Trail Runners, Fastpackers & Urban Runners, What Lamps Do You Use?

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Jumping in on this thread because it's interesting to see what other trail runners are using... and prefer. I'm a trail runner in Ottawa, Canada -- mostly running at night in the Gatineau Hills either solo or with my local trail run club.


1. Running about 5:30/km to 7:30/km depending on the elevation. Downhills can get up to 4:30/km.
2. On winding and technical single track 50 meters is enough to see ahead. On open fireroad/wider trails, I like 100 meters minimum.
3. Technical: mud, roots, rocks, brush
4. I've had the best luck using lumens (more power the better), tend to lean towards Flood beams (especially on winding trails)
5. Fenix HL50 and Ay Up Run (metal casing all the way!)
6. Flood light for most nighttime conditions, spotlight when foggy/rainy
7. Having the rights trail shoes and running technique build more confidence than having the right light (no light will make up for sloppy foot technique on trails)

Having done a number of ultras and broken so many headlights over the years, the one thing I'd say is that the build quality of a headlamps matters so much for a trail runner. Even the best runners will accidentally clip a tree branch with their headlamp, drop it, or unintentionally bang it up.

With races like UTMB coming up, it'd be cool to pull together a list of all the headlamps the ultra guys/girls are using in rotation right now.

Thanks for your input!

I agree with 100 m being a good range. How about in the foreground? When running at about a 6:30/km pace (10:28/mi) through trail, how far ahead do you tend to keep your attention to react to immediate obstacles? Of course we often look up to look down the trail to navigate, but I'm thinking in terms of foot placement in the immediate field. I think this is where most of our light tends to be focused, in that immediate interval.

Do you tend to orbit a particular favorite setting on the Fenix HL50, in particular, technical trail around 6:30/km pace or so?

A certain trail runner once discussed how technical conditions created a need for extra light. She wanted to go up to 170 lumens, but she was afraid she would deplete her battery and she'd have to stop for a battery change during the race. She didn't want to do that. While she described the light at 170 put more confidence in her foot placement (because she could see better), she settled instead for the lower setting around 85 lumens, and got by with that.

That's what I mean in differentiating the light setting you use. Is the lumen setting you describe for a given lamp on a certain course at a certain speed just enough light to get you by or is it so bright it boosts confidence in your gait?

 

[planetrunner]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Thanks for your input!

I agree with 100 m being a good range. How about in the foreground? When running at about a 6:30/km pace (10:28/mi) through trail, how far ahead do you tend to keep your attention to react to immediate obstacles? Of course we often look up to look down the trail to navigate, but I'm thinking in terms of foot placement in the immediate field. I think this is where most of our light tends to be focused, in that immediate interval.

Do you tend to orbit a particular favorite setting on the Fenix HL50, in particular, technical trail around 6:30/km pace or so?

A certain trail runner once discussed how technical conditions created a need for extra light. She wanted to go up to 170 lumens, but she was afraid she would deplete her battery and she'd have to stop for a battery change during the race. She didn't want to do that. While she described the light at 170 put more confidence in her foot placement (because she could see better), she settled instead for the lower setting around 85 lumens, and got by with that.

That's what I mean in differentiating the light setting you use. Is the lumen setting you describe for a given lamp on a certain course at a certain speed just enough light to get you by or is it so bright it boosts confidence in your gait?

Great questions!

Having enough light to see in the immediate foot field, as you mentioned, is what matters to me most as a mid-pack trail runner. Or simply when I'm training alone. I basically need enough light to see about 100 meters ahead with some flood like spill so I can get a sense of what's coming up under foot.

On this point, one of the reasons I bought the HL50 from Fenix was because I could tilt the light freely up or down to see underfoot. There are a lot of 45 degree verticals and descents where I live (example: https://www.strava.com/activities/1005865482). Being able to very quickly adjust the light downwards to not epically fall down a ski hill is super helpful!

I tend to use the HL50's max setting (170 lumens, I believe) and use only a CR123A battery instead of a rechargeable AA. Occasionally, I'll switch to the medium setting if there's enough light pollution from the city. It doesn't happen all that often to be honest.

