Winter Training - At Night

Lard Armstrong

Like most of us, I struggle at this time of year to get the miles in during the week.

I hate the turbo and have resorted to going out on country roads at night, equipped with an armoury of high viz kit and lights. I am concerned that I am vulnerable and even with powerful lights, it's easy to hit potholes, etc.

Have you tried night riding ? Any tips ? Or alternative suggestions ?

Thanks,

LA.

Slow Downcp

It's doable with good lights, but not sure I'd venture along unlit country lanes alone at night - not because I'm scared of the dark, but if you do hit a pothole and end up in a ditch or get knocked off by a car, no-one will find you until the next morning. Better if someone is riding with you.

Anonymous

Recce the roads in daylight and do laps of a route close to home, thats what I do.

lastwords

If you have good lights you should be fine, only do routes you have ridden before and leave information of where you are going and estimated ride time with somebody at home in case the worst happens and they have to come looking for you.

I always take a mobile with me and spare batterys for lights I find drivers give plenty of space at night, i also love riding at night its a great experience especially on unlit country lanes where the only light is what your lights create

Not Another Hill

I pick the scariest most remote rides at night. Adds a little spice to the ride :shock: . However I had an unfixable blowout on the most remote part of the ride in middle of nowhere this week. Fortunately I was riding it during the day for a change. Took nearly an hour for my wife to come out and collect me. The rear tyre completely worn through to the carcass and this was the first puncture I'd had with them! Got some Gatorskins on now.

There's a lesson in there that I'll no doubt ignore :roll: .

blackrockracer

I live in a rural area and try to get a few night rides done every week , most of the roads are quiet and as the previous posters have said do a trial run in the day time first.
I have met a guy out in my area a few times with loads of lights , he looks like the coca cola lorrys in the xmas tv ads. Good front lights are a must, and at least two flashing led's on the rear.
I always take an extra pair of gloves with me , if i get a flat on a wet night they are a great source of insparation to get it sorted and get going again. Nothing beats the feeling of a warm , dry pair of gloves.

hugo15

Myself and a few guys off another forum meet up at the local industrial estate and do some laps for 60 to 90 minutes. Where we ride is pretty quiet and is well lit. It is much better than the turbo and much lower risk than being out on the lanes. I thought it might be as boring as the turbo, but it is actually really good fun, with us usually having somewhere between 5 and 10 people riding each week.

rake

Gav888

If I venture out at night ive got a high viz top with a good front light and flashing rear.... but I tend to stick to lit roads so my options are limited... generally a 10 mile there and back with loads of roundabouts inbetween or a 2 mile loop on my housing estate, still its good for intervals

I like the idea of going to a lit industrial estate to do laps....

singlespeedexplosif

even with powerful lights, it's easy to hit potholes, etc.

tbh those don't sound like powerful lights!
I do all my night-time training on unlit roads. Much safer IMO, easier to see cars and for them to see you rather than blending in with all the surrounding lights. Much rather do that than ride city centre at night.

rear lights - none of this flashing nonsense. Get 'em on constant, then you can be sure of being seen.

JJDLD

Re Not Another Hill's unfixable blowout - see above...

These http://www.ukbikestore.co.uk/product/38/qktb2c/park-tool-emergency-tire-boot---set-of-3---tb-2.html might help make the unfixable fixable.

I've had a couple in my saddle pack ever since a buddy locked his back wheel up on a descent and went straight through the tyre - the sound of the tube bursting was like a gunshot!

JJ.

BigDarbs

I have trained at night on the road for years. Even during last winter when it was very cold I only used the turbo 3 times. A few pointers that have helped me are:

I use an Orange P7 MTB with 1-inch slicks and mudguards. Gearing changed to be closer to road gearing.

A set of very good front lights (I use a twin set up of the older Cat-eyes with one 15W and one 20W light) with a back-up LED front light just in case the battery runs out sooner than planned. These have been more than adequate in spotting potholes. I also run a set of older pace forks with the springs replaced to make them almost rigid, but with enough give just in case I do hit a major pothole!

I wear an Altura night vision jacket when is cold/wet or if it is a bit milder I wear a medium sized fluorescent/reflective vest (if its medium it doesn’t flap about).

My bike has a significant number of 3M scotchlite reflective decals on, as does my helmet.

