Now that most lights are weapon grade, please show some respect to fellow riders on the trail.
Dip the frigin things or cover them with a hand if someone is coming the other way.

A long flat fire road doesn’t need a 3 thousand head/ bar combo on full.

that’s all 🙂

+1

your trails are too busy.

I think the same courtesy needs to be extended to all trail users … lights are insanely bright these days.

Agreed.

Also, if in a group, when you stop for a chat turn your helmet light off, especially if you’re going to look at the person you’re talking to.

It’s when you stop and talk to someone and they have this 3000 lumen laser pointing into your face.

MY SKIN IS BURNING! WHY DO YOU CONTINUE TO SHINE THAT THING AT ME!!?

I stopped and turned my lights off to let a party of scouts on a night hike walk past without getting dazzled/inconvenienced.

One of them wasn’t looking where he was going, walked into me and knocked me off my bike.

The way that the leader said ‘Oh, Darryl’ led me to believe it wasn’t the first time he’d let the group down doing somethign daft.

Except motorists, fed up being blinded by clowns who fail to dip their headlights. They usually get my head torch lighting up the interior of the car for that.

It’s not night riding anymore – it’s localised daylight. What happened to riding on basic lights and feeling petrified at 15mph heading into a tiny pool of light? )

“When I were a lad we rode with ever-ready torch-light things in t’woods, the owl’s eyes put out more light etc etc”

(tbh I didn’t get on with night riding much until lights got half-decent, but even so my single bar light on low seems to be ok most of the ride, until someone fires up a search and rescue beam behind me)

It must be said that whilst on the road there ought to be consideration shown to car drivers as well.

your trails are too busy.

your trails are too busy.

Er, so you only have to show some courtesy if there are lots of other people around? Hmmm

BlobOnAStick – Member

It must be said that whilst on the road there ought to be consideration shown to car drivers as well.
Completely agree, but if someone in a car insists on trying to blind me, then they get it back at them!

Er, so you only have to show some courtesy if there are lots of other people around? Hmmm

no i mean if i go for a night ride i wont see anyone else out…

Yep. There’s nothing that makes me feel safer than having a couple of tons of metalwork heading towards me with a driver who can’t see where he’s going.

+1

When I dip my single light it’s a sort of hint. 1000 lumens on bars and head does look like overkill.

I’ve been night riding with some roadies from my club, this is their first time and they seem happy to hoon all over the place with 240 lumen Joysticks. Ignorance is bliss.

Sounds like a lot of you need brighter lights 😀

Er, so you only have to show some courtesy if there are lots of other people around? Hmmm

what Nicko means, is that the footpaths around his end of sheffield are even quiet in the daytime, in summer, at the weekend, when it’s national ‘go for a walk’ day…

what Nicko means, is that the footpaths around his end of sheffield are even quiet in the daytime, in summer, at the weekend, when it’s national ‘go for a walk’ day…

yeh i think that’s what i mean. ride somewhere quieter? less infuriating lights in face that way!

no i mean if i go for a night ride i wont see anyone else out…

Ever? Got your own private trail centre or something?

Forget it, I just thought that was a pretty stupid comment.

These hugely bright lights are also dangerous to car drivers if they are dazzles and far to bright .I see no need for 2000+lumen lights and ride perfectly well off road with a tenth of that .Is it just I`ve got brighter lights than you willy waving?

We need more lasers on the trails.
You know to kill other riders off..
Or a stick in the spokes..
Or a hedgehog smack about the head..
Horse Poo thrown at them..
Wee in their shoes..
Then the trails become yours.

There’s your solution right there.

Part of the problem is when folk you are riding with have much brighter lights than you. It means you end up riding in a shadow.

Ever? Got your own private trail centre or something?

hmm no not really – just never really see anyone out… i once bumped into three lads that were riding dh, but that’s about it.

we’re talking about a nationally-known woodland as well. famed for bicycle usage.

seen quite a few doggers in my time mind!

ride perfectly well off road with a tenth of that .Is it just I`ve got brighter lights than you willy waving?

it depends how you view night riding.

if it’s an exercise in navigation/riding/not falling off with minimal illumination then fewer lumens the better.

if it’s ‘I’m riding at night ‘cos otherwise I wouldn’t get to ride at all but I don’t want to compromise how I ride just ‘cos it’s dark’ then the more lumens the better.

horses for course, innit.

Ever?

Rarely

Is it just I`ve got brighter lights than you willy waving?

i’d say that ‘i can ride by the glow of a light fag‘ attitude is a bit more willy waving…

Agreed OP, there’s nothing worse than someone stopping for chat and burning out your retinas.