I think you raised a really good point about preferred lumens versus enough to get by. This might be an interesting issue to tackle by seeing what trail runners use by the terrain type they run. For instance, when I was living in Toronto, I was mostly running buffed out single track trails at night that had minimal tree overhand. 80 lumens was more than enough to get by. By contrast, living in Ottawa and running in the Gatineaus, I'm deep in the forest on trails surrounded by cliffs and foliage. 100 lumens minimum is needed if I'm on my own.

Over the years, I've found that the right shoes, technique, *then* headlamp is what really helps make the most of night trail run. The right shoes can help you sense what's underfoot and react quickly in case something shifts. I find my confidence goes down when I don't have the right shoes for the terrain I'm on.

I'd also throw out there that the right amount of lumens depends on the experience a trail runner wants to have. The racing type lean towards the Ay Up products in my neck of the woods, while the mid-pack guys enjoy 100-200 lumens, and the slow guys stick around 200 lumens. Different brightness for different folks.

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Having enough light to see in the immediate foot field, as you mentioned, is what matters to me most as a mid-pack trail runner. Or simply when I'm training alone. I basically need enough light to see about 100 meters ahead with some flood like spill so I can get a sense of what's coming up under foot.

I think you raised a really good point about preferred lumens versus enough to get by. This might be an interesting issue to tackle by seeing what trail runners use by the terrain type they run. For instance, when I was living in Toronto, I was mostly running buffed out single track trails at night that had minimal tree overhand. 80 lumens was more than enough to get by. By contrast, living in Ottawa and running in the Gatineaus, I'm deep in the forest on trails surrounded by cliffs and foliage. 100 lumens minimum is needed if I'm on my own.

"Having enough light to see in the immediate foot field, as you mentioned, is what matters to me most as a mid-pack trail runner. Or simply when I'm training alone. I basically need enough light to see about 100 meters ahead with some flood like spill so I can get a sense of what's coming up under foot."

Lets focus then on the distance in the very immediate foreground--from your feet out to as far as maybe 7-10m. When I'm looking down (most of the time) to watch the immediate foreground for foot placement, I tend to use the intense spot and bright, close spill to light up maybe 2 seconds worth of what's in front of me at my speed. (Of course I look up from time to time to see the bigger picture so I can stay on course, then a boost to a higher output becomes expedient.) Some people might understand that warning time interval better as a distance (in my case everything up to about 3-3.5 m at my all day endurance speed). Do you tend to focus on a certain immediate foreground distance, and if so, how much distance do you think that is? (for a given speed).​

"I think you raised a really good point about preferred lumens versus enough to get by. This might be an interesting issue to tackle by seeing what trail runners use by the terrain type they run. For instance, when I was living in Toronto, I was mostly running buffed out single track trails at night that had minimal tree overhand. 80 lumens was more than enough to get by. By contrast, living in Ottawa and running in the Gatineaus, I'm deep in the forest on trails surrounded by cliffs and foliage. 100 lumens minimum is needed if I'm on my own."

Your experience "sheds a little light" on a fact I brought up in my discussion about perceived light verses measured light. This is exactly what I'm looking for in this discussion. You needed more light when there was more reflection off of nearby foliage and cliffs but less when the sky was more open. This reflection from close objects causes our pupil to react by shrinking. When the pupil lets in less light, what we need to see dims, and we require more light to compensate. It's a milder form of what happens when inconsiderate drivers approach us with their high-beams on.

People with a tendency to over-generalize might say you can't discern the difference between such small differences in light (going from 80-100 lm). The difference between a measured 100 and 80 lumens is a 25% increase, but we tend to perceive it approximately as a 12% increase in intensity. Clearly you have been able to tell the difference since it makes a difference in your ability to more effectively see the trail.​

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Headlamp Output Options & Playing the Lumen Lottery

I've noticed many headlamp manufacturers have relatively few output options in their model lines. More often I see only 3-5.

