Wednesday, February 07, 2007

One solution to side lighting

I found these illuminating leg/arm bands at Bike Gallery. I don’t have the brand name with me right now, so I’ll fill that information in later. They’re a little spendy - thirteen dollars for one – so I’ve only bought one so far. Thor knows I've already spent half a million dollars on other lights. Here it is modeled by Joe the Cat. I’ve seen them used on other animals outdoors. In the pitch of night I’ll see one of these things trot by on some animal's neck – just the orange band I'll see floating along, as if by itself. Meaning of course that without it I would see nothing – which is why our poor little animules get run over by cars. So if you have a furry friend you let outdoors at night, this is a good gadget for them too.
I wear mine on my upper left arm, but I want to wear four of them for complete side-visibility. (I’m saving up.) The thing is unbelievably brilliant orange. You can set it to blink or not blink, and the battery is replaceable for about five dollars. (I made sure of that – I ain’t buying no disposable stuff that wears out in two weeks and then goes into the landfill.) I even take mine with me if I’m out walking. As a driver I’m acutely aware of how invisible pedestrians are, and how, like many cyclists, they’ll dress all in black and dart around thinking they’re safe because the cars have headlights. The unpopular truth is that no one over twelve should be driving a Moving Metal Deathtrap in the dark.

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