 posts

Ultimate Geek
Inactive user

#862656 20-Jul-2013 16:47

webwat: I thought it was good that headlights move with the handlebars.... You generally point the handlbars where you are going and you do need to see around corners on a bike because you are close to the edge of the road.

Right, but even minor adjustments will move the beam a fair bit. Say you swere to avoid a hazard on your left, your light is now pointing into the lane of on coming traffic and you can no longer see further hazards on your left; where you need to move back to. That's why I like helmet mounted lights, much better for seeing hazards and around corners, and actually easier to avoid pointing at on coming traffic. But failing that cyclists could always just take more road space to be safe, that's even in the road code. And some more info about the room cyclists need on the road.

Athlonite

1828 posts

Uber Geek
Inactive user

#863303 21-Jul-2013 23:21

when you can see a cyclist coming from over a KM away and the light is already becoming dazzling you know they have a bright light

most of which use Cree LED's and there in lies the problem an 1 Watt cree is able to blind a person temporarily or cause permanent damage to the retina

Nasty-One

15 posts

Geek

#863410 22-Jul-2013 10:42

Reality is until drivers on the road remain focused and present and are not operating as passengers all the lighting in the world doesn't help.

I have a 300 lumen light which I have learnt to tone down to 200 for battery preservation that I use on handle bars as generally that is the direction I am travelling.

Lights up the road well especially over the Waitakere Ranges at night.

Personally I have never been blinded by anyone riding with one one on their head which suggests that maybe there is the odd one whom is using the offroad variants 1000+ which wouldn't be idea on the road.

But then I am a road and off road cyclists aka not a commuter where commuting in the dark it pays to light and expect threats from the side roads during day and night.

Having a blanket rule on no helmet lights would be obsessive, as stupid enforcing reflectors and cycleways.

If you on the road, about to cross the road on slippers, Nike running shows, bike car, motorbike, tracker then stay present and act accordingly to the environment.

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