Front light protocol and safety

[WillStewart]

We’ve had a thread on tail lights, now let’s tackle the front light.

For those who commute partly on the trail and partly on the road (or over crosswalks), what should the front light protocol be?

My planned approach has been to use the modest 70-80 lumen front light on the trail in flash mode (to account for the times I also hit the frequent crosswalks), and to use the helmet mounted 600 lumen NiteRider Minewt when on the road itself. Also have reflective strips (on tires, too), bright orange vest, and rear red 5 LED blinker.

A problem arose this morning when I was crossing a crosswalk in Falls Church (along with a pedestrian with dog), and a car went from full stop to accelerating, hitting me.

One way to mitigate the issue of cars seeing me entering and in crosswalks would be to turn on the bright 600 lumen light. That would be detrimental to the vision of others coming up the other direction of the trail, however. And reaching up to cycle the light switch (3 modes) at each little crosswalk might be a safety issue, by taking a hand off the handlebars and diverting attention.

Thoughts?

Topic

[JimF22003]

the new Serfas light I bought is designed to pivot left and right, so it’s easy to aim off to the side. It’s fixed vertically however. One nice thing about the magicshine light with the o-ring mount was how easy it was to shift up and down.

[JeffC]

@Joe Chapline 9695 wrote:

This might be obvious, but I haven’t seen it mentioned. I keep the handlebar-mount adjusted so that I can change the angle of the light, and I point it down when that’s appropriate. That seems easier than covering the light with my hand. I’ve never had a problem with the mount getting looser with any of the lights I’ve used.

I do that as well. It stays reasonably well adjusted but sometimes bumps can jar it a bit, better to be pointed a bit low than high. However, unless you adjust it constantly, I still think it is better to cover with your hand because subtle elevation changes can be the difference between blinding somebody (especially when you are going slightly downhill and somebody is approaching you coming uphill) or not. Think about it when you are driving a car as well, a car approaching you from a higher elevation will appear to have its high beams even though it does not. The same principle can occur on a bike.

[rcannon100]

I would simply say Tip of the Hat to all y’all thinking about this and taking consideration. It’s a good thing to be thinking about how our biking, even when we are trying to be safe, impacts others.

[WillStewart]

For visibility from the side, does anyone use Monkey lights or the equivalent?

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[StopMeansStop]

Vis 360 on the helmet, which has front, side and rear lights. I use blinky mode on trails and roads at dusk. At darkness I use high or low on trails only and blinky on roads.

Handlebar has a minewt. Blinky on roads, high/low on trails after dusk. I try and aim all lights away from trail users.

Drivers that might threaten my safety or right of way get the helmet lights RIGHT IN THEIR EYES.

[WillStewart]

@Dirt 9645 wrote:

One more thing for people who are really distracted by approaching cyclists lights… Wearing a cycling cap with a little visor under your helmet can allow you some protection. You can tip it down enough so that you still have good view of the road in front of you, but you’re not having to look directly into the approaching headlight.

This also helps to keep the morning/evening low angle sun out of a person’s eyes, especially on a recumbent.

[Author]

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