Be Predictable; Be Visible

Your safety on a bicycle is directly related to how predictable you are but that only counts if the driver knows you are there. –Corrie

Little Things Get You Noticed

A couple months ago my daughter drove past me as I was pedaling home in the dark. When I walked into the house she told me that she had seen me, so I took the opportunity to do a little research.

Me: “Could you see me fairly well?”
Miss T: “Yeah.”

Me: “How far away did you notice me?”
Miss T: “Pretty far.” – which turned out to be around 500 feet.

The next question was the one I was leading up to. At the time I had on a jacket with reflective stripes and reflective ankle straps and was running a rear blinky.

“What did you notice first?” Her answer took me by surprise. “Your ankle straps.” Seriously, these things were a stocking stuffer that my wife got me a couple Christmases ago so I’d stop using the small bungee cords I swiped from her. I liked the Velcro straps but never really thought about them as being particularly attention grabbing.