First Flight of the P7



Maserati, Seen in the Doctor Parking Next to the Entrance to Baylor Grapevine Medical Center on Monday. Doctor Visit 3 of 3 for the Day
Don't Those Doctors Understand? - "Alfa Romeo, es mas macho."



Veggies Need Not be Starchy!

I’ve used Cateye headlights a lot, but it is time to move on. I’ll keep them for occasional use in ways that their shortcomings do not cause problems. To replace them, I have acquired a “2W Planet Bike Blaze” and a P7-C. The P7 actually came on Monday, though I couldn't have used it, instead spending the day discovering how my medical adventures have affected local doctors, and allowing my local restaurant to prove that dinner side dishes need not be starchy. Anyway, this morning I used the P7 and it is a great light as long as one is prepared to live with its idiosyncrasies. While I haven't done too much fact checking, I've heard that the P7 uses the brightest available single LED to make its light. It certainly IS bright whether that claim is true or not.



Bike With Lights Turned Off

Apertome reported on the light and on a battery recall involving it here, and here. I must admit that the battery/light interface is certainly rather strange. Unlike any light I’ve ever seen, the on/off button is lit when the battery is hooked up – and stays lit. The situation is compounded by instructions that are worse than worthless.

The light itself, however, is brilliant, albeit with a fairly wide beam. No matter – it’s got so much light that it is brighter than any of my other lights, including the fatally flawed Cateye HL530 with fresh batteries. On the high setting, the maker claims 3 hours of light. On my new commute, that’d be about a recharge once a week. On the v2 commute, it’d be a recharge every other day. The light is also very solidly built and doesn’t depend on an unreinforced plastic mounting bracket the way the Cateyes do.



P7 in "High" Mode. Note that Street Color Sets the Brightness on Each of These Three Photos



In addition to the “high” mode, the P7 also has a “low” setting and a “flash” setting. I don’t think I’ll use the "flash," instead I'll ride with high when there's no oncoming traffic and drop it down a notch when all I need is to be seen.

So far, the P7 does what it needs to do – light up the way forward.

Should you consider a P7? Well, it definitely isn’t a light for everyone. For starters, it probably isn’t available in your local bike shop, or even on Amazon ("unavailable"). I got mine off eBay and Apertome got his online. For a second reason, as noted by Apertome, the batteries and battery/light interface is suspect. This might or might not get better in the future. It also throws a broader beam than is optimal for a headlight - I worry about blinding oncoming motorists, which is why I'll operate it as I would an automotive high/low beam combo. ON THE OTHER HAND, the light is half the price of any equivalent lighting power and gives you the lighting of a generator light without the weight, drag, cost, and complexity. Simply charge this puppy up – and GO. Perhaps, tomorrow, I'll find out how it does in the rain...

P7 in "Low" Mode is About the Same as the Planet Bike 2W Blaze on "High"

A New Meaning for "Burning Up the Night"

My P7 light has always been a bit suspect, though it really DOES burn through the darkness. Apertome reported that an almost identical "SSC" light was getting recalled. Well, today, I saw the recall notice. It may be found here. It's a joint press release from CPSC and Health Canada. Interestingly enough, the recall was quite specific, considering that basically the same product has been sold under many different names.

Also, interestingly, when I went out to look over my own box and instructions carefully, I didn't find ANY of the information contained in the recall, though my battery looks like a "Series I." I guess it didn't occur to CPSC that the light might be sold by other outfits than the one that initiated the voluntary recall. They ask if people have had OTHER problems with lights from the indicated supplier, but not if people have the same light from other suppliers. Our government at work...

Regardless, my light continues to work well and I've never noticed the batteries even getting hot, much less burning up the night. Considering that it seems to have been better designed than at least two different Cateye headlights, and it hasn't even broken ONCE (unlike Cateye) I think I'll continue to use it, since I have no idea where I'd send it back to.

P7 Light at Left. VW Jetta High Beams at Right.



