Techie Tuesday: Optimal Lighting for Cycling Safety

A couple of years ago I put some ideas together about what a good lighting system should do for cyclists. That work I called G.I.T. Lit. It doesn't describe a lighting system, but rather, the criteria any good lighting system has to meet. It's a meta-level lighting RX.

Over the last 3-4 months I've had occasion to work out the details of a real-world system I think satisfies these requirements, because of the way motorists respond to it, and that's the only criteria that counts. This 5-point lighting system will allow you to ride a road bike in urban or rural environments, at up to 25mph solo, without issue - faster if riding in a pace-line.

To understand better why 5 lights are needed, check out this YouTube video that demonstrates the eye's blindspot, the way the brain attempts to work around it, and keep this in mind when maneuvering in traffic at night. You have to give motorists the tools they need to be a good partner in safety.

1st, and most obvious, is the handlebar headlight, which is the foundation for any good lighting system. This light has to light the road far enough ahead so you don't overrun your headlights, even during club sprints.

Its beam must also be wide enough to light both sides of a bike trail, pick up garbage cans left in bicycle lanes, and light both white lines on common 2-lane roads. It's also crucial to pick up the glowing eyes of deer and other large game in time to avoid hitting them. They're completely unpredictable, so hitting the brakes is the best defense.

The primary headlight should have several power settings, so light can be maximized where needed, and minimized when battery life  becomes important, or riding in pace-lines at night. It should also have a flash or strobe mode, critical when cycling just before sunset, or just after sunrise, when motorists are looking into the sun. Motorists behind you will also notice the flash of reflective signs, strobing in your headlight, up to a mile ahead at night.

The MagicShine 900 lumen lights meet these requirements, especially with a special wide lens I've been using. It's also proving very reliable, which is critically important for primary lighting like this. It's reasonably priced, and the separate lighthead is light enough to carry a spare needed. It allows many battery pack options, with many different mountings, and allows you to swap out a fresh pack quickly and easily.

If it's not 1,000+ lumens, or very close, you're just wasting your money, as those are "be seen", not "see" lights. They're dangerous, and motorists hate them because they're dangerous - because it's too much sustained workload, coming at them too fast. It's their opinion that counts, because your safety depends on them being able to notice, identify and track you quickly, and easily. (G.I.T lit) When they're happy, waving, honking and giving you the thumbs up, you have a great system. Until then, keep improving your lighting.

Any lighting is better than no lighting, but you're being foolish taking these kinds of risks when you can get a 900 lumen MagicShine for $90 from Amazon. I now have 2 full systems and a spare lighthead, and all of that cost me less than $250 delivered to my door. Have you priced a trip to the ER lately?

2nd, you need a helmet headlight with most of the same features. You need a helmet headlight to see through turns, up and down hills, and to "flash" motorists poking out of driveways, intersections, or looking into the sun. It goes where you're looking, not where your bike is pointing. The more twisty and hilly the road, the more critical this 2nd white light becomes. It's also a great "good citizen" light on night club rides, where it's used to light obstacles, signs, and riders under threat, whose clothing comes alive when bathed by bright light.

Helmet lighting is particularly important in getting noticed by drivers of high-profile vehicles, like SUVs, trucks, and heavy equipment. Because the drivers are sitting up so high, they can, will, and do look right over the top of bike mounted lighting. Sitting up and looking right at them until they respond is the only way to stay safe.

Watch for brake lights. That's the response that tells you the motorist is paying attention, and nothing short of that. My headlight has enough back-scatter to light the back of my gloves, and PI is now selling neon green Cyclone gloves. Sometimes waving your hand will get someone's attention when all else fails.

3rd, you need a powerful, flashing rear light that motorists can pick up from a long way off. This is the Grab light for motorists approaching from behind. To make this light as bright as possible, the light is focused into a very narrow beam, and it gets noticed because flashing lights work with the very primitive part of the brain, going all the way back to dinosaurs, that sense changes first and foremost. The Planet Bike Super Blinky Turbo is excellent here.

4th, you need a similar light, facing backwards, that does NOT flash, but is in Constant mode. This light's purpose is to make Tracking easy. Flashing, and even strobing lights, are almost impossible to track in the complexity of urban light-scapes. Even in my 20s, I found it almost impossible to track aircraft over LA at night, even with powerful strobe lights. So do commercial pilots, which is why most large aircraft now light the tail of the plane in bright, white lights, AND open all the windows in the passenger compartment with the cabin lights on.


