High vis visibility

pepsimaxrock

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Just catching up with HnH. In letters from a few weeks ago a writer claims that she "regularly sees riders not wearing high vis ......... they do not realise they cannot be seen". Some sort of non sequitur here.
I do wear high vis btw
 

Bs_mum

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I went on a first aid course a few weeks ago and interestingly they said that you should wear yellow hi vis is your riding in the country during autumn as you can blend into the background.
I always wear orange, but that’s because that’s what my husband orders & I steal it!
 

Bs_mum

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Shouldn’t wear yellow that should read! Not sure if it’s spell check on iPhone or if all the rain has gone to my brain!
 

mini_b

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Totally forgot to post about this last night...
I was driving home coming into a 30 through village and two girls on ponies on left hand side of the road - I did NOT see them. It was 7pm so starting to get dark.
Rider 1 had no hi vis, horse had yellow exercise sheet.
Rider 2 had hi vis. - both yellow.
Desperately needed reflective strips and lights on.
I felt awful, I did manage to slow before I went past and they were on the wide verge not in the carriageway.

I don’t think hi vis only is good enough at dusk especially if riding near hedges etc. Need lights and strips, I wanted to say I didn’t see them but there was traffic behind and not safe to stop.
 

ycbm

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You can't see yellow when the sun is in your eyes low in an autumn sunset. I wear orange and yellow or orange and lime green but mostly orange.

.
 

Tiddlypom

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I wear a mix of yellow and orange-but always at least orange. I really dislike pink but it does stand out well in moorland where I live so have some of that too.
We have yellow and orange with reflective strips, but I draw the line at pink o_O. Though I suppose that, if necessary, I’d have to embrace my inner My Pretty Pony. I am not on moorland, though, although in every other way (bar the pink) I wish I was!

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Bs_mum

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I love the pink, however, an orange coat costs me £20 & a pink costs £70- call me Scrooge but I refuse to pay the price difference. Especially as I live in mine during the winter and have to buy a new one yearly!
 

Meredith

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I bought a yellow jacket and then realised I was not as visible as I had hoped.
So I gave in and bought my horse a pink fly veil. She wears one any way but it is usually grey.
I reckon a piebald with pink ears and a yellow rider ought to be OK.😀

Added.. one driver stopped me and said that he had seen the pink first which had surprised him.
 

MotherOfChickens

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We have yellow and orange with reflective strips, but I draw the line at pink o_O. Though I suppose that, if necessary, I’d have to embrace my inner My Pretty Pony. I am not on moorland, though, although in every other way (bar the pink) I wish I was!

luckily a black pony looks good in anything but I'd not wear it if I weren't convinced that at certain times of year it wasn't the best colour. Red also works very well as a contrasting colour round here in bright daylight-in low light orange is the one I think that can be seen first. If its good enough for railway line workers then its good enough for me :)

I have about 3/4 mile unavoidable ride on a beech lined road on a black pony, I'll wear anything it takes even thoughts a very quiet road for traffic, its also a cycle route and has a lot of farm machinery.
 

catkin

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Fellboy can really rock pink.

interesting about pink being seen first. I have found that it is the colour most likely to get vehicles to slow down and often strike up conversations with motorists/cyclists - especially when pony is wearing pink 'leg-warmers' (leg-wraps) maybe the cutesy factor helps?
 

Nudibranch

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The yellow/orange thing is an age old conundrum for scuba divers as well but the general consensus is yellow = better against a dark sea for the helicopter or whatever. However in bright sunlight it can be less visible against the reflection of the sun on waves. Therefore many of us use a two coloured (yellow and orange) surface marker buoy to cover both eventualities.

However riding, I wear yellow as a) it's more readily available and b) it's the UK..I'm not worried as much about reflected sunlight sparking and hiding it. Low autumn sun can potentially overcome any colour hi vis. The ideal is probably hi vis of whatever colour but with reflective strips and lights.
 

JFTDWS

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I use orange stuff, and occasionally yellow or orange/yellow hybrids. Not a fan of pink. Of course, my mare is so orange, it's practically pointless putting any on her ;)
 

pepsimaxrock

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Totally forgot to post about this last night...
I was driving home coming into a 30 through village and two girls on ponies on left hand side of the road - I did NOT see them. It was 7pm so starting to get dark.
Rider 1 had no hi vis, horse had yellow exercise sheet.
Rider 2 had hi vis. - both yellow.
Desperately needed reflective strips and lights on.
I felt awful, I did manage to slow before I went past and they were on the wide verge not in the carriageway.

I don’t think hi vis only is good enough at dusk especially if riding near hedges etc. Need lights and strips, I wanted to say I didn’t see them but there was traffic behind and not safe to stop.

Lights are best
 

ElleSkywalker

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I got this ride in hi viz sheet from Finer Equine at Burghley. It completely covers saddle so can be seen from the front too and I've noticed that drivers really slow down when shes wearing it rather than just me in hi viz. I usually wear pink hi viz on me too and that particular saddle cloth she is wearing is pink too :)

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