Last night was my first foray into night riding. I bought a set of NiteFlux lights about a month ago, but haven’t had a chance to use them in anger yet. I read on the Perth Mountain Bike Club website that a regular ride happens each Wednesday night from The Dell carpark, so I rocked up there at 7pm ready to “ride the night”.
There were six of us in total, and I was by far the least fit amongst the group. This being my virgin night ride, I was also the most inexperienced. Because of this I was at the back all night, and I reckon I swallowed a bucket full of dust in the process.
I was amazed just how much difference losing peripheral vision made to my riding. Because my field of vision was restricted to the beam of light emanating from by helmet-mounted light, I could not actually see the obstacles that were passing beneath my bike (this was because I was focussing on obstacles further up the track). Because I couldn’t see the obstacle under the bike, I found myself smashing into obstacles, instead of caressing the bike over them. This was quite hard on my wrists and shoulders, and I hate to think the damage it was doing to my bike (I’ve only just had the fork repaired).
All this was extremely off-putting, and for the first hour I found myself constantly stopping on top of minor obstacles (like small logs and rocks), stuff I’d usually either guide the bike over, or simply bunny hop. Once I got used to the lights, I found it easier to roll over obstacles, but not being able to see the obstacle pass under the bike with my peripheral vision was difficult to adjust to.
All up it was a 2 hour ride, and the group was extremely kind to me, stopping at major intersections and letting me catch up (thanks guys). By the time I got home and removed the mug from my nose and lungs, I was completely stuffed and had one of the best nights sleep in a long time. Can’t wait for the next night ride ….
There were six of us in total, and I was by far the least fit amongst the group. This being my virgin night ride, I was also the most inexperienced. Because of this I was at the back all night, and I reckon I swallowed a bucket full of dust in the process.
I was amazed just how much difference losing peripheral vision made to my riding. Because my field of vision was restricted to the beam of light emanating from by helmet-mounted light, I could not actually see the obstacles that were passing beneath my bike (this was because I was focussing on obstacles further up the track). Because I couldn’t see the obstacle under the bike, I found myself smashing into obstacles, instead of caressing the bike over them. This was quite hard on my wrists and shoulders, and I hate to think the damage it was doing to my bike (I’ve only just had the fork repaired).
All this was extremely off-putting, and for the first hour I found myself constantly stopping on top of minor obstacles (like small logs and rocks), stuff I’d usually either guide the bike over, or simply bunny hop. Once I got used to the lights, I found it easier to roll over obstacles, but not being able to see the obstacle pass under the bike with my peripheral vision was difficult to adjust to.
All up it was a 2 hour ride, and the group was extremely kind to me, stopping at major intersections and letting me catch up (thanks guys). By the time I got home and removed the mug from my nose and lungs, I was completely stuffed and had one of the best nights sleep in a long time. Can’t wait for the next night ride ….
No comments:
Post a Comment