As the saddle bag mount is often 8-12" higher, it's at motorists eye level, doesn't require them to look down and back up to drive, mount #4 here - but zip-tie the clip shut so it can't fall off as it will get bounced around quite a bit back there. The PB Turbo's opaque body lights up all over when in Constant Mode, and because it's unobscured from the side by legs, motorist can see it when overtaking you too.

I have settled on the Planet Bike Superflash Turbo for both #3, and  #4 - which are mounted on the seatpost and saddlebag respectively. It has one primary, high-power LED emitter, with a high quality narrow-beam lens, two additional LEDs with a wider spread below, and an opaque body. The PB's flash pattern is simply spectacular. I really wish they'd patent it and then put it in the public domain. It would quickly become a standard that motorists would identify with cyclists.

It's counter-intuitive, but you need more powerful lighting in urban areas where there's much more lighting for motorists to contend with. Take note the next time you're out driving near dusk. It's almost overwhelming. More is more here.


I really thought I had my lighting down with this 4-light system - until I had a very close call with a SUV. He looked right over the top of me as I was making a L-hand turn from a busy 4-lane street with a protected turn lane, onto a 2 lane street with a protected L-hand turn and protected right hand turn lane leading into a bus stop lane. He almost ran right over me!

I had also read just a week before that motorists tend to lose sight of those narrow beams when overtaking cyclists, and have been running them over at the last moment. This led to some head-scratching, and eventually, the realization that a 5th light, one with 180 degrees of light, with a flash, should be mounted on the back (or top) of the helmet, facing backwards, but shining brightly to the sides, at motorists eye level, even if riding in high-profile vehicles.

As luck would have it, the Blackburn MARS 3.0 (and sadly, NOT the newer 4.0) satisfied all of these requirements with a staggering 7 LED lights, red to the back, and amber to the sides, and with a mount that puts it a full 3" behind the helmet, so it can easily be seen for almost 270 degrees. Paired with the front helmet light, this provides a full-height 360 degrees of coverage with white forward, amber to the sides, and red lights to the rear.

The only caveat is the Blackburn slip-in mounts are not compatible with Planet Bike's. Unforgivable they can't work that out. Those 3 rear lights should work as backups for each other in a pinch. We, as consumers, should write nasty-grams to both companies until this is resolved.

I would add only one thing to these 5 lights - neon green outer clothing with well-designed reflective piping. While REFLECTORS WILL ABSOLUTELY NOT KEEP YOU SAFE, piping really helps motorists Identify you as a cyclists. Neon green because when headlights, or fellow rider's lights hit you, you'll light up like a Christmas tree, and neon green because it's become the unofficial safety color of cycling. I think 100 of 100 motorists will tell you exactly that.

I'm careful to say "well planned", because I have seen some extensively piped clothing that makes you look like a monster from a bad SciFi movie, and while very distracting, still didn't silhouette the rider well. If I hadn't seen it myself I'd have said that's impossible, but it made it clear that slathering a bunch of reflective tape on your clothes isn't automatically going to make you easy to recognize.

I keep stressing fast identification as a cyclist because the driver, almost instantly, then knows what to expect from you and your bike. They know you aren't going to be blowing past them and changing lanes like a motorcycle (which have headlights, but not elevated, and never flashing red lights), and aren't going to take 20 seconds to cross the road like a ped, and aren't another car with a bad headlight.

Identifying you cuts their stress level in half immediately, and that makes them better decision makers, more level-headed, and grateful to you that you're meeting them half-way in trying to keep everyone safe and whole.

Case in point. After mounting light #5 I was flying down a shallow -3% grade, and got passed by a Quad-Cab dualie F-350 towing a BobCat on a 30ft  Low-Boy. He gave me the full 8ft of lane when passing, watched me in his huge West Coast rear-view mirrors for clearance as he pulled back in, and gave me a big "thumbs up" as he got back into the power and went flying down the road. Now THAT'S a great feeling!!!

PS: The helmet headlight causes a lot of neck strain for me, due mostly to craning my neck to point the light where I want it, so I have been riding without it, using my handlebar MagicShine in flashing mode near dusk on city streets to Grab motorists attention. It's passable, but not as good as having a few hundred lumens up on the helmet. Don't skimp on the other lights. It's just too dangerous.

