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Terry Hills - Wed 7th - 7:15 pm Start
Hi Boys and Girls,
Due to popular demand there is a night ride on Wed 7th March. Start at 7:15pm (Ready to Ride).
We will be doing Duck Hole (or Duck Ponds for Christine 
), Center Track and back to Terry Hills.
Evan
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My favourite one!!
Phil will be there too - according to his wife!! (not me....Margaret...)
What sort of lights are best for night riding, and where is the best place to purchase them?
Good grief... don't ask that here, we're light mental here
bFlex controller linked to Cree XR-Es (3 max). Ledil lenses in square alu tubing
Erm... OK, seriously - I bought some Powerbeam halogens to begin. They were on special, and often are from T7 (think I paid $80). These are OK for firetrail but wouldn't really ride anything technical with them.
Then I built some LEDs. LEDs are defo the way to go now, but commercial ones are an outrageous price at the mo, hence we DIY. Longer you can put off buying LEDs the better, they are getting cheaper all the time.
My suggestion for anyone wanting to try night riding is to get some cheap halogens (like above, or shop around see what you can find). If you like it, then perhaps it's time to spend up (in time or $$$) to get a top notch LED set for more technical riding. Of course, if you never plan to ride anything but firetrail at night then the above halogens are probably good enough.
You're just jealous that Stuart won the beam pissing contest
If you're just getting into it, see if you can borrow some lights first to get a feel for what they're like. I found that I could get away with a lot less light than I thought, even on the technical stuff (my first night rides were on Manly Dam, and I was riding a cheap rigid MTB back then. Of course, it wasn't nearly as eroded then, either).
As for the ride - I'll have to pass this week. I've got my Trance frame back from the shop and will be building that up. Hurrah!
They are all obsessed and all make their own - I got two from BA and they were $40 each and they are fine...that isn't to say that I don't get pangs of jealousy when I ride with Rob, Stuart or Greg or to say that my interest in lights has grown...so much so that I actually pay attention now...
hey, i just purchased two lights.. i was on a budget so i did a quick search for some cheap LED ones and came across these. i ordered late last week and they arrived yesterday! Only $6.80 delivered! I ordered two of the same. I am yet to use them on a ride, (though they are waterproof, small, light and seem blindingly bright!) though i came across them on the forums and there were some good reviews on them (considering how cheap they are..). They are 5 LED headlights though they also offer 4 mode 21 LED and 4 mode 37 LED bike headlights.. I will probably keep one on the handlebars, and strap one on the helmet.
find them here: http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3002.htm
If i find i need more light on the handlebars i will probably purchase a 21 LED or 37 LED ...
21 LED: http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3005.htm
37 LED: http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3018.htm
Nick
Those lights look pretty good, you'll have to give us a bit of a review. I'm keen to get some lights and try riding at night so very intersted to hear what you have to say about the ones that have just arrived.
Will do. Although, i haven't been nite riding previously with bike headlights, so i won't be able to do any comparisons. Though will post initial thoughts on them sometime soon.
Is the meeting place for this ride at the start of Duck Hole / Terry Hills trail at 301 McCarrs Creek Rd? Or somewhere in Terry Hills?
it's the usual spot at the shops - beside the toilet block!!!
are you bringing a beer as well as your lights?
MEEE
Of course! The usual spot though? Which shops/road? I'm not too familiar with Terry Hills..
Next to the reserve..?
It's all here... look under 'Meeting Point':
http://nobmob.com/rides/terreyhills
Erm... although we meet there, will ride Duck Holes & Centre Track. Dunno who's idea that was
Gotchya. I checked the wrong 'FM'. Cool, just where i thought it would be..
Cheers
The bike is presently in pieces whilst I make a new set of bolts to hold the rear together.
Will be ready for Sundays training session though!
Greg
Is it remotely possible to ride next to or near someone with bright lights (Rob hehe) as I don't have a set of bike lights? Plus it won't be sunset for a while after 7:15pm?
I have a little LED torch I could strap to my handlebars but I hardly thing it'd be adequate.
Ben
No offence guys, but don't think you should come on this sort of jaunt hoping to see by someone else's light. It's not particularly safe to be honest.
Plus - it's not in the spirit of, "You should be able to look after yourself at all times".
Sorry
No worries Rob
Have a good ride guys. Catch you guys on a daylight ride or a night ride when i get the right gear
Just put batteries in the other one then. There seem to be different LEDs in it to the other one? The other is the bright blue/white, where as this one is yellow/white (normal torch colour) and not as bright. From the reviews and nite pics i saw on these lights, they are supposed to be the bright blue/white. I think i have a dud :/ Oh well i will write to the supplier, see what they have to say.
