As you drive by a cyclist, you have one of three opinions:
- We’re good. No issue. Everyone stayed in their lane.
- Something is up. What is this cyclist doing? I’m confused. Don’t they need to obey the rules of the road?
- WHOA WHOA WHOA WHO IS THIS GUY AND WHY IS HE IN MY LANE I AM GOING TO SHOW HIM WHAT’S UP WITH THIS HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK.
As a person who drives, I’ve experienced #1 and #2 quite a bit. My perspective has shifted as I dived into both road and gravel cycling over the last half decade. As a person who rides a lot, I do understand road rage, but the number of times a driver in a car has lost their mind because of my riding is… impressive.
Road rage. I get it. I’ve had it, but when it comes to Car vs. Bike, it’s not a fair fight. You’re in a big metal box, and I’m on a metal toothpick with a plastic cap on my head. You will always win.
My Working Assumption
I work under the assumption that whenever I ride, the question isn’t if I am going to be hit by a car, but when. This is a proactive defensive mindset rooted in the fact that I am guaranteed to lose every interaction with a motor vehicle.
To support this mindset, I need as much situational awareness as possible. In front of me, when cars are about, it’s an endless set of questions. Who is coming at me? Who is turning? Who is in what lane? What is their intended direction? Are they aware I am here? Am I sure? In all scenarios where it’s unclear whether or not this three-ton box of steel might be heading my way, I give them a wide berth. I will lose this fight every time, so, no, please, go ahead — take all the space you want.
Behind me is a different story. A quick look over the shoulder, yes, I have a glimpse of the situation over either shoulder, but remember — I AM RIDING A BIKE — heading forward and am required to pay full attention to that situation. The box of steel behind me is almost always moving faster than I am and always has unclear intentions. Before the device I am about to describe, I became quite adept at correctly guessing the size and the speed of the box of steel approaching from behind based on sound. BIG TRUCK. MOVING FAST.
A quick look over the shoulder is not always an option, especially when there are multiple interesting situations directly in front of me. Enter radar.
The appropriately named Varia RearVue 820 attaches to my seat post and provides me with real-time data on my Garmin computer on my handlebars:
- All the steel boxes behind me. (And metal toothpicks)
- Their type (small, medium, large).
- Their threat level is displayed as a highlight on my Garmin Computer. Green means we’re fine. Orange means moving fast and in your lane. Red means moving fast, big, and in your lane.
Looks like this:
Garmin Varia RearVue 820
Eyes for the back of your headIn addition to the visuals, I can also set audio cues that alert me to different situations, but most of that already arrives via just listening. Yes, it can make errors — sometimes boxes are just toothpicks. Yes, if it’s raining, it’s a mess, but if I’m out in the rain, I’m already on high alert. Finally, it also shines a bright red on the folks behind me.
A Bright Red Light
The ride to work. Suburbia. I’m stopped at a long red light when the metal box approaches on my left. We’re both at the front and it’s clear they want to say something… the slow roll forward. The window is going down on the passenger side. They’re in driver state #2 above: something’s up.
“Sir. I say, sir. The light on your bike is distracting me.”
<sfx: Deep breath>
I turn my head and speak calmly, “My… brake light?”
“It’s distracting.”
“No, it’s not. You’ve got the same light on your car; in fact, there are two of them. I stare at them all the time. They are designed to give important information to your fellow travelers. It’s there to make sure you don’t hit me.”
Green light.
Riding in Boston, one often must “take the lane”, which is completely legal. Unfortunately, a large percentage of drivers refuse to accept that a bike is supposed to be the same as a car when it’s in the lane. Anger ensues. Occasional injury.
Riding bikes is probably the most enjoyable thing I’ve done since growing up skateboarding. I’ve fully embraced it, the goofy clothes, the obsessing over the data – hanging out with other middle age riders talking about our fitness.
After breaking my collarbone a few years ago, I wont even think about riding if I don’t have the varia charged and ready. I consider it essential if I’m riding outside and the best cycling gift I’ve ever received.
It’s when I do my best work.
Bicycle radars are devices that many cyclists are skeptical of until they have one. Then they won’t ride without it.
However, the quality and safety of them varies greatly by model. GPLama on YouTube is THE definitive reviewer of them. He’s shown that some radars perform dangerously badly.
In fact, he showed how the newest Varia (the 820 you have) has some bad bugs in the release firmware. There’s an update that all owners should install. There’s also some things that I consider to be regressions compared to the older Varia 500 and 510.
“It’s distracting.”
“Oh, so it caused you to notice me instead of treating me like background noise? Good, it’s working.”