Partially as compensation, I have ordered a small, single AAA-cell Fenix E05-R2 light I plan on wearing on the backside of my L glove to help with hand signaling, Garmin reading, and flat fixes after dark. Stay tuned for results.

PPS: I ended up Velcro-ing my Fenix E05 to the top-front of my helmet so that it lights my cockpit, and the road just ahead of my front wheel. At 27 lumens it's excellent for that, and to be seen by motorists near and after dark. The Fenix LD01's 1 hour (85 lumens),  3.5 hours (28 lumens), 11 hours (9 lumens) is the same size and weight, and it's output will get me  seen near dark, light the road as well as the 2W Planet Bike Blazer, and at 1/5th the weight, and 1/10th the size.

This 3-stage approach makes it very versatile, and with a spare AAA cell in the seat bag, and 2 potential spares in the PB SuperFlash Turbo, it will get me home even 4 hrs after dark on full brightness. I have decided to use it as my primary headlight in the summer, when I only occasionally get caught out after dark.
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Techie Tuesday: PI Barrier Balaclava

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I  normally save Techie Tuesdays for wrenching stuff, but given the amount of heat that can be lost through the head, the one extremity your body can't cut off blood flow to (although I've heard people say things at times that makes me wonder if they were the exception), a review of a balaclava seems worthy of an exception. 

Sunset on the ARPT near Hagen Park, Christmas Day, 2011

Fish Hatchery outlet at Hazel Ave Bridge, just below Nimbus Dam, looking downstream

I've done 3 rides for about 100 miles now using this balaclava, and think I made a good choice. Until the sun goes down, this, in conjunction with my PI headband, works great, and I thought this combo was bombproof, but that was until the sun went down.
 

Once the sun starts to set, temperatures drop like a stone, and the coldest air settles down in draws along the river within minutes. It's hard to believe how cold the air can get in spots, until you encounter it. I am just a tiny bit disappointed to have to report that the back of my head and neck were getting a little cold in what was probably 35-38 degree weather.

Nimbus Dam on the ARPT near Hazel Ave. This dam forms Lake Natomas and is well served by the Aquatic Center in the background to the right. If you're a competitive rower, you know this lake and facility well.

If it would fit under the very snug balaclava, the PI Barrier Skull Cap would offer the extra protection I'd need, but since there are no sizing options on either of these, it's a hard sell.

Although I generally hand wash my riding clothes, the amount of laundry on my last ride just became overwhelming, so I machine washed all of it. The dryer shrunk this substantially,perhaps 3/4" - in height, but AFAICT, not in diameter.

As it comes out of the package, the amount of material in front is very generous, and that in back about right, but once shrunk, the back is too short. It will cover when you can get out of the cold and rearrange all of your layering pieces for best fit, but after riding for an hour, and turning your head from side to side, it tends to leave a gap in the back.

The very generous length in front is greatly appreciated when the weather is warmer, or you're climbing, and need all of your layers wide open. This allows plenty of cold, dry air into your chest, and through your layers, to dry them and cool, while still protecting your neck.

I agree that the fit is tight, and I have a small head, but it does tend to loosen up a bit after wearing and laundering it a few times. They probably need 3 sizes though, as I got a compression headache wearing it around the house for an hour when I first got it in the mail.

I also noticed that once heat dried, the barrier fabric on the forehead is totally, and completely windproof. I held it over my mouth and cannot blow air through the fabric at all. I mean, it's like Saran wrap, and that's great. Well done PI!

It's not that thick, so it might not be the warmest insulator, but for the forehead I have the headband too, as it has holes for my clear riding glasses - something this balaclava should have too, as the stems on glasses create little air scoops where they go under headgear, which freezes your temples unless you have stem holes.

The new Barrier Headband doesn't seem to have stem holes, but is likely your best bet for holding your glasses in place anyway. Get the Barrier not the Transfer headband. You want the outermost layer to be windproof, or it's just a waste of cloth. Pull it down in back until your helmet band is resting on top of it. That seems to seal the wind out better.

One of the issues with each layer having a fleece collar, is they wad up behind your neck, and make it nearly impossible to hold your head up when riding. This causes painful neck strain, and headaches.

