Motorcycle Night Riding Tips for Beginners

Riding a motorcycle in the daytime is not the same as riding a bike at night. That’s because nighttime riding involves various unique problems, such as poor visibility, rider fatigue, and so on, which can affect your riding experience and safety on the road. Thankfully, a few simple steps can help you stay safe and improve your motorcycle night riding experience.

Make Yourself Noticeable

The first thing you want to do when riding a motorcycle at night is to make yourself visible to other motorists on the road. Avoid wearing dark colors like browns and blacks, and opt for brighter shades like fluorescent orange. It is a good idea to wear an orange-colored safety vest over your dark-colored outfit to make yourself more noticeable in low-light conditions. If that’s not available, add neon strips or retro-reflective tape on your helmet and saddlebags to make yourself more visible.

Upgrade Your Motorcycle's Lighting System

Upgrading your motorcycle’s lighting system can also help make your nighttime rides safer and more enjoyable. Replace your standard halogen lights with LED bulbs and add bulb strips to make your bike more noticeable at night.

Follow Proper Night Riding Techniques

More importantly, you want to take extra measures when riding your motorcycle after sunset. This includes ensuring that your vision is clear, riding slowly and defensively, and being vigilant of nocturnal animals darting in your path.

In addition, you want to practice night-riding techniques, such as signaling your maneuvers in advance, avoiding changing lanes too often, maintaining an appropriate distance between yourself and the vehicle ahead of you, and avoiding interrupting the blind spot of other riders.

We hope you find these tips handy when riding your motorcycle at night. If you want more information or to upgrade your bike to the latest model, visit Roseville Motorsports. We are in Rocklin, CA, but we proudly serve those from Roseville and Sacramento—so stop by today.