About 9 of us left the shop at 6:30 and headed south. We rode nearly the same route as last week: down to Fredericksburg and back, about 35 miles. Sunset was shortly after 7pm, prompting blinky tail lights and high output head lights to be turned on prior to reaching Fredericksburg. The temperature was mid 50's when we started and dropped into the upper 40's once the sun went down.
Ryan pedaling toward sunset.
Riding as a group at night is a visual spectacle. Beams of light move around the road up ahead, while varied blinking sequences of bike tail lights flash out the back. All this makes for a unique display as a member of the rolling light show. I'm sure it's equally unique for a car to come upon a pack of us riding the back roads at night.
Riding west towards Fredericksburg.
There's a sense of isolation as you pedal down a dark road. Instead of being surrounded by the expanding countryside, your attention is constrained to the 40' of lighted road up ahead. Even with a group of other riders there is solidarity in the night. The darkness obscures the identity of the person riding at your side. A turn of the head to check if it's okay to change position results in a good view of the bike light behind, but the rider behind that light remains cloaked in darkness.Back at the shop we recovered from the high pace of the final miles and the sprint for the last road sign. Bikes were returned to their car racks, trunks, and truck beds. We gathered under the security lighting of the bike shop and made plans for next week's night ride. "Let's ride 'till the snow stops us!"
The post-ride assembly.
Bike Lighting
Following is a link to an article I wrote for the Orrville Cycling & Fitness web site. The article presents two Cygolite bike lighting systems, complete with on-the-road images of the lights at night.
http://www.orrvillebikeshop.com/articles/lights/let_there_be_light.htm
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