Life Paint. Make sure your seen.

You have to give it to Volvo....a car company thinking about vulnerable road users safety!  Part of me wants to say it's just a crutch for drivers who aren't paying attention....making it the pedestrians or cyclists job (and cost) to be safe. 

However, in the end it is about making sure no vulnerable road users get killed.  It's only available in the UK right now, but Volvo says it will increase production if the demand is there.

New Legal Strategy!?

Yes, this is a giant picture of my head.  It is meant to show my newest legal-safety strategy.....basically, I now have a jacket that is the brightest most obnoxious color known to man.  It is also the color of all safety and warning signs for cars.  So if you hit me while I'm riding and even try to say you didn't see me, all I have to do is show the officer (or judge) this coat and I will win the argument.  And yes, I do realize that if you hit me and I'm dead this is a mute point.

In all seriousness, I just like orange.  No surprise if you know me (since my car is orange too).  So everything above is just written because I don't have anything else to write about this morning. 

Good Morning Sunshine....aka....Low Angle Sun!

Mill St. with a bit of glare!

That's right, it's that time of year.  The air has a nice nip on the ride in and you're experimenting with layering techniques that keep you warm, but not too warm on the ride.  It's also the time of year when the sun is on it's way up as you ride in, and creates that nice low angle glare.  Your helmet visor and sunglasses might take care of it, but it often blinds drivers to the point they can't see (you).

Now if this happens to you on a bike you'd probably slow down so you don't die (or hit something)....but remember, drivers don't think this way.  They fight with the visor or just hold their hand up and squint until they can see.  Hitting the breaks is not the normal response to not being able to see while driving a car!

The problem is that during this time of visual (and apparently cerebral) impairment, they may use the bike lane as their lane, run stop signs and lights, or impact you and your bike for a variety of other reasons.  The second problem is when the police come to deal with this type of collision, the driver will simply state, "I couldn't see them....the sun was in my eyes.".  The officer will accept this as a reasonable excuse for injuring or killing a pedestrian or cyclist and the driver will likely not even get a ticket! 

So heads up, the next few weeks you want to be extra vigilant (and defensive) while riding in the mornings! 

Helmet of Justice.....is awesome!

Sorry about the ad....but it's worth it to see this thing!

Normally I'd say biking with kids is safe, but.....

I don't want to be a bike Ninja!

Yesterday I put in a few more miles than normal due to an evening meeting.  It was a nice change of pace and gave me the chance to bike some areas I'm not that familiar with in south Reno.  It was also nice because I got the chance to ride with someone on the way home!  One might say doubly nice since that person is my "bike mentor" and one of the reasons I turned to bike commuting. 

Anyway, on the ride home the conversation turned to a topic that we both hold in high regard as regular bicycle commuters....namely, being seen by cars and not becoming a statistic!  So while the rigs that the two of us ride are remarkably similar (mainly because I'm a copy cat) we do use some different lights, reflective treatments, and visual safety systems.  Here's the list between the two of us:

Lighting:

Planet bike 1 watt dyno hub lights.

We both use this light as our primary because you never have to think of batteries and remember to charge.  If the front wheel is spinning, you've got a headlight!

The Niterider Minewt.

This is my extra rechargeable headlight that I employ when in really dark areas or in zones of high traffic when I want to make sure I have more lights for drivers to see me.

The Downlow Glow.

This is the system my friend uses.  The neon under lighting makes for great front, side, and rear visibility and looks cool to boot!  I wish I could get one but they don't seem to be on the market any longer.

Looks something like this in action....very cool!

Planet Bikes Super Flash.  A good way to be seen.

This is the tail light we both use a version of.  The pulsing pattern of blinks is a real attention grabber for the motorist coming up from behind you!

Planet Bike Turbo.  The above with more watts. 

For the record, riding behind the turbo last night was an eye opener.  This stupid thing is so bright I'm still seeing it burned into my retina this morning!


