Highbeams in the city = Never, Day or night.
Highbeams out in country where theres no traffic = Yes during the night time.
Highbeams out in country where theres no traffic = Yes during the night time.
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High beam all the time?
- Thread starter RodneyBR
- Start date
JFD
Well-known member
highbeams - they blind oncoming and annoy those infront of you. Either way, they can't focus on where you are exactly, and could cause an accident....
Flashing - everyone has different interpretations of this - could mean turn your highbeams off, there's a cop up ahead, go ahead, wait I'm coming through, it's cold.
Highbeams are for you to see in darker areas, not to increase your visibility to others.
Schools have official stances on things and items that are part of curriculum. If you called LC and asked, i'm sure they'll say no...and really, that instructor was giving you their opinion as opposed to official LC information.
Flashing - everyone has different interpretations of this - could mean turn your highbeams off, there's a cop up ahead, go ahead, wait I'm coming through, it's cold.
Highbeams are for you to see in darker areas, not to increase your visibility to others.
Schools have official stances on things and items that are part of curriculum. If you called LC and asked, i'm sure they'll say no...and really, that instructor was giving you their opinion as opposed to official LC information.
No. Never. Not unless I'm alone, on a country road. There are a lot of good reasons to NOT use them, all the time, but the best is that it's not legal. Many previous threads on this.
Want to be more visible? Wear high viz or reflective gear, and a replica helmet. Both of my daily use riding suits are high viz yellow and I put reflective yellow tape on my helmet.
Want to be more visible? Wear high viz or reflective gear, and a replica helmet. Both of my daily use riding suits are high viz yellow and I put reflective yellow tape on my helmet.
OpenGambit
Banned
Said it better than what I was starting to type.
JFD
Well-known member
No one that installs HID's or uses high beams, or justifies their pipes for safety will EVER don hi viz gear.
But they will install cheapy LED flush-mounts and cheapie integrated LED taillights. For some fools, perceived "cool" trumps safety.
The best thing for front end visibility isn't higher intensity beams, but a triangle pattern created by adding two additional forward facing lamps. They don't even have to be full headlight intensity. Simply adding bright amber running lamps to the backs of the mirrors will add greatly to a bike's visibility profile to oncoming traffic.
Unlike a single high intensity beam that works to blind oncoming drivers and makes it difficult for them to figure out your approach speed, a triangle spread of moderate light sources on your bike will make it much easier for approaching traffic to gauge your closing speed.
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wonderings
Well-known member
+1 to both your posts
There is no set language for riding on the road when it comes to signalling other drivers. Some people flash for cops, others to say "you can move in" and other things. People are still trying to decipher what kind of wave bikers should be doing. Be aware, alert and defensive and ride in the proper lane position.
To illustrate the absurdity of running highs, especially after dark, here's a shot from my camera from yesterday morning. Is it a bike? How far away is he? How fast is he moving?
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my gender is not important, at least I have the common sense not to do stupid crap with my lights
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killerkeith
Well-known member
at least I don't believe everything i read on interwebs and yet still laugh at funny jokes.
If you're running the highbeam at night, in traffic, you are a moron. During the day, I can understand the argument that it lets you stand out against the ambient lighting and shouldn't be overly blinding to traffic (assuming you're not running HID highbeams) as their eyes are also adjusted to the higher ambient light. But at night, when peoples' eyes become more sensitive to the light, the highbeams are making you less visible because you're just blinding people.
I was also taught at RTI to run the highbeam during the day. NEVER at night though if there is traffic (oncoming or in front of you).
And no, highbeams are not meant to help you see better in darker areas all the time. They are to increase how far you can see and how wide when there's no one else around you will be blinding. I see cars running them all the time in the city or on the highway, in really heavy traffic at night. That's idiotic as well.
Then again, in a low car, HIDs on a SUV behind you are just as annoying if not more so. I need self dimming side mirrors, lol.
I was also taught at RTI to run the highbeam during the day. NEVER at night though if there is traffic (oncoming or in front of you).
And no, highbeams are not meant to help you see better in darker areas all the time. They are to increase how far you can see and how wide when there's no one else around you will be blinding. I see cars running them all the time in the city or on the highway, in really heavy traffic at night. That's idiotic as well.
Then again, in a low car, HIDs on a SUV behind you are just as annoying if not more so. I need self dimming side mirrors, lol.
yes, the instructor is an idiot
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Attachments
What point is proven?
Some people look at hi-viz on construction workers as being proof that it should be effective on bikes.
However, the situation is quite different. There is a difference in the way the brain processes static, non-moving objects compared to dynamic, moving objects. Differnet parts of hte brain are involved, and different factors in identifying threats are important.
For a non-moving or slow moving object/person the driver has lots of time to note the hi-viz sitting there. It is expected and your subconscious may very well think of the object as static and let you know to drive around it or act appropriately.
The dynamics of a SMIDSY type crash, where a car pulls out in front of a bike (the most common killer of riders when other vehicles are involved), is quite different. The driver may take a quick look at traffic both ways. There is sometimes a lot of background clutter so the subconscious has to tell the driver what things he/she should worry about. If the object (a motorcycle) is heading straight towards the car the brain may not even realize that it is a motorcycle, it is close, and it is moving and as a result it may not. The Hi-Viz in that case is barely noticeable and may actually act as a bit of camouflage in that it may breakup the outline of the rider so the brain takes extra time to decide if it is a threat and identify it. This is the same reason that bright high beams are a bad idea on a bike. I'm am not saying that hi-viz is a bad idea, just that it may not help as much as riders believe in this type of situation.
..Tom
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Unusual items catch attention. Somewhat ironically the most effective colour, for gear, would likely be highway sign green.
Sparkcycle
Well-known member
The only reason a Low beam is called a low beam is because it is aimed low. If you raise it to aim it higher, it becomes a high beam. I believe that is what he is ****** at.
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