P7 Light Looking All Innocent





P7 Light in the Morning



P7 Lights up the Night

Previously, I reported on the shakedown cruise of the new P7 lights. Since then, I have discovered how they act when the batteries get low and I took a few night shots tonight when we went to look at Christmas lights. All photos were shot with an iPhone. The camera I brought insisted I had to have flash which sort of defeats the purpose. I did not adjust any of the photos. My daughter said it is about the same brightness as one of our Land Rover headlights (SEE BELOW).

As for how the light acts when the batteries are low. THAT is very simple. The light remains identical to what is shown until they blink out as if someone shut off a switch. My lights lasted a little over three hours on the high setting. For my current commute, that means I'll be charging them once a week. The low setting is MUCH lower. The low setting is about the same as the high setting on the Planet Bike Blaze 2w light. I think one reason they LOOK exceptionally low is that the high setting is so bright.

The Light Action on an Unlit Residential Street. Cyclist is About 10-15 Feet Ahead

The Light Action on a Four Lane Road. Cyclist is About 30 Feet Ahead

License Plate Reflection on a Residential Street

Light Action on Residential Street

After this, I got to thinking and we tested that theory that the P7 is about as bright as an automotive headlight. P7 versus a VW Jetta pair of headlights. YOU be the judge. The P7 beam is to the left of the two Jetta lights. In fairness to the little Nazi car, the contest is less one-sided if the VW puts its high beams on.

P7 Light at Left, VW Jetta Lights to the Right. Note the Intensity, as Well as the Light Beam Pattern.
I Typically Aim the P7 a Bit Lower So as to Not Blind People

Blowing Air




Venus, the Symbol of Friday, or, in "French Canada-Speak," Vendredi. From Wikipedia

 Over the Holidays, I went and fixed all the family bikes. While bikes may have some of the same DNA as old English cars, they’re a lot easier to fix. Unlike old English cars, bikes have a greater propensity to lose air from their tires unexpectedly in a rapid fashion. This has caused a reassessment and an actual RESOLUTION to modify my bike commute routine for 2011. It is ironic that, only yesterday, I sorta sneered at the whole practice of New Years Resolution making.


Sleeping, From Wikipedia

My past commute routine has been to top off the air in my bike tires Sunday night or Monday morning. Typically, each tire will require about four strokes of the floor pump to reach full pressure. On occasion, something will go wrong, like the tire will be flat when I go to pump it or it will clearly have lost an abnormal amount of air. Of such events are part of why the “ABC Quick Check” is a recommended routine action. Well, last night, to get a jump on the New Year, I pumped up the tires on my commute bike a little early; Sunday night. As I put the pump head on the front tire valve, came a “psssss” sound that clearly indicated a problem. Since it was SUNDAY NIGHT and not MONDAY MORNING, there was no rush or panic. I simply took off Frankenbike’s recently repaired front tire and put it on Seth. No need to even disturb my spare tube. No fuss, no muss. Oddly, this caused me to double check the Planet Bike backup light and, sure enough, its batteries had died. Had I forgotten to recharge the P7 Light’s batteries, I could have been lightless (well, I would have been reduced to using a Cateye light, anyway). Since I overslept this morning, the temptation to drive would have loomed. Even with the v3 commute, it’s still quicker in raw time to drive than to ride, because I can dispense with having to listen to the weather report before departure.

This serendipitous failure caused me to resolve to revise my commute routine. Henceforth, I resolve to top off the air in my tires and recharge the P7 Light’s battery at the end of the week's commute (FRIDAY) rather than waiting until Monday morning. This routine change has the advantage that if “unroutine” occurs, I do not have to scurry around to fix it quickly for the Monday morning commute. I can even pick up a replacement item at the bike store if need be, which Sunday night checkout does not support.

PS: In retrospect, since Frankenbike is all fixed, I could have taken Frankenbike today, but that would have involved a bit of changing around of lights. Those tool-free brackets, despite what the manufacturers would like us to believe, are NOT trouble-free. It is also odd that, despite sleeping an extra 40 minutes, I actually arrived at work at the same time as usual without skipping things like the morning shower and shave...

