What kind of gear do you guys wear to increase visibility? I can’t seem to find the energy in the morning to run (I work weird hours), but for some reason I can usually squeeze in a few miles after work.
I run in the early morning when it’s still very dark so it’ll apply the same.
I wear a black diamond headlamp and have it on the brightest setting so that 1. I can see 2. People will see my super bright light coming towards me.
I also wear a yellow vest that has reflective tape on it so that when a light shines on it you can see it clear as day.
I’ve never messed around with blinkers or anything, but you could find somewhere to put these too (back of hat, waistband, etc).
Brooks Running has some clothing items geared toward running in the dark. I run lots of early mornings and generally only wear a yellow shirt, but all of my running is in areas with a sidewalk.
Knuckle Lights and a reflective velcro ankle band.
I have tried several running vests and at least as many headlamps (and other body worn lights). I don’t see passive (reflective) lighting as an option anymore with how distracted drivers are and how bright vehicle interiors are getting. If it doesn’t produce bright light, it’s not worth discussing.
For a headlight, I have settled on the Black Diamond Sprinter. It’s plenty light (or balanced?) that it’s not terribly noticeable on your head. Plenty bright and super easy to operate with gloves or one handed. The (optional) tail light on the back is good. I have tried chest and waist worn lights, but their beam swung side to side and I didn’t like it. The knuckle lights have potential.
Edit: If the bright light next to your eyes thing bugs you, this headlight can be worn over a cap which mostly negates that fact. It might look a little dorky, but probably not more dorky than I already look. The Pearl Izumi Barrier Cycling Cap is my favorite one for this in cold weather.
For vests, the ‘Be Seen’ king seems to be the Tracer360. It bothers me that they haven’t gone to rechargeable batteries or added some sort of phone holster in the many years it’s been out, but it’s still a good one to be seen in. Mine would cut out if it was much below 10 degrees Farenheit, but I’m more of a treadmill guy if it’s that dark and cold. You will be a light show going down the road, but people will look up from their phones and see you. The Amphipod is decent too, but it always rode up on me and got worse with more layers.
I’ll also carry a flashlight as a backup. This one has been through a bit of weather and drops without any problems. It’s small enough that it will clip on to something and not bounce too much, but it’s big enough to be pretty bright and useful.
I use the tracer 360 at night on bike and run. I like it a lot. You don’t even notice you are wearing it.
I have a Tracer 360. big fan.
Headlamp or beltlamp (it goes on a belt… so = belt lamp). AWESOME.
I use an Amphipod reflective Y-suspender thing for a high vis and reflective benefit. I’ll use a headlamp sometimes, I’ve found the regular camping ones actually are brighter and less expensive. They are more bulky though. Often though I’ll pass on the headlamp and use a handheld thing from Nathans called a Zephyr. It’s a running flashlight that has a front beam (high-low-flash) and a rear red blinker. It’s an internal battery charged via a USB port. It has worked quite well for my needs.
Like others, the Black Diamond headlamp is a winner and mine has literally lasted a decade. I pair it with a cheapo reflective vest thing from my local running store.
Been using these for about 2 yrs. Only wear one at a time so I’m not mistaken for a vessel underway.
I where this head lamp and this vest. The headlight is critical, IMHO, not just for visibility but to see stuff on the road you might turn your ankle on.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B06W573V4Y
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B016H28LO6
I’ve got a Petzl Bindi head lamp which is super light (weight wise) and doesn’t bounce off my head when running … at the highest beam of 200 lumens it’ll last for about 2 hours. I had considered getting a head lamp with a strap on top (as previous ones kept slipping off) but haven’t had probs with this one. Admittedly I much prefer to run during daylight but at night I’ll use a headlamp or if I’m dumb and desperate (forgetting the headlamp but got my phone) I’ll use the torch function on my iPhone.
I wear lighter coloured clothes (white t shirt etc) so ppl, cars and cyclists can spot me. If you don’t like to wear a reflective vest (I don’t cuz I get sweaty in them), you can get a reflective wristband.
I’ve never seen the tracer 360, just looked it up and I can go to a rave with that thing …
I use a black diamond head lamp and whatever reflective bits happen to be on the shirts or shoes I am wearing.
i use the TRacer360 also.Works great. Makes me feel like i am at a rave (do people still go to raves?)
i really dont notice i have it on.
What kind of gear do you guys wear to increase visibility? I can’t seem to find the energy in the morning to run (I work weird hours), but for some reason I can usually squeeze in a few miles after work.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GR7DABG
Those bad boys are BRIGHT in the dark. I set them to blink. I had two on Friday night for over 3 hours. One was facing in front of me and one facing behind, both attached to the side of my running belt. I had two others as backup on the other side of my belt.
Yellow running shorts and bare chest. It would be impossible to not see me.
I own 8 of them because they are so cheap and multi-purpose. My kids use them for night hiking, I use them as bike headlights, I even mouted 4 to my helmet one time to ride a mountain in the dark.
Lightest headlight I can find. Then I use my bontrager flare light for rear. They make a belt clip for it so I just clip to the back of my hat or shorts.
I had the Amphipod Xinglet Vest, and it is the one reflective vest product that I would recommend to avoid. Mine did not last a year before most of the reflective material wore off in the wash. That sucker would stink something mighty, so I washed it every other week or so. It probably has 20-ish washings before it is useless.
My anti-recommendation: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004DKSJAG
It helps me see skunks that I might roll my ankle on and have a bad day 
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I wear reflective shirts from Menards:
https://www.menards.com/...920305037&ipos=1
https://www.menards.com/...920305037&ipos=2
synthetic material, so good for sweat. Long sleeve, or short sleeve. They also have a reflective cap. I’m sure the other big box guys have something similar.
Edit: links don’t work, go to Menards website and look for “Forester” brand.