Night Riding

Summer is now wrapping up and the light is fading faster each day. For me to get any kind of ride in after work now requires some "artificial" light. Last night was my first night ride of the season. For anyone who doesn't own a light as Ferris once said, "It is so choice. If you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up." I have a Niterider, it's an HID light so it casts an insanely bright bluish-white light that lights up the trail like your own little piece of the sun. If you’re looking into buying one, they can be pretty pricey, but I would say to extend your riding season it is well worth it.

Night riding is a totally different experience, the trail you ride everyday seems foreign. You see things that you never noticed before. Your sight is completely limited to the small area of light cast in front of you; this forces you to be incredibly focused. There are no other visual distractions since the rest of your world is black. It’s amazing what this focus can do for your riding, I will clean lines at night that I have a hard time with in daylight. This limited sight also heightens your other senses, I never hear the wind when I ride, but during night rides the sound can seem defining at times.

Night riding by yourself is a whole different experience, it's creepy, and I always freak myself out. Nails left in the trees from trail markings reflect back at you like a pair of eyes. The night creatures scurry around you and always sound as if they are chasing you. It's usually when I am riding solo at night that I see more animals then ever, mostly deer, funny thing is they often freeze (like a deer in headlights, duh). I have even come close to hitting one or two.

So that's it, night riding is fun. If you don't own a light, buy one.