Frankenbike, Innocently Resting, Showing Why Kickstands are Often Extraneous

Nuts



PB 2W Blaze is a Stylish and Lightweight Headlight that DEVOURS Batteries

 I like redundancy in my commute bikes. That means, though I use the P7 light every morning, I want another light as a backup. For this purpose, the 2W Planet Bike Blaze works real well. It puts out more light than just about any headlight that will operate on 2 AA batteries.

The down side of this is that the Blaze simply eats batteries unmercifully. Though I've only had it for a couple of months and only turn it on rarely, it's on its second set.

Needless to say, you'd NOT want to use the Blaze daily unless you were using rechargeable batteries. Still, I've hit on a solution that works for a backup light. First, I took it off the bracket and keep it in a pocket of my trunk bag. That eliminates the temptation to "play" with it on occasion. The current normal configuration is shown in the photo below. Just a naked bracket. Riding around in a bag pocket, however, exposed the light to the possibility of accidentally getting turned on and running the batteries down. Removing the batteries didn't seem real good either since then they get cruddy, or lost, or simply rattle around. But, in the photo at the very bottom, I DID hit upon an excellent solution that is lightweight, compact, free, and provides the title to this post all at the same time. Simply prevent electrical contact within the light and put it back together with the batteries inside. Should the light ever be needed, remove and install. Voila! Thanks, Mr P.


This is How I Normally Commute - With a Naked PB Blaze Bracket



"Mr Peanut" Protects my Batteries!

Achilles Heel

As Achilles Had His Heel, the P7 Has Velcro

Many times I've extolled the virtues of the mighty P7 headlight I use on my morning commutes. It is brighter than any light I've seen that is twice the price. What's more, it has outlasted any Cateye light I've had. Still, it does have its own weakness; its Achilles Heel.

The P7's battery is its weakness. Well, not the battery, exactly, but the Velcro that is supposed to keep the battery attached to the frame and hence the light. I have now lost this battery three times and have also doubled back to find it three times. There is something to be said for buckles or snaps. A light whose battery falls off while lit is an obvious event. A light whose battery falls off, randomly, while unlit after dawn is more problematic.

Mighty P7 With Battery Attached

Deja Vu Sorta

New Gas Station Along the Old Route
Cheap Coffee and Hot Dogs for Cyclists

They say you can't go home again. In some ways you can't go to work again. Well, at least if you go to where you USED to work, it just isn't the same. Not exactly, anyway.

Since mid November, as reported in this post, I haven't commuted to Fort Worth Alliance Airport any more - until today. It was Deja Vu All Over Again, and then it wasn't.

For those who don't know the particulars, I regularly made the 40-mile roundtrip commute from home to Alliance Airport from April 2009 through Remembrance Day of 2010. During that time, I put the better part of 6000 miles on Buddy, more miles on other bikes, and I and learned a lot about how a transportational cyclist can successfully operate in a vehicular manner over all types of roads in all weather and lighting. Every day. My v3 commute, by comparison, is about 7 miles each way. The difference is a lot more than just the mileage, as I was reminded today. I did the old commute again because I needed to take care of some administrative stuff with my engineers at Alliance, and I expected it would take pretty much the whole day. I looked forward to deja vu on the old commute with a little trepedation mixed in. It'd be fun, but sometimes reliving old experiences reminds us of what we didn't enjoy rather than our memories that grow fonder with the passing of time.

It all started out real familiar. I rolled out of bed about 45 minutes earlier than my new commute, and was ready to depart in plenty of time. Other than having to remember not to make an early LEFT turn, it all seemed familiar. In fact, it was SO familiar that the main difference I noticed was that the mighty P7 light eliminated any past questions about whether the video traffic signals would recognize the forward progress needs of the commute cyclist. I must say I highly recommend a bright, steady headlight to trigger those video-triggered traffic lights. In fact, I triggered them easier than my motorists along the route. About the only other differences on the way to work in were my thoughts - about 1/3 of the way to work, the thought hit me that if I were making my new commute, I'd be at work. About 2/3 of the way to work, the thought hit me that if I were making my new commute in the worst weather in recent memory, I'd be at work. Still, the ride itself seemed just like it used to be in the predawn darkness. When the sun peeked over the horizon, I was nearly at work and simply noticed a few more new houses in the developments close to the Alliance Gateway Freeway. It was as sweet as ever to head up the last stretch, and then finally move into the left turn lane to turn into the parking lot.

