Idiots without lights

[stu]

What is it with people riding in the dark with no lights!!!
Passed 1 guy on Jerrabomberra Ave tonight with some pathetic front light no rear light & riding on the road. You might as well invite someone to run you over.

Then down Hindmarsh where it goes past Omalley is a guy with a piddly little single led rear light which was so faint you could barly see it untill you were on top of him.

As a cyclist you have a reasponsability to yourself & your family to make yourself as visiable as possable.

Stu

[eucryphia]

There are plenty riding west through Parkes on the south side of the lake at night.

The worst is through the inky blackness of the curves in Bowen Park beside the Old Powerstation.

I bought new retina-burner headlights for just this part of my commute so I can see the black leotard clad joggers and the light-less fools on bikes.

[Jean]

Maybe it's a Canberra thing. I see a staggering number of people who drive around in their cars without their headlights on. A little while ago I rode past this guy in a ute (a tradie working working out at the new developments at Dunlop I think) for about 3-4 pre-dawn mornings straight and he never had his lights on. I saw a 4WD this week at night with just its parker lights on and in yesterday's thick, thick fog on the way to work I reckon about 1 in 4 cars didn't have their lights on.

[casual_cyclist]

Maybe it's a Canberra thing.

nope. It's very common in Perth too. I nearly rode in front of a car the other evening because they didn't have thier lights on Also, way to many cyclists without lights. What I don't understand is that you can get 'be seen' lights from Bunnings for about $12 and 'to see' lights from Anaconda for $29. A lot of people spend more than that on coffee every week

[Jean]

Yeah, saw a cyclist riding the other way on the road in the dark this morning (again in very heavy fog) with no discernable front light and not much of rear flasher.

[Aushiker]

What is it with people riding in the dark with no lights!!!
Passed 1 guy on Jerrabomberra Ave tonight with some pathetic front light no rear light & riding on the road. You might as well invite someone to run you over.

Can't be that bad, you saw him

Sorry couldn't resist ... understand where you are coming from, just have moved on now ...

Andrew

[matrat]

Got to tell you about the guy on the bike path in McKellar, at night, on an unlit downhill section, overgrown with bushes, wearing black from hoodie to toe. I only saw him at the last minute by the glint of a tiny brass zipper on his (black of course) backpack twinkling in my high beam.

Matrat
Catrike Speed 2008

[cp123]

I look like a Christmas tree. Cygolights on the front and in winter I had ayups on my helmet. I've got a superflash and a second light on behind. Once I got home and realised the battery on one light had died and didn't know whether that had happened 3 mins ago or 3 kms ago. So I'm prepared now.

I almost ran into a stealth ninja last night southbound on the path parallel to Tuggie Parkway. Another bod dressed in black from top to toe. Like the person above, I didn't see him until I was nearly on him.

[cp123]

PS - and yes its not about light but traffic lights...

Southbound past Woden police station the other night. I swan into the lights and stop for the red. Woman behind me on hybrid, with panniers and orange safety vest passes me and cruises straight through the red. "errr - red means stop lady".

[HAKS]

PS - and yes its not about light but traffic lights...

Southbound past Woden police station the other night. I swan into the lights and stop for the red. Woman behind me on hybrid, with panniers and orange safety vest passes me and cruises straight through the red. "errr - red means stop lady".

haha nice place to do it as well. I often ride along there and then up athlon drive for a bit then jump on the bike path. As easy as it is to go thru red lights i'm a good boy and always stop. Like tonight when i was going flat stick and got an orange light out the back of the medical centre but still pulled up. I think the cars were as shocked as well that i actually stopped

[cp123]

Haks - I reckon if you go that way - you've probably passed me at some stage I go northbound along Athllon in the morning, on the bike path, up and over the horse paddock hill, down to Woden and along Melrose and up Adelaide ave. I used to follow the storm drain behind the police station but that is a bit messy now. And homeward bound along Adelaide ave.

I always stop at lights too. As do most people that I see. In the morning at the Melrose/Hindmarsh corner or the Melrose/Launceston corner there's often 5 or 6 bikes queued up.

Maybe wearing safety vests while you're running red lights prevents you from getting splattered...?

I'm a blue backpack with red and blue flashies on the back of it.

[HAKS]

I've been riding that route since they closed the bike path through woden. Although this is on my afternoon training rides out of Kambah. Will start commuting to work again next week now our change rooms have been renovated. Wish the bike path would open up again. Use to love riding from Lake Tugg all the way to Lake BG (especially with a tail wind) with only having to cross 4 roads. Would get into a nice rhythm and often do some PBs over 5km and 10km splits.