Aside from wheels staying in one piece and the frame holding together, the thing we take most for granted when riding a bike is how our bodies instinctively respond to and absorb bumps. The human body is, in fact, an incredible shock-absorber; our arms and legs are capable of flexing and shifting in ways that no mechanical suspension is capable of and reacts at near-instantaneous speed to the intelligence streaming in from the ocular system. Remove the power of sight from the equation and the effect is staggering.
My first encounter with night riding was during a 24-hour mountainbike race in Minnesota. Until that race, I had taken care to always ride during the day, partly because I couldn’t afford a reasonable headlight and partly because I could always arrange my training to take place during daylight. A 24-hour race, however, held distinct implications for nighttime riding.
I never bothered practicing riding at night, and I didn’t bother with buying a proper headlamp. Instead, I recommissioned my semi-reliable headlight which I used for nordic ski training in the dark winter months. The week before had also seen the decommissioning of my first-generation Rock Shox which had always graced the front-end of my beloved Schwinn mountainbike, made of what I assume were sand-filled tubes. I didn’t maintain the shock the way a shock should be maintained, and with its death came the rebirth of the fixed fork that had originally steered the machine.
I don’t need to go into detail on the race, but suffice to say that my headlamp stopped functioning within minutes on the first nighttime lap and that I rode the remainder of the race by the light of the moon and my insufficient instincts. Climbing was unpleasant, flats were uncomfortable, and descents were a blend of suicide and anarchy. Each bump the front wheel found blew through my unprepared arms and cascaded through my body, usually focussed on the saddle which ungracefully found its way to my crotch whether I was sitting on it at the time or not.
With this induction into the dark art of night riding, it has been something I’ve typically done with some reluctance. In other words, I’ve avoided it like the plague. Living in Seattle and having the privilege of a fulltime job does have certain ramifications on riding in daylight hours in Winter; namely that it isn’t possible. With the introduction of a good headlight comes the surreal solidarity of riding cocooned in a cone of light. The shorted line of sight together with the elimination of one’s peripheral vision has an inexplicable calming effect despite the sense that you can’t properly judge the bumps in the road as your headlight briefly illuminates them, and that every puddle looks like a small lake whose depth cannot be judged until you’re on top of it.
I’ve ridden with a Mammut Zoom headlamp and a Lezyne Super Drive, both of which served the purpose of making nighttime riding slightly less terrifying. But with my new 45km commute, I moved to the Lezyne Mega Drive, which is basically a car headlight refactored to fit on a handlebar. I heard that the lights in small villages dim when I turn it to full power and I’ve noticed that deer come running towards it when I ride by with the mistaken belief that it signals the arrival of a deity.
Never one for half-measures, I still mount the Super Drive on the helmet and the Mega Drive on the bars; its like riding with the Eye of Sauron on your bike. Oh, and I have three different red flashers on the back of the bike and another white flasher on the front. You know, just in case.
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@frank
I hope to the God of Sauron that you still have that awesome matching outfit! I'm guessing the poofiness allowed Full Awesomeness to be put out while bombing the trails?
@Ron
Had the 3pt system going even way back then. Sweet.
@scaler911
What's that yellow thing behind the saddle? How big is that bottle in the seat tube cage? Looks like a couple of liters to me . . . What is the red and white thing located under your left armpit? Is it some kind of colossal fanny pack? I think we should be told.
@wiscot and is that a pump mounted behind the seat tube?
@wiscot
oh you mean like this?
gotta love it. clip-on fender, EPMS, long tights, balaclava, AND in the little ring no less. worst part is, i read he had a follow car right behind him when he crashed! wtf do you need an EPMS for if you've got a follow car?
regarding the conversation about lights shining in the eyes of other riders... i mainly have this problem with pedestrians. during the winter, i'll try to set out as early as possible when the darkness is coming, hit the roads first and then hit the bike trails (rails to trails, paved, shared) for the majority of the darkness. i love riding out there, actually. but in the winter darkness, you see a lot more people running or walking dogs than you do riding. my solution is to simply turn my light to the side. i have the lezyne super drive (although the mount is similar to many others) and you can just swivel it about 30 degrees to the side as you pass each other. this is enough to not completely destroy your view of the path ahead but also give the oncoming pedestrian a break. i love riding out there with two people side-by-side though; pedestrians jump off the trail and yell "i though you were a car!"
also, i know touring cyclists swear by mounting the headlight as low as possible. allegedly it helps to illuminate potholes and road imperfections in a more 3D manner, so you can see their depth and not just the existence of them. i've seen a couple devices that allow you to do this, such as a paul components gino (mounts to a fender boss on the fork, though) or the problem solvers quick release mount. both basically just add a little tube sticking out of your fork to mount the light onto. probably serves its purpose, but i just can't bring myself to mount the damn things to my bike! it's bad enough having all the lights on there.
@chiasticon I know he's coming back from a major accident but it kinda looks like Wiggo's carrying an extra tubular around the waist. Suppose it could be the layers of stuff he has on.
@chiasticon
Yup, that's the one! I don't get it. I as in the UK when Wiggo crashed - it was not that cold. High 40s, low 50s easy. Probably warmer in England than it was in Scotland. He's all bundled up like it's in the 30s and yet has no overshoes on. WTF? Also, while the EPMS is forgiveable, that fender is most certainly not. For a guy who has a particular sense of style, he must have had a mental block o the fender.
@frank as @marcus says, much of the issue is angle- part of my commuting route is the flagship "10,000th mile" of the UK National Cycle Network- a busy, two and a half metre wide two way shared use trail. Even with the level of lights I'm running, I've seen people flinch as I approach. The only reason I use the route is that it's rather shorter than the alternative and doesn't have aresholes in steel cages trying to kill me.
@wiscot
yea i wouldn't do high 40's/low 50's with full leggings. there is, however, the theory that having your legs covered means you have to deal with cold feet less. i.e. don't bitch about cold feet when you're wearing knicks. i've yet to confirm this theory, as i wear full leggings as seldom as possible. but maybe that's why he's rolling that way?
regardless, yeah that fender's atrocious. and i run full fenders! at least they're not on a $10K race bike, though. they're way less noticeable (and more effective) than that ungodly butt blade he's got going.
all of this does back up my theory though, that pros are just as fredly as anyone else when they're off-season training: function before appearance.
@Ron
More like bong hits and beer.