Increasing my visibility
 

I need some tips on increasing my daytime and dusk visibility. Lately it's like I'm wearing Harry Potter's Cloak of Invisibility even though I wear bright clothe and run (some fairly standard) lights during the daytime. I also start and end my commute by taking my kids to preschool in a trailer, and would like to make the trailer more visible from the sides as it gets darker in the morning and late afternoon.

So, what do you recommend? A helmet light? A reflective vest? Better head and tail lights? (Please be specific if you have light recommendations.) What about the trailer? Any good ideas for lighting the sides, or running lights up the flagpole somehow?

Hi-viz reflective trim the length of the trailer. Fluorescent yellow-green tape, e.g. Reflexite Daybright lime yellow, stands out better than plain silver or yellow, especially at dusk. That's why the color is now standard for pedestrian signage like crosswalk signs.

We also have two red taillights on our trailer, one on each side, to make it more visible that the trailer is wider than a single bike. The tail light on my rear rack reflects off the front and sides of the trailer, which also increases conspicuity.

Ah. I already have silver reflective tape on the bike and the trailer, but I will get the lime yellow. (Maybe this is also what I need to cover myself in for my commute.) I also have two tail lights on either side of the back of my trailer, but am worried about the fact that at 4 way stops some cars wait for me (on the bike) to clear them and then start through the intersection--I can't tell if this is East Coast impatience or if they don't see the trailer, so I'm looking for a more active side lighting system.

You may want to get one of those high powered strobe taillights, I think Portland Design works makes one & superflash makes one (I forget the names, but I'm sure someone will chime in). They are supposed to be really bright, to the point that some people won't ride behind one as they are too intense.

I'm sure you'll get plenty of technical advice beyond what I could provide, but I ride with this adage in mind, "Make yourself as visible as possible, and assume no one sees you."

For side lights for the trailer, I can suggest these: http://www.jbimporters.com/web/check...t_number=95589 Your bike shop can order these from J&B, or you can get them on Amazon.com.

http://www.jbimporters.com/web/images/new_400/95589.jpg

They flash amber, use 2 AAAs so you can use rechargables, they're fairly cheap, and they can clip onto fabric. If you have a kid in the trailer, I'd grab four and put them at the front and rear corners, facing sideways.

Another great active side light: the Cateye Orbit or NiteIze Spoklit spoke lights for the trailer's wheels. They're cheap, durable, and have wheel motion that gives the viewer the right idea about what the heck they're seeing.

If the trailer is made of fabric, you can get iron-on reflective tape and go wild with it. Two-inch-wide stripes all over. BUT remember it won't help if people don't have their lights turned on yet, or forgot to. You see that all the time, so active lighting is a must.

Oh, and for the bike and you: a reflective vest is a great add-on, Harbor Freight Tools has them starting at $5. Reflective legbands move and attract the eye, another great add-on; REI has the nice Jog-A-Lite ones or the LED-illuminated Planet Bike ones: http://www.rei.com/search?query=reflective+legband

For lights, I have a new favorite taillight, the Cygolite Hotshot. More info on that here: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...able-taillight

For headlights, adding a helmet light helps because you can steer it, and it shows over the tops of parked cars (smaller ones, anyway). You could rubber-band a 2AA high-output flashlight to your helmet and use rechargable NiMH AAs: http://www.shiningbeam.com/servlet/t...CREE-R5/Detail If you have a fancy NiMH charger that charges single cells, not just pairs, you could go with a 1AA model too.

Maybe use something like the Bike BrightZ or Down Low Glow?

active lighting to grab a drivers attention... if they are looking. passive only works when they are looking ahead and their beams light it up. Other than that, I figure all that is lost on a texter or sleeping driver.

Check out monkey lights if you haven't already. They are fun and definitely attention getting. I recently started using a headlamp and the fact that you can aim it right at cars that you think might not see you helps a ton. I've had a couple drivers who were about to turn or merge give me a "deer in headlights" look and come to a complete stop!

I'd also use a flag and a Kids on Board emblem.

By the time they get close enough to read your Kids on Board emblem, their bumper is in your bottom bracket.

Visibility at distance is what buys you time for drivers to react. I consider a half-mile the minimum. That gives them 30 seconds of texting or poking buttons on the GPS at 60 MPH.

At the rear, my minimum is a DiNotte 140R. I've upgraded to the DiNotte 300R which is easier to move from bike to bike. Both can be seen for a mile in full sun.

At the front, my daytime blinkie is a DiNotte 200L. At night, the MagicShine is the first light I've owned that gets me treated as traffic by both drivers and peds. Other lights register as "bike, eff it" and they turn or step out in front of me anyway. The MS registers as "traffic coming" and they wait for me to pass.

+1 @ tsl - standard blinkies don't provide drivers sufficient warning + reaction time (possible exception of dedicated bike trails and slow subdivision side streets). > 1 light provides bigger visual target and reliability.

