Riding at Night in a Storm? Consider a Diving Strobe Light....

5938 Views 25 Replies 14 Participants Last post by City Chicken, Sep 20, 2014

City Chicken

Discussion Starter · Sep 9, 2014

Last year I was stuck on the PA Turnpike (for those in the know, I was riding from the Neshaminy Exit No. 351 to Carlisle Exit No. 226) during horrible weather:

Heavy rain fall (constant sheets of water)
Nighttime
Rush Hour
Significant road work and repair for most of the distance

I spent the next three hours in heavy pucker-factor, barely able to see the car in front of me, waiting to be run over by a semi driven. As I prayed to God for a mercifully quick death, I decided tha the next time I faced similar riding conditions I would have a tool available to mitigate the risks somewhat.

This is my solution, and I wanted to share it with the Forum:

STROBE 200, STROBES, 2C-7100-4

Let me state for the record that I do not know if these lights are legal to deploy on a road, but to be blunt, in the kind of weather I have just described I am going to make "legality" a low priority.

The product performs as advertised from what I can tell; the strobe light is bright and consistent, and while I have not had a chance to try this in really inclement weather, I am confident that I will have a better chance in a blinding rain storm at night on a busy highway with this product than without it.

I hope some of you find this recommendation useful.

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Louisville Joe

· #2 · Sep 9, 2014

Wow! In the kind of weather and traffic you described I think my arse would be parked under an overpass till at least rush hour was over.

Looked at the link you provided. Would you Velcro or otherwise attach the strobe to your rear fender/back of tourpak/etc.?

City Chicken

Discussion Starter · #3 · Sep 9, 2014

Louisville Joe said:
Wow! In the kind of weather and traffic you described I think my arse would be parked under an overpass till at least rush hour was over.

Looked at the link you provided. Would you Velcro or otherwise attach the strobe to your rear fender/back of tourpak/etc.?

I try and ride in all weather, barring ice/snow on the road.

As far as attaching the strobe, I carry several heavy duty nylon zip ties with me in my hard bags at all times, and I plan to attach the strobe to my tourpak lid rack so that it is clearly visible to traffic behind me by being high up on the back of the bike.

wachuko

· #4 · Sep 9, 2014

Anything that will let you be seen in such nasty weather, is a welcomed safety addition...

kd5cqt

· #5 · Sep 9, 2014

Excellent idea. Last time I had to ride in heavy rain, lighting was the one thing I was wishing for as the 18 wheelers rolled past one by one. One strobe light on the list of things to buy for the bike.

DaBreeze

· #6 · Sep 9, 2014

Been scuba diving with one of those in my BC jacket pocket for years now . Have it attached with a lanyard and let it hang out when I'm in low light situations or night diving . Good idea to carry one on the bike...:thumbsup

DLM Prez

· #7 · Sep 9, 2014

Looks like an excellent idea. I have turned on the 4-way flashers in heavy rain before, but adding this suggestion might be the icing on the cake.

distantThunder

· #8 · Sep 10, 2014

It's an interesting idea.
I wouldn't want to make a habit of riding in conditions like that. I know you've got a commitment to "ride in anything" ... but it's the kinda weather where you could get side swiped by a semi trailer and nobody would find your body until the next morning.
sometimes it's better to get a motel ... and live

dT

Ultra Struck

· #9 · Sep 10, 2014

DaBreeze said:
Been scuba diving with one of those in my BC jacket pocket for years now . Have it attached with a lanyard and let it hang out when I'm in low light situations or night diving . Good idea to carry one on the bike...:thumbsup

I like the idea of the strobe for bike and road side emergency's.
As far as using one for night diving goes, well lets just say that I am too big a puss to dive at night. I like to see what is swiming around me.

r0de_runr

· #10 · Sep 11, 2014

Here is what I use whenever I ride at night:

Planet Bike Super Flash Led Tail Light > Accessories > Lighting > Rear Lights | Jenson USA

I clip it to the back of my high visibility vest.

