Invisible Man
A very relevant traffic tip for new riders. An excerpt is below and there is lots more wisdom where that came from
On the street, you are invisible. You must always be aware that you are invisible.I mostly agree with this tip. Riding high beam in India is not possible without a million people making the 'boob' sign at you. They all think you've forgotten to turn it off. And then, eventually, a cop will stop you and buttonhole you about it. For our situation, I use the full lamps through intersections and pilot lamps everywhere else. It's one of the reasons I think bikes with pilot lamps are safer... The full tip is at my favourite no bullshit motorcycle news site: motorcycledaily
5 comments:
quite true. although sometimes i think ppl crossing the road get startled and "freeze" on the spot seeing a fast motorcycle with bright lights coming..
i have a question. suppose one kick starts his bike with the headlight switched on. can it blow off the light bulb..??? i've heard of bulbs going off at high rpms...
I've never heard of a bulb being fused because it was left on during the kick start. But in theory it can happen. I'm told that bulbs blow more often because of bad earthing than because of voltage spikes...
While you are at it can you tell me what exactly a pilot lamp is. Also what is a parking bulb?
Pilot lamp, or parking bulb are terms for the little bulb that gently illuminates the headlight reflector on many bikes in India. Most bigger bikes (including indian ones) have separate small bulbs, that serve only to highlight the presence of the motorcycle, rather than actual illumination of the road, and are employed for styling purposes. The too little lights on top of the Pulsar's headlamp are the pilot lamps I am referring too.
First pilot lamps in our country, actually belong to the Bullet, I think. The headlamp nacelle (the black metal casing in which the headlamp sits) has two fairly bright milky white little lamps...
Riding with headlamps (atleast the pilots) on is a good strategy. As for me the pilots are always on in city riding and the headlamp on low beam in highway riding.
I suggest never riding in high beam (even in the day) as you then lose the ability to flash the high beam. To pass or overtake or just alert the oncoming driver. Even in the day you can differentiate between the low beam and the high beam when flashed.
Also I have found (atleast people have commented) that the Pulsar pilots are not very visible in bright daylight. Only at dusk or at night are they visible.
In a a group ride, riding with headlamps on is essential as it kinda differentiates you from the rest of the non group riders and keeps you together (with the help of the RVM)
Post a Comment