Since the balaclava typically goes under your base layer behind your neck, why not use the barrier windproof fabric, which is also thinner, to insure a deep, last ditch zone of wind protection running from your head, down your neck and well down your back? Less neck strain and the security of knowing bare skin isn't going to be exposed on the back of the neck.  Make it slightly longer than the front, with the shoulders cut away. This would protect your neck no matter how much opening and closing of front zippers.

I expected, being a garment for very active users, that the mouth area would have to breathe well, unlike those neoprene ski mask things. PI has done a great job in making the fabric covering the mouth breathe well. In very cold weather, the moisture in your breath will freeze in the fabric, and form an ice dam. When inhaling, this wet, 32 degree surface warms and moistens your breath before you inhale. It will keep your lungs from getting burned in very cold, dry conditions.

Also, as expected, the mouthpiece pulls down under the chin easily, and stays put well without pulling the forehead down - even when using a PI headband. If they made this in sizes I'd get the middle size and buy their barrier cap to use when riding after sunset.

For better visibility on those night rides, a reflective stripe in the middle of the barrier fabric that protects the cheekbones and forehead really is needed. Everything else is going to be covered by your helmet, but that area is well exposed.

With cheap, powerful lights, like the MagicShine lights, my clubs are doing a lot of night rides, and I also routinely ride solo, finishing the last half of the ride after dark, where temps often drop 10-15 degrees in half an hour or so, especially along the river where cold, heavy, air settles in draws. 50 degrees turns into 35 in less than 10 miles.

It's essential to get your clothing right, and have a good warmth reserve in case you crash, and EMS is an hour or more away. A convertible vest with zip on sleeves and SpaceBlanket foil blanket are as important as your cell phone when riding alone. Shivering with cracked or broken ribs is excruciating.

Keep working your clothing problem until you have enough tools to go properly dressed in all conditions. It's NOT necessary to endure discomfort when riding in the cold. Keep at it until you aren't.

Techie Tuesday: R&R Handlebars

The old ones (Performance Bike Shop Forte') broke under the Syntace C3 aerobar clamps. Hope the new ones (Ritchey SuperLogic Evo Carbon) won't. PBS stood by their Satisfaction Guarantee, so aside from all the labor, only a $60 hit to my pocketbook. Nothing wrong with the Forte' bars for normal use, but not up to aerobars.


PBS's house brand bars Forte was bucking under the aerobar clamps



Brake cables run in the bar's cable hides, and shifter cables run along backside of bar. Each cable was trial fitted, taped into place using 3M electrical tape, and then function tested before any bar tape was applied.



L and R brake cable swapped so front brake and 10-gears are in my right hand. Shifter cables also swapped and then crossed under the downtube. This gives the rear deraulleur cable a straight path from headtube to end of chainstay.



MagicShine mount attaches along side of the stem. Yeah, there's a LOT going on here. Old bars had cables threaded through them, so every last cable had to be unthreaded. The brakes and drivetrain then had to be readjusted after installation. What a massive PITA.

Another angle

Pretty clean. The cables are trimmed to within a mm of their lives. I doubt I can flip the stem without recabling at this point, but I loathe messy cabling and the drag it creates. MagicShine is ~ right in front of toptube and  battery pack strapped to top of toptube.

Clean cockpit. Slip the Garmin into it's mount and we're wheels-up in 30 seconds.

Not wanting to take any chances on the new bars, I used the same trick on the aeorbars I used on my perpetually sliding Easton seatpost - I shimmed the clamps with 1500 Wet-or-Dry sandpaper, turning the grit side to the main bars. This dramatically reduces the amount of clamping pressure needed to keep the aerobars from moving. I especially like that this also comprises a compressible shim, so the take-up on the tightening is more gradual, and easier to judge.

The spray bottle hanging off the left handlebar is to keep the bike from tipping over when standing straight up so I can even up the aerobars. Nice trick. When you get aerobars where you want them,  roll the bike into a doorway, place a level across the ends, and mark their height. No matter what happens with handlebars and stems, it makes a great starting point for adjusting the aerobars.

I rode the bike up to Beals Point a couple of nights ago, and am very happy with the bars. The aren't noodley like the Forte, but are still soaking up a lot of road chop. The reach is perfect, but the drop is a lot less, and I need to push the drops forward and out to get more room in the cockpit. With aerobars, you seldom need deep drops, but a middle position is nice for climbing into a wind in a position where you can still breathe well.