A Portland Company Invented A New Kind of Bike and Running Light

The Crossbelt is meant to provide visibility on all sides.

Winter is the scariest time of year for bike commuting. The roads are slick and if you bike home from work, you're going dark at night. Even if you're a commuter with good lights, you've probably experienced a sharp increase in cars almost T-boning you at four way stops since Daylight savings ended.

So LumaGlo, a new company founded by Portlanders, have invented a new kind of light. The recently launched Crossbelt is an LED strap intended for after dark runners and cyclists. The idea is to provide 360 degrees of illumination—the Crossbelt is designed to be worn around your waist like a belt or across your torso like a sash. It's waterproof, rechargeable, and the lights are built into a fabric band to make it lightweight and compact.

(courtesy of LumaGlo)

LumaGlo's light is intended to help you be seen, not to help you see what's in front of you. So if you're a bike commuter, it won't replace your front light, but it is a possible alternative to a tail light. Its most intriguing feature is the velocity sensing break light—supposedly, it can feel when you're slowing down and change color accordingly. For after dark runners, it's an alternative to clumsy headlamps.

The Crossbelt is $49.95, and is currently only available online through Amazon and LumaGlo's website.

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