How to warn a vehicle of your presence.

When I walk and a car or other vehicle comes toward me I usually flash my own clothing so they can see me.

The reason I do this instead of shooting at them is that I figure they will have a better idea of where I am and I won't temporarily blind them. I've got no "test based proof" but I think it's easier to judge the location of something lit up rather than an oncoming light.

Since I usually wear khakis or some other light colored clothing the light I shoot down my pants leg; really lights up. It also doesn't blind me, I don't do the Halloween light below the chin routine.

I was wondering what you guys thought?

Thanks,
LT

I do the same thing for the same reason. I usually carry my MagCharger or SF 9P when I walk at night, so flashing anywhere on my body or even on the ground is PLENTY of warning to oncoming cars. Shining the lights at cars or in the general direction of cars is potentially dangerous to the cars, especially with these lights I mentioned. God help any driver who gets a M4, M6 or other knockout lights flashed at them. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/caution.gif

I typically flash my light at the floor, slightly toward them. I don't keep it on or anything. I just want them to see something and slow down to avoid hitting it. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Reflective tape on shoes, vests, clothing, etc. seems to catch my attention the most. Even more so than flashlights or flashing safety lights. I would suggest putting reflective tape on your shoes, or getting a reflective vest. As far as a flashlight is concerned, white LED light seems to catch more attention then dim 2D Evereadys. A broader light (like an LED) will have enough spill so the driver can see the brilliant light and also see the light on the ground or on yourself. Flashing may also be a good idea.

You might take a look at the dog walking threads.

I have to admit, some times I'm not as prepared as I'd like and get caught w/o my reflective vest which I think is most optimal. If I'm caught in a goofy situation, I'll pull my M2 out of my pocket and swing it back and forth from the ground by my feat to the car, shinging almost at it. I take care not to shine it directly in the drivers eyes or at least not for long. I tend to vary this by how urgent the situation is. If it was a normal case, I'd be sure not to shine it directly into the winshield at all. I figure shining it towards the car gets their attention, and shining it down towards myself provides a point of reference.

There was one time when we were walking the dogs and we were on a corner and somebody's dog who wasn't properly secured followed us and decided to stand in the middle of the road staring at us. That time I was pretty agressive with the light while we waited for the owner to come haul off their dog since cars zipping around the corner were likely to run right into the dog.

-john

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I'm trying to tie the dog walking threads together. Here are all the dog walking threads I know of:

Summary of Dog Walking Threads on the CPF Wiki

[Keywords: dog, doggie, doggy, blinker, reflective, night, walking, safety]

I usually take my C2-90 for a walk, and I find it throws a gigantic splash of light down the road. Of course, I take care to keep it 'dipped' in a similar way that I would not want someone flashing a high beam in my eyes in an urban setting. The C2-90 throws a huge spot, and by controlling the angle, I can either project a large pool of light straight down beside my feet that is still noticeable from a long way away, or throw a 15ft swath of light onto the surface of the road. The oval shape of the P90's hotspot helps a lot in letting you reach further. This isn't in darkness either, it's on a well lit road with plenty of the sodium vapor lights overhead.

John N, checked out that thread thanks.

Most of the time though my walks aren't planned but I've always got a flashlight. Also sometimes it's bikes not cars that give me the most trouble since we seem to share the same path more often than not. Most of them don't even use a light though nearly all have a generator light on the front tire. I could be covered in reflective tape and they'd never see me.

Of course when they're typing email on their mobile phones, holding an umbrella for the rain, and smoking while trying to ride it wouldn't matter if they were running a HID but that's a different gripe . . .

people in tokyo can type email while biking?!? crazy! hahaha i'd kiss the pavement if i even tried that!

I have one of these mini stobe light. Very useful!

http://www.brightguy.com/detail_int.php?Sku=VIS70002

All my lights have lanyards that I can use to twirl the light at the end of (you know, bolero style). It's quite attention getting when you're stepping off a curb (all right, it's kinda fun too /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/yellowlaugh.gif).

NEVER assume that they see you, whether you flash them, yourself, the ground, whatever. Just get out of the way.

I think Al knows that flashing a car is not a great idea...

It depends on the vehicle's behavior and the terrain.

Straight section of road and vehicle moving 'nicely', just shine the light up the road a bit towards the vehicle so they can see the spill light.

Vehicle rounding a turn and crossing wide and fast gets a quick sweep or two across the windshield with the hotspot and then the light dances with the spill in their general direction.

This is with lights in the 60 lumen or less range.

I know of folks in wheelchairs who use the shoulder of the road. Only those who use twin 55 watt halogen lamps avoid accidents. I knew a guy who copied my idea, but used 35 watt units. Sure enough like when he used bicycle lights he was side swipped again. THe 55watters did the trick, even during the day.

I hold the light (a small 25 lumen luxeon) in my hand as I walk across intersections, the beam pointed at the ground about 10 feet away (towards traffic). It swings in an arc as I walk, producing a very distinct motion that shoud not be confused with distant cars and such. Even so, I stop if there is any indication that the car does not see me.

Daniel

I continue to be amazed at how well reflective tape, even in moderate amounts, shows up on the road - the reflection from my headlights will show tape at a tremendous distance, and since it's usually on clothing, it also has a distinctive motion.

My experience as a driver is that flashlights on the ground, or on the body, or whatever, don't really 'pop' to me - especially in mixed lighting, a light shined elsewhere than directly at me doesn't seem to get attention the way a flashing red LED bike lamp, or a bunch of retro-reflective tape does.

A light shined at me gets my attention, but not in a good way.

I'm an increasingly big fan of bike-style flashers...

Definately go with the reflective tape. It reflects the photons coming from the driver's head lights, which are so much more powerful than any flashlight most people are willing to carry.

I almost was hit one evening. Had the Inova 24/7 flashing on my belt, a KL3 with the F68 traffic cone in one hand (road side), and a FBOP Tigerlight in the other hand (curb side). The driver didn't see me!

oldgrandpajack

I can recommend the Hiviz stuff from this company. Its available in the States.
www.respro.com

D.

[ QUOTE ]
Lunal_Tic said:
When I walk and a car or other vehicle comes toward me I usually flash my own clothing so they can see me.

The reason I do this instead of shooting at them is that I figure they will have a better idea of where I am and I won't temporarily blind them. I've got no "test based proof" but I think it's easier to judge the location of something lit up rather than an oncoming light.

Since I usually wear khakis or some other light colored clothing the light I shoot down my pants leg; really lights up. It also doesn't blind me, I don't do the Halloween light below the chin routine.

I was wondering what you guys thought?

Thanks,
LT

[/ QUOTE ]

Great ideas! Light colored clothing, clothing with reflective strips on them, flashlights with traffic wands or anything else that makes you more visible to drivers will increase your safety. But also watch for drivers who see you, become fixated, and steer for your tender young body. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif

I take my 3-D with a Osram 100w 64623 in it, and just point the light down at the road right in front of the cars. THe spill is bright enough to let them know wherre I am, and the massive lit area makes them slow down thinking I'm a cop... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif but the corona never hits the car...