The max output (anywhere from 300-1000 lm) is good for momentarily seeing far downrange. Persistent use of that setting for running won't last long, and if you are in an endurance race that can last over 20-30 hours, you don't want to be using this setting too often unless you like the weight of carrying extra batteries and have plenty of spare time to stop and reload.

A high medium or low high setting tends to be good for the long haul, anywhere between 50 and 200 lumens. If you only have one choice (say 100), that might work for you in most instances, but if anything changes like how close you are to reflecting objects or you pick up speed running down grade a lot, not having another choice aside from the highest output can be terribly inconvenient.

Going up a long grade, you slow down, and your reaction time distance decreases. So you can choose a lower battery conserving setting, maybe 30 lm, if it is available. Going downhill, your speed can increase substantially, and your reaction time distance will increase. You'll need more light to reach the edge of that distance with the same intensity. 170-200 lm might work better then.

But the setting isn't so much important here as the number of options you can choose from. The more options you have, the more closely you can tailor the light to your needs as they change. This helps you conserve battery, carry less weight and save time from having to stop and reload. If you are an urban runner who only runs close to home an hour each night on a rechargeable battery, that probably doesn't matter to you.

In my opinion, the best headlamp configuration for output level options is one with an infinite rotary dimmer feature with a max output around 500 lm. Manufacturers are becoming more aware of this need, and they are providing more models that include it: For example: Thrunite TH20 Nitecore HC90 (heavy) Surefire Minimus & Maximus (heavy & pricey). I don't recommend the rotary Imalent HR20 due to quality control and manufacturing issues.

The next best configuration I think is the Zebralight single AA and CR123A configurations, now with over 12 programmable options. For example, the new ZL H53w and Fw can be programmed to a 2x3 array of any six choices that work best for you, and you can set up three different 2x3 arrays for different running modalities (slow mountain trail running and faster urban running for example). I think 12, 30, 65, 122, 198, 330 would work well in my case for mountain trail fastpacking, even as my fitness improves. Your needs might be different.

The thing I like in particular about the ZL's is the spacing of the outputs. I don't very often see that in other brands. I usually only see one setting, in the range of 70-180 lm that might work well most of the time, a minimum setting for maps, and a max setting for down range searching. (The Armytek Tiara A1 Pro v2, for example). As a slower runner I might use 12 for ascents, 65 for following ridgelines, and 122 for descents. As an improved runner, I might use 30 for climbs, 122 for ridgelines and 198 for descents. If you make an error judging what output you need for running when you make a purchase, the output spacing and number of options on the newer ZL's is more forgiving. It gets you closer to where you want to be.

Unfortunately, the maximum range on the H53w is only around 69m now (down from about 85m) due to dropping lithium ion battery support. Until an H33w is released with better max output due to the higher voltage of the CR123A battery, I would have to compensate for attenuated range with something like an Eagletac D25C mini Or the Fenix E15. When ZL gets their act together and includes the voltage boosting inductors of the Zebralight SC5w MkII handheld in later edition right angle headlamps, as they have indicated is their intention, one lightweight ZL headlamp will be able to do it all.

The Petzl Nao+ is a dynamically adjusting headlamp that detects the target object distance and sets the output to whatever meets your pre-programmed preference for light intensity. Unfortunately, it also detects the mist from your exhaled air that fogs in front of it, and dims the light in accordance to the range detected. Having the sensor above the mouth can be terribly inconvenient. It's also heavy and terribly pricey.

The new runner should be aware that not all headlamps are equal when it comes to producing the light you will need. Without understanding your lighting needs before purchase, you may as well be playing the lumen lottery when you buy your ticket. It's therefore really important to hedge your bets with a model that has many settings in the range you might find the most useful for your running.

 

[planetrunner]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Lets focus then on the distance in the very immediate foreground--from your feet out to as far as maybe 7-10m. When I'm looking down (most of the time) to watch the immediate foreground for foot placement, I tend to use the intense spot and bright, close spill to light up maybe 2 seconds worth of what's in front of me at my speed. (Of course I look up from time to time to see the bigger picture so I can stay on course, then a boost to a higher output becomes expedient.) Some people might understand that warning time interval better as a distance (in my case everything up to about 3-3.5 m at my all day endurance speed). Do you tend to focus on a certain immediate foreground distance, and if so, how much distance do you think that is? (for a given speed).​

Really cool to hear how you dial in your headlamp settings for your terrain, pacing, and style. What kind of trails do you run?