I run 3 rear lights and a reflector. DON’T USE FLASHING LIGHTS! Either front or rear. They are far more difficult for drivers to judge distance, speed and a precise location (which is why not a single road vehicle in the world uses red flashing rear lights! It’s also why aircraft have a steady red/green light at each wingtip so that its location and direction can be judged by an approaching aircraft)

I also try to avoid street-lit and busy roads, as a cyclist is prone to blend into the chaos of other lights and activity. I try to stick as far as possible to country lanes, as you stand out like a sore thumb, traffic is lighter and road speeds are generally lower. Avoid dual carriageways at all costs as you are too prone to encounter a vehicle in lane 2, overtaking a vehicle in lane 1, who is overtaking you, at 70+mph.

de_sisti

BigDarbs wrote:

.

I run 3 rear lights and a reflector. DON’T USE FLASHING LIGHTS! Either front or rear. They are far more difficult for drivers to judge distance, speed and a precise location can be judged by an approaching aircraft)

Has there been any studies to prove this?

How accurate a distance does one need to know?

* Driver sees flashing lights, thinks "Cyclist ahead, must adjust my speed accordingly".
* Driver slows down and passes cyclist without crashing into cyclist.
* Driver proceeds on his/her way.
* Cyclist proceeds on his/her way.
* Flashing lights = job done.
Simple innit? :idea:

This isn't a dig a you bigd. It's just that I've heard this 'judging distance' theory several
times, and I always think that if one sees a flashing light when driving, chances are that
it will be a cyclist. All one has to do is slow down and not drive into them.

As far as a lot of drivers are concerned (me included), it's that simple.

singlespeedexplosif

How accurate a distance does one need to know?
erm...is that serious?

oh look, there's a cyclist somewhere up ahead of me. Might be 0.5km, might be 50m. I'll find out when there's a loud 'clunk' on the front of my car.

flashing lights = good for battery life. That's all.

Slow Downcp

Flashing lights are better on lit streets IMHO - better if you run at least one falshing, one steady. The flashing light doesn't blend into other streetlighting/car lights, so you're more visibile.

On country lanes though where there's no other lighting, no point having it flashing.

de_sisti

singlespeedexplosif wrote:

oh look, there's a cyclist somewhere up ahead of me. Might be 0.5km, might be 50m. I'll find out when there's a loud 'clunk' on the front of my car.

In the above example, the driver would be a fault (imo) for not slowing down and/or not
anticipating what's ahead.

* Driver sees flashing lights, thinks "Cyclist ahead, must adjust my speed accordingly".
* Driver slows down and passes cyclist without crashing into cyclist.
* Driver proceeds on his/her way.
* Cyclist proceeds on his/her way.
* Flashing lights = job done.
Simple innit?

Let's not fall out over this. We've got different opinions, let's leave it at that.

APIII

I ride mostly unlit country roads, and always use a rear light on constant. Tbh, as a car driver I think flashing lights are just annoying, they don't help, particularly the front flashers. Maybe people use them to compensate for under powered lights?

singlespeedexplosif

whatever your views on constant vs flashing, can we at least all agree that front lights = white? there's some numpty I see every day on my commute with what appear to be three slowly flashing green fireflies attached to his handlebars.

de_sisti

I agree.

huuregeil

I really dig winter night-time riding. I completely agree with other posters here that riding on unlit country roads is safer and better. With powerful front and rear lights, you're far more visible than on partially lit and traffic prone roads, and I don't think the risk of hitting a pothole is any greater. If anything it's safer than in daylight, because cars see your lights way earlier and also tend to treat you like a motorbike (assuming your lights are strong enough!). So, get the biggest lights you can afford and get out there!

sampras38

In the week I tend to flit between turbo work with various training DVD's and the odd blast around the streets at night for an hour or hour and a half. I tend to avoid country roads at night though as they are not lit well enough.

doyler78

sampras38 wrote:

In the week I tend to flit between turbo work with various training DVD's and the odd blast around the streets at night for an hour or hour and a half. I tend to avoid country roads at night though as they are not lit well enough.

Was worried about narrow country roads myself for the same reason however went out last Wednesday. Started off on well lit roads in rush hour traffic and ended up on unlit country lanes. 3 hours of those in the pitch black.

