Safety vests

[pyrocam]

buffy would leave me


not that I would wear one anyway

[Cave Cleaner]

No. The closest I come is having silver reflective lines as part of my jacket design.

Yeah ,My jacket and pants have that reflective beading over them and they do stand out at night, so I don't wear a vest. If you do want a vest, you can buy the basic yellow or Orange ones with the reflective bands from Placemakers for around $12

[james89000]

I would be interested to know if there is any real stats showing this. I would say it probably would help but the article below would sort of controdict this.

Hey that is an interesting thought.

[Ender EnZed]

I realise this is a very old thread but the Indoctrination video told me not to start new ones that already exist.

I read all 10 pages and I couldn't identify any distinction between the merits of being seen and being recognised as a valid road user. I'm suggesting there are two parts to your typical "Car at a Give Way" situation. i.e. You're approaching an intersection when a car pulls up, driver turns their head and looks straight at you. They must then:

(1) Determine that there is physically an object there.
(2) Decide whether or not it affects their ability to carry on their intended route to an extent that they need to respond differently to how they would otherwise.

The "Car at a Give Way" situation isn't an ideal example for fluoro vests as there's not a lot to be seen of them behind a fairing and a headlight. A better one would be when you're stopping for a late orange/red light and there's a cage behind you.

I could be wrong of course but I don't think anyone really believes that a fluoro has zero chance of improving things for part (1). I'm trying to promote a bit of discussion on part (2) and to that end I'll raise this bit of reasearch some of you might have seen.

It's not a recent study but the relevent bit is this

Dr Walker suggests the reason drivers give less room to cyclists wearing helmets is down to how cyclists are perceived as a group.

“We know from research that many drivers see cyclists as a separate subculture, to which they don’t belong,” said Dr Walker.

“As a result they hold stereotyped ideas about cyclists, often judging all riders by the yardstick of the lycra-clad street-warrior.

“This may lead drivers to believe cyclists with helmets are more serious, experienced and predictable than those without.

“The idea that helmeted cyclists are more experienced and less likely to do something unexpected would explain why drivers leave less space when passing.

Anyone see any parallels there with attitudes toward the motorised variety of cycles? I'm not suggesting for a second we should take off our helmets but I am suggesting that drivers who see a rider wearing a fluoro jacket will be making different assumptions about how that rider will react to those they would be making if the rider was naked. I'm sure this is true of motorcyclists themselves as well. I'll assume there to be a difference between the rider of a big white faired bike wearing full gear, a white helmet and a fluoro vest and a guy in jeans and a T shirt on a scraped up streetfighter.

I've forgotten what I was saying at the start of this post it was so long ago but I think my point was: Do you think cagers might take less care around a fluoro vested rider assuming him (or her) to be less likely to crash?

[sunhuntin]

ive got one and have been wearing it quite a bit lately with all the grey weather. i would to stick some of the reflective tape on the topbox, cos i think that blocks the vest from the back quite a bit. i always wear it when riding at dusk or night time, or on days with shit weather. my wet weather pants have thin reflective piping down the outer legs, and i noticed the first time i wore them that they made a heap of difference, more than i expected.

[Ferkletastic]

I wear one, got it for $3 odd from a dollar store at St Lukes, has reflective strips and works really well. I've noticed cars move away more if I'm splitting and seem to be more aware of me.

Don't give a damn about it looking spack as I'm secure enough in my own awesomosity to not worry.

I don't ride to look cool, I ride because it's way too much fun.

[gwigs]

As someone in another post said on a similar subject..."You might as well be wearing a clown suit".People in cars just dont see you regardless of what you wear..
I was wearing one at night but have since stopped as I observed a from my cage on the motorway at night that I saw a bikes lights well before any flouro vests..

[swbarnett]

As someone in another post said on a similar subject..."You might as well be wearing a clown suit".People in cars just dont see you regardless of what you wear..
I was wearing one at night but have since stopped as I observed a from my cage on the motorway at night that I saw a bikes lights well before any flouro vests..

Indeed.

I think there are some riders that do notice a difference once they don a vest. My theory on this is that they're riding with more confidence because they think they're safer. It has nothing to do with them being more visible.

[duckonin]

Anything you do or wear that reduces any risks, must be worth it !!!

[p.dath]

I used to like wearing mine, especially when riding at night - but I have worn it out.

[pete376403]

Have worn a yellow flouro jacket on a couple of rides - once in fog down South, a following rider said he could not see the other bikes but he could see my jacket, another time on a gravel road with a shit load of dust and same again - my jacket was the only thing the following rider could see.

[NordieBoy]

On the Dusty Butt people could see me several km away

[awa355]

I was just wondering... how many riders actually wear those reflective yellow/orange safety vests? And if so... do you think they actually help you?

I was given 2 when I brought my ZXR. Never wore them and so I gave them to my partners father who rides a Mountain Bike to work...

I wore one while doing a Postie run in Tga. They are far more noticable on scooters than dull coloured helmets or scooter lights. As the lights on scooters are so low, many motorists see the Hi glo vests first.

I was wearing one for a while for riding to work at night. My new cordura jacket has reflective strips which do the same job anyway. Any reflective strip makes a motorcyclist stand out. I think they are a good idea.

[Ypawa]

I dont have a safety vest/hi viz. The thought never entered my mind as a necessity to wear/get one. Some say .. a vest makes them more secure in knowing they can be seen on the road. I may think hard about this one!
Oneday LTNZ/GOVT may...oneday..just oneday make it COMPULSORY for all Bike riders to wear a Safety Vest - thats food for thought huh?

[Neon]

I used to like wearing mine, especially when riding at night - but I have worn it out.

'Tis true, I frequently notice bikers with fluoro vests that are a dull browny orange or faded yellow. Mine is bright yellow on the back and starting to fade on the front quite noticeably, and it's only had a year of use.

After my missus followed me in the car one evening at dusk on the NW motorway when I wasn't wearing it, she commented that I just 'disappeared' in amongst all the other visual clutter. I maintain that they make a big difference in low light / night and poor weather, so that's when I wear one most.