As the daylight hours become
shorter and autumn takes command, Seven Day Cyclist has been receiving bigger
and in most cases, brighter bike lights for testing. The other week, we took
delivery of two Xeccon big guns from Moore Large (www.todayscyclist.co.uk)
and formative impressions were favourable.
This sub £100 Zeta 1300 continues to
grow on me…Compared with bargain
basement ebay specials, the beam is more focused giving a purer, useable spread
of light. This picks out the detail when cornering at speed. There seems
sufficient flood for overview and presence too.
Doing the decent thing and
dipping down isn’t difficult either-medium still has enough bite for the
backwaters and though a bit overpowered for town, low certainly hasn’t incurred
anyone’s wrath.
Now, along with the usual helmet
strap, O-ring bar mount, charger etc, there’s a remote trigger. Primarily
intended for when it’s atop your lid, I was amused to discover it will operate
the light from a distance of eight feet, or so and through solid brick walls!
I’ve since tethered it to
the bars via the Velcro strap (otherwise I’m running the risk of loss, possibly
to the washing machine) playfully staircasing through the settings by prodding
my pocket drew some curious glances. I’m pleased to report it doesn’t interfere
with my Tom Tom Bandit, or other, bar mounted tech.
So far, run times seem
pretty faithful to those quoted-with the usual variance associated with factory
batteries.
Genuine replacements are
available for £29.99, though experimentation confirmed suspicions that it would
pair up pretty well with other pattern batteries. I’m not suggesting the OEM
model is anything less than reliable but spares can be slipped into a saddlebag
or poachers/jersey pocket for extended, high output fun.
Run for the first hour or
so, the diminutive aluminium alloy shell does get decidedly warm, although not
in the digit singing sense synonymous with high end halogen/lead acid systems some
twenty years back!
On a more serious note, I’m
starting to think all systems should have a trigger that can be wrapped around
the hoods for sheer convenience.
Electronic shifters are
nothing new (Mavic’s Zapp system, anyone?) but as integrated technology becomes
widely embraced-in the general sense, it follows that lighting systems should
also evolve into self-regulating “intelligent” entities, commanded by and
collating a wealth of information via smart-phone apps.
Given the potential to leave
ourselves under surveillance and possibly vulnerable to attack, if data isn’t
securely stored, on a personal level, I embrace this technology cautiously. As
with physical locks, all good locks/encryption does is buy time, there’s always
a backdoor in, so the software component needs to be continuously evolving to
fend off these threats.
Car security/engine
management systems have become so sophisticated and will thwart thieves using
traditional methodology but with the right hacking skills, its’ quite possible
to remotely control one. Taken to its logical conclusion, who’s to say a rival
pro team couldn’t tap into the race leader’s derailleurs and engineer a sneaky
miss-shift or two….
Come October’s close, it will
be thirty years to the day since my thirteenth birthday-I eagerly collected a
Holdsworthy build Claud Butler from a local independent dealer and an Austrian
Au Pair presented me with a copy of Richard Ballantine’s iconic bicycle book. I
was also taken with the classic continental off season attire, which involved ¾
longs and wool, rather than Lycra...
No such thing as the wrong
weather, just inappropriate kit. The commuter label (this also applies to
motorcycling) tends to infer lower standards/quality. However, why would anyone
want to arrive at work looking, or feeling anything other than temperate and
confident?
Another editor has sent me
this Altura Nevis iii waterproof jacket, which is shaping up quite well. Less
racy than some, the fit works with all sides of the wardrobe, sleek enough with
¾ length Lycra, yet sufficiently neutral to be worn as a general outdoor jacket
with jeans. Pocket provision means sensible segregation for valuables, tech,
bike related kit and crucially, deep hip pockets for parking hands.
In keeping with other
polyesters of this price point, moisture management isn’t on par with more
sophisticated fabrics. I expected to feel faint dampness around the pits and
lower back given twenty minutes or so at 18-20mph.
By this stage the fibres hit
the appropriate temperature and wicking commences. Thus far, I’ve never felt uncomfortably clammy
at this pace, over distances of 15miles or so and with the air temperature in
the mid-teens.
Right,
talking of teens, time I was putting the finishing touches to my series of
Children’s stories. November’s only just around the corner...