Loved every minute of it and would not be at all worried about doing it again. I even took a few detours along the way on to roads I had never ridden before (day or night) and didn't feel at all worried about the road I was riding. I wasn't putting in a hard ride so my speed wasn't great. Only 15mph average (on that route I would only average around 16.8mph to 17.3mph) and a top speed of 34mph but that was through choice. I could certainly have upped the pace, as I did on several stretches just to do something different and they felt perfectly safe.

1 set of 2 year old ayups (so not as good as their current model) and 1 set of LUU's on a 2 cell li-ion battery which I ran on the middle setting. Never felt the need for the high beam which was good as the battery simply wouldn't have lasted the course.

All in all I'm glad that I did it (have the 100k century challenge on the sportive forum to thank for getting me to do it) as now I have no worries about doing such a ride again.

Oh yeah and as regards cars, etc. Came across very few however I have to say it was a pleasure to ride as cars waited patiently behind me until it was safe to pass (well some hung rather too long which did occasionally make me a bit nervous - no pleasing some people ). I never felt any aggression that I normally feel on my commute. I was definitely more visible to them and they definitely pass me much more widely. I've always felt I was given more room at night however on narrow country roads where you notice these things much more reinforced that point for me.

The bit I find the worst time to cycle in the twilight bits around sunrise/sunset. I seem to get much more risky overtaking at these times.

jthef

Love riding at night but you need good lights ( I need an upgrade really).
Biggest danger is rabbits/birds for me at night jumping out or running just in front of you. You don't know what they are going to do.
Looking forward to the commute home at 2am tonight if it would only stop raining.
It is a lot harder seeing at night when the ground is wet as the road seams to soak up all the light making it very hard to see
But I prefer it to cycling though towns at chucking out time or smelling all the takeaways making me feel more hungry.

doyler78

jthef wrote:

Love riding at night but you need good lights ( I need an upgrade really).
Biggest danger is rabbits/birds for me at night jumping out or running just in front of you. You don't know what they are going to do.
Looking forward to the commute home at 2am tonight if it would only stop raining.
It is a lot harder seeing at night when the ground is wet as the road seams to soak up all the light making it very hard to see But I prefer it to cycling though towns at chucking out time or smelling all the takeaways making me feel more hungry.

And makes spotting potholes much more difficult. Is it just a shallow puddle or a massive great crater ready to pop a spoke or two :shock:

de_sisti

jthef wrote:

Love riding at night but you need good lights ( I need an upgrade really).
Biggest danger is rabbits/birds for me at night jumping out or running just in front of you. You don't know what they are going to do.

Rabbits? Wait until you encounter a badger. I was almost taken out by one last year, and
I have seen a friend come off second best to one too. :shock:

NWLondoner

The idea of riding unlit country roads sounds ace Until you get that inevitable damn puncture that is :twisted:

Slimbods

For me it's sheep. My heart stops the moment they spot you and pause, and you wait to see if they're going to run into your path or off the road.

singlespeedexplosif

oh aye, that's a bad one. 80-90kph down the A62...glowing eyes materialise out of the darkness in the middle of the road. Which way are they going to dash...? It's known as 'Marsden Roulette'

The Running Man

My commute at this time of year is always in the dark and I agree with everyone else - make sure you're lit up like a pinball machine.

Some good front lights are a must. There are lights you can get that will get you seen but you want a set you can see with so expect to spend a bit more.

2 rears are essential : 1 flashing 1 steady :

I always carry a tube, levers, mini pump, allen key set, gels, drink, and spare batteries for my front lights as well as a mobile and a £10 note for emergencies.

Once you've got that lot get on with it. It's cracking fun and really sharpens your senses.

LangerDan

As I headed out the door for my spin last night, I passed my wife and son who looked at me in amusement. Mini-me just keeled over laughing. My wife took a look at my white rain jacket, bright yellow gillet, reflective bib-tights, helmet light and led armbands. "Oi, Buzz Lightyear, what time will you be home?"

Some people have no respect.........

NWLondoner

LangerDan wrote:

As I headed out the door for my spin last night, I passed my wife and son who looked at me in amusement. Mini-me just keeled over laughing. My wife took a look at my white rain jacket, bright yellow gillet, reflective bib-tights, helmet light and led armbands. "Oi, Buzz Lightyear, what time will you be home?"

Some people have no respect.........

PMSL

Cars were giving me a much larger berth when overtaking last night. Must be down to my scarily bright white Airjack 851 jacket. Must admit i do feel a bit self conscious wearing it :oops: