Mirrors - do you use em?
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I don't like riding without a mirror. I have used the clip on sunglasses type and the one glued to my helmet. Both work great and I agree with one of the posters above who said turning to look behind you is a great way to cause a rider to swerve. I think every rider who rides on public roads should have a mirror. Would any of you consider driving a car with no rear view mirrors on it? I think not....0
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I ride a recumbent and it is lower to the ground so I also use a flag, but I rely on mirrors quite a bit. I have two that are mounted on each handle bar and I have under seat steering.0
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I've tried mirrors and the vibrations made them useless. I can appreciate people who ride in the big cities needing one, but when some of the roads I ride on have more bears than cars, it doesn't seem very helpful.0
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No mirrors for me. I did try a helmet attached one in the past, but it quickly broke and seemed to be more of a hassle.
My position on the road bike is leaned over enough that I can easily peek under my left and right arm pit every now and then to see what is approaching from behind.
I do most of my pavement riding on beautiful bike trails that are 16 - 20 miles long, so no need to worry about traffic on those trails. Getting to and from the trails in residential neighborhoods, I listen to cars approaching from behind and obey all traffic laws to stay safe. The rest of the time I am on gravel (can hear cars coming well in advance - and traffic is slim to none, or mountain bike trails where I have no need for a mirror). Both during mountain biking and riding on paved trails, if a rider comes up from behind and wants to pass they will announce their intent - so no need for a mirror to see that.0 -
I have always used a helmet mirror. From this discussion, I got a spin tech handlebar mirror for Christmas. Haven't been out to use it yet.0
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Hell yes! I had 1 on each handlebar, but lost the right one. Need to replace it.0
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I just started using one a few months back. It's this one from Amazon....
Third Eye Bar End Bicycle Mirror
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001600YZ4/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1
It works fine except for the swivel which makes it pan in & out with bumps and vibration. I plan to add some type of super glue to lock it in the ideal place for good but haven't done that yet.
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I bought the same mirror as the OP here, "Take a Look" unit by Bike Peddler... what can I say, it's perfect. Looks silly as hell, but I'm already a fat man in spandex so nobody is checking out my mirror!!
But seriously, it's an inexpensive mirror and it works perfectly. 0 -
Good to hear you have had good luck with it. I like mine also, and it doesn't suffer from vibration issues like a lot of bike mounted mirrors.I bought the same mirror as the OP here, "Take a Look" unit by Bike Peddler... what can I say, it's perfect. Looks silly as hell, but I'm already a fat man in spandex so nobody is checking out my mirror!! But seriously, it's an inexpensive mirror and it works perfectly.
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Nope, think about getting them but still can't stomach the "silly" look although I'm not getting any prettier.
"Swerving" can be minimized by practicing bike control but it's hard to keep the discipline especially at the end of a hard ride. Most folks never practice it since it's assumed to be second nature and one never register how poorly it is being performed.0 -
I've tried a helmet mount model and a bar-end model and only the latter remains. It is a small, sporty, unobtrusive model similar to the Sprintech mentioned above. (No "silly" feeling, even if I was so inclined.) It doesn't have a ton of viewing area, but it is enough to see if there is something coming up behind or if I'm leaving a gap ahead of the next rider. I noticed some mirrors are available in pairs, and I can only imagine that's for those of us with multiple road bikes because I can't really see putting a mirror on the right-hand side. (Other than to maintain bike symmetry for those with OCD.) The helmet mount worked OK once I got used to it, but I found it was more hassle than it was worth to keep from knocking it off when I wasn't on the bike. Granted, the helmet mount mirror followed me from bike to bike, but I never felt I needed a mirror when I wasn't on the road anyway.0
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I use a Take-A-Look mirror any time I'm on high-speed or high-traffic paved roads w/no shoulder. It also comes in handy when riding in groups (easy to see if you've dropped someone, and it's nice to let the group know when there's traffic back). I don't like being startled by semis and they create turbulence on high-wind days - I like to be alerted before they pass.0
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Not even by a Lazy Lob...
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I always use a mirror. I have one of them third eye things that hooks onto the frame of my glasses. I feel naked without it. I go back home for it if I forget it.0
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I am a new rider. I really am not comfortable riding in traffic. I dislike hearing a car coming behind me and not being able to see.
A mirror, from everything I read, is a poor fix.
I was thinking of mounting a small camera, like a go pro, on the underside of my saddle, with the feed going to my handlebar mounted phone.
Thoughts?0 -
That could work, if you can deal with the power needs, and if the phone is OK in bad weather. What is nice about that setup is that you can record so *if* something happens, you have some evidence which can help you with the legal stuff.
In my case, the small mirror mounted to my glasses does a good job though, so I would not call it a poor fix. It is cheap too
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I don't think it would help... you'll be too busy looking at the screen to pay attention to the road. That last-second swerve to avoid an obstacle is what will get you killed. Drivers don't want to hit you any more than you want to be hit, so ride steady and predictably and just let them pass.0
