Time Change November 1. Don't Be a Bike Ninja!

This Active Trans video is one of the best illustrations of how hard it is to see cyclists without lights (Bike Ninjas). With the time change, it's incredibly important to have your bike ready with lights. 

Buying lights: Your favorite local bike shops will have a range to choose from. You'll need a white headlight and red taillight, sometimes they come in sets. There is always the online option as well:
Amazon
Performance Bikes
 Eastern Mountain Sports

Next level: I also like to go next level and wear high-vis clothing. Rapha has a sale right now on their new high-vis line. I own the high-vis vest in pink and you can literally see me coming from 2-3 blocks away.

Rapha High-Visibility Collection, "Night Moves"

https://pages.rapha.cc/stories/night-moves

Additional reading:

http://chicagoist.com/2015/10/29/video_see_why_cycling_in_chicago_w...

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jared Ray on October 29, 2015 at 10:16am

lol at the rapha link. people riding without lights probably aren't going to spend a few hundred bucks on reflective clothing, seriously. instead how about some practical links to reasonably priced lights and reflective bands..

basic lights: http://goo.gl/58SOZq

usb rechargeable set: http://goo.gl/maIPWT

reflective bands: http://goo.gl/E6wZxh

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on October 29, 2015 at 10:25am

Thanks for the extra links. The video also does a good job of covering getting lights and what to expect to spend. We all have our favorite local bike shops to find a good range of lights as well as REI.

As I mentioned in my post, expensive reflective clothing is "next level" for those of us that have lights but would like more options.

Permalink Reply by Jim Reho on October 29, 2015 at 4:45pm

I sometimes sport a construction safety vest like this at night:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/High-Visibility-Mesh-Construction-Safety-Ve...

No, it's not stylish, and in fact it's goofy, but it gets the job done for fifteen bucks.  Whatever cyclists do to make themselves more visible is good, be it fashionable or flea-market.     

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on October 30, 2015 at 3:02am

I love it. :-) You can always jump off your bike and help direct traffic at a moment's notice too. 

Permalink Reply by Maurice on October 29, 2015 at 11:23am

Bright clothing is a good idea, even if it's not expensive or reflective.  Most of my jerseys are yellow, orange, or red.

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on October 30, 2015 at 3:08am

Good point, it really is an all-year-round requirement for riding your bike. The time change is just a really good reminder if you aren't lit up, people cannot see you and you are increasing the risk of getting hit, doored, etc. I've also noticed a scary change when the time changes - drivers seem to be confused/distracted for a few weeks while they are adjusting to the change. It's not a result of a study, just my own experience. 

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on October 29, 2015 at 3:23pm

Good video. Thanks for making and sharing it.

Permalink Reply by Tom A.K. on October 30, 2015 at 4:37pm
Permalink Reply by Josh Garis on November 5, 2015 at 7:13am

The topic of lights has really been bothering me.  I’m pretty lucky in that almost my entire commute is on the trail rather than streets but before daylight savings when it was dark in the morning and now that it’s dark at night instead things have gotten so bad that I’m actually paranoid about my commute.  Rides aren’t enjoyable anymore because all I can think about are all the people I see riding with no lights at all and not even reflective clothing.  In three years of commuting I’ve never had an accident or collision (knock on wood) but in the last few weeks I’ve come really close.  And as much as I love Divvy getting more people on bikes they are part of the problem.  The lights on Divvy bikes are barely visible and sometimes completely non-functional.  I’m actually getting really close to going back to the CTA which should tell you how bad things have been.  :(

Permalink Reply by Tricolor on November 5, 2015 at 7:34am

There are more blacked-out parts of the lake front trail north of downtown this year, too.

Permalink Reply by Sebastian Baptiste on November 28, 2015 at 4:01am

You already wrote what I wanted to, thanks. I commute back in the dark on the LFP pretty much the entire north stretch. Full of ninjas. However, I have less issue seeing the Divvies, just wish they would stay to the right and not take the entire two lanes... 

Permalink Reply by V W on November 5, 2015 at 10:04am
I'm very proud of my bike lights. On one of my bikes I have five lights (four front and one big rear one) that are all bike powered. I also have other more traditional lights that I can and do add. But what I love about the bike powered ones is that they will never need batteries or to be recharged, so I can run them all the time. My lights are very illuminating and I can see my lights reflecting off signs very far away. I don't really feel the need to wear bright clothing when I'm this lit up.

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