Guess that's what you get when you do 2 mins research and spend under $10... haha
So now, i'm down to one el cheapo instead of two! I'm still game though..
Rob's homemade LED masterpiece will light up the trail, and the nightsky beyond!
Very nice little ride:
http://trail.motionbased.com/trail/episode/2189517
There was debate over the distance, tonight it was measured 14.08Km, 100m more than the last time. Think you could put that down to the riding in circles I sometimes do
Nick - bummer I didn't know you were going for a second lap, was quiet game but decided on a sprint finish instead!
Looks like it was a good ride, and I'm sorry I missed it, still nursing a lethal head cold that I have had for a few days...
Word of caution, if anyone at your workplace is complaining of flu-like symptoms, stay well away from them. The Doc I saw today reckons he seen heaps of people this week and they all seem to go down fast. If you don't 'catch' it soon, it will go to your chest. I hope to make Saturday's ride but I must admit I still feel like dirt...
and obvious Rob is back as it was a bit faster too...still we managed to have a beer stop and very pleased to report that Gazza, Phil, Nick and I all had one each!!
Hope you got home ok Nick - we could have given you a lift...
MEE
Had a great ride, enjoyed the riding company and the completely different ride environment of the night ride.. definately keen for more.
Rob, your ultra bright homemade LED contraption lighting the trail for my ride home thru Duck holes would've been handy! (i didn't do Centre Trail again, just headed home along McCarrs Creek) ..those lights of mine are fine when in a group or on the road (where cat-eyes are lighting up the way), though in the pitch black on the trail, they just don't suffice. I was riding almost blind with only a few metres of visibility! It ended up being a much slower run run the second time thru Duck holes as i almost managed to go over the bars while locking-up to avoid running over a couple of rock wallabies playing chicken!
Thanks for the lift offer Christine, though i wanted to test the lights while riding on my own.. The lift might've been taken if i was exhausted, though i had a fair bit left in me, though cheers anyway.
Multi-functional LED Bike Head Light (LP3002) http://www.ledshoppe.com/Product/ledp/LP3002.htm
Let me just say you do 'get what you paid for'.. though there are always bargains to be found!(I used two of these lights)
These lights are compact, waterproof (supposedly enough so for diving purposes), and have a flashing mode. They don't weigh much more than 4 AAA batteries (which is what powers them), and supposedly have a fairly long 'lasting life' (up to 150 hrs using 4 AAA's). These lights seem to provide enough light to light up the slightly reflective surface of a paved road and the cat-eyes on the road/side of road for quite some distance. For this reason i can recommend them for night-time road riding, even in places where streetlights are not found. While on a fire-trail though (on a fairly dark night) they are a different story. While riding with a group of riders (all with some slightly brighter lights to much brighter lights) they seemed quite adequate for fire-trail rides. While i would prefer a little more light on the trail infront of me and be able to perform a little better in any 'beam-pissing' contest, they did do the job, and i was quite happy for their perfomance for such a measly price paid (~$7 each delivered). While riding alone on the same fire-trail, a couple of hours later (it was darker at this time, no light on the horizon from the setting sun, none if hardly any, visible moon-light), i was putting myself in dangerous situation. Duck Holes is mainly a downhill fire-trail (from Terry Hills entry point) and can be ridden at some pace. I was trying to keep a little pace in the ride, though after a few close calls with branches on the side of the road, and Wallabies, i had to slow down. The emitted light clearly was not enough to feel even remotely comfortable at speed on the trail. I slowed down to a much cruisier pace and spun my way along the trail. I had no more close calls, and the light was enough to show the way... though i was constantly wishing for more (as Duck Holes is much more fun at a little speed).
Above i explained there seemed to be different LED's in the two lights i purchased.. http://nobmob.com/node/1411#comment-2683 The brighter looking, blue/white LEDs, and the not so bright yellowish/white LEDs, while i originally thought one was a dud, they seemed to perform almost equally well on the trail (though the bluey/white LED was a little brighter). After i originally noticed the difference, i sent a quick e-mail to the supplier about this difference. They responded by saying they are very sorry and will send out another Powerbeam light straight away! LED Shoppe seem to provide some great service (since they only took a couple of days to arrive after originally purchasing), and due to this i may now try their 21 or 37 LED headlight and strap the others to my helmet.
Hope this helps anyone out there looking for some afforable LED headlights.
Cheers, SR