How does colour on your gear affect your safety?

[Quasievil]

Having colour is better from a safety perspective, actually only last nigh on the Auckland Motorway a bike was lane splitting on dusk, from the rear he was virtually invisible in black, no question its safer.......cooler well thats another debate.

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[MsKABC]

I think other things that you do as a rider are more important to your safety than wearing bright colours. You can wear a neon sign if you want, but it won't help you if you ride like a knob or make other poor decisions. Example: the bloke I saw the other day riding in an orange high-vis vest.....and shorts.

I'm of the opinion that other road users won't see you regardless of how visible you make yourself, if their observation skills suck.

[Quasievil]

I think other things that you do as a rider are more important to your safety than wearing bright colours. You can wear a neon sign if you want, but it won't help you if you ride like a knob or make other poor decisions. Example: the bloke I saw the other day riding in an orange high-vis vest.....and shorts.

I'm of the opinion that other road users won't see you regardless of how visible you make yourself, if their observation skills suck.

yes to that, however its a big picture and ideally if you minimise each potential safety issue from the condition of your tyres to brighter gear to only riding on sunny days etc etc etc it makes for a safer rider.............but where do you stop lol things like practicalities tend to get in the way also

[MsKABC]

yes to that, however its a big picture and ideally if you minimise each potential safety issue from the condition of your tyres to brighter gear to only riding on sunny days etc etc etc it makes for a safer rider.............but where do you stop lol things like practicalities tend to get in the way also

Absolutely, I agree - we should do everything possible to make ourselves safer. My point was though (and I do have one), it's pointless worrying about visibility if we don't address the other issues

[cambridgedan]

I reckon the safest thing a biker could wear is a Harry Potter Cloak Of Invisibility(TM).

Motorists and others would react immediately, saying "Wow, look at that bike riding itself! Isn't that cool."

haha that would be funni

[MaxCannon]

My perspective is that it doesn't matter a damn what you wear if the other people on the road aren't looking in the first place.

Relying on bright colours to get you notice is going to end in tears.

If you assume everyone else on the road is out to kill you and ride accordingly you'll be a lot safer.

Even in the car I always assume that other vehicles will pull in front of me / cut we up.

Plan for the worst / hope for the best.

[CookMySock]

Even in the car I always assume that other vehicles will pull in front of me / cut we up. Plan for the worst / hope for the best.

Strangely, I have stopped doing that recently. I was getting to the point where everywhere I went I was scared out of my wits of some dumbass doing some horrific stunt in front of me, where basically that wasn't happening.

I don't have a lot of people pulling out in front of me, and if someone does decide to make a gap where there wasn't one then bikes can fit through any little hole in the traffic quite happily. So it's more about not panicing and calmly select a new line and ride around them.


Steve

[prettybillie]

Having colour is better from a safety perspective, actually only last nigh on the Auckland Motorway a bike was lane splitting on dusk, from the rear he was virtually invisible in black, no question its safer.......cooler well thats another debate.

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We suggest these.

http://www.quasimoto.co.nz/products/...the-viper-2009


http://www.quasimoto.co.nz/products/...lue-qrace-2009

http://www.quasimoto.co.nz/products/...red-qrace-2009

Go for Quasi - his gear rocks!!!!

[MsBehaving]

Hello from South Africa!!

Here we have an organisation called ThinkBike and one of the things we promote is visibility. We print hi-viz jackets with the logo in reflective fabric that you can wear over your bike gear. We have just released pink jackets for the ladies! The jackets have been proven to work much better than any of the coloured gear on the market. You are visible and people tend to notice you much better than with plain black or even coloured gear.

[James Deuce]

The jackets have been proven to work much better than any of the coloured gear on the market. You are visible and people tend to notice you much better than with plain black or even coloured gear.

By whom? None of the literature I've read suggests that reflective jackets make any difference to motorcycle accidents. Except for the stuff written by 3M think tanks. The second half of your argument has been deconstructed ad nauseum. Now that the majority of nerds on bikes are wearing reflective vests, I can guarantee that the people standing out on motorcycles are the ones with their lights off and no reflective vest. If everyone follows the same herd behaviour, they quickly become nothing more than barely seen scenery.

