Neuigkeiten » echnique tweak into my natural game.Look at Jo

Call me a Cinderella cyclist. Im happy to gear up and ride anywhere, anytime -- until the clock strikes a certain witching hour. Then Im pedaling home hard to beat the sinking sun. Riding at night is an activity Ive avoided since I picked up road biking a decade ago. Id sooner hop on an indoor stationary bike to train for triathlons and even longer races, like centuries and gran fondos, than hit the road when the streetlights come on.Why am I so afraid of the dark? For starters, I dont trust drivers partly because, as a native New Yorker, I never got my license. I worry that I dont understand how folks behind the wheel think. These four-wheeled beasts feel foreign to me and my two-wheeled steed. It doesnt help knowing that more than 800 people lost their lives in a bicycle and motor vehicle collision in 2015, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. One in five of these fatal crashes happened between 6 p.m. and 8:59 p.m., reports the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center.Bottom line: I love my life, and putting it on the line for an evening ride never seemed worthwhile to me. I know that sounds dramatic, especially to some of my daring friends who think Im being overly cautious. Theyve long told me how peaceful and fun night riding can be. I dont doubt it. I know this bustling city, particularly Brooklyn where I live, can feel calmer in the darkness when everyones winding down from their workday. And frankly, as an anxious person, a little calm would do me good. In those ways, I realize Im missing out. This is why I was open to the idea of getting the right safety gear to finally give this a go.The detailsWhen I received an opportunity to test the new Visijax LED Cycling Jacket with Turn Signals from Sharper Image ($154.99, sharperimage.com), I initially wrote it off for the aforementioned reasons. But it stayed with me. Truth is, the best story ideas scare me a little. And I really do wish I were brave enough to bike at night for fun. A few days later, I returned to the website to watch the video on how it works and then read reviews on Visijax.com. One customer comment in particular gave me some hope: The lights are really, really bright and even when theyre not on, the yellow is unmissable. So I ordered one.Unlike my other cycling jackets, this unisex model had 23 built-in LED lights and reflectors strategically placed throughout, including the chest, arms and back. It comes with a small, lightweight, rechargeable Lithium-ion battery pack that lasts roughly 30 hours. It discreetly plugs into the jacket via an inside pocket and hidden cable.Flicking the lights on or off is easy. You just push the power button sticker on the front of the jacket, which connects to the battery, and choose from three operating modes: one tap to switch on front and rear lights (slow flash), a second tap for quick flashing mode, and a third to display all lights with no flashing. A fourth tap turns it all off and youre back to just a regular, no-frills neon jacket.The coolest part: Motion-activated turn signals in the sleeves (on the front and back, just below the shoulders) flash for about 5 to 10 seconds when you indicate youre heading left or right. This way, youre better able to communicate your riding intentions to others at all times.The testOn an unusually warm night this fall, my friend Tishon met me outside my Brooklyn apartment at 7:15 p.m. to bike about eight miles round-trip, heading north towards Williamsburg. I felt good about this little adventure because its a route Ive done many times in daylight and Tishons one of my badass friends who enjoys pedaling after hours. The minute I walked outside and switched on the jacket, I lit up like a Christmas tree. From the look of surprise on Tishons face, it really felt like Xmas, too.We laughed over my light show, then hit the road, down the highly trafficked street of Vanderbilt Ave. Using the well-marked bike lanes helped ease my nerves. My jacket was so bright that I didnt even use my standard mounted bike lights. When it was time to make a right turn, I happily flung my arms out to signal my plans. So far, so good.Once