W&OD at night

[kcb203]

@dkel 119135 wrote:

Dodging crazy Ivans is bad enough; dodging bullets? No thanks!

I got shot at on the W&OD trail in the early 1990s in Ashburn. Granted, it was a BB gun, but some kids were sitting on the porch of an old house shooting at passing cyclists. The house is still there but surrounded by McMansions.

[NickBull]

@creadinger 119113 wrote:

Recap!

So, on Thursday evening around 8:30 I left Alexandria, and headed out the W&OD toward Marshall, VA to test out a bit of night riding and my new dynamo lighting system.
…

Hey, Chris, glad you enjoyed the route. Was there enough moonlight to see how beautiful Rock Hill Mill Rd really is?

What headlight are you using? I have a Luxos-U … basically the same optics as an Edeluxe II or a IQ Premium. For me, those lights are good for 30 to 35 mph descents. But if they’re angled too far down then you don’t get enough light at the horizon line to ride that fast. I find I have to set the light so that the “cutoff line” lights up the sides of the road to about three feet high. That way when you come down a steep descent where the road turns up again at the bottom then it lights up just enough of the rising road that you can see where you are going until the bike pitches up again and gives you proper light. On the next ride, try tilting the light up “way too far” and then gradually tilt it lower until the distant-light just starts to get dimmer (there won’t be much light in the near-field but you don’t care about that, that’s not where you are looking at speed), then come back up just slightly. If cars are flashing you, though, you’re probably still too high.

Nick

[creadinger]

@NickBull 119276 wrote:

Hey, Chris, glad you enjoyed the route. Was there enough moonlight to see how beautiful Rock Hill Mill Rd really is?

It was only a first quarter moon shining down through broken clouds, and there was also significant patchy fog on the ground as well, so no not really. I did this route in March though saw it in the daylight then at least. It was very pretty though, even in the dreariness of light rain/snow at the time.

Based on the advice from Eric Williams, I got the Luxus-U as well. I wanted a good light plus the ability to charge stuff via USB. It’s great!

I think because 90 of the 150 miles were on the W&OD I probably had the light angled way lower than I would on a typical brevet out on the roads. I was very conscious about trying not to blind any peds or cyclists coming the other way on the trail. I did experience the problem with approaching the bottom of a hill and not being able to see until my tires pointed upward again though. The helmet light was helpful for that, as well as for seeing around turns like I mentioned.

I’ll definitely have to play with aiming it, and comparing the beam height to some of you other guys would be helpful.

[Starduster]

@creadinger 119286 wrote:

I’ll definitely have to play with aiming it, and comparing the beam height to some of you other guys would be helpful.

Hi. Hope this helps…

The 1st two shots are my B+M Cyo T Premium headlight. Compared to your Luxos, the IQ Premium beam pattern is wider at distance, but your Luxos is OMG-I-can-see-into-the-turns wider at mid and close range. 2nd two are my wife’s USB-powered B+M Ixon Core. IQ2 reflector and optics like yours, just narrower.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]9017[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]9018[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]9019[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]9020[/ATTACH]

These StVZO-spec lights have evolved into essentially low beam headlights. And I aim them as such, making sure the hot spot does not stray *above* 0 degrees horizontal (just like an automotive headlamp). Perfect for urban/suburban work amongst fellow travelers. But a low beam with sharp cutoff has its limitations. You’ve already found them. A helmet-mounted light is ideal as a “high beam” supplement. What I would look for for myself is a USB round or oval beam spotlight (on the bike) with a remote switch that would let me click it on & off quickly, *without* having to cycle through all 6 light level/flash settings. Low beam/high beam. What a concept.

[Boomer Cycles]

This the mid-beam of my Nite Rider 500 on my commute home this evening on an unlit section of the WOD with Jupiter converging with Venus behind cloudy skies. It has a rechargeable battery with a macro USB port. I bought it on sale 2 years ago at Performance Bike and it has been flawless. It has hi, lo, mid and intermittent settings. A single charge lasts me the whole week, and often longer.

[Author]

Posts