my flashy thingie

"Hey Lady!! You're flashy thingie is on!" says a guy passing me on a bike with no helmet in the late afternoon.  Yes, my flashy thingie is on.

Why you should use a flashy thingie, or light, during the day.

I'm not talking about you racers, who are about to engage in a crit, or a road race. I'm talking about a bicycle on the city streets.  

When my Dad was around 86, he took note of the lights on my bike, as i was about to embark on a morning ride.   He asked why I didn't turn my lights on. 

"it's daylight dad, why would i turn it on"

"Does it flash? Turn it on while you ride"

See here's the thing.  Most ppl are lulled into complacency when they drive a car.  It could be a well travelled road, the gentle vibration of the engine, or maybe someone who's just  not had enough sleep.  A steady light does not catch attention, but a flashing light does.

Geriatrics are exceptionally responsive to flashing lights.  My dad before he died at 89, had probably about 90% of his mental faculties, and he was still driving almost up the day he passed.   But he would be the first to say that his senses were dulled.

So, there you go my friends.  Why you should put a flashy thingie on your bike when you go out for your daily ride.  (you might turn it off if you ride behind someone that it reflects on. It might send you into a epileptic seizure.. At night, turn it onto the solid light. Nothing is more difficult to ride past that a flashy thingie in the dark!

Clear skies!