The bright vest of visibility

After nicking a bright yellow vest from our marketing department the otherday, so i would be more visible going home in the dark (black bike, black helmet, black jacket and so on), i got asked by a co-worker why i had a construction vest on me.

I kindly explained to her that it was so i would be more visible.

She said she had never seen a biker wearing an vest like that, and i kindly told her that she didn't look har enough.

My question today is:

Do you wear the vest?

The reason i don't wear a vest is because i've always got a rucksack on my back, this cancels out the benefit of wearing one really, i believe they do a high vis rucksack cover which i must get round to finding.

[dirtydog]

i dont always wear hi vis stuff but normally wear it during the darker months etc i got one with sleves to add a bit more visibility

No, I've been meaning to get one though.

As for the rucksack thing, I've got a Jansport one that has lots of reflective bits on it.

Yep I wear one... this one in fact:



and a white crash helmet.. and yet l still get carved up. Though I do wounder how bad it would be if I didn't wear it. Oh and I did have a laugh when I beeped some lass and she jumped out of her seat. That was funny... I chuckled all the way to work.

Your Hi Viz still depends on the tintop seeing you and paying attention. I've heard of ambulances with sirens screaming and blues flashing having cars pull out on them.
You look like a copper though and this may get some notice.

I don't bother when riding the bike. If car drivers miss the lights and noise of the bike, what I'm wearing isn't going to make any difference.

Originally Posted by Foey

The reason i don't wear a vest is because i've always got a rucksack on my back, this cancels out the benefit of wearing one really, i believe they do a high vis rucksack cover which i must get round to finding.

Borrow or nick a vest from work, put holes in the front where it would normally overlap, put it on your bag so the back of the vest covers the front of the bag (if you know what i mean) lace it up with a shoestring...et voila...one free rucksack cover ....you'll never get anything out of the bag till you take the vest off it thought

Originally Posted by Kate

I don't bother when riding the bike. If car drivers miss the lights and noise of the bike, what I'm wearing isn't going to make any difference.

That's a good point, but to add to that I really feel that from a sub-conscious point of view the second someone puts a bright "safe" vest on they actually think they're safer and that cars have naturally seen them. Although this will understandably be denied, it just has to have an affect, and therefore (unusually controversial though it is ) my opinion is that they have the strong possibility of actually increasing danger.


.

Well I work on the fact that if they do hit me and I have all that gear on they might as well forget trying to deny it. Cause if they didn't see me then they wern't looking, Jax as has followed me in the car and with the jacket on she said you could see me from about a mile away. Even when I was just a dot, I was a very bright glowing dot.
After all it don't mater what you do, if they don't look they won't see you, this way I don't get missed on the casual glance.