E-bike visibility tip!

[Expidia]

I saw this visibility pic posted on another forum, it's an eye opener.
I have to ride roads to get to my local trails and even if you are on a trail . . . the earlier others see you the better.

So I wear bright colors of red, orange and yellowish green for jackets and wind breakers. Also, puffy jackets depending on the days temp.

I was astonished the difference in visibilty in feet the various colors can be. Who would have thought there would be a difference of almost 350 feet between wearing a green jacket over a red one .

I orded this $26 "fugly" green jacket from Amazon for when the temps around here are freezing to 50 degrees. A medium already came, but I sent it back for a large. Most biking clothes from China run smaller.

At least they will see my fugly ass coming earlier now

 

[TheSnowShark]

Good information..

In the woods, the Orange color is also one of the best seen

 

[Mysterymanuk]

A small price for your well-being and safety, that's what matters the most

 

[Tubby G]

You’ll only get 426ft visibility though if you paint yourself green from head to toe and ride a green bike with green tyres

I wear full black, so I’m invisible. Luckily I don’t have to ride in traffic.

 

[Mabman]

The reason I have an orange coat here in the PNW is to use it during the fall hunting season. Haven't been shot yet!

 

[Tubby G]

Now the choice of colour for this helmet suddenly makes sense!

 

[Paulquattro]

If im on the road i always run lights day or night

 

[steve_sordy]

I ride in the forest a lot, so green doesn't work for me!

 

[TheSnowShark]

Here, many users have carried out tests, with hunters it is orange which seems to be the safest.

PS: I have always a thought for one of your British colleagues who in 2018 was killed by a hunter on a road right next to my home near Morzine (Montriond)

 

[galaga187]

Ah that's why the Suron riders in town centres dress head to toe in black it turns them completely invisible

 

[RiderOnTheStorm]

For high visibility when riding after sunset, I always put on my reflective (fluorescent) windproof cycling jacket.

Nearly impossible to miss! Car drivers can see a bright white blob half a mile away!

 

[Expidia]

Here, many users have carried out tests, with hunters it is orange which seems to be the safest.

PS: I have always a thought for one of your British colleagues who in 2018 was killed by a hunter on a road right next to my home near Morzine (Montriond)

Yep, I'm sure insurance companies have done studies as to which colors are best for their road workers visibility.
While I ride the city streets to the trails, I always see their vests from far away. I also have a couple of orange vests for when we go walking around the neighborhood. That visibility pic was a surprise to me as I always thought red had great visibility. That was probably from my skiing days as all the ski patrol always wore red. Red probably clashes with the white snow better.

 

[Stihldog]

Well any E-Fur apparel is off my list now.

My ride clothing is mostly dark with some reflective stripes/patches. Probably not good enough based on the visibility graph shown here. I’m gonna re-think my riding gear.

 

[Tonybro]

You’ll only get 426ft visibility though if you paint yourself green from head to toe and ride a green bike with green tyres

I wear full black, so I’m invisible. Luckily I don’t have to ride in traffic.

Size of you Tubs, they would spot you as they would be amazed they had discovered the Earth's only Black Hole!

 

[Tubby G]

Size of you Tubs, they would spot you as they would be amazed they had discovered the Earth's only Black Hole!

Cheeky f**k*r

 

[hogicid]

I saw this visibility pic posted on another forum, it's an eye opener.
I have to ride roads to get to my local trails and even if you are on a trail . . . the earlier others see you the better.

So I wear bright colors of red, orange and yellowish green for jackets and wind breakers. Also, puffy jackets depending on the days temp.

I was astonished the difference in visibilty in feet the various colors can be. Who would have thought there would be a difference of almost 350 feet between wearing a green jacket over a red one .

I orded this $26 "fugly" green jacket from Amazon for when the temps around here are freezing to 50 degrees. A medium already came, but I sent it back for a large All-terrain Electric Bike. Most biking clothes from China run smaller.

At least they will see my fugly ass coming earlier now

View attachment 127625 View attachment 127626

I figured after the morning commute I had we could make a collection of ebike commuter tips.. This might already exist but I'm wondering if we could do a refresh.


Tip #1
Always look where your turning. I'm not sure this is as much of a cycling tip as it is a motorcycle tip. When I was leading how to ride for my motorcycle endorsement I was told by more experienced riders to always look where you want to turn. One, so that you know the path is clear. Two, if you need to brake, you'll see it ahead of you and you won't drop the bike. Third, that you follow the direction your looking or turning your head, naturally (also a ski tip).

Tip #2
Know which brake lever is the front vs back brake. This may seem elementary but when you get in dire situations you might accidentally pull the wrong lever, especially if your transitioning from throttle on the right hand to quickly pulling the brake lever, you'll end up breaking with your left before right, and in my case, the left is rear.

Tip #3
It's not always about getting hit by cars or avoiding vehicles. In my instance, hence tip 1&2, pedestrians or runners crossing between cars can make it very difficult to predict. I freaking scared a runner to death this am while making a turn at an intersection...he was already bracing for impact as he jumped, poor guy, sorry man! Scary but also kinda funny, but it's only funny when nothing happens...

 

[shep]

WTAF....

Makes no odds on the road lol. All it does is distract the drivers attention thus you get run over weather in green red or yellow.
I personally take my eyes off the road alot looking at women on bikes so there's no hope for those that wear hi-vis....

 

[Expidia]

Tip: and I have not found a solution for this yet . . . These new Emtb's have amazing braking power due to the quality of the pads and the larger rotors. When I'm cutting through neighborhood streets on my way to the trails from my house I've already had two incidents where a car comes fast out of a driveway or fast around a right on red intersection and they don't stop. They are looking for cars not someone on a bike. But due to how quickly these brakes now work I've slid out twice on pavement. The tires lock up quickly then you are sliding sideways on the pavement and I'm on the ground looking up

I suppose it all comes down to experience and forseeing these types of situations that can (and do) happen. You think in a panic situation even with years of experience and miles on your ride that you can control the braking by applying less pressure on the front brake, but thats the one that has most of the stopping power. You think you can apply the same pressure to both brakes in a panic situation but these events happen in milliseconds and then you are looking at the sky.

Same goes for a freaking squirrel cutting across your path when you are doing like 15 mph on a bike path.