So how bright is too bright? I used to think my halogen lumicycles were brilliant until they got replaced with some LED action. My current (4-5 year old) lights give me a combined 1200 lumens at max output which is loads. I’m sure something brighter would be even better.

BUT, at what point does the edge get totally removed from night riding and you might as well just go out in the day? As already mentioned, the biggest draw for me to night riding (other than it was the only time I could go) was that it was completely different to riding in daylight. Speed and poor vision made it incredibly scarey. If you can see for hundreds of feet in any direction now, what’s the point?!

It has become an arms race with the brightness of lights. They now far exceed what is needed for a night ride. Maybe there should be retro night rides where you rock up with some old halogens and ride for the fun of it.

This thread has inspired me to try dangling a 2000 lumen lamp from the end of my winky next ride.

If you can see for hundreds of feet in any direction now, what’s the point?!

Because if you ride most nights it’s quite convenient. I appreciate for many a night ride is a special thing, but if you’re riding 5 days a week, it’s just a ride, but with less light.

If you can see for hundreds of feet in any direction now, what’s the point?!

for six months of the year, on the occasions I get spare time to go riding, its dark.

You don’t HAVE to look right into their lights, just look to the side, it isn’t a problem.

for six months of the year, on the occasions I get spare time to go riding, its dark

Fair point, I just always looked on night riding as ‘different’ to riding in daylight, in that not being able to see everything kind of spiced it up a bit.

I ride with a bar light which has 3,000 lumen max output but I actually ride with it set to around 500 – 900 for most things.

My problem is that other riders MUST be able to see me and I can see them from quite a distance.
it cant come as a surprise when we ride towards each other, i turn my light away,turn it down or cover with my hand. i expect the other person to do the same.

lately, if the other rider continues to burn my eyes out at 70 yards I give maximum 3,000 lumen and leave it on in the hope they cop on.

childish,yes

I do this anyway and I find it odd that other people don’t.

I prefer to night ride on my own as I find other peoples lights a distraction.

Interesting discussion, especially how lights are so bright it defeats the point of night riding. I started with a modified roadie designed BLT light set “back in the day”, a major upgrade from Duracell lamps. We used to ride to the middle of the woods, then “go dark” and let our eyes adjust. That was fun, I think we would do about 5mph, scared witless but giggling like a loon. Made all the “tame” trails suddenly very tricky. Then eventually people joined us with lighthouse lights on their bikes. Other than the issue of it creating a shadow that you ended up riding in when they were behind you, it also creates more shadows on the trail, flattens everything as it seems to bleach the ground with bright white unrelenting light. I don’t do night riding these days, family and work commitments mean I don’t “have to” ride at night off road. In a way I’m glad as it started as something a bit “niche” now everyone sells ’em and they have become a status thing when you can buy a front light for the same price as a complete bike or a very good pair of suspension forks.

So – on the side of never enough lumens, but showing some respect to fellow citizens, pedestrians, walkers, soldiers, dogs, doggers by dousing or dipping lights.

As to the willy waving thing – more light in the right place lets you ride closer to the speed you would in the day light. If you ride by candle light you just won’t go very quickly. Unless of course you just ride slowly all the time in which case you can probably get buy with those old Ever Ready jobbies from the 1970’s.

What lights are people actually running?

Personally I run Four4th Holy Moses on the bars and a Four4th Genesis 3 spot on the helmet for plenty of light down the trail.

So – on the side of never enough lumens, but showing some respect to fellow citizens, pedestrians, walkers, soldiers, dogs, doggers by dousing or dipping lights.

As to the willy waving thing – more light in the right place lets you ride closer to the speed you would in the day light. If you ride by candle light you just won’t go very quickly. Unless of course you just ride slowly all the time in which case you can probably get buy with those old Ever Ready jobbies from the 1970’s.

What lights are people actually running?

Personally I run Four4th Holy Moses on the bars and a Four4th Genesis 3 spot on the helmet for plenty of light down the trail.

Interesting discussion, especially how lights are so bright it defeats the point of night riding.

Or some people have busy lives and night riding is the only opportunity they have to get out on their bikes?

That said, I do turn my light down and angle it down when riding on the road.

Interesting discussion, especially how lights are so bright it defeats the point of night riding.

that’s an interesting perspective. i consider night riding to be a necessity rather than a vocational activity.

if i want to ride in winter during the week, it will be dark. and by winter i mean october to april ish…