Rodzilla6

· #11 · Sep 11, 2014

I like your thinking...I was in a similar situation in a huge hail storm one time...Huge pucker factor...
I was looking at a small one made for reg. Bikes...small, but adds a little safety...cheap security...
Ride safe.

City Chicken

Discussion Starter · #12 · Sep 12, 2014

Thanks to all for the feedback and interesting comments.

I came up with this idea because a buddy works at the factory assembling these lights (in Trenton, NJ) and he ended up giving three of them to me just because he had them sitting around. After the late night storm incident on the PA Turnpike when I was considering them as a possible solution, I was struck by the following:

(1) REALLY STRONG strobe light flash (7 volts)
(2) Waterproof to significant depth and pressure (it has two lubricated 0-rings)
(3) LONG battery life (30+ hours)

Some of these attributes may be overkill or appear unnecessary but these portable lights can serve a variety of other useful purposes in the event of an emergency situation. I keep one in my wife's car and both daughters are getting them as well; I think it would be easy for them to tell the 911 dispatcher to have the responding vehicle "look for the flashing light" when calling for assistance and attempting to describe a location over the phone to a First Responder.

Here's a worst case scenario - what if you watch a random vehicle go into some deep water and you want to mark the location quickly for any following assistance that may show up on scene right before you strip down to your skivvies and dive in?

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dynaglydr

· #13 · Sep 12, 2014

Seeing a flashing strobe light on the turnpike may get you run over faster. The light will blind people behind you, or make it so they can't track the road so well. I look at it like this... Ever try backing your boat down a ramp in the morning when some ******* backed in with his head lights on? You can't see where you're going. In this day and age of modern paint... (see where I'm going?) I think the Electroluminescent Coating or paint would be a better option. Turn on your paint job and be seen easily.

Oh and a real diver should no problem night diving because there is so little light past 60 or 70 feet, so night diving isn't much different. Although I still kinda get the willies diving off a boat and skinny dipping around at night. Don't think I'll ever get that vision of Jaws outa my head...

Louisville Joe

· #14 · Sep 13, 2014

dynaglydr said:
Although I still kinda get the willies diving off a boat and skinny dipping around at night. Don't think I'll ever get that vision of Jaws outa my head...

Don't know about your area of the country but around here I wouldn't swim at night (unless it was a pool) because of the snakes. We rented a houseboat on Lake Cumberland 4 years in a row. Great to have a quiet cove all to yourself, enjoyed swimming/bathing during the day. At night enjoyed sipping whiskey on the front of the boat nudged into the rocky shoreline and spotlighted for snakes swimming along the shoreline. Used shotshell loads out of a revolver. Had to pack more ammo after the first trip!

webco2

· #15 · Sep 15, 2014

Who's afraid of a saber tooth worm ??????? :fitz

Louisville Joe

· #16 · Sep 15, 2014

webco2 said:
Who's afraid of a saber tooth worm ??????? :fitz

Worms I can handle. It's the copperheads and water mocs that keep me from swimming at night. And around Lake Cumberland there are some very large ones.

lidflipper

· #17 · Sep 15, 2014

Federal highway law- White or Amber only in the front. Red only in the rear.

webco2

· #18 · Sep 15, 2014

Louisville Joe said:
Worms I can handle. It's the copperheads and water mocs that keep me from swimming at night. And around Lake Cumberland there are some very large ones.

I'm sorry Joe; "Saber Tooth Worms" is what we call poisonous snakes around here. :eek

Louisville Joe

· #19 · Sep 15, 2014

webco2 said:
I'm sorry Joe; "Saber Tooth Worms" is what we call poisonous snakes around here. :eek

Never heard that before. Course I've never been to Texas before either. On my list of places to go.

webco2

· #20 · Sep 15, 2014

Louisville Joe said:
Never heard that before. Course I've never been to Texas before either. On my list of places to go.

Things are a 'lil bigger in Texas.

Now you really should see our State Bird.....it's a Mosquito .

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