By Greg Conderacci
Recently, RBR launched this new series to enlighten our ultra-cool readers about the benefits of dorkiness.
In Part I, we explored screening your helmet; in Part II, we messed with your handlebars; in Part III, we reflectorized your machine; in Part IV, we prepped you for flats; in Part V, we praised electrical tape; and in Part VI, we recommended kinesiology tape for sore knees; and in Part VII, we raised your aerobars.
Today, we’re making a fashion statement: NEVER WEAR BLACK JERSEYS.
Yes, we know black is cool. Leaf through any Bicycling Magazine and you’re certain to see many, if not most, of the riders sporting black or dark colored jerseys. You’ll see them in the magazine fairly easily. You just can’t see them on the road, especially in the dark, around dawn and dusk, and in heavy shade. Riders in black are about as invisible as they can be.
We dorky riders like florescent green, pink, white, yellow and other bright colors for jerseys, jackets and helmets. The only advantage of black is this: you won’t have to change for the funeral.
If you have a black jersey, don’t despair. You can still wear it under the green T-shirt that construction workers wear. How’s that for dorky?
And, by the way, you do run a blinking rear light at all times, don’t you?
Do you have a dorky tip to share? Don’t be shy. We’ll withhold your name upon request. Remember a dorky tip has one or more of these characteristics:
- Pro riders do not do it (nor does just about anybody else)
- It’s cheap or maybe even free
- It usually adds weight
Greg Conderacci is a marketing consultant and a former Wall Street Journal reporter, non-profit entrepreneur, and investment bank chief marketing officer. In Getting UP!, he brings you the same skills he teaches at a top graduate school and Fortune 500 companies. Lots of people promise better performance … Greg proves it. Using his energy techniques, in 2015 he rode a bicycle across America in just 18 days — averaging 150 miles a day.
I never wear black jerseys nor gray ones. Gray will blend in perfectly with old asphalt and you may wind up blending into the pavement yourself. I have 2 red blinking lights one on the back of my helmet and one on the seat post. In a group, I have been asked to ride in the back because I am more visible than the others.
I saw a rider in my local bike shop in winter with a backpack with a mesh area on the back. He must have had a half dozen blinking red lights all in different patterns in the mesh pocket. Made him very visible riding home from work in the dark.
I also never wear a black jersey. I have also noticed how many “super cool” helmets are black. I stopped worrying about the “cool” factor long ago. My mantra basically is “ride for fun” “stay safe” and be able to ride tomorrow. Black jerseys and black helmets don’t fit well into that equation.
Dark colors are “Hit me” colors!
I will wear a black jersey, but I use a white/platinum helmet for contrast and have a 150 lumen rear facing light on the helmet as well as a rear flasher from exposure lights on the back of the bike and a 1200 lumen white flasher facing forward on the bike. The bike mounted rear flasher lets me be seen but the helmet light is what ultimately gets their attention. It’s the movement of the head which makes drivers aware there is a human on that contraption.
A dorky but effective move for visibility is to wear bright colored socks and get shoes with a bright color. My shoes are bright orange and the continuous movement makes them very visible. Same with bright colored socks.
I wear bright (and definitely not black) jerseys, but I believe the research shows that it doesn’t make much of a difference whether jerseys are black or bright. What does make a big difference is the color of shoes and socks. The reason is that the human brain is wired to pick up motion, so drivers do notice cyclists (and pedestrians) when they see their feet in motion. I have been wearing bright socks for about 5 years, and the shoes I just purchased are white (Specialized was out of the red Torch 3.0 in my size).
I see a lot of riders with “bland” as well as high-viz. There is no doubt about the improvement of the high-viz but for sure a “bland” color jersey with front and rear flashers is a lot more visible than a high-viz jersey or vest.
Before I was addicted to biking, I was addicted to motorcycling. In those days I faced a
conundrum: Wear bright colors to attract the attention of those who are not looking for you, or wear camo to avoid the attention of those who ARE.
It’s still a concern for me, but I have come down on the side of visibility, since the asleep-at-the-wheel crowd seems to be the vast majority, and in fairness, let’s face it: we are hard to see.
So my road uniform is now Red, White, and Blue, with a red flasher so bright it’s painful to look at directly. And a mirror!
I’ve got many black or dark blue long-sleeved jerseys, all of them purchased “on sale” at a great price.
They work perfectly in the winter as I wear them under my bright yellow winter jacket, or at least with a bright yellow vest.
My fake LCL yellow Jersey serves me well along with various reflectors and lights. Red jerseys disappear at night as badly as black.
I also like to be able to see the chick doing Instagram while driving and the dude aiming his Heineken bottle. So my dorkiness includes both a mirror and a Garmin Varia radar.
Btw how about an article about fenders?
I wear bright (and definitely not black) jerseys, but I believe the research shows that it doesn’t make much of a difference whether jerseys are black or bright. What does make a big difference is the color of shoes and socks. The reason is that the human brain is wired to pick up motion, so drivers do notice cyclists (and pedestrians) when they see their feet in motion. I have been wearing bright socks for about 5 years, and the shoes I just purchased are white (Specialized was out of the red Torch 3.0 in my size).
Consider SeeMeWear.com It is very visible and the color scheme combined with the movement of your body make you very visible.
Take a look at John Hughes’s article “Study: Cyclists Safer on the Road when Using These High Visibility Items” This article confirms the research that bright colored legs are more recognizable at a distance than a bight colored jersey. Leg movement is more easily seen at a distance with a color.
Maybe we need our flashing taillights on our ankles or the heel of our shoes.
I’ve been using See Me Wear since I met the owner, Dale, on a cross-country bike trip. He was nicknamed the “human traffic cone” sonce he could be seen much earlier than any of the rest of us. I have several short sleeve, log sleeve jerseys, and a windbreakers SeeMeWear, I love it! https://seemewear.com/