This past Monday we held a contest to give away a set of Lid Lights, the cool LED helmet lights that could easily save your life. While there were several folks I would have liked to have given the lights to, I finally decided on Sandra (the person behind the A Promise To Dad blog).
Sandra is actually new to nighttime cycling, but she said that she wants to participate in the Nacho Ride which she describes as “a ride ten miles out-of-town on a gravel rails-to-trails path to a bar that serves cheap Tacos/Nachos which more than 200 cyclists participate in every Tuesday.”
If you read the “About” page on Sandra’s blog you will find out that she started cycling out of a promise made to her father to “get healthy.” Her father had Alzheimer’s disease before he passed away and I certainly can identify with that—we had to put my father into a nursing home last month due to that same horrible disease. In fact, one of the reasons I took up cycling was out of fear that I would develop Alzheimer’s myself. This disease is not hereditary and an article on the Mayo Clinic website claims that “population studies have suggested that exercise which raises your heart rate for at least 30 minutes several times a week can lower your risk of Alzheimer’s.” I love my wife and I do not want her to have to go through what my mother has in the past few years.
I normally send contest winners the actual product I reviewed, but Ed Kovak at Lid Lights has graciously offered to send Sandra a new set of Lid Lights—and she gets to choose the color of the lights! Thank you Ed!
One more note about Lid Lights: The current product is designed to attach to your bicycle helmet, but I really liked the suggestion that Kurt (kurtbredeson) made. He suggested that they also make lights available that would attach to the rear seat stays of your bike—and I think this is an awesome idea!