Was speaking with a fellow biker in a shopping center the other day when I noticed his high beams were on, hard to miss the blue light on the display. I mentioned it to him because I thought he missed it or hit it by mistake. That's when he mentioned he keeps it on all the time so that people can see him better?

I never heard of this before, he said it catches peoples attention who might not be paying attention, etc.

Got me thinking if anyone else does this? Thought it might blind people but it kinda makes sence.

Anyone else ride with the brights on?

 

To me it only makes sense when you have a bike with the "wink" look. As far as all others including myself I wont. It probably will **** more people off then help you. Who can see your brights from the side or behind you????? You blind people from the front at night and they might end up in your lane from not being able to see.....To each his own tho, I wont do it

 

yea brights on during the day but I'm curitious @ night

 

only in the day time...if it's after sunset i kick it down to pass oncoming traffic.

i know of guys (mostly harley riders) that ride around with three extra sets of forward facing auxiliary lights no matter the time of day and have been ran over by an oncoming vehicle.

i also know people with "wheelie" headlights so they can still see when pretending they have a unicycle at night time

 

I keep them on all the time. Sometimes oncoming cars flash their brights at me, I just flash them back.

 

High beams during daylight hrs. After sunset, low's in traffic, hi's whenever it won't blind anyone.

 

Same here although sometime i run dims in the day.....especially when i want to hear " hey buddy you got a light out" while parking.

 

so you just turn off your high beams and then back on? whats the point in that? the other vehicle already saw you, and its obvious your lights are impeding their ability to see, so why would turn your highs back on? at that point, its no longer about them seeing you since they already did.

Highs on in the day allow cars to see you. Highs at night can create accidents for you or the other driver. High beams at night are not any easier to see than dims. I would bet that pissed off drivers coming at you would be a bigger concern.

what cracks me up is, people take off their running lights and reflectors, yet state they run their high beams at night so cars can see them.. if that was a real concern, the reflectors and blinkers would stay on. So in reality, other drivers have to suffer for the riders own selfish want of a cleaner looking bike. Nothing wrong with a clean looking bike, just don't be riding around with your high beams on at night because of it.

In short...IMHO... anyone who rides with brights on all the time is an inconsiderate tool.

 

Exactly, they do it so im like, "Hey I can do that too, see". I dont feel safe at night w/o my brights, I dont feel I can see enough w/o them. Maybe my reg lights are ****ty, But thats why.

 

If you truly can't see with your low beams, its a real concern, but I would look into why the headlights are so bad on low beam. If you fix the low beam situation, your highs will more than likely be better as well.

Things I would do is check into a brighter bulb, such as sylvania silverstar ultra's. they really can make a huge difference. Also, make sure the headlight is aimed correctly. Many people mis adjust the low beam too high or too low. Either case, there is less light on the road. Also, make sure the bulb is seated correctly. If the bulb is shifted in the pocket of the reflector, the light will not go where it is suppose to go and you won't be able to see very well. It really doesn't take much at all. you may even want to try and wiggle the bulb a little at night and see if it improves at any point.

In the end, your high beams may allow you to see better, but its also affecting cars coming at you. Its really not a safe thing to do for the other driver as they more than likely will have to look towards the shoulder of the road to avoid the bright light, which can lead to accidents if something is in their path. If the other driver keeps looking ahead, your high beam light will actually drown out their own lights and and their visibilty is drastically reduced until you pass. Even once you pass, their eyes now have to adjust to the darker light, which can affect their ability to see things in their path.

Maybe Im a bit too courteous on the road. But I ride the way I want to be treated. I get pretty pissed off when a vehicle is coming at me with its high's on for the above reasons. Mainly because I usually have my 3 year old with me. and thats what I think about whether Im on my bike or in a car. I don't want to be the cause of an accident, especially if there are kids in the car.