High Visibility Risk

The past couple of weeks I have been riding in a very good Gore Windstopper jacket. Whilst I have always like the fluoro colours for how they look, I've never been that keen on riding in them, though once was an advocate to some extent.

I suppose I had been suckered into the myth that fluorescent colours somehow remain fluorescent at night. The truth is they reflect a spectrum of UV light (or close to it) that the human eye can receive. At night street lamps and vehicle head lamps do not emit anything like the same output of this spectrum. Light colour is defined by a terminology called "temperature" in science and technology. The temperature of the sun is that of one which is close to the blue spectrum, as the sun sinks it becomes more orange or pink depending on atmospheric conditions. Street lighting and most vehicle lighting is also of this orange temperature. The emitters in these vehicles cannot produce the range and spectrum of light tones that the sun can.

The trouble is this jacket was given to me for Christmas. Its slightly impractical, has zip-off sleeves and is that fluorescent yellow my old Altura Nightvision jacket used to be. I kind of feel obliged to use it, but it has two problems - one is that the material seems to stink after just 2 or 3 short rides. I get around this by putting it on a hanger and on the line outside for a couple of hours. The second is that there is a black back to it. Sure there are a couple of reflective strips but its mostly black. So far there hasn't been a real issue, my lights facing rearward are good enough to make someone think they're approaching a motorbike.

When I first started using the Altura NightVision (around late 2006) I think I might have been the only rider I saw in one. I certainly don't recall seeing other riders in fluoro, either. This seemed to change over time, and now its a sea of bright yellow out there.

In fact the very first day I wore it I was amused by a driver's reaction. I pulled up behind a car waiting at the lights, no need to filter as there were only two ahead of me. The driver immediately in front of me had his stereo on full blast, and it had just stopped raining so I still had my lights on, so I think this caught the driver's attention and made him look in his rearview mirror.

It was the kind of music that was so loud that my chest was vibrating and I could feel my internal organs rattling.

It was almost as if panic came across the driver, a young lad of around 20, as he turned down his stereo. And I mean so that I could no longer hear it. I remarked this to a friend who joked to me that I "..should get done for impersonating a copper!" However that thought did remain with me, especially when I realised that the only other people on the street I was seeing were the Police.

This soon changed when other riders were quick to adopt the colour and reflective properties of these types of clothing.

When I was young (no it wasn't all fields) I would ride in a dark coat and jeans on a red hybrid with 26 inch wheels. My lights were nothing like we have now, they were miniture incandescent bulbs and only a couple of "candle power". The lights I use now will strip the paint off a taxi if it is dared to drive too close to me. There was less traffic, yes, but it was hardly conducive towards regular cycling, yet I managed something like 30 miles on a bike that by all modern standards was a piece of shit.

You still expected to see cyclists on the road. Now a new culture, 15 years on, had somehow risen. If you're NOT wearing the day glowing tops then you're somehow to blame for any incident. You did for a long time see comments left on news stories by members of the public to the effect: "..if they had bothered to wear a high visibility top then they would still be alive." (This is now, slowly, being countered. We must always question views that are held without evidence, even if it is drawn from personal experience - because that personal experience may have been wrongly interpreted.)

So these past few weeks I have taken down a loose record of how many incidents I have encountered whilst wearing this new jacket. I estimate it being 1 incident every 4 miles. Compare that to my riding in bright but more normal clothing, or the shocking Foska gear and I estimate 1 incident every 12 miles.

(By incident I mean things such as close overtakes within a 2 feet margin, cars that pull out from junctions, pedestrians that step out from pavements despite looking right at me, things that force myself to stop, swerve or shout a warning.)

Last week it came to a head when taking a bend in the road, to my left there was a junction. I am in full view and in daylight. Wearing this Gore jacket, I even have my lights on because the sun is low (it's winter), though at this point I am riding into the sun. Yet a council refuse truck driver decided it was ok to pull out on me. I only just managed to squeeze down his right side.

It is almost as if these colours are there for some motorists to switch to an autopilot. They would rather we'd all wear this as a uniform, then when things go wrong they can get off scot-free, or they can make a cursory glance. It is subjugation, forcing a definition or contract upon another party to your own advantage and it must be fought.