For my style of trail running, I tend to focus my lights as far out from my feet as possible using the high setting. Typically to the point where the spotlight becomes like a floodlight. I'd crudely say this means 10-15m+ away from my feet. Only time I might adjust this distance is if I'm going down a really steep hill.

From my experience, immediate distance settings depend on the individual runner. Just a crude example below to demonstrate that. Both a trail runners with good form on a non-technical trail with a slight include. Both have their headlights angled completely different. The right hand runner reflects my style, while the left hand runner has focussed their light on what's immediately in front of him (looks slightly exaggerated by his head pointing down somewhat).

All said, I have to echo your comment in the next post that having multiple lighting options is a real plus -- particularly for trail running. The only thing I would add is the ability to freely adjust the angle of the light relative to the incline/decline. Despite its quirks, I love my HL50 for that specific reason.

 

[xdayv]

Would a handheld light used momentarily be advisable to augment a headlamp?

 

[Genzod]

Would a handheld light used momentarily be advisable to augment a headlamp?

I thought of supplementing a floody Zebralight H53w with a throwy 2016 Fenix E15. I could do distant searches with the Fenix, and use it as a redundancy backup (with diffusion film). The tighter beam of the Fenix might work better cutting through mountain fog.

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Really cool to hear how you dial in your headlamp settings for your terrain, pacing, and style. What kind of trails do you run?

For my style of trail running, I tend to focus my lights as far out from my feet as possible using the high setting. Typically to the point where the spotlight becomes like a floodlight. I'd crudely say this means 10-15m+ away from my feet. Only time I might adjust this distance is if I'm going down a really steep hill.

From my experience, immediate distance settings depend on the individual runner. Just a crude example below to demonstrate that. Both a trail runners with good form on a non-technical trail with a slight include. Both have their headlights angled completely different. The right hand runner reflects my style, while the left hand runner has focused their light on what's immediately in front of him (looks slightly exaggerated by his head pointing down somewhat).

All said, I have to echo your comment in the next post that having multiple lighting options is a real plus -- particularly for trail running. The only thing I would add is the ability to freely adjust the angle of the light relative to the incline/decline. Despite its quirks, I love my HL50 for that specific reason.

In the summer and fall I go out to the Appalachian Trail in central and southwestern Virginia. These trails tend to be very rocky and steep at times, but can also follow logging roads and ridgeline. Except for some grassy balds and open farm land here and there, the trail tends to be covered with forest. One place is 4 miles of nothing but hopping basketball sized rocks. Elevation in the sections I run vary between 1000-4000 ft. (300-1200m). 15% grades are pretty typical.

The lamp I had been using, which "gave up the ghost" on my last outing, was only good at the medium setting for my current level of running fitness. It only had three settings, and two of those were impractical for what I was doing. So I didn't tailor my light settings. "Dialing in" as a practice will be employed with my next headlamp, which will probably be the newly released Zebralight H53w or a yet future H33w.

When I'm not injuring myself and losing my fitness, I train (for fitness only) on the level streets of my suburban neighborhood. I train mostly at night. Oddly enough, I don't carry a lamp. I find the ambient street light sufficient provided I stay on the asphalted roads.

 

[Woods Walker]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

That's a good one. I added it as #8 to the list.

Do you have any recommendations for useful light in fog, Woods Walker? It's almost impossible to navigate in mountain fog with a floody cool white lamp even if it has a spot. I tried to negotiate a right turn onto a road and then another right turn off the road somewhere around mile 8-10 on the AT in GA, and the fog was so thick It took me a half hour to successfully negotiate the 50 yard (or less) maneuver because I couldn't find the tree markers with my headlamp.

