[Closed] Do you- would you wear a hi-viz when on the road,when riding a bike

I wear this

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You are a very attractive man.

Edit: is that a camel toe?

When commuting in poor light conditions I didn't wear a high viz mostly because it would be obscured by my backpack but I did have one of the hi-viz back pack covers and a fair amount of reflective material on the bike and always two rear lights one flashing one constant.

Slap-ons around wrists and ankles, decent lights, my Deuterpak rain cover is high vis yellow with reflective logo, and most bike clothing has reflective logos/trims.
So no, never found the need for hi-viz vests especially as my commute is 95% off road and nearly all of my local cycling is riverside path, tow-path, cycle route or bridleway 🙂

I wear a dark blue jacket and have a £2.99 tail light from Tesco.

My brother wears hi-viz everything accentuated by strap on luminous chequered LED flashing ankle/wrist/helmet bands along with most of the Exposure lighting catalogue for front/rear lighting along with front/rear helmet lights and flashing pedals.

We've been knocked off the same number of times. None.

Hi-viz - I wouldn't have thought - makes much difference at night

I don't ever wear any reflective stuff other than the odd bits sewn in as standard - I don't ever ride on the road at night either

I purchased an [url= http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Endura-Laser-Cycling-Gillet_10186.htm ]Endura Laser[/url] gillet for a recent 550 mile road ride. It was fairly comfortable, even on warm days. I didn't have any incidents until the very last day, when it had started to drizzle. I put my grey and black Gore Tex jacket over the gillet (DOH!) and, about 5 miles from the finish, a guy pulled out of his driveway in a huge (normal size for the area) truck. It wouldn't have been so bad but he was towing a ruddy great speedboat so I had to swerve around both of them. I could've sworn he'd seen me as he looked straight at me, plus I had a dayglo cover on my bar bag. He did apologise but said he hadn't seen me. Go figure.

if you cycle on the roads when its dark and you dont wear a hi viz vest or similar IMO your a bell end. If you dont wear a helmet at all, again your a bell end.

but do you ride with a bell?

I'm a big fan of the Continental City Contact Reflex tyres on my commuter.
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Scotchbrite-style reflective sidewall means drivers get excellent side on reflection from you without having to stick reflectors in your spokes (which always look a little bit "special")

Commuting, I wear a hi viz Polaris gilet and flashing LEDs. Son1 wears a hi viz orange Chrome messenger bag 8) and Son2 wears a hi viz gilet, both with flashing LEDs. Both ride on the road. Normal road riding, I don't bother, but I do wear bright colours anyway.

Unfortunately I have failed to locate a good bright hi viz rucksack for Son2. Humps are just something else to lose!

I commute in normal clothes. I feel like I get a wider berth by passing cars than when I'm on a 'proper' ride in 'cycling' clothes

I used to live by that. Camo army jacket and jeans tucked in.

Thing is, grim mornings with moisture and fog on car windows along with stress and tiredness is a bigger killer than 'ooo just spotted that bloke he may punch my face in if I drive too close'. Summer it works- autumn definitely not.

I wear generally bright coloured jerseys (unless all of them are dirty) - with reflective ankle straps over winter - lights & spoke reflectors (the tubular clip on ones) - occasionally a lumo jacket but only when it's baltic cold

I've been hit twice by cars (in 10 years of bike commuting), both times it was a light morning and they pulled out in front of me - i now use lights from september to april (ish!)

I may have to rethink my attire. My new commute seems to bring me in to far closer contact with more idiots in cars.

No harm at all with having the rear lights on all the time and I suppose getting some hi viz will be worthwhile. as I will be riding at dawn and dusk right thru the middle of town.

I'd even suggest using your nightlight for commuting

All my cycling tops/jackets are hi-viz Altura Night Vision. I think hi-viz is most useful in low light conditions (such as my commute home every day at the moment). Probably look like a right knob but I want to give myself every advantage (especially considering the hi-viz option is the same price as the non-spaz option).

Without wishing to poke the hornets' nest too much, I agree with the comments above that being visible (hi-viz, reflectives, good lights) is more important than wearing a helmet (although I do also wear a helmet).

I use my dx light for the "proper winter" when it's dark in the morning and post work - nothing like a flashing monster LED to get cars to move over when filtering! (also gives cars some warning if you are approaching on unlit roads)

(although an old giffer did wave me down last year to say my light was too bright - better too bright than invisible i reckon)

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If it's cold or raining on the commute I'll stick this on. It doesn't look [i]too[/i] bad (better than a yellow bib anyway). Otherwise it's just a normal t-shirt. 90% of my commute is cycle path though so I think the risks are small

(although an old giffer did wave me down last year to say my light was too bright - better too bright than invisible i reckon)

Take light off. Hold it up next to his headlights. Slap him.

Being both a driver and a cyclist, there have been numerous occasions where I have not spotted a cyclist until the last minute, even though they have been wearing hi-viz tops.

I think they make sense in cities and towns where there is a clear contrast between the colour and the back-drop, but when you are out on country lanes their effectiveness is diminished somewhat by the dappled lighting and the colours of the back-drop (the yellow ones at least).

And at night... well, only the reflective part is effective and most jackets, hi-viz or not, come with reflective parts on them.

As a result, I feel lights are far more important that hi-viz clothing.

if you cycle on the roads when its dark and you dont wear a hi viz vest or similar IMO your a bell end. If you dont wear a helmet at all, again your a bell end.

Hi viz (yellow or orange) or a jacket with reflective bits. but most important is a flashing LED on the back of my lid and a constant one on the bike.

flasher high up to get their attention constant to give them something steady and vizible to gauge distance from...

