Location: Noosaville, Sunshine Coast, Australia
Coming up summertime here and we're keen to go full moon probably, for a mid night ride
What the best lighting options for night riding?
What are your experiences with various products and tips for ensuring safety and visibility on trails after dark?
For trails, you would want something crazy powerful.
I would question something like "Outbound Lighting Trail Evo Handlebar Light" being enough even.
Location: Muntinlupa City, Philippines
I am currently using a Cateye Volt headlight. You might want to check their other products as well if you want a more powerful headlight.
I used to use my Foxelli headlamp during night rides in the woods in Boston área and while mountain biking in Ecuador and India. I prefer headlamps because they go on my forehead and light the path/trail better than handle bar mounted.
During that organized ride in Boston, other folks had some lights that were "flood lights" and probablly much safer. i just contacted them to see I can find the make.
One word of caution: Always always have a backup. Just this week, i was forced to ride in the dark while on a bikepacking tríp. My brand-new "BioLite 325" decided to die within minutes. Then I was forced to ride using my backup which does not mount as well as it just has a clip. That too dies after an hour or so. Finally, I was forced to use a second backup I was fortunate to have on my bike. None were comparable to my primary light source but they saved my life that day. I was fortunate to be on a main road which fortunately did not have many potholes. If on a trail, i probablly would just have pitched my tent there..
I did hit a pothole once and thought I broke my fingers..
Good luck and will update once I hear back from my MTB-aficionado friends..
Response from my MTB-aficionado friend who enjoys riding in the dark.
"I use a bike front light mounted to the helmet. It came with an attachment strap. But the battery stopped working earlier than expected, so I don't recommend the Light & Motion Vis Pro 1000."