Do you find warmer tints and powerful narrow beams work better in fog? How about red light, does that make a difference? Does holding and aiming the lamp from the waist help any?

Some photos from tonight's street jog.



Time of day also maters. When jogging the street at dusk (more so during rain) I like to use the headlamp on a medium mode. Not really to see the street as often can see ok but to be seen by cars. Also the extra light helps as dusk gives way to night. But in the woods I want brighter as the fading daylight washes out the headlamp and when going under tree over or behind ridge lines etc etc it can get dark really fast or maybe brighter once the cover is broken.



NU20 High CRI on med.



As rain got heavier I cracked out the Viking NW.





I don't use red for much of anything. Also not sure tint matters with rain/snow/fog compared to beam pattern. It seems less flood is better in bad weather. I do think NW or Warm feels better in bad weather but am undecided if that really honestly makes it better in terms of getting the job done. Always made it back regardless of tint. A 219B tint is no better than any Cree CW in weather IMHO. A flashlight all things being reasonably equal tends to be better than a headlamp in the worst of the worst.

 

[stephenk]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Urban night running I think the 70 lumens from my Fenix HL10 is spot on.
For trail running (rough ground) I prefer the 150 to 250 lumen range.
Floody beams are essential to allow for illumination of your next foot strike as well as bright illumination of the next few metres ahead.
Neutral and/or high-CRI beams are much more pleasant, and help to identify objects you may step on.

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Urban night running I think the 70 lumens from my Fenix HL10 is spot on.
For trail running (rough ground) I prefer the 150 to 250 lumen range.
Floody beams are essential to allow for illumination of your next foot strike as well as bright illumination of the next few metres ahead.
Neutral and/or high-CRI beams are much more pleasant, and help to identify objects you may step on.

How fast do you tend to move on the street with the 70 lumen floody Fenix HL10? Do you tend to aim the center of the beam at any particular distance from your feet?

Your Fenix has a rotatable diffuser. Do you find that light is more pleasant to run with than with spot bounce generated by a running gait, or does it dim the light too much?

 

[ThinAirDesigns]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

Sorry for more delay than I intended, but here's my attempt at a contribution to this excellent and useful thread.

I am a 56 year old male who took up ultramarathon mountain trail running 3 years ago - a form of running that often requires one to negotiate technical terrain at night. I mention my age simply because I found that my still quite decent eyesight did suffer some at night compared to my younger days. Keep that in mind when reading my preferences.

I came to this forum seeking assistance with assembling a package of lighting suitable to my ultrarunning needs and the wealth of information here and the willing and knowledgeable contributors shortened the process and ultimately led to a far better system than I would have otherwise had. Thanks to all.

(You can see my thread on the topic here: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?427196-Skilhunt-H03-Headlamp-Mods-for-Waist-Light )


I started out seeking ways to build a better waist-light. My aging eyes were better able to read the rocky, root strewn terrain that is mountain single-track when shadows are visible - something headlamps can't do. I built a kick *** dual head version and ran with it in training, only to find that the bounce of the light as simply too annoying and distracting. Couldn't deal. Adding to the negative of a waist-light is the fact that smaller stray branches that often hang out into the trail at eye level weren't illuminated well enough from waist level for me to see before they hit me in the face (and eyes). I could see that even if I were able to deal with the bouncing of the waist-light, I was still going to need to provide some light from a headlamp to be able to see eye level hazards and react to them. I bailed on the waist-light entirely after enough trial and finding mostly error.

I then modified my dual LED light to mount headlamp style. I was hoping that simply pouring enough lumens on to the trail would make up for the flat lighting. I wasn't overwhelmingly pleased with the results. I felt like there were diminishing terrain reading returns weighed against the extra battery requirements. Additionally, extra lumens produced and thrown at eye level actually exacerbate certain negative aspects of headlamps - fog and rain reached a blinding level with my ~1,000 luman dual rig.

