Advocacy & Safety - Ok Now My Wife Must Be Concerned

She come home from Wally World last night with 2 yes 2 safety vests . A orange mesh and a solid Yellow green one . She is always telling me to be careful!! I don't commute Iam retired BUT I ride a LOT at night spring summer and fall . I am true FRED and don"t wear cycle clothes just shorts and normaly a bright yellow or orange T shirt or with blue jeans .

Here is my question do YOU folks wear these vests ? And with all the lights I got front and rear sloid and blinkers and one on my helmet do you folks think the damn vests a do much good ? Other than my wifes piece a mind ??? And one note I could care less what I look like iam to old to give S#$%^T about that :D

So whats your thoughts on these vests ?
One more note she got me some nice Walls brand really bright color T Shirts heavy weight size 2X for $11.00 each mostiure wicking material a steal IMO at that price for the quality . If you need them be great for winter even there kina like the Under Armor material . NO COTTON to soak sweat .

The Vests are well made and were $14.00 each and are Walls brand also and made well . just a FYI thing since this is the safety forum :O) .

In the daytime the bright color makes you more visible, at night the reflective bands do the trick. I wear ANSI lime jerseys, jackets or vests on all but the shortest rides. (at night it has to be the vest, because it has the reflective bands) Besides improving your visibility, it will make your wife happy. Win-win.

I have seen bike police in yellow reflective vests. If approaching motorists mistake you for a police officer, I think that will be good for your safety.

I bought myself one for the evening/night commute. I liked it so much I started wearing it for the morning/day commute. It's mostly mesh and comfortable even in the summer.

It will only enhance your Fredness.

Speedo

I don't wear one myself, but I notice the guys (and girls) that do. I wear bright yellow shirts though.. ..Charlie Brown shirts with the zig-zags usually..

I wear mine 100% of the time, even if I'm going down the street to the grocery store. I've had tons of people (even cars stopping me on the street) asking where to buy the vest, because it is so bright and visible. I also ride with 4 PB 1-watt Blazes on the front, 2 PB Superflashes on the rear, and 2 PB Superflashes on the front fork. At night I have PB flashing LED bands on both of my legs.

I look like a complete fred, or a bike cop, or both. Pedestrians and cars often times just sit there mouths agape at all of the safety stuff. I really don't care... I've been hit by a car before and spent half a day hooked up to an IV in the hospital. The driver claimed she did not see me until I was rolling over her hood, even though we were both staring at each other for 5 mins. at a stoplight before it turned green. So I'm not taking any more chances.

Yes - you will stand out with your safety vest. Yes - people will stop and stare. But that's the whole point.

The brand of the vests that I wear is Occulux - you can buy them at a bunch of different places online. I have a short-sleeve version for the summer and a long-sleeve version for the winter. I like that the Occulux comes in different sizes. I am a pretty thin guy - 5' 9" 140 lbs. so I look pretty goofy sporting an XXL vest built for a 300 lb. construction worker.

I wear my safety vest only during the dark winter evening commutes, once daylight saving time kicks in then it's back to the just wearing bright colors, and the vest is put away until next winter.

No I don't wear them. They give the illusion that cycling is insanely dangerous and you need to look like a construction worker to survive it.

I do wear a bright yellow shell when the weather demands. I have no problem with bright clothing and do try to prefer it but I'm not going to wear a reflective vest.

I figure the lights do more than the reflective vest can. If I were that concerned I'd buy another superflash and stick it on the back of my shirt for each ride.

I wear neon yellow jerseys with a neon yellow jacket. The seat bag on my recumbent is neon yellow.

I wear them for daytime and twilight. At night I have so much active lighting, reflective tape, and reflectors that it would be overkill!

No I don't wear them. They give the illusion that cycling is insanely dangerous and you need to look like a construction worker to survive it.

I do wear a bright yellow shell when the weather demands. I have no problem with bright clothing and do try to prefer it but I'm not going to wear a reflective vest.

I figure the lights do more than the reflective vest can. If I were that concerned I'd buy another superflash and stick it on the back of my shirt for each ride.

I tried the extra Superflash, but since their beam is so focused it's pretty much a waste of time wearing one, they're best mounted on a fixed part of the bike. Seeing others wearing safety vests in just my bicycle headlight alone is enough for me to wear one during those rainy/dark winter commutes.

I wear a vest sometimes. If I'm in town, I usually don't bother, unless I'm out in fog or rough weather when motorists might not expect to see me.

When I'm touring, I'll sometimes use the vest if I'm on a winding mountain highway or on a busy road. In the quieter areas, I don't bother with the vest.

No I don't wear them. They give the illusion that cycling is insanely dangerous and you need to look like a construction worker to survive it....

I don't care what kind of "illusion" they give. I often ride very late at night finishing up work well after 11pm. I also do some long distance randonneur style rides on really quiet country roads. I've ridden behind riders using blinkies and other flashing lights only and I've ridden behind people wearing reflective gear along with lights and the difference in visibility is extreme. I've also seen joggers/runners wearing them and have never once thought the wearing of a reflective vest made jogging at night seem any more or less "dangerous" than running without one. In fact, if anything it makes it seem safer to me.