Reflective gear:

Adventure Cycling's reflective rear triangle.

We both use this little gem on the rear of our bikes.  Looks like a traffic sign that drivers are used to and is a big reflective surface.  Most drivers at least slow down for this type of symbol.

Shower Pass Reflective jacket.

This is something the peddling preacher (search earlier posts for this reference) uses.  I don't have a cool reflective jacket yet, but it would be a really good idea.  It's a shame I didn't thing to ask for this for Christmas!

Anyway, that's a quick list of our attempts to be seen by drivers.  What type of gear do you use to be seen?

A shot in the dark.

It's no secret that I'm a fan of the river path here in Reno/Sparks.  It's a perfect fit for my commute and let's face it, it's probably safer than some of my surface street alternatives (Mill St.).  It is however that time of year when it gets dark early and even with a good light there are some pretty dark and isolated portions of the trail.  It doesn't particularly bother me (and I've never had a negative experience), but I'd wager that some riders find it a little uncomfortable.

I realized however, it really doesn't have to be this way.  When the trail was built someone was on their "A game" and incorporated lighting all along the trail!

And the numbers are impressive!  There are a total of 92 lights between the "start" of the trail at the Automobile museum in Reno and Fisherman's park in Sparks (yep, I counted).


View Larger Map
(Roughly the area shown above or 1.8 miles of trail)

The problem is that about 50 to 75 percent of the lights are not working (I'm guessing at this)!  So that "A game" designer has been defeated by one of three things (at least in my mind).

One option is simple lack of maintenance.  If this is the problem we should be able to resolve this quickly because almost every pole is numbered and should be able to be reported to the appropriate city, county, or "other" entity.  Assuming one can locate the correct person to contact.

Hello, City of Reno?  Yeah, light post #8 on the river trail is out.

Option two, is a little more bleak.  Maybe the powers that be have chosen to kill the lights along the path to save a few bucks on the power bill!?  I hope this isn't the case (since some of the lights work), but you never know.

Option three, is that some of the less reputable folks who use the river trail have messed with the lights over time to try to get access to power and have buggered up the wiring.  This would be the worst scenario as it involves finding $$$ to fix whatever has been done.  However, I've taken a look around several of the lights and there are no obvious signs of destruction.

So, tonight I'll repeat the count on the way home and see if I can actually tabulate the percentage of "out" lights.  Then I'm going to try my hand at some serious city politics and see if we can't get them working!  Lord knows the city wouldn't tolerate street lights that were burnt out in high percentages.

Bicycle Haiku.

Taken from NBCNewYork.com

New York goes poetic to promote street safety



New York City Department of Transportation

Half of the 200 signs will be hung in pairs, with the image and haiku text together. Others will carry QR codes revealing the haiku.

“Too averse to risk / To chance the lottery, yet / Steps into traffic."
That's a reminder to pedestrians in New York City to follow traffic rules when crossing the street.
The city is waxing poetic to boost traffic safety.

Colorful 8-inch-square signs featuring safety messages in haiku are being installed at high-crash locations near cultural institutions and schools, including the Bronx's Grand Concourse, MoMA, downtown Brooklyn and the Brooklyn Botanical Garden.

City Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan announced the new safety campaign, called Curbside Haiku, on Tuesday.

• Read the original story at NBCNewYork.com

Paid for using a state grant from DWI funds, the series includes 12 designs with accompanying haikus that each deliver a targeted safety message by focusing on one transportation mode.
For example, a sign featuring the silhouette of "Walking Man" is paired with the haiku “Too averse to risk / To chance the lottery, yet / Steps into traffic."
• See all the designs (.pdf)

Half of the signs will be hung in pairs, with the image and haiku text appearing. The remaining set feature an image with a QR code to allow New Yorkers to access the safety message via smartphone.
Artist John Morse wrote the haikus and designed the accompanying signs. More than 200 will be installed.