Gear advice for night riding in the country

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Sunspark

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Hi:

The day is very nice but if it turns out you're going to be caught out at dark in the highlands which has happened to me twice now, consider having the following:

-Bubble face shield for your helmet not already a full face. At night you will hit all the bugs. It is a mess. I am always glad I have a shield.

-Don't wear mesh gloves at night. Your hands will freeze. Wear leather or something wind resistant instead. I need another glove.

-Bring long johns. Your legs will get cold. I need to do this.

-Bring thermal undershirt and possibly a fleece to fill the space and insulate if your jacket is lame like mine. I have a leather jacket that is thick bike leather but the wrists, waist etc don't close. Nice for hot nights. Not nice for 5-12 deg with wind. I need to get a real jacket.

-Boots. While a historical accident, I'm kind of glad my pants tuck into my leather boots. Blocks wind and prevents it travelling up leg. Wool sock if necessary might be worth considering.

Leather is not a friend of water.

Also, bring a hi-viz vest too to make you more visible as there are no streetlights and your reflectivity may help the driver gauge distance from you better.

I would say night riding up there is like riding during the day in April here on the colder days except there is no solar radiation at night, you really feel the damp chill.
 
hello fellow rider.
if out night riding dont forget the night criters on the road lol . hec if ur out i would like to join up one day?
 
Well if watching for critters, watch for the 18-wheelers too. I pretty much came to a complete stop on highway 11 last night because one came blasting through a merge without slowing. Trucker started stopping after he saw me stopping and let me go ahead. If I hadn't braked I would have been splat. No room for sudden massive acceleration on a 250.

Then other 18 wheelers can roar up on a single lane behind you especially if you are in the lane merging into that one. I pulled onto the shoulder and let them go past. On a single lane I don't want 18 wheelers breathing down my fender at night if I need to slow down.
 
When I am touring cross-country I wear a perforated leather jacket, leather gloves, jeans and boots. 2-piece rain gear and a pair of water-experienced leather gloves are in the tank bag. Obviously the rain-gear and 2nd pair of gloves come out at the first sign of rain. But the rain gear is also good for when it cools down. First the jacket (to deal with the perforated jacket), and if it gets really cool the pants. For spring and fall I also have electrics -- but mid-season the above has served me well across North America.

(If aggressive riding is in the cards, the perforated jacket is part of a 2-piece leather suit with the jeans and leathers being swapped out as appropriate.)
 
GentlemanRacer said:
Do deer whistles actually work or are they a fake gimmick?
Click to expand...
they work..but its not based off a frequency like a dog whistle, its just a noise maker. loud pipes will do the same job.
bears dont like bells (apparently....)

bring something to clean your visor, i had to clean mine every 16 km when i was riding up in the barrie area at night on side roads..
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