Then, I brought the bike inside and started to notice not everything had remained unchanged. I experienced Obamacare first-hand when I encountered our former shower that was now locked, thanks to the "nursing mother" provision. Then I found that the cafeteria doesn't have chorizo for omelets any more and they'd changed cooks. What's more, there was no green salsa. Well, none of those were strictly commute related, and there is another shower in the building. It was fun to see people who KNEW I was there because "Steve's bike is here" in the office I was borrowing. Still, Alliance seemed a little less legendary. The larger differences became apparent on the way home. Homeward bound is the real test anyway more often than not.

The first big difference was that, in contrast to early November, the trees looked dead. My daughter, Abbey A, really was the first of our family to observe that it looks really DEAD in Texas in winter.The grass looked dead too. It's Texas winter. No more color for these cowboys and cowgirls until the weather warms up seriously. Somehow, I didn't notice that change nearly so much on my new commute, but seeing dead-looking trees again that were full of leaves the last time I'd seen them made an impact that hadn't been apparent in the morning darkness.

Color or B&W, the Scenes Look Pretty Much the Same. Even the Grass is Beige

Gratuitous Bike Shot to Provide a Little Color

Then, as I rode along, I noticed that pockets of snow remain from last week's ice and snow event. We may not be in the snow belt, but even Texas still has some, and more is expected tomorrow. Maybe quite a bit more. We shall see. More things one didn't notice in the predawn ride in to work. There certainly was none of this stuff around last November.

Snow on a Roof in Keller, Texas

Snow Remnants in a Yard in Keller, Texas

On a more serious note, there were still remants of the gravel and sand used to provide traction near the intersections. In the predawn darkness, a cyclist could easily go down if he weren't in the habit of riding in "the line of sweetness." As it was, the sand made a lot bigger impression on me when I could actually contemplate it at the leisure of a red light. This CAN'T be good for the drivetrain!

Note all the Sand at the Intersection Approach. I Can't Remember WHY I Appear to be in the Right Wheel Track. I Usually Approach this Light
From the Right Side of the Left Wheel Track. It May Have Been the Other Photos I Took That Led Me Astray
You Don't Notice This Stuff So Much in the Morning Darkness when the Mighty P7 Makes all the Lights Change



One thing that also was different was seeing a coyote on the way home, only about four blocks from Colleyville City Hall. I've often seen coyotes on the way to Fort Worth Alliance Airport, but usually fleetingly and in the dark or dawn. This was the first time I've EVER seen one in the late afternoon in a fairly mature neighborhood. Remember y'all, keep your cats indoors! Those coyotes are more hungry than usual this time of year.

Colleyville Coyote. This is the First One I've Actually Gotten in Pixels. He Doesn't Look too Fat to Me
A Coyote in an Urban Setting at 5:30PM Suggests These Guys are Extra Hungry



There were also differences in ME. For one thing, influenced by my new commute, I wore work pants for the commute. They worked well in the 30F morning ride, as well as for the 50F evening return. High vis cuffs finished off the look and kept wind from blowing up my leg as they kept my pants away from the chain. Simple and effective - and they keep the "High Vis Police" at bay. Sorta.

Work Pants Work Well for a 20-Mile Winter Commute

What's in a Man's Purse?

Buddy was pretty much the same. About the only change from the "good old days" was the addition of the MIGHTY P7. I was very careful since it's only got three hours on the high setting and I like to charge it on the weekends. Still, there WAS time to stop for coffee on the way home. Asked where I'd been recently, I noted I'd been transferred to Hurst, but I got to to to Alliance for the day. Those baristas have memories like elephants!