I had played previously and continued to run with a variety of hand lamps. I loved the way the lower light angle made the terrain visually pop up in 3D, but again the unsteady nature of the lighting (waving around a lot) was disconcerting. Also, hand-helds have one really nasty negative feature -- at the moment you need them the most (say you've caught a toe on a root and are struggling to regain your balance), your arms naturally wave frantically to help in your recovery and your trail goes dark. I simply couldn't abide by losing my trailing lighting right at the moment I needed it most. Also, eating and drinking on the run (totally necessary in ultrarunning) required movement of the hands such that lighting was lost.

So much for all the negatives of the different lighting packages -- what did I finally settle on?

I'm using a straight up stock Skilhunt H03 (TIR lens) in headlamp form. I run this on the top sustainable setting for the most part (500 lumens). I supplement this with a Rofis TR20 adjustable angle handheld with a custom built handstrap which makes it so I can't drop it easily. I run the Rofis also on the 500 lumen setting - occasionally cranking it up to the higher setting for route finding.


Here's the positives of the system:

1: Two totally separate lighting systems provide redundancy.
2: Single type battery for both lights
3: Lightweight single battery packaging for both lights, while still providing 3+ hours full bright.
4: Design of both lights allows easy 30 second battery swap even in total darkness or on the run.
5: Skilhunt flood diminishes the perception of beam movement of the hand held Rofis.
6: The more 'throwy' nature of the Rofis overcomes the Skilhunt lumens, still inducing readable shadows.
7: The Rofis throws well for 'look ahead' route finding - not the Skilhunt's strength.
8: The Skilhunt continues to light the trail even when one trips and the Rofis is windmilling about.
9: The adjustable head of the Rofis allows me to pick the perfect, comfortable angle for my wrist.
10: When I encounter fog or rain, I can just switch off the Skilhunt and am all set with a lower angle light
11: Excellent lighting of eye level hazards.

Negatives:

1: The single cell config of both lights leads to only ~3hrs lighting before needing cell changes.
2: Hand held lights occupy hands.
3: The color of the two lights don't match which annoys the hell out of me.


I have now used this system on the run through hundreds of mile of wicked terrain and currently wouldn't trade it for anything (Note that I own multiple high end Petzls and Black Diamonds and Princeton headlamps and have used all of them happily for years backpacking and climbing).

Typically I turn the Rofis off when climbing steeper terrain (sometimes I even tuck it into a velcro pouch located on my running belt). The fact that I'm generally power hiking these stretches means terrain reading becomes much easier - reducing the needed for the shadow producing handheld. Also, I'm usually trying to feed myself during this time and while the hand-strap does allow this with light in hand, if I know from the elevation profile of the route that it will be off for a while, it's just easier to tuck it away and be truly hands free. Depending on the route of course I find I need the Rofis lit about half the time.

When needed I use the Nitecore MB40 battery magazine to carry spares and this gives me over 9 hours of full bright system usage. One could of course ramp down the lumens and go much longer. I have found for me that the weight to lumens trade-off falls easily in favor of lumens. The extra batteries simply aren't that heavy, and for most ultras crew access is such that other than a single emergency spare, you don't need to carry extras at all. It's only the longer more remote versions (which are my first love) that require the added weight.

That's my 0.02 cents. Lighting is like shoes as I see it -- too many variables and personal preferences to nail down one "perfect" combo for everyone. Try things and find what works for you.

As a reference to questions asked in the OP, my running speed on long races is not high (my fastest mile completing the 75 mile SCAR (Smokie Challenge Adventure Race) was only in the 9 minute range. Many technical running miles are completed in the 12+ minute range. I have however run many night training miles with this system down in the 7s and 8s without issue.

Your results may vary.

JB

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

I imagine when you descended from Davenport Gap Shelter and approached I-40, your radio call went a little something like this:

"Clingman's Tower, ME-056 with you on the localizer four OH right."
"M.E. 056, roger, cleared to land four OH right."
"Cleared to land four OH right, ME-056."

So tell me, were there many UFO calls on the Haywood County, NC 911 log that weekend?

That's a lotta light!

