For the bikers: Loud Suits Save Lives!

[811952]

I got my first loud suit a few weekends ago (not an Aerostich, but an Olympia), and love that the lane incursions have gone from several a day to nil.  Of course, I still ride like I'm invisible (because I am, high-viz or not), which is the only way to really take any kind of control over whether I live or die, if/when it happens and how painful or messy it will be.  Do you wear a loud suit?  Post pics if you've got 'em!
 
This pic was taken in Windsor, Ontario, the day I got my loud suit from BMW of SE Michigan in Detroit.  I took the bridge over to Canada to visit with my brother and his wife, who was performing that weekend with the Windsor Symphony (and she is a BMW R1100R rider).
 
John
 

[jacko]

I once had a ski outfit that colour ;-)
 
graeme

[jack]

Hey, nice suit!  Is that an Olympic?

[811952]

Hey, nice suit! Is that an Olympic?
 
 That was inevitable, yet I did not see it coming!

[rraymond]

Good job on the suit! Anything that'll help us four-wheelers see you guys is a good idea. Back in the 70's, I had the displeasure of seeing a cyclist get knocked off a bike and go skidding across three lanes of oncoming traffic. Miraculously, he wasn't hit by any more cars than the original one. Take it easy, and play on!

[keith_h]

I think you need to get a new helmet to match the suit. ;-)
 
Keith

[2400wattman]

.....turn the volume down man!!!!
 
 
BTW, what does a quiet suit look like?

[j_gary]

Hey John, looks like a smart purchase.
 
I don't know, I was at bike week this year and saw primarily tatoos and skin. Hell's Angels were dressed in some interesting colors which was nice.

[bsee]

That's the only color helmet I've worn for the past six or eight years.  I am in total agreement with your choice!  
 
It looks like you could use a little more color on the back end of your bike.  All of those black saddlebags block a lot of suit visibility.  Get some matching stickers for the top box, maybe some retro-reflectives, and add to your visibility even more.  
 
-bob

[adriaan]

I've been driving a car for nearly two years now, and I must say the comments made by the two-wheel drivers on these threads have helped my awareness. There was a comment recently about how you will see only you what you're expecting to see, and that most car drivers expect to see other cars on the road, not bikes. Hopefully loud suits will help in that respect.
 
Now for some unfounded statistics ...
 
Percentage-wise, there are probably as many careless bikers as there are careless drivers. But if you put this in numbers of people actually on the road, then a careful biker's chances of colliding with a careless driver are much higher than a careless driver's chances of colliding with any kind of biker.
 
(Message edited by adriaan on June 01, 2007)

[jacko]

I cycle to work 3 out of 5 days and ride fully expecting to be knocked off at any moment. Makes me a bit slower but alot safer. I also wear dayglo yellow cycling tops and bright red lycra shorts. Not a pretty sight but at least the motorists notice me;-)
 
Graeme

[georgie_boy]

I'll refrain from comments here Graeme until I see you next.
Must take a strong stomach as a motorist though to see that first thing in the morning.
 
Hasve a good day buddy LOLx2
G

[jacko]

Ok. 16 stones in Lycra might be offputting but at least I'm visible ;-)

[811952]

I've been reading lately that a white helmet is actually more visible than a high-viz yellow helmet, in terms of seeing what the helmet is doing.  It seems the high-viz is best at letting someone know you're *there*, and a white helmet lets them see that you're moving your head to check lanes and such.  I find that interesting.
 
I've got lots of retro-reflective on the panniers, and they really light-up at night or in front of daytime running-lights.  I've got to do something about that black top-box though.  Things don't stick to it very well.  Perhaps a piece of retro-reflective over the top of the existing reflector wouldn't be a bad idea.  
 
A percentage of folks look at me like I'm retarded when I don the suit, but they do see me.  Other cyclists either give me a thumbs-up or look the other way.  Most people just say something on the order of that looks hot, to which I reply with something like not as hot as a skin graft (said with a smile) or Thanks.. (with a Leisure Suit Larry delivery)..    Interestingly, the suit is much cooler than the mesh jacket/pants I am used to wearing, even just standing around (because of the reflective bright color), and at speed the ventilation is almost cold at 85 degrees (no joke)...
 
Jacko, we're ready for our stomach test...  You need to post pics!  
 
John
 
(Message edited by 811952 on June 01, 2007)

[bigredbass]

The unfortunate truth:
 
Ride a blacked-out bike, wear all black (don't forget that silly black half-helmet), ride like a fool (or drunk/stoned) and don't drive defensively?  Make sure your will is done, and be good to the family and have lots of life insurance.
 
Or . . . make your first bike a Hayabusa or R1 or GSX, etc.  This is proof as to how difficult it is to have people committed to a mental facility, but how easy it is to go to the Emergency Room.  Though in a sick way, it's funny to watch a high side in the parking lot right after they handed you the keys to your new bike.  Wheelies on the Interstate?  Right . . .  
 
You have to ride like your life depends on it . . because it does.  ANYTHING you can do to bring the odds in your favor needs to be done post-haste.  DON'T buy too much bike till you can handle it.  MAKE yourself more visible.  Ride like every other s-o-b on the road is out to kill you, because mostly, THEY ARE. Be smart, don't paint yourself in a corner, don't 'stick it up in there' like they say in racing unless you have an easy out.  Olie's harpooning by a nitwit really brought this home to me.
 
BE CAREFUL out there, OK?  I got enough to worry about already . . . .  
 
J o e y