It goes further than just cyclists. I read of one study from Germany where workers had it taken away from them because they felt it contributed to a risk compensation behaviour. We all know that the Police, and other emergency response people are covered in it. Perhaps if the Police went back to black it might lead to a drop in crime? If you can't see the speed-gun operator from a distance and he blurs into the hedges and street furniture then it might catch out a few dangerous drivers.

The overall point of this post? We need to scrutinise the use and evidence that these things work, and why we're drawn to them in the first place. Or else we may be doing ourselves more harm than good.

Extending the ride

Today started with rather a warm morning. I donned my bright Altura fleecy, reflective jacket, put my lights on and set off on the bike for work. I was rather early so decided upon a detour towards Netley again, Abbey Hill beckoned.

Not entirely sure I'd beaten any time I set during the summer, when I carried lighter loads and wore less clothing, I approached the park further along. The village street was nicely lit up, but the entrance to the park was in pitch black darkness. It is at times like this that you appreciate how good the Exposure light is and can ride in relative comfort. Seeing-wise, obviously, as the road surface is diabolical along parts of that route.

I stopped for a second to double check my light was still fixed after a small pothole bumped the front wheel and remarked to myself - "This would be an ideal spot for the telescope on a clear night." There was little in the way of light pollution there, too.

I set off, did my little climbs on the "easy" side of Abbey Hill and approached Woolston. There's a nice little "bump" I like to climb that way. On approach there is a double bend and snake in the road and then a rather steep climb of around 30 feet altitude. Then back on to Porchester Road and up the Itchen Bridge.

This was when things began to get strange. I was catching up with motor traffic. Something wasn't right. As I hit the brow I slowed down seeing the flashing blue lights. I found myself mouthing the words: please don't let it be a pedestrian or cyclist!! Traffic now jammed right up I found a safe gap to filter through thanks to a good van driver who left a gap for me. What I passed turned out to be the wrecks of 4 cars on the entrance to the roundabout. There was one Police car, ambulance and a big tow truck just starting to load up the first car.

Glass was everywhere and hard to avoid. I hope those involved are not badly injured. I'm sure I'm not the only one to see people drive or ride a little stupidly along there and the nearby roads. It leaves you feeling certain that someone will be to blame, things like that just don't "happen".

The life of cyclists and of cycles

Its quite interesting to sometimes watch an abandoned bike in any busy street. Gradually it erodes away as a tide of people lap at its shores. I once watched a bike in my city centre outside a local hifi shop. The owner had clearly left it there, gone to do some shopping and returned to find his bike or lock damaged, which made riding away clearly difficult.

Obviously the rider being male is a presumption via the bike's geometry and size.

It being a very cheap Saracen of some sort, clearly the rider thought nothing of abandoning it. I wondered at the time, how often do these specific ghost bikes appear? Given the high rate of theft in the cycling communities, it must be often. Over the period of a couple of weeks the bike, bit by bit, gradually disappeared, until all that remained was a frame and forks chained to the sheffield stand.

In the end the council took it away. Which is what I presumed happened to the bike in the video below:



There is something about long distance riders and runners that I admire. Stubbornness, tenacity, strength of mind. Philippe Gilbert is one of those riders, a champion and a hero of the Tour de France - last year he went from sprinters jersey to yellow.

There's something inspiring in watching them train, even for a relatively short distance rider like myself:



And for some very strange reason this Family Guy clip popped up in the related videos bar:

They're only risking themselves, surely?

Ninja cyclists, a term used to describe idiots who cycle in all black with no lights, often even with no reflectors on the bike. We all see them as responsible riders, we all deplore them. Don't be like them, give yourself the chance to be seen when riding at night.



Its a personal risk to take in most cases. The information is out there, we all know what the law is - you must ride at night with lights. Obviously any death or serious injury that results will affect the driver (or who ever else is involved), it will affect them emotionally, they may even have to answer a number of questions from the Police and insurers (usually due course in all collisions).

However a thought occurred to me this morning as I rode down the Itchen Bridge in Southampton. I got within 20 feet of another rider, and have to confess I didn't initially realise he was there. Thank christ for the power of Exposure Race lights on urban roads!!! The other rider was none other than a Ninja, had I been going faster or had inferior lights I could have ploughed into him.

The other thought that came to me was this: he was now blocking me from traffic waiting to cross the roundabout further down. Masking my light, and my bright top. Free wheeling at about 10mph behind him made it easier to stick out my arm and overtake, I then took a dominant position on the road through the roundabout so that at least I was seen.