Buddy and the Mighty P7, Reclining at a Store of a Major Coffee Chain I Have Neglected Recently

The final change was on the very last leg home. How THOUGHTFUL of Colleyville to add a "cyclist potty stop" at the locale where construction might cause some cyclist delay. I really hadn't noticed the added cycling facility on the way in to work.

However, in all seriousness, I think the new v3 commute has softened  me a bit. I certainly encounter a lot less motorists on narrow, two-lane roads than formerly, and there aren't any high-speed, divided roads on my new commute that compare to the Alliance Gateway Freeway. The combination of the longer distance and the tough (in spots) roads, sharpened my skills and my awareness of developing traffic situations in a way no other method could have done. I deeply appreciate those lessons, but, in some ways, you really can't go to work again - unless it's more than just for a day. I'm also thankful that I didn't complete LCI training when this was my regular route. Even as it was, there were a few moments when I felt like I represented the bike-ed version of the "Provisional Wing of the Irish Republican Army." A little softening isn't necessarily bad...

I Don't Think the "Turn Around Don't Drown" Sign Refers to the Portapotty...

A World of Difference

Dawn Comes Late This Time of Year. THAT Means Sunset is Also Getting Later

Last year, making my v2 commute, I bemoaned the return of daylight savings time. Last year, it meant I returned to the period of total darkness for almost the entire hour and a half ride in to work. I don't mind riding in the dark, but a long ride in the dark, every morning, gets me a little down.

THIS YEAR, the return of DST was an entirely different situation. Between the shorter commute time and the mighty P7 light, a dark morning commute is quite different. THIS YEAR, the return of a dark commute means extra daylight AFTER work and THAT means I can do extra exploring after work in full daylight. The TRE train, in particular, beckons. In contrast to last year, where the TRE was a full hour's ride from work, now, it is just across the street from work and down the block.

P7 Bike Light to the Left, VW Jetta Lights to the Right

7:40 was the hour of dawn this morning. I'd been at work the better part of an hour. The TRE beckons!


The TRE May be a Waste of Taxpayer Money, But I'll Ride It!



Lighting Serendipity



I'm Not the ONLY One Who Wanted a Better Light Lens. Anyone Vote for This as Such?

In my post, here, I bemoaned the battery case on my Mighty P7 headlight getting old and tired. A number of good suggestions were received, but the solution turned out serendipitously thanks to a completely unrelated suggestion.

One problem with these headlights is that the beam focus is not as clearly defined as I might like. In an attempt to “fix” things, there is now an aftermarket lens manufactured for these lights. I’m not sure that this lens is for me since it looks like it makes the beam wider, but doesn’t do much for the vertical focus. I’d really be interested to hear if my loyal reader has tried this new lens or has seen one in person.

 

New, and Truly IMPROVED Case for the P7 Battery - Now in the Steve A Light Group

But I digress. While looking for this lens, I ran across REPLACEMENT BATTERY CASES. For $5 and better features, it hardly seemed worth a “do it myself solution.” And yes, the new case works far better than the original ever did.



The Old, Original P7 Battery Case. Now in Retirement

 

ABC Quick Check is More Than Just the Bike



You KNOW It's a Bad Sign When YESTERDAY's Bike Track is Still Prominent

I've written here many times about my misadventures with "ABC QUICK CHECK." In truth, those problems really validate WHY one ought to be checking stuff and, more often than not, the misadventure consists of finding something before getting 20 miles from home. In my own riding, I include an element usually omitted from lectures on the subject - a little check ride. Before getting on the bike, all systems are checked, as in the video at the bottom of this post. The extra little check ride, before pushing the bike, adds a validation of the basic check by spending just the start of a ride in validating that everything really IS OK. I like redundancy when I can get it and the check ride confirms the results of the basic ABC. Usually.