When I do 1 day in the mountains (43 miles with about 3 lbs of food), I'm not pushing the 20 lb limit of my packs, so I won't hesitate to carry extra items I wouldn't otherwise carry on a three day trip. But when I hit that ceiling, luxuries have gotta go, or the ship starts to sink! The compromise I have to make with the extended range load is limiting myself to one or two lamps, raw weight of 30g each, plus batteries and headband (which is what my visor will slide onto). Fortunately, I consider 122-198 range on the ZL H53w to be way more light for my foreground light than I feel I could ever hope for.

I read your warning about redundancy, and I'm definitely going to make a back-up light mandatory. I should know better, having had my former lamp take a deep six on me right when I began my first night trail running last October. Lucky thing I brought that 30 degree bag, although another headlamp would have been 21 oz lighter!

Speaking of lucky, I'm not too far from your age and I can still run streets at night in my neighborhood without needing a lamp. It's dark between the street lamps, but I can adjust pretty well. Haven't fallen yet. I had some fun with sidewalks and driveways in the beginning, however. :laughing: Now I keep to the asphalt at night.

Thanks for sharing your lamps story with us! I was glad to finally see it.

 

[stephenk]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

How fast do you tend to move on the street with the 70 lumen floody Fenix HL10? Do you tend to aim the center of the beam at any particular distance from your feet?

Your Fenix has a rotatable diffuser. Do you find that light is more pleasant to run with than with spot bounce generated by a running gait, or does it dim the light too much?

I always aim the beam so that the lower edge of the beam is at my feet for the next foot strike. This usually results in the hotspot being 2-3m away. Running speed is typically 12kph for urban running.

The Fenix HL10 beam options are very floody and even more floody. The diffuser doesn't make a huge difference, though makes the beam edge and hotspot slightly softer. My preference is diffused, though I'm not that fussy.

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

I always aim the beam so that the lower edge of the beam is at my feet for the next foot strike. This usually results in the hotspot being 2-3m away. Running speed is typically 12kph for urban running.

The Fenix HL10 beam options are very floody and even more floody. The diffuser doesn't make a huge difference, though makes the beam edge and hotspot slightly softer. My preference is diffused, though I'm not that fussy.

If you don't mind, I'd like to link to your review of the Fenix HL10 and present a quote and a photo from it that I think is great advice to new runners reading this thread:

"The 70 lumen brightness on high is sufficient for urban night running. 50 lumens is roughly the minimum for urban night running. If the light is angled so that edge of the beam is around the runners foot, then the path is well illuminated for around 10m ahead of the runner. This is a critical area so that the runner can plan their next few foot strikes. Nothing worse than mistaking a leaf or twig for a cane toad, spider, or snake! The hot spot beam can illuminate up to around 30m ahead of the runner if required. I should note that much brighter lights may annoy motorists, and thus 70 lumens is a good brightness for urban night running. "

Beam shots:

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

I recently purchased a Zebralight H53w for trail running. I tested it out last night for urban running.

Normally I don't use a headlamp at night for urban running. The streets tend to be well lit with street lamps spaced every 0.05 to 0.10 miles (80-160m). I live in a residential area that tends to be isolated from through-traffic, and I run at a time when most residents are already in bed and not in their cars on the road coming home. Provided I stay on the road and stay off the sidewalk, I'm fine. Get on the sidewalk and surprise, surprise, I'm tripping over driveways, meter access grates and tree root upheavals of concrete when the ambient light dims between street lamps.

Last night using a setting of 65 lumens (Energizer AA Primary lithium) and a semitransparent medical glove fingertip stretched over the head to provide wide angle diffusion, I was able to successfully run on the sidewalk at a typical speed of about 6 mph (9.65 kph) without mishaps. It was very decent light when I traversed the sidewalk near the duck pond where there are no street lamps, only minuscule ambient light from distant houses.

Removing the diffuser at the duck pond, the 12 degree spot filled the meter wide sidewalk where I tend to keep the light aimed, and I could see the spill focus of 80 degrees to each side which was in my opinion a much better concentration of light for paths the width of sidewalks and mountain trails. The edge of the spot was about 3 and 5 m ahead of me where I tend to look when I run in the dark at that speed (less when slower). The edge of the spill near my feet is about 1 meter ahead of me. I tilt my head down a little when I need to have spill light at my feet.