For me, the risk of masking puts not just him at risk, but the rider behind behaving legally. To ride defensively in this scenario the legal rider has a couple of options: 1) overtake and get past (easy if you're able to ride faster) or 2) "unmask" yourself by riding further out to the right in a more dominant position. You may face the ire of a couple of motorists, but that just means you've been seen. That however, cannot always be said for the Ninja.

Twitter Q&A Cycling day proposal

#ANSWERME #HASHTAG #ANSWERME #HASHTAG
#ANSWERME #HASHTAG #ANSWERME #HASHTAG

Many of us slightly more experienced cyclists have been blogging away with ideas and opinions, or using forums and literature to learn and inform. The internet, just as with cycle clubs and campaigns has been wonderful in helping newbies find out the best route to cycle to work, to tackle a hill and test their fitness, or simply to find a product they desire or need (eg decent lights).

My proposal is this: lets have a day where we can use twitter and answer newbies cycling questions. The forums are already populated with beginners questions, but forums are hard to publicise in the press and usually means a waste of time signing up just for one question or concern. Most people are on social networking sites now, and Twitter is particularly popular, not to mention effective, with its #hashtag scheme.

Just think of the potential: a few well worded emails to newspapers and perhaps we could encourage a few thousand new cyclists nationally. We could help one lady figure out why she keeps getting punctures. Answer a question about night time riding on canal paths involving appropriate lighting. Help someone find out which bike would suit them over a given route.

There is so much potential. All we need is a hashtag and a day...

Letter to the Argus

The following is a letter/email I've sent to The Argus, a Brighton newspaper. Brighton has had its share of issues regarding cycling and the route in question is said to have been plagued by cars parking in it, or cyclists choosing either the road or the pavement instead. These are signs that things have been a) designed wrong (to not enforce or restrict motor vehicles is dangerous as well as annoying/frustrating), and b) that perhaps some cyclists or potential cyclists don't know the facility is there in the first place.

Most of the comments on The Argus (online and in print) have been negative and anti-cycling. I consider this a chance to put forward a different view and support some of the cyclists that have tried to defend redevelopment:


I read with interest the exchanges about your cycle facilities on Old Shoreham Road and similar. It seems to me that many people are against cycling in this respect because they perceive it will disadvantage them in some capacity.


What they need to do is look abroad at other cycle schemes and see the benefits that these actually bring the motorist (when they are done well).


Motor traffic flow is very much smoother in places like The Netherlands due to sensible and effective cycle planning. The school run does not clog the roads as safe and convenient cycle facilities are at hand. Delivery and long distance drivers can get about with ease as cyclists see the benefits to good infrastructure and chose that over the shared road.


It is not a "war" or "murder" and such language only devalues any subsequent concern. Hyperbole should ideally be replaced with logical debate.


The UK is at a transport revolution crossroads (to use a pun). We have little more space on the roads for cars. Private cars are indeed overused, sometimes abused: where cycling, walking, public transport or motor-cycling can be used instead.


Transport planners realise this. They do actually realise that cycling offers a great solution for local travel in cities and towns for up to 10 miles distance. Certainly for less. If they keep hitting a wall of idiocy and selfishness on the part of some drivers (certainly not all) then things will grind to a halt. If you think roads are congested now, think on.


Cycling will help reduce obesity and other sedentary lifestyle problems. It will help clarify the air (motor traffic does not produce just CO2 but a variety of sulphates and nitrates, not to mention carcinogenic particulates, as well as brake and tyre dust). It will make towns and cities quieter and happier places, and reduce the KSI figures and severity dramatically (and motor vehicles are involved in the vast majority).


Cycling is part of a major solution Britain has been craving for.

Youtube as an educational resource

The greatest way to learn is simply to listen. The above video represents a growing movement online using websites such as youtube and twitter, as well as good ol' blogs, to share and inform. Youtube is not all about exploding kittens, or crazy crashes, it is full of interesting information that can make you think.

It even can make you dream:


Ever wondered how something worked? Well the internet can now tell you. Cant find it in google? Ask on twitter, forums or yahoo answers and someone is bound to know the answer.

The internet doesn't have to be about boobs all the time, but sometimes chemists can make boobs interesting in new ways:


Learn about science and faith:


Learn how to tune a guitar:


Learn how to play piano:


Even find out why the sky is blue:


So much to learn, so little time!