I wouldn't call them an absolute necessity and certainly good lights are more important but they can help.

If you're riding at night and would like the benefit of being as visible as possible they're not a bad idea.

Reflective bits are a good idea as a supplement to active lighting systems - particularly reflective bits observable from the side.

I don't wear a vest, but when we did an active test of bike visibility in headlights, those goofy orange triangles were most noticeable - vests were close.

Lacking a vest/triangle, I have reflective tape in various places on my bike that more or less produces the shape of the bike from the perspective of a driver's headlights

I do commonly wear a high vis yellow jacket.

Might be a good idea, I have life insurance so my old lady don't care if I don't wear bright stuff....

I wear a reflective vest on my pre-dawn commutes to work, in addition to having lights on the bike, my helmet, and DOT C-2 reflective tape on the bike. I have a windbreaker that I like when it's cool out that I wear a ANSI green vest over when riding because of the dark green color of the windbreaker. Otherwise during the day I wear a bright T-shirt. On overcast days, or in the rain or fog, I ride with my lights on.

Some time ago my mother-in-law got me two lighted reflective safety vests. I don't use the lighted feature anymore because the lights are on the back and front, are red, and only have a flashing mode. I don't like having red flashing lights to the front, and with two headlights and 3-5 taillights I think the lighted feature of this vest is unnecessary.

I don't care if wearing a reflective vest may give some people the illusion that cycling may be dangerous, because it is dangerous if you blend into the background so that motorists can't see you. Drivers can't be expected to avoid what they can't see in time to do so.

I saw a nut last night riding in the dark without lights and wearing dark clothing. The only way I saw him when I did was his pedal reflectors and white front reflector. He had no rear reflector.

I wear a vest...most of the time. I also have a couple of the Carhart ANSI Class 2 jackets in the lime green. In low light conditions the reflective stuff really shows up. FWIW I bought a case of the very inexpensive ANSI vests to hand out to some of the ninja riders around here, and some of them are still wearing them:thumb: I live in a formerly rural part of the county where the roads are of minimum width (<10'-6" lanes) no shoulders and traffic moving at 55mph+, limited sight distances, etc. Anything to increase visibility whether active or passive is a good thing.

Aaron:)

It can't hurt, but eventually you're going to hit the period of diminishing returns-- the equipment is going to get more and more inconvenient and you'll be about as visible as you can get already.

FWIW, I ride with a single headlight and single taillight, with backups in the saddlebag, and reflective tape on my fenders. I don't bother with reflective clothing; I like to be able to ride in whatever I normally wear. I've never noticed any driver fail to notice me at night.

I don't care what kind of "illusion" they give. I often ride very late at night finishing up work well after 11pm. I also do some long distance randonneur style rides on really quiet country roads. I've ridden behind riders using blinkies and other flashing lights only and I've ridden behind people wearing reflective gear along with lights and the difference in visibility is extreme. I've also seen joggers/runners wearing them and have never once thought the wearing of a reflective vest made jogging at night seem any more or less "dangerous" than running without one. In fact, if anything it makes it seem safer to me.

I wouldn't call them an absolute necessity and certainly good lights are more important but they can help.

If you're riding at night and would like the benefit of being as visible as possible they're not a bad idea.

The difference between a good blinkie (PB SF or better) and a bad blinkie is also extreme. I've seen folks riding with the blinkies you find at most bike shops and they're barely better than a reflector. In fact, sometimes I see their shoes reflect from my 120 lumen headlight before I see their blinkie.

I want to be as visible as is reasonable. As visible as possible would involve sirens and bubble gum lights. This is obviously overdoing it and hardly an argument against a vest. However, it's an argument against the "as visisble as possible" statement.

I'm not absolutely sure that a vest isn't a good idea but I think it would be a very marginal benefit to me and it would be marginally annoying to put on so I've not yet decided to wear one. The silly appearance factor ends up throwing me over the top and into the "I'm against it" side.

Now, if I rode at 11PM very often I'd probably wear one. It's not any darker than 7PM (in the winter) but drivers are tired. However, if I ride at 11PM I'm not worried about looking silly. "Normal" people are in bed at 11.

Yes, I wear a vest.

I have four vests, no three, because I gave one to a friend.

I have one that's orange mesh and has "Strong Yellow Green" reflective stripes.
The others are Lime Green and have silver reflective stripes.

The orange one is like a bib, so the visibility from the sides is not too great, but I wear it when it's over 90 degrees outside.

The three other vests I found along the road, I guess road workers forgot them ( I washed them before wearing them, quite a lot of dirt came out).

I've seen folks riding with the blinkies you find at most bike shops and they're barely better than a reflector. In fact, sometimes I see their shoes reflect from my 120 lumen headlight before I see their blinkie...

so true about blinkies and lights in general- the range is extreme. But as you point out the reflectors on shoes can make the difference between visible and invisible for a cyclist. That same kind of reflective material in the form of a vest means extra visibility in many situations without batteries, at a relatively low cost and not much additional weight.

