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Permalink Reply by David Barish on January 7, 2015 at 7:40am

On Sunday I saw a helmetless ninja riding in the late afternoon as it was nearly dark and  snowing on Dempster Street in Skokie. I did a double take as it is rare to see any rider on Dempster. It is simply not a street for using a bike. He was hard to see in the dark, the road conditions were not great, and his melon was unprotected. I wonder if he left a note

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Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on January 7, 2015 at 8:00am

I can be completely focused on the road and completely miss seeing a cyclist in dark clothing with no lights. It frightens me how many cyclists ride at night with no lights.

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Permalink Reply by Tricolor on January 7, 2015 at 11:23am

Most people riding a bike out of necessity are riding very slowly and are not the same as your typical street ninja (or for that matter a properly lit rider) mixing it up with traffic.  Plus, at least on the north side they usually keep to the sidewalks since it's less of a hassle at night.

peter moormann said:

Jeff,

Many people ride bikes out of economic necessity.

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on January 8, 2015 at 4:16am

Rider speed makes little difference if they are nearly invisible to approaching cars. If a car or bus or truck is going 30+ mph, rider speed wouldn't make a huge difference in most situations. I've seen bike ninjas in traffic on streets as busy as 95th St. or S. Ashland - and that's a LOT of traffic. BTW, the ones I see in traffic on those streets usually look like they don't have much money.

At the other end of the spectrum, I often see people who do NOT look poor riding in the Loop at night, wearing dark clothing with no lights or reflectors, and this is on major streets with bus traffic. WTF?!?  That's never made any sense to me.
 
Tricolor said:

Most people riding a bike out of necessity are riding very slowly and are not the same as your typical street ninja (or for that matter a properly lit rider) mixing it up with traffic.  Plus, at least on the north side they usually keep to the sidewalks since it's less of a hassle at night.
 

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Permalink Reply by Jeremy on January 8, 2015 at 4:18am

This light is $8 at Home Depot.  It can be attached to a helmet or bike frame easily and quickly.  I recently bought a red light and put it on the back of my helmet because the rear lights on a Divvy aren't that bright.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Nite-Ize-LED-Bike-Light-in-White-TLT-03-...

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Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on January 8, 2015 at 7:40am

I have 2 inexpensive LED lights mounted to the top of my helmet, white front light, red rear light. It's cheap insurance to help prevent a driver from hitting you.
 
Jeremy said:

This light is $8 at Home Depot.  It can be attached to a helmet or bike frame easily and quickly.  I recently bought a red light and put it on the back of my helmet because the rear lights on a Divvy aren't that bright.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Nite-Ize-LED-Bike-Light-in-White-TLT-03-...

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Permalink Reply by Fran Kondorf on January 8, 2015 at 11:52am

I see many non-illuminated cyclers in traffic sporting $200 status bags. I don't think lack of $ is the issue.

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Permalink Reply by Haddon on January 8, 2015 at 3:11pm

Yea I see these guys and I really try to get away from them.

If I was a grand citizen I would tail them and my lights would aid them.  If I'm ahead of them I wonder if my lights distract the drivers making it more likely that the person behind me will get clipped.  Really have no desire to even be around the Ninjas since nothing good will happen. 

I honestly believe that lights and reflectors are more important than helmets.  Better to not get hit at all than have dome protection.

There are lights for a dollar at Target.

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