The Local Road Surface This Morning. It May Not be Deep, But it IS Really Slick - Literally

I LOVE This Headlight, But it Didn't Save me from a Slick Patch



Safety-Oriented Cyclist Concludes that When a Fall Breaks Parts and Knocks the Chain Off the Chainring,
it Might Be Difficult to Operate Predictably

This morning, it illustrated that the check ride is about more than just the bike. As you know, from my post yesterday on "Second Pass of the Luftwaffe," things are a little slippery around North Texas at the moment. Looking outside, it was apparent that the check ride might be more a test of the road than the bike. For the first time in recent memory, my "A" portion of the "ABC" consisted of letting some air out of the tires to improve traction. To make a short story even shorter, while initally things looked pretty sweet - even to the point that brakes actually slowed things down (something you can't actually check in icy conditions without at least a token check ride and which did NOT happen yesterday), even the mighty P7 light was unable to save me from a fall that busted the plastic cable lock holder (not really a major loss) and caused my chain to jump off the chainwheel. I'm really glad I was riding with my feet OUT of the toe clips. I elected to walk home, as the prospect of touching the freezing chain with bare fingers was less than appealing, as was the prospect of rerailing the chain directly with a gloved hand. It's an advantage of an "around the block" check ride - one need not deal with on-road failures. The light enabled me to find the various bits in the dark, but prudence suggested another Land Rover commute was in order. Still, that check ride opened up the flight envelope a little. Dan G, the LCI demoing the ABC below is fond of noting that we "drive" our bikes. Well, today, I rode it to see if it WAS drivable. That check convinced me that I lacked confidence to operate the bike predictably, traffic or no.

As in flight test, cycling envelope expansion is sometimes a slow and very incremental process if one values safety. The end objective is the same in either case, to become better. Doncha just LOVE this weather? [insert quote from Gordon Cooper in "The Right Stuff" here, but this blog doesn't use that language]

Pilot of Northrop F-5E Tiger II Expands the Envelope Incrementally - from Wikipedia

Sometimes, Speed is a Savior

Speed Can be Your FRIEND - From Wikipedia
However, THIS Guy Needs No Help for Others to Know His Speed

There is a perception that you have to ride fast to operate on the road amongst the motorized traffic. Certainly, it is easier for an overtaking car to run you down and squish you like a squirrel if you are riding at 10mph than if you are riding at 20mph. Still, considering that on a straight road a motorist will see you at least a block or two away, they don't have to have the reaction times of test pilots to miss even the slowest cyclist. From the stories in newspapers that I read, the common reason cyclists get hit from behind is they are riding on a shoulder, or maybe even standing on the sidewalk, and some dweeb simply runs off the road and smacks them. Yes, I know, our driver licensing system seems to be a little less than perfect, but that is not the point today.

How Close Can a Car Get Before Reacting and Still Not Run You Down?
Remember, They Could Get MUCH Closer and Still Miss You With a Simple Lane Change

Cyclists benefit, when being overtaken, by the mistaken notion almost all motorists have that the cyclists are going much slower than they are, regardless of whether they ride fast or slow. "Those cyclists are SO slow!" I will never forget the sworn testimony of a police officer (a trained observer) at the ChipSeal trial that Chip was going about 8mph. In fact, Chip was going closer to 20 at that moment in the video. Had I had less self control, I'd have gotten thrown out of the courtroom for contempt after rolling around on the floor in hysterical laughter. Even the normally expressive Chip looked dumbfounded and actually disappointed, which made keeping my mouth shut even harder. Cycling advocates, such as here, note that the notion you need to ride quickly to be safe is mistaken, and they are right. While a lot of cyclists feel bad about taking the lane while doing 10mph when motorists occasionally exceed the posted limit, one wonders if their attitude might brighten a bit if they realized the motorists really figured that the obnoxious cyclist was hogging the road while going about 4mph. What's more, they'll claim that regardless of where the cyclist rides on the actual road surface. I don't know why this is so - in college I changed majors from psychology to engineering. Go ask someone else if you want to know the basis for motorist judgment errors. All I know is that's what they think. OUR task is to use that knowledge to our advantage.

Why, then, you might ask, did I choose the title I did for this post? Well, it is very simple. As in most road conflict, THE MAIN DANGER IS AHEAD. What this means is that overtaking motorists make their moves early to pass the poky cyclist. Those making turns and such up ahead often misjudge how quickly I am coming on. And those, up ahead, represent the MAIN DANGER.

