Many of us may deny it to ourselves and loved ones, but sharing the road on our bikes with other motorists is a dangerous activity. In the name of aesthetics, far too many of us wear potentially dangerous dark clothing and commonly deem the traditional fluorescent yellows as unfashionable.
As our US editor Ben Delaney pointed out in his column last week, hi-vis clothing and associated accessories are very much on trend for 2016. With this, our gallery rounds up a few of the best roadie-friendly safety products from Interbike. Check out the massive gallery above for detailed looks, and read on for some of the, um, 'highlights' of this growing category.
Pearl Izumi's BioViz
BioViz from Pearl Izumi (a little too bright for our camera)
Where most brands are treating their road safety-focused clothing from a reflective point of view, Pearl Izumi says it's not so simple and that such designs aren't so effective under daytime conditions or at telling motorists that it's another human in front.
Instead, the brand's new 'BioViz' range looks at visibility from three points. Firstly, the clothing range uses fluorescent colours that are said to be up to three times brighter than the brightest white. Next is the placement of highly reflective markers placed in strategic positions to work noticeably with a cyclist's movement. Finally, the brand is using contrasting hues in order to gain further attention.
Lazer accessorizes
Neatly integrated light for the Lazer Z1 helmet
Perhaps the best helmet brand when it comes to offering aftermarket accessories, Lazer has a few more tricks up its sleeve for 2016.
Those using the brand's Z1 road helmet will now be able to replace the Rollsys plastic protection with the small 'Z1 LED Mudcap' rear light. Or perhaps you're needing visibility because its cold and dark out. For this, Lazer will now offer its Aeroshell covers in a range of hi-vis colours.
Reflective printing
Louis Garneau is just one brand going big in this market. Those printed grey dots will shine when hit with light
Going against Pearl Izumi's beliefs, there are many brands doing highly reflective clothing options that truly shine when hit by light at night. A key trend is printed reflective panels allowing brands to keep with their technical materials and cuts while adding night-time visibility.
Daytime lighting
CatEye has an expansive range of day-time friendly safety lights, but so do many other brands
First making waves last year, many brands are now promoting the use of safety lights during the day. With this, the best lights have optimized optics that hit harder in the daytime. Not seen at Interbike, the likes of Specialized and Bontrager have been strong advocates in this market.