Most effective High-Vis

peat

Not a question, just an observation.

There is alot of choice when it come to cycling high-vis jackets nowadays.

Due to the nature of the roads to and from my place of work, I don't ride during the winter months (too busy, too fast, too dark, too much chance of SMIDSY) but drive. I see a fair few cyclists during the week, wearing all sorts of different kit.

Easily the most effective high-vis available has to be the bog-standard screw-fix (or whatever) waistcoat. You can spot them a mile off in car headlights. They may not look sleek, but they are so good for the purpose of being seen.

I use one on my night rides now, modified to provide a snug fit.

However, I accept that they may affect the waterproofing of your jacket (if worn over one) by not letting water escape.

Just my 2 penneth. Happy trails.

Matthewfalle

Peat wrote:

Not a question, just an observation.

There is alot of choice when it come to cycling high-vis jackets nowadays.

Due to the nature of the roads to and from my place of work, I don't ride during the winter months (too busy, too fast, too dark, too much chance of SMIDSY) but drive. I see a fair few cyclists during the week, wearing all sorts of different kit.

Easily the most effective high-vis available has to be the bog-standard screw-fix (or whatever) waistcoat. You can spot them a mile off in car headlights. They may not look sleek, but they are so good for the purpose of being seen.

I use one on my night rides now, modified to provide a snug fit.

However, I accept that they may affect the waterproofing of your jacket (if worn over one) by not letting water escape.

Just my 2 penneth. Happy trails.

Coolio - top advice: thank you for a very helpful tip. Handy to think about on these dark winter nights.

fwgx

I bought a couple of them the other week, mainly for running in the dark in. Only about £2.50 each. Bargain if it saves me from being hit by a bike on my runs.

The other thing I've noticed is that it doesn't matter how bright yellow your top or clothing is if it doesn't have any reflective material on it. I've nearly cycled over a number of joggers on my way home running in yellow tops with no reflective material. You really can't see them in time to stop sensibly.

swod1

A lot of people have been saying good things about the Proviz Reflect 360 jacket but the cons of the jacket was getting too hot wearing it I had read on the reviews.

CitizenLee

swod1 wrote:

A lot of people have been saying good things about the Proviz Reflect 360 jacket but the cons of the jacket was getting too hot wearing it I had read on the reviews.

They do a "360" gilet, backpack cover and backpack too if you think you'd get too hot in a the jacket. I'd read the same about the jacket being a bit "boil in the bag".

I wear a yellow Madison Pursuit gilet over my Dakine jacket when commuting. I've read mixed reports on the effectiveness of hi-viz in general, but the way I see it there's no harm in giving drivers an extra chance to spot me.

thistle_

Colour doesn't matter too much when it's dark, that's what the reflective bits are for.

But in the daytime, out in the greenery away from the cities the yellow high visibility stuff tends to blend in quite a bit. Orange would stand out better against it.

But then at dusk and dawn the sky can be orange, so orange might blend in too... :roll:

Is this the basis for those yellow waistcoats with orange reflective bits on them?

CitizenLee

There will always be a compromise, so you just have to pick something that suits the majority of your riding conditions.

The Rookie

I use the 'screwfix' style (actually supplied by a previous employer) over a soft shell, I rarely wear a waterproof as the softshell keeps me dry enough and waterproofs=boil in the bag for me.

dj58

fwgx wrote:

I've nearly cycled over a number of joggers on my way home running in yellow tops with no reflective material. You really can't see them in time to stop sensibly.

I nearly cycled over a number of joggers and dog walkers on an unlit canal towpath on Sunday evening, no hi vis or refectives in sight. Downright inconsiderate if you ask me, they must be eating a lot of carrots though as none of them had torches!

Plus 1 for a standard hi vis reflective waistcoat at night to increase your visibility, especially if you are riding alone.

swod1

CitizenLee wrote:

They do a "360" gilet, backpack cover and backpack too if you think you'd get too hot in a the jacket. I'd read the same about the jacket being a bit "boil in the bag".

I wear a yellow Madison Pursuit gilet over my Dakine jacket when commuting. I've read mixed reports on the effectiveness of hi-viz in general, but the way I see it there's no harm in giving drivers an extra chance to spot me.

The majority of my road riding is on lit roads so I'm pretty noticeable anyway but make sure I have the usual reflective backpack cover and lights on at least.

I need a decent jacket to be honest as wearing a base layer and one of them hi viz yellow running jackets which is like wearing a bin liner over myself at the moment.

my proper waterproof jacket is too much for days that isn't raining hard so something between the two would be ideal.