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Once you go ‘SAFETY’ you can never go back(?)

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  • January 31, 2016 at 7:44 pm #25319
    Leviathan

    Some of my winter kits is getting on a bit. I’ve had some of it 15 years. I have several Pro team jackets and tights in various colours, yellow, lightblue, red, dark blue(2), black, white(2) from various teams picked up off ebay over the years, some of them now of dubious reputation. None of them are worn out, I have always just added to my collection so I always have clean dry kit to wear and spread the load. 

    Last winter (Jan15) after a front wheel warping ding from a trundling driver at a t-junction and other close calls I got some very powerful LED lights called Orfos Flares from Kickstarter. They are certainly brighter and very much better side visibility. I wouldn’t go back to AAA batteries except in an emergency. I think lights are much more important they what you are wearing.

    However recently I have been thinking about upgrading my winter kits, what with there being a lot of cool looking technological solutions. I saw the Sugio Zap jacket and overshoes on this very website and think reflectives are the way to go to boost visibility. I see many people on my  commute dressup up like luminous clones wearing the same filthy jacket every day with mud splattered up their backside; it makes me shudder. Some of my lighter coloured jackets are just as bright as fluorescence only works with UV .

    My problem is feeling like once I have bought an item that I would feel like I was being ‘less safe’ by choosing not to wear it all the time. I’ve seen plenty of threads on here reviewing winter kit (like the Rapha suit or Castelli Gabba) with comments like “winter kit in black, are you mental’ {This isn’t a helmet debate and I wear one 90% of the time, but it now feels like people are judging me [silent, or passive agressively on forums] for my freedom of choice not to wear a fluorescent yellow jacket.} What is the point of other kits if I don’t wear them, and what is the point of ‘safety’ jackets if I leave it at home?

    Quandary.

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  • February 1, 2016 at 10:55 pm #866273
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    Morat

    It’s definitely situational.

    It’s definitely situational. Farmers grow a lot of oilseed rape around here and if you wear trad yellow tops you really don’t stand out very much at all against the bright yellow background.

    February 1, 2016 at 9:20 pm #866271
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    Simon E

    If people criticise your

    If people judge you that way then their uninformed ‘opinion’ is a crock of sh*t, I’d ignore them. If someone wants to wear black that’s their choice, I won’t judge them for it.

    Are black-clad cyclists dying like flies? No. However, I choose not to wear black or dark shades of green or blue  because I’ve seen how easily those colours merge with the surroundings on the rural roads I use. For urban riding it’s not really an issue. Hi-viz helps in really murky conditions but it’s not the answer.

    At night reflectives are good (I like scotchlite on the spokes). Lusso has launched some clothing that’s big on reflectives too. And yes, of course good lights are important. But never forget that, despite being lit up like a christmas tree, you’re still vulnerable:

    arfa wrote:
    My mistake was to assume that there was no way he hadn’t seen me and I was too late at that point to avoid him as he entered the roundabout.

    February 1, 2016 at 4:45 pm #866269
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    mike the bike

    fenix wrote:

    fenix wrote:
    ……

    We know how goddawful drivers can be – and with our ageing population – how crap their vision is ……

     

    If you take the number of drivers in this country and divide it by the number of crashes, and then expose the result to the bright glare of analysis by age-group, you get some interesting facts.

    For example: Whilst young drivers have about double the number you might expect, old drivers have about half.

    This nugget of information obviously doesn’t fit  with the media’s obsession with our retired folk careering through the streets slaying all and sundry, so don’t expect the truth to get in the way of a good story.

    As confirmation ask the insurance industry for its take on the situation.  My 19-year-old grandson has just been quoted £2100 for his renewal premium.  I’m 68 but can get the same, fully comp’ policy for £99.  If you desire the facts – follow the money!

    February 1, 2016 at 4:32 pm #866267
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    fenix

    Proviz is grey though. It’s
    Proviz is grey though. It’s not a colour for daytime – especially not if it’s dull. Night time brilliant but not in the day. If the sun shines right then it’ll work but you can’t rely on that. You need bright colours in the day.

    February 1, 2016 at 4:27 pm #866265
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    arfa

    By all means take steps to
    By all means take steps to ensure you are visible but never assume it is enough. I had a bike written off entering a roundabout with right of way (hi vizzed and strobe lighting in daytime) when I was hit on the roundabout by a driver entering it whilst looking at his phone. My mistake was to assume that there was no way he hadn’t seen me and I was too late at that point to avoid him as he entered the roundabout. Phone distraction is a very real threat on the roads and isn’the going away without significant punitive change.

    February 1, 2016 at 3:42 pm #866263
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    gthornton101

    +1 for the Pro-Viz jackets.

    +1 for the Pro-Viz jackets.  Even in daylight when it catches the sun or any other light source it is incredibly reflective.  I’m convinced it is some magical wizardry rather than science!

     

    The only slight downside to it is that it is very much a commuter cut.  Perfect for when I am commuting (often with a backpack) but could do with being a bit more fitted for other rides.

    February 1, 2016 at 3:18 pm #866261
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    racyrich

    Reflective for night time,

    Reflective for night time, when there are vehicle lights to reflect.

    Fluoro for  dim conditions. So most of winter then! Certainly if I know I’ll be out within an hour of sunset I wear a fluoro top.

    Even in summer the wrong clothes can camouflage you. I was out on the day of last year’s London-Southend and there was a bloke stopped under some trees on a country lane. He was virtually invisible in his black kit in the dappled sunlight.

    When I used to have a long, country lanes commute my bike was smothered in reflective tape. Top tip – strip the reflective stuff from a brand new road cone and glue strips of that to your mudguards.

     

    February 1, 2016 at 2:27 pm #866259
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    fenix

    If you’re cycling in the

    If you’re cycling in the daytime – reflectives are bugger all use unless drivers are going around with full beams on.  And even then I doubt they’d stand out.

     

    Dark kit is awful. Go get some colour – orange, red, yellow. You stand out. 

     

    We know how goddawful drivers can be – and with our ageing population – how crap their vision is.

     

    In winter its always bright colours and LED’s on.  It costs nothing to charge a light so why wouldnt you use it ? 

     

    In order to get good at cycling you need to be consistent. You won’t be consistent if some muppet breaks your leg or something. 

    February 1, 2016 at 12:24 pm #866257
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    FatAndFurious

    I went down this path for

    I went down this path for commuting.

    • always wore a helmet – would turn around if I realised I’d left without it.
    • got good lights,
    • SOLAS retro tape from ebay on mudguards, seat post and wheel rims.
    • got reflective ankle wraps,
    • wore hi-viz green/reflective tape construction T shirts (very cost effective but no pockets), 
    • then an orange “night vision” jersey (ok, but the retro tape wears off eventually)
    • then some green slap-wraps for the wrists having seen a fellow cyclist signalling in vain wearing black sleeves and black gloves.

    If I missed any element of that list, I felt  more vulnerable. 

     

    Still alive…. maybe it’s because of the above, but I can’t prove that. Most get by without most of the above. Some still get run down even when doing all that and more.

    My take was – it might help, and it’s cheap and quick to put on, so just why not? 

     

    February 1, 2016 at 11:13 am #866255
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    peted76

    Not sure your question here.

    Not sure your question here. However I agree with you, once you’ve opted to buy and wear something considered a bit brighter/clearer/safe.. I do think it’s a struggle to go back.

    I personally look at people on the road and ‘judge’ them for safety as a matter of course.

    I wear black a lot as I’m short and fat and it makes me think I’m as slim as a shadow. However I relish the little reflectors you get on garments nowadays, they do work and I’ve been ‘considering’ one of those full reflection jackets (pro-viz?) which in my opinion are bloody awesome if you want to be noticed on the road.

    Fluro I think has been proven over and over to offer ‘limited’ extra visability – it’s all about the reflective stuff now.

    Lights, I totally agree, once you’ve got a decent pair you can’t go out without them.

    Helmets, I wear one 99% of the time, the only time I don’t is when I potter into town or to the shops.

    I questioned a ‘new’ member of the local club after a sunday bash the other day as to why he wasn’t wearing a helmet, his response threw me, as he was quite defensive, why do you wear a helmet he asked, I’m as likley to get hurt with or without a helmet on.. (I asked him if he’d ever had a proper accident on a bike? to which he said no, and so I proceeded to tell him about when I did have a accident how my helmet split open). He’s a very fast rider btw.

     

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