With regards the fashion statement or any other statement the vest might make I believe the OP said his wife gave him the vests- if he's looking to impress someone other than her he's gonna have some explaining to do.;)

so true about blinkies and lights in general- the range is extreme. But as you point out the reflectors on shoes can make the difference between visible and invisible for a cyclist. That same kind of reflective material in the form of a vest means extra visibility in many situations without batteries, at a relatively low cost and not much additional weight.

With regards the fashion statement or any other statement the vest might make I believe the OP said his wife gave him the vests- if he's looking to impress someone other than her he's gonna have some explaining to do.;)


Na we been married 29 yrs :love: not trying inpress anyone . But She don"t want me to get killed I don"t think and I did get hit last yr ! In broad daylight . Just her way of showing she cares ;)

Wear the vest and get Reflective Tires.

The difference between a good blinkie (PB SF or better) and a bad blinkie is also extreme. I've seen folks riding with the blinkies you find at most bike shops and they're barely better than a reflector. In fact, sometimes I see their shoes reflect from my 120 lumen headlight before I see their blinkie.

I want to be as visible as is reasonable. As visible as possible would involve sirens and bubble gum lights. This is obviously overdoing it and hardly an argument against a vest. However, it's an argument against the "as visisble as possible" statement.

I'm not absolutely sure that a vest isn't a good idea but I think it would be a very marginal benefit to me and it would be marginally annoying to put on so I've not yet decided to wear one. The silly appearance factor ends up throwing me over the top and into the "I'm against it" side.

Now, if I rode at 11PM very often I'd probably wear one. It's not any darker than 7PM (in the winter) but drivers are tired. However, if I ride at 11PM I'm not worried about looking silly. "Normal" people are in bed at 11.


Granted that a safety vest isn't fashionable attire for most people, but to me, it's a great asset and another additional component in helping to be more visible. The one plus about a vest is that I can put it on or take it off at my choosing, especially while shopping after work.

I like your wife's approach.

I wear vests even though I don't like them. Sometime's I don't in the summer.

I think that when someone shines on me, the passive visibility from a vest out performs the lights I have: I have 4 in the back 2 in the front, good quality.

Next time you're on a highway driving behind a tractor trailer look at all the tape around the trailer and how it really stands out compared to the lights it has.

No I don't think that hi-vis yellow clothing/vests make you look any better on a bike... but when riding in low light conditions they make a world of difference. A high qaulity reflective vest also makes you much more visable during dark rides. I've nearly hit some folks walking in the dark that were wearing dark clothing, but thought they'd be seen because they were wearing a safety vest. The reflective material was so bad that I pretty much has to be on top of them before I could even tell they were in the road and only then did I notice a very faint stripe on their backs. Once I got close enough to pass them I noticed that they had vests on... clearly those vests were useless.

There is definitely a balance between clothing being visible in day light, low light, and dark riding conditions. You also need to balance passive with active lighting. Nothin replaces a good quality rear light. I've seen a bunch of them on other rider's bikes. So far the only ones I've ever been impressed with are the PB Super Flash and the much more expensive Dinotte rear light. In the conditions I was riding both appeared similar in brightness. Most of the other blinkies were a complete waist as they were pretty much not visible from any real distance.

I wear my vests any time I ride in low light conditions. During bright Summer weather I don't bother, but I still wear relatively bright clothing. I like normal yellow much better than hi-vis yellow therefore in the Summer that is the T-shirt color of choice. I also have a few orange shirts, but I have seen 1st hand that these start to look "gray" in lower light conditions much quicker than yellow. I've been amazed at how hard a rider can be to see even on a summer day when they wear dark clothing that can blend into the road. I am nor trying to set any fasion trends, but being seen on roads is essential when I am riding in the path of car coming up from behind. The more time they have to see me, the more time they have to react (and hopefully have plenty of time to pass).

A quality Hi-vis Yellow vest/shirt however keeps on being noticable at much lower light conditions. I've had my wife follow me home in a car at night and she tells me that my ANSI Class 2 vest from AlertShirt lights me up like a Christmass tree. The key is that the shirt use high quality 3M (or requivalent) white reflective tape. The yellow tape that some brands use can be pretty poor. Strangely you don't have to spend a lot on a good shirt. I've seen some cr@p vests sell for as much as $15, yet seen good shirts for $5 to $12. Price is NOT an indication of quality.

As I commute year round, I end up wearing my vest mornings and nights from Fall through Spring. When it gets hot in the Summer I am glad there is plenty of light so that I don't have to wear an extra layer.

Happy riding,
André

A lot of people wear them on motorcycles here. I don't know that I ever saw one on a bicycle. I have thought of getting one for my motorcycle.
On a motorcycle it makes people think you are a cop and suddenly they move over, slow down, don't tailgate, etc.
Instant respect, I guess, or is that fear? May work on a bicycle also.
dc