LETTER EDITOR’S
Back in the day, night riding meant strapping a hefty lead-acid battery to your frame and a chunky halogen head unit to your bar. The result was a beam of light so puny that you could barely see obstaces directly in front of you, and riding anything fast or technical brought with it a high risk of eating your teeth. Even before that, I remember heading out with a Petzl head torch ziptied to my helmet and a Maglite gaffer-taped to my top tube, which, inevitably, worked loose, nearly taking out the spokes in my front wheel. Basically, it was a bit of an ordeal. Nowadays, the contrast couldn’t be starker.
I was a bit apprehensive at the thought of riding BikePark Wales at night (see p50), but it quickly became clear that, with the latest hardware on your bike and lid, and 4,000+ lumens of light flooding the trail, you can tackle anything you’d ride in daylight. With the added bonus of no other riders in sight – not to mention Merthyr Tydfil looking a lot prettier at night! Even better, this kind of illumination no longer costs the moon and stars, with bike-park-ready lights starting from £150 (see grouptest, p108) and even cheaper options available if you’re prepared to take a punt on lights direct from the Far East. That’s not bad, when you consider that a decent set opens up the possibility of months of after-work rides.
Here’s to the best winter of riding ever – before or after dark!
With 4,000 + lumens flooding the trail you can tackle anything you would in daylight, with the bonus of no other riders in sight - not to mention Merthyr looking a lot prettier at night!