I'm heading out to try this lamp on the mountain trails very soon. I suspect 65 lumens diffused or spot/spill will be plenty of light for fastpacking with an occasional boost to 122 lumens for really technical stuff and running downhill. Uphill is much slower and I think 26 lm will be good. There will be much less ambient light glare constricting my pupils limiting light, so the light will appear much brighter in that context. Plus, I will be running much slower due to terrain and pack weight, so I will not have to look very far ahead to anticipate obstacles, meaning light intensity on the path will be brighter with closer aim.

The single strap headband doesn't' work well running, bobbying up and down from a running gait. I tried ThinAirDesigns advice and ran the band through the round holes of the lamp holder, and that stabilized the lamp. Unfortunately, the rubber holder became uncomfortable, the edges of it pressed into my forehead, so I think I'll need a sweatband to go underneath to make it work. Reversing a baseball cap and riding the mount on the cloth/velcro adjustment strap works, but the hat itself is uncomfortable in heat while running. Edit: I purchased a UA sweatband, and the light rides on it very comfortably.

 

[The_Driver]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

For the past few years I have been using an Armytek Wizard Pro with XM-L2 S6 3000K 90CRI, mostly in the second highest mode (370lm).

• At night I usually don't run faster than 5min/km (8:03/mi)
• I look straight ahead as much as possible so that my running form doesn't deteriorate (maybe 10-50m)
• I mostly run on paved roads, trails and sometimes normals paths in the woods. Nothing crazy.
• The Armytek Wizard has a TIR optic with a built-in hexagonal diffusor. Together with the XM-L2 LED it produces an almost perfect beam for running. There is no bouncing spot (although this also depends on how good your running technique is, i.e. how high your cadence is) and the the range is good enough.
• When it's raining I use the turbo mode with 630 Lumens.
• The amount of light is great, it's easily enough.
• Fog is ok, but snow is not so nice because the snow flakes basically got towards my eyes the whole time which is annoying.

The only thing I want to improve is the tint. I think the 3000k is a bit too low for my taste. I find that it is easier to concentrate with a higher color temperature. I am thinking of having the light modded with an XP-L2 4000K 90CRI.

The one thing that really annoys me and is really quite dangerous is the low battery warning. The main LEDs actually blinks multiple times to tell you this. When you are running downhill in the dark that is quite dangerous. In the winter (around 0°C) the light and the battery are much colder. This causes the low battery warning to start much earlier because cold batteries have a lower voltage. Using unprotected cells with a low internal resistance fixes this problem though.

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

For the past few years I have been using an Armytek Wizard Pro with XM-L2 S6 3000K 90CRI...The one thing that really annoys me and is really quite dangerous is the low battery warning. The main LEDs actually blinks multiple times to tell you this. When you are running downhill in the dark that is quite dangerous. In the winter (around 0°C) the light and the battery are much colder. This causes the low battery warning to start much earlier because cold batteries have a lower voltage. Using unprotected cells with a low internal resistance fixes this problem though.

We recently purchased a Wizard XPH50, and it seems the yellow switch blinks red or green depending on the message. I wasn't aware the main LED might blink when battery is low. Is that still the case with recent models?

 

[The_Driver]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

I have the Wizard v1. Armytek likes to change things...
I would check the Manual and maybe just try it out before running (you can use your fridge to make the warnings come earlier).

 

[Genzod]

Re: Trail Runners, Fastpackers and Urban Runners please share!

I have Wizard v1. Armytek likes to change things...
I would check the Manual and maybe just try it out before running (you can use your fridge to make the warnings come earlier).

I think we have an XHP50 Wizard v2. Manual only indicates battery level warnings are provided at 100, 25 and 10% by different colors of flashing light from the switch. Nothing about the LED flashing. My Zebralight uses the LED to flash battery level indication, but I have to activate that test by a sequence of 4 short clicks before it does that. I suspect it regulates output until first stepdown before it eventually and completely shuts down.