Of course, riding even faster compared to what a motorist expects usually only makes things worse. Really, the only real benefit of cycling in a vehicular manner is that the increased dangers when you are going fast are much less than behaving in a manner that other traffic does not expect. In other words, the penalties of riding fast are less if you move as others expect a vehicle to move. That is a lot of the secret to low Dutch and Danish cycling fatalities - people simply mostly ride slower compared to the US. If you doubt it, ride at 20mph on a street with traffic versus try to ride at 20mph against traffic on a crowded sidewalk. Actually, simply take my word for it. I don't want to be hauled into court by some grieving survivor.

Sometimes, however, speed doesn't kill, but helps. I was reminded of this on Thursday when I got honked at by a motorist. Getting honked at is pretty unusual in itself for me, but this one might have been even stranger. What is more, speed might well have avoided the encounter completely. Actually, I'm being slightly misleading because it wasn't really speed that was needed as much as an "impression" of speed. A motorist up ahead that OVERESTIMATES my speed gives me an extra margin. During daylight, this is a tough thing to achieve. BUT, sometimes, the darkness can be a cyclist's friend.

I was Headed Southwest in the Dark, Down the Hill, Toward the Camera, About Where the Driver of the Silver Car Was
On Thursday, Perhaps a Sign Saying "Caution - Motorists Blowing Stop Signs"
Would Have Been Most Appropriate

It was dark out as I headed southwest on Bedford-Euless Road on Thursday morning. This is a sweet, five lane road I ride every morning on the way to work. Off to the right, within 50 feet of the now departed sign in the photo, a motorist, seeing my Mighty P7 Headlight on the "low" setting (about as bright as most better bike lights in the high setting), the guy decided to blow the stop sign until he realized the (inappropriate word omitted) cyclist was a LOT faster than he expected. I typically hit about 25-30mph on that slight downhill stretch. Well, to make a short story even shorter, instead of either following the law or hitting the accelerator to attempt a clean getaway, he stopped with the nose of his car right about in the middle of my lane. Then, to my surprise, the scofflaw decided to honk at me. Maybe he was trying to drive as if invisible and wondered if I might not have noticed the 4000lb missile violating my right of way. Duh - being a suburban road, such events catch my notice. Well, no actual evasive action was needed, other than to avoid mindless swerving as I laughed after passing the honker and tried to imagine the reasons for the honk. If this post was about lane position instead of speed, it might have illustrated the benefits of riding in "the line of sweetness."

Light Level on Thursday - Motorist Blows Stop Sign and Honks

Light Level on Friday - Another Boring Ride - Sidestreet Motorists Behaved Themselves

Bike Light at Left, Wimpy VW High Beams at Right. Those Lights at Left are COMING FAST!

Friday, I made corrective action. Hereafter, in the dark, I ride with my headlight on the "bright" setting. To any traffic up ahead, the light looks like an oncoming Harley and all motorists know THOSE bad boys are usually doing at LEAST 60. Those motorists, up ahead in the dark, deciding whether or not to blow those stop signs will probably hesitate, which will be all the time I need before the motorist realizes it was only a poky cyclist that just swept by on THEIR arterial. Speed is a savior. Well, maybe the impression of speed. Or maybe it is merely the GINORMOUS OPTICAL POWER of the Mighty P7, AKA "the Flamethrower."

Is that Marlon Brando on a Harley in the Dark?
Those Durn, Sneaky (Inappropriate Term Deleted) Cyclists!

PS: It might also be the first real legitimate reason I have ever run across to add a front reflector to the front of a bike. It also suggests a loudspeaker to play the sounds of a loud motorcycle might pay off compared to the more conventional "high vis." How DOES one create the impression of an attack aircraft beginning a strafing run?

Motorists Would be RELUCTANT to Blow a Stop Sign With One of THESE Bearing Down!
I Think I'd Need Speakers Because These Bad Boys Don't Use Lights When They Come...