Day rides....light on or off?
 

Just a quick poll on the issue.....more and more im thinking of keeping them on.

There is some concessions, I wear a fluorescent vest, and if bad weather/fog I will put them on.

If your talking about running a blinkie front and rear, YES! Starting in 1978 motorcycles had to have there lights on all the time to improve there viability to other drivers.

Off, because I want my batteries and bulbs to last. It saves the trouble of having to make extra charges. OTOH, if there is clearly impaired visibility, then I turn them on.

If I had a generator hub, I might consider "day time running lights," but as it is, I'd rather save my batteries for when I need them.

I immediately noticed a sharp reduction in the number of crossings and pull-outs in front of me when I started using one of my DiNottes on the high/low flash setting during the day.

With cars, trucks, buses and motorcycles all running daytime running lights, it meets motorists' expectations that something with lights is a moving vehicle. It further distinguishes me from the riders who wobble along at 6 mph.

Every now and again I ride without lights and I always regret it. Yesterday afternoon doing hill training is a perfect example. I figured that doing hill repeats on a sunny afternoon on a very lightly traveled road on the U of R campus, that visibility wouldn't be a problem. So I never switched the lights from my commuter to my other bike.

On a 25 mph descent a kid pulled out in front on me, the O on his face through the side window showing his surprise. Had he not seen me, or had he misjudged my speed? Who knows? But I'm fairly certain it wouldn't have happened had I been running lights, because it never does when I run my lights.

That's interesting tsl. I only run lights in low visibility conditions (bad weather or darkness) but your post is timely because I was just having a discussion with some non-cycling friends about how inherently difficult it can be for drivers to judge a cyclist's speed. Here in Missoula, for example, most riders fall into two categories (with some overlap, myself for example). There are the college kids who maybe hadn't ridden a bike until middle school and really don't have any idea what they're doing, and the "serious" cyclists (looks around nervously for ILTB). The former are apt to weave from road to sidewalk haphazardly, rarely breaking 10 mph. Most of the roadies, however, and some of the stronger mountain bikers can easily keep pace with cars on many streets in the middleof town due to lowish speed limits and bad traffic. I don't want to b elitist, but it seems to me there have to be inherent differences in the accomodations/rules necessary for cyclists capable of going drastically varying speeds.

Fark, I really do sound like a snob :(

just for the added visibility - never have enough of that. I always wear my bright reflective vest too - big difference in cager response & behaviour when I wear it and with the lights on as opposed to when I don't

On. I have a generator hub, so why not? :)

I use my headlight and tail-light all the time when bike commuting in traffic. However, I don't use any lights typically for road rides unless it's very early in the morning or late in afternoon or raining. I always wear brightly colored jerseys, period.

I, too, have noticed a big difference when running lights in the daylight. Of course, daily commuting these past months has also made me a more confident rider, and I ride out there as if I belong there. That, too, makes a big difference.

I don't always run my headlight (though I am considering it), but my blinky taillight is always lit. I use Cat Eye LEDs at both ends, and have rechargeable batteries for both so there's no worry there (and I carry spares).

I voted off assuming day is a bright and sunny midday.

But clouds, morning and early evening I use lights.

Al

overcast or low light conditions I turn it on.
dinotte rear blinky I can use anytime of the day since it's very bright and powerful, but the front blinky I have probably can't be seen all too well on brighter days.

I suppose I should have given it more thought before voting.

My blinkie is always on. The headlight only comes on when it's darkish.

Off and in my bag unless it is overcast. More aero that way. :p

I used to use a DiNotte in flash mode & now I use Fenix L2D at strobe on my helmet during the day. I wouldn't leave home without one of those plus Planet Bike Superflash. That way I do not have doors opened in front of me & no one is cutting me off. An orange/bright yellow jersey helps too.

I always have them on, although during the daylight I'll put them on flashing while at night I'll put the headlights on steady. Anything I can do to make the cars aware of me is worth the effort.

I have been running my Superflash rear blinkie in daylight. It gives an impression of somebody who knows what they're doing, and might even have a right to use the road. My intent is to look more like traffic, and less like all the kids and food delivery guys swerving along, on the wrong side of the street. I do save my front light for night use however; I just don't think it's bright enough to be seen against the sunshine.

I voted "on", but if I am not downtown, and it is a bright sunny day, I will turn it off as I am on mostly backroads and don't feel I need it.

I ran my new trinewt on blink one day last week, and it REALLY got people's attention! It looks like the strobe on the front of an emergency vehicle.

I don't mind extra charges to run it if I feel it will help.

It depends on the conditions. Is it early morning? High traffic? Raining? If any of these, the answer is yes.

I run my Trinewt's strobe as well if I'm in commute-hour traffic and that strobe is attention-getting. I think it's worth it because I usually am riding in the bike lane which is on the periphery of their vision. When I'm sitting at a light, though, I cup my hand over the lens.

Now that I have a dynohub, I flip on the light whenever the weather is poor or it starts to get dark. With batteries, I would hesitate more.

I run in blink mode during the day, unless I'm on the MUP. I want every possible margin on my side, and I have noticed a difference in motorists' reaction times.

If I'm riding, my lights are on.

I have told my wife, "When I do get run over, it will be on purpose, not because they didn't see me."

(She hates that I say "When" instead of "If");)

On. I started using mine when I almost pulled out in front of a car because I didn't see the dingy brown thing camouflaged in early-morning shadows. It occurred to me that if I had trouble picking out a 2000lb car in the middle of the lane, it might be even harder to see me.