I haven't got any hi-viz. Tend to wear red for commuting (hides the blood). Can't believe it makes any difference to drivers seeing you or not, or how they react when they have seen you. Just makes the wearer feel a bit safer.
(I have got reflective patches on my backpack to make me feel a bit safer.)

Well when its frosty and cold/gloomy and dark I almost reversed into a cyclist. I was utterly shocked and apologised. She was dressed in typical Endura bike kit and I mentioned 'the tones' blended in with the greys/browns and blacks around.

In no way did it detract from the fact that I didn't see her.

Throughout summer no. Commuting through the other 11 months of the year I have a high vis wind proof and gillet. Although when it gets really cold and I need a warmer jcaket it isn't high vis. Commuting is different to road biking though as the roads are busier and the level of activity lower. Commuting bike has all the legal reflectors and a few extra ones. Also plenty of lights normally a couple front and back one flashing one more powerful steady.

Out on the road bike proper I don't wear high vis as I don't own the kit. I do still carry the high vis gillet or windproof because if I'm wearing those then chances are the weather has detriorated or it is early/late in the day. Will carry lights if I know it will be dark at any point and will often have a small rear light in my pocket in case the weather is bad for other rides. No reflectors!

I do worry where all this is heading. It will be soon the case that you could be knocked off through no fault of your own and then get blamed for
- not using a cycle lane
- not wearing a helmet
- not wearing high-viz
argh!

For commuting when it's dark for the entire commute I do, lots of lights and reflective bands on wrist/ankles too.

What really worries me in autumn and spring is when you get low sun. Came round a corner monday morning and was almost blinded by the sun shining right in my eyes, reflected off the wet road I could hardly see a thing. Was bricking it about cars behind not seeing me the full length of the road (half mile or so) Scary.

HI viz is a decent idea but I'm also worried about in future a cyclist having no lights, no hi viz and no *head garment that must not be named* absolves motorists of driving over them.

Road positioning is also important for avoiding a [b]S[/b]orry [b]M[/b]ate [b]I[/b] [b]D[/b]idn't [b]S[/b]ee [b]Y[/b]ou. More so than high-viz, I'd say. I see loads of commuters riding in the gutter when they should be taking the lane.

But, SMIDSY should lead to a driving without due care and attention conviction, rather than being used as a defence. Unless the cyclist was riding without lights at night, if a driver didn't see them, they didn't look properly.

Did you have your glasses on Hora?

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My commuting jacket is bright ornage, but sometimes when the weather is really horrible or it is unusually dark in the early evening I throw on a hi viz vest, it attracts quite a bit of attention as it says "AMBULANCE" on the back and is covered in reflective stripes, but anything extra I can put on in Bradford is good.

Hi viz kit is a suplimentary measure nothing more. it's a passive means of making you "more vizible" it relies on having a light source (head lights) reflect off it.

Active illumination (lights) are the best means by which to get yourself seen in poor/zero light conditions.... End of.

If it's looking dusky or is dark then I have plenty of lights, wear a sam brown belt and have straps around my arms. In proper winter I have a police surplus jacket which you can see from the moon and makes everyone think I'm a policeman, except I'm going quickly and follow the rules.

Hi viz kit is a suplimentary measure nothing more. it's a passive means of making you "more vizible" it relies on having a light source (head lights) reflect off it.

High Viz doesn't rely on a light source.

On a high-viz waistcoat, the green or orange parts are always high viz. It's only the reflective parts that rely on a light source.

always high viz

But they aren't always highly visible.

It does make a difference in your PI claim tho' if you are hit - not wearing hi viz or bright colours can be considered contributary negligence. It certainly helped in mine.

Commuting bike has all the legal reflectors and a few extra ones.

Including the amber pedal reflectors? I can't quite figure out how to attach them to egg-beaters. 🙂

Indeed.

Car drivers need to learn the difference between Sorry Mate I Didn't See You and what the real truth is Sorry Mate I Wasn't Looking Properly Cos I'm A Rubbish Driver, which is much more likely.

GrahamS - Member

Commuting bike has all the legal reflectors and a few extra ones.

Including the amber pedal reflectors? I can't quite figure out how to attach them to egg-beaters.

Self adhesive amber reflective tape stuck on the pedals and crank arm. Not much to stick it to on eggies but must be a bit of spindle to wrap it round.

 

TJ: does tape meet the legal requirement?

not wearing hi viz or bright colours can be considered contributary negligence.

*assuming you're not omitting important info

All the Specialized shoes I've had (the proper spd ones, not the trainer style ones) have reflective trim on them. Surely that would replace the reflector on the pedal.

Graham - I have found it hard to get specifics. there is a standard for reflectivity and for size I think - tape should be able to meet it.

However if you have a reasonable area of tape it does tend to trump their defence of "he had no reflectors" which is crap at the best of times. Its also really noticeable in a headlamp beam

I have the tape on both my bikes that get ridden at night

I occasionally see a guy who has a red flashing LED on his right shoe, at least I think it's his shoe heel

Quite impressive

that's messed up*.

I have for the first time in yeas returned to regular commuting, I now wear hi viz gilet thing, have lights on if there's low cloud or poor visibility, have a bell on the bike and wear an idiot whistle on some shock cord attached to my packs shoulder strap, this has yet to be needed but aims to alert others to my presence as approaching busy or dodgy areas in town, of course it relies on there being time..

Yeah I know what CN is, and that insurers want to [s]shaft you[/s] "keep their costs down" but what have hi vis garments got to do with anything assuming my 2 previous statements ie there was no problem with actual visibility.