Observations during night ride

I do a lot of riding at night and some routes include black country roads as well as trails and lit city streets. Interestingly enough i find i need a brighter light when i'm riding in the city where streets are lit by streetlights. i often have to put my hand in front of my light to make sure it's on and hasn't gone off. many times neither light (Magic shine knock off or Cugolite Rover II throws wnough light ontl a lit city road to show if a dark area is a protrusion or a pothole. Yet on the dark country roads or trails either light is great to see all obstuctions. The magic shine knockoff id more of a glorified flashlight and is only used by me to look for distant things. Aim that light closer to the bike and all the disadvantages of a flashlight come into being including the very bright wide section of light that destroys the ability to see; the spot-of light ahead of that is fairly narrow. It is good for seeing things further ahead than the Cygolite Rover II and therefore i treat the knockoff as a high beam light and only use it when i want to see further down tthe road or light up a sign some distance away.

The Rover II has a nice wide beam pattern that allows me to see tthe entire surface and the lighrt is not blinding. It also has a decent enough range that I can ride the bicycle at speed without worrying about out riding tthat light in most cases.

I find it very interesting that so many people want super bright lights for trail riding when my experience/needs show me that I need more light directed at the road surface in lit city streets than I do either on dark country roads or trails.

Oh, another thing about that MS knockoff beam is that it's symetrical and does throw a lot of light where it's not really needed but the relatively narrow beam pater does mean that it's spot is further down tthe road than the Rover II will reach but it doesn't light the entire two-lane road the way the Rover II does. Many times I've been avble to stop and watch criiters including herds of deer because either the MS knockoff showed them before the rover II did up the road or the Rover II showed them on the shoulder where the beam of the MS knockoff didn't reach.

The two lights together make night riding for longer rides very enjoyable.

Cheers

good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides

On 3/21/2015 9:16 AM, wrote:
good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides


The yellow off to the sides is mostly from people walking
their dogs in the snow.


--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

On Saturday, March 21, 2015 at 7:39:04 AM UTC-7, AMuzi wrote:
On 3/21/2015 9:16 AM, wrote:
good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides


The yellow off to the sides is mostly from people walking
their dogs in the snow.


Gak. Dogs are figuring prominently in the fight over the mountain bike trails down the street from my house. http://www.bicyclepaper.com/news/10207 The city wants to ban mountain bikes from a recently purchased natural area (and long time de facto mountain biking area), but it acknowledges that dogs -- on and off leash -- cause more environmental damage than on-trail mountain bikers. Banning precious pups, however, would be unthinkable. What about the dogs!

-- Jay Beattie.

On camping, I pee in a jug...or on the road-in a jug...then sprinkle the golden liquid grass or litter feeding soil microbes...people complain ! some panic esp when pouring a jug into the latrine...Homeland Security...

and the Ranger rolls his eyes n asks how your dog is this morning...

On Sat, 21 Mar 2015 09:38:56 -0500, AMuzi wrote:

On 3/21/2015 9:16 AM, wrote:
good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides


The yellow off to the sides is mostly from people walking
their dogs in the snow.

You mean you never wrote your name in "yellow snow"?
--
Cheers,

John B.

On Saturday, March 21, 2015 at 10:16:44 AM UTC-4, wrote:
good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides

Have plenty of light with the ones I have already so there's no need to add a bunch more.

Cripes man! I moved from a big city to here so i could ride at night if i wanted to. There's virtually no traffic and it's really quiet at night. Quite beautiful at night with snow in the woods and on the fields too. Sometimes I ride my 26 x 2.25" tires with only 10 to 15 psi in them when on deep snow and pump them up again once back in town where the snow's been plowed.

Cheers

ahhhh riding in the snow wonderful wonderful

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...d14eb86144.jpg

you're complaining abt light so go to LEVEL ONE with the full HD 74/Rally car treatment for a coupla bucks more

SLEIGH BELLS RING....cool !

sssssssssssssssssss

ahhhh riding in the snow wonderful wonderful

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com...d14eb86144.jpg

you're complaining abt light so go to LEVEL ONE with the full HD 74/Rally car treatment for a coupla bucks more

SLEIGH BELLS RING....cool !

nnnnnnnnnn

I love snow I love winter I love skiing

http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/blog...positivity.JPG

On Mon, 23 Mar 2015 00:24:47 +0000, Phil W Lee
wrote:

John B. Slocomb considered Sun, 22 Mar 2015
08:19:06 +0700 the perfect time to write:

On Sat, 21 Mar 2015 09:38:56 -0500, AMuzi wrote:

On 3/21/2015 9:16 AM, wrote:
good point ! but cold out there ? the entire experience suggests yawl should move to a less trafficked area where day riding is possible.

right on the beam shapes: add 2 narrows in line up front then 2 wide mounted low on froks pointed to sides at maybe 45 degrees..spacing for your particulars in that swing the wheel vs what you normally need to see before turning adjusts the gap. Switchbacks and driveways vs rolling road.

maybe yellow off to the sides


The yellow off to the sides is mostly from people walking
their dogs in the snow.

You mean you never wrote your name in "yellow snow"?

I had more sense.
I wrote my brother's name :-)

Just think, your name was lost to posterity :-)
--
Cheers,

John B.