I consider PBSF and knock-offs the minimum to provide enough warning time. I have 3 on road bike (seat stays & seat bag) plus a Mars 3 (easier button action) on back of helmet. Commuter has a Dinotte 200R (lithium version) rear, plus a Portland light + reflector combo (Virginia requires rear reflectors for night) and another PBSF clone. Based on chasing another rider with a Dinotte, it's easily visible for 1/2-full mile - terrain/sight lines or weather will cut it off before light level does. Based on daughter's comment ("Dad, your lights are OBNOXIOUS"), it will get driver's attention, assuming they saved any for the road.

For your kids' trailer, a small high-power steady or flasher (PBSF clone, Mars, one of the more capable blinkies?) on the trailer flag would be an attention getter due to the whipping motion from the flag. Once spotted, drivers may use it's range of motion to judge how far left they should go.

In Chicago, a cop told me I had to stop using Monkey Lights -- they aren't street legal apparently. (They get TOO much attention which can cause accidents from gawkers was the explanation). Check with your local jurisdiction

Don't overdo the active lights as your own ability to see outside the field of illumination may be compromised as your eyes adjust to the brightest objects. On the other hand, on quiet roads, it may end up being compromised anyway by motorists shining their brights in your face.

If you want to keep using them, just set the color to yellow only and the pattern to spread spectrum only. In that configuration they're just yellow blinking lights, which should be legal (many jurisdictions make it illegal to use anything other than white, yellow, or red lights on a road vehicle); you might even get away with yellow/white.

Or maybe not; I was just looking through the lighting regulations for my city and apparently I can only use flashing lights in an emergency (i.e., hazard lights). So technically it's illegal to run my taillight and my headlight on flash while riding (but it's ok if I break down in the road). Not that it would ever be enforced, but it's interesting.

Cops haven't hassled me about my MonkeyLights, except for one cop asking me where I got them. I do make a point of avoiding any flashing blue/red combos, so it doesn't appear that I'm attempting a very poor emergency vehicle impersonation.

The new Planet Bike Superflash Turbos are really bright. I've switched out the regular Superflashes on my commuter and road bike with these and have been told by quite a few people they were amazed how far away they were visible, even in bright sunlight. And I'd have flags on both rear corners of the trailer. Motorists aren't expecting it to be there so you need to make sure they see you are towing something.

I came upon and accident on my commute home a couple of years ago that occured right at sunset. The driver was facing into the sun waiting to make a left turn. Cyclist was traveling in opposite direction towing a trailer. The driver made the left just behind the bke and cut the turn close not seeing the trailer. When I saw the flattened trailer laying in the intersection, I was amazed that the child had survived.

Vis 360 by Light and Motion puts a bright (rechargeable) blinky on the front and back of your helmet. Front has 3 settings, and can be used as a headlight. I like that it's helmet mounted, I can direct the beam wherever I want. If a car is sitting at a stop sign on a side street, I can look right at them.

http://www.bikelights.com/shots/vis3601.jpg

do you live in the city? if i was going to ride around here with children in a trailer i would definitly have blinkies on both sides, rear, reflective tape and a flag on the back. anything low like a trailer is easly looked over especially in huge suvs/trucks/etc.

Whatever you do, please make sure they're aimed correctly. I was on our local MUP a couple of nights ago, and passed a couple of different people with extremely bright lights that totally wiped out my night vision. Nothing like trying to pass someone on a narrow MUP when you're completely blinded by glare.

I also use Dinotte lighting both front and rear, and I don't believe that it is possible for someone not to see it.
I know that I share the road with distracted drivers, with the Dinotte tail light - I am the distraction.

On todays ride I was taking photos.
My Friends 140L and my camera became one.

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/h...des6-40008.jpg

Like ks1g said PBSF equivalent or better. Any "tail light" isn't bright enough. You want something visible in daylight. I haven't found a Turbo Superflash but that's what I'd get. Then get a good battery charger and rechargeable batteries so that it's not the end of the world if you forget to turn one off and need fresh batteries.

Lime yellow vest/jacket on you identifies you as a person but honestly a bright strobe does make a difference during the day. There are a variety of BRIGHT LED headlamps powered by 3or 4 AAA batteries that can be set on strobe. If you're going for visibility get a BRIGHT light, not any light. Princeton Tec Eos is good, Petzl TikkaXp2, Black Diamond Storm. The Tikka Xp2 has a hellaciously good strobe with a focused or dispersing lens. The Storm has a very bright light and the strobe is with two side leds. Tec Eos has a lower speed strobe and not quite as bright but overall a good headlamp. I'll rotate the headlamp upward so it doesn't blind others at night. I can see it reflecting off of highways signs 75yds away.

I've purchased 3 off of eBay. They seem to be widely available there.

Skip to the Cygolite Hotshot, it's a monster. Rechargable, $40, adjustable flash rate and stuff.

This is awesome, all.

I missed in the thread where PBSF was defined. Sorry to be knob, but what does this mean?

(And just in case anyone was concerned that I am currently imperiling the tots, the trailer (and my bike) is covered in reflective tape, has two Planet Bike Superflash lights at about chest height on the rear, and two flags. This is all fine for daytime but I want more for the winter. And I live in the city proper, so traffic is more controlled than in a suburban situation--one way streets with a decent network of bike lanes in center city, 4 way stops on every block in the neighborhoods. Any after dark biking with the kids would be in the neighborhood, just getting them home from preschool.)