[MsBehaving]

By whom? None of the literature I've read suggests that reflective jackets make any difference to motorcycle accidents. Except for the stuff written by 3M think tanks. The second half of your argument has been deconstructed ad nauseum. Now that the majority of nerds on bikes are wearing reflective vests, I can guarantee that the people standing out on motorcycles are the ones with their lights off and no reflective vest. If everyone follows the same herd behaviour, they quickly become nothing more than barely seen scenery.

I agree with the herd behaviour, but when you see motorist behaviour (we call drivers "cagers" and cars "cages"!!) when they see a reflective jacket in their rearview mirror, it should be enough of an argument in favour of it. I must also point out that we have a lot of roadworks around our major cities right now because of the Soccer World Cup next year, plus we have a major project for a new train system around where I live, so the yellow reflective jackets have faded a bit into nothingness because of the road workers. But, I tested the pink jacket when we were still contemplating it for the market and the reaction from cagers was remarkable. Whether they think they have to get out the way of a female rider or if it actually was the jacket, I'll never know

In terms of accidents, I don't have statistics because of the way accidents are reported, but within the community of ThinkBike and those wearing the jacket (purely voluntary, you understand) we have few reported "bad" accidents (every accident is bad, but I'm sure you get my meaning). The jacket is not a safety device and it is not designed to keep you safe in all circumstances, but it does give you higher visibility out there. And as one post mentioned, NOTHING will keep you safe if you ride like a knob!

[ratast]

My rear indicators are wired so they flash along with the brake lights and by the amount of comments I get I know they are highly visible. Going to States next month and bringing back a headlight modulator. This can flash 240 times a second when I depress horn button.Perfect for flashing at dozy drivers at intersections or dipsticks engrossed in their texting.
When riding with my wife , she ties a plastic bag on to sissy bar. Flutters in the wind wonderfully.
Please don't rain up North this weekend
Cheers Ratast

[p.dath]

Hello from South Africa!!

Here we have an organisation called ThinkBike and one of the things we promote is visibility. We print hi-viz jackets with the logo in reflective fabric that you can wear over your bike gear. We have just released pink jackets for the ladies! The jackets have been proven to work much better than any of the coloured gear on the market. You are visible and people tend to notice you much better than with plain black or even coloured gear.

I'm very interested in this proof. If I could find a study suggesting this then I may consider slightly different gear. Could you post a URL to this study please.

ps. Not interested in here-say. Want an actual comprehensive report to read.

[dogsnbikes]

I'm starting to look at replacing my gear at the moment. I've been thinking about getting a jacket with some colour in it, like red or yellow, because I'm thinking it will make me more visible.

While talking to one retail bike shop I asked them about the colours different jackets are available in, and expressed my desire to be more visible without looking like a flourescent knob.

They told me they didn't think colour made any difference to visibility, and I might as well stick with a simple black jacket.

I know this is a bit subjective, but what are your opinions on this matter? Should I hold out and get something with a bit of colour in it, or not worry about it?

Next time your out on the road ask yourself what is the first thing you notice when you see a bike..I can garrantee it wont be the colour of thier jacket

[RAC]

heres a couple of net article that drew info from studies. I remember reading one a couple of years ago whilst doing research into motorcycle accident and injury profiles for a uni paper, there was little evidence as to why (and dispute over if) hi viz etc made a difference, however the idea was floated by those doing the study that the individual that wears this type of gear (bright helmets was the most significant as i recall) was inherently more likely to have a more safety orientated attitude, and therefore less likely to end up as a hood ornament.

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/car...ycle-safe.html

Accidents were found to be significantly reduced by using motorcycle headlamps and by the rider wearing a high-visibility yellow, orange, or bright red jacket. The study did not identify a clear link between motorcycle color and safety. The report said the color is likely to be insignificant because the accidents were most often frontal, where little of the motorcycle color would be visible to the other driver. Motorcycles equipped with fairings and windshields may improve visibility.

http://news.motorbiker.org/blogs.nsf...-available.htm

One of the most interesting aspects of the report is not the type of motorcycle, or how many horses, but it's ..... the color of your bike. Yes... Black colored motorcycle have the highest accident rate, 24.8%!!!!!!!! The safest color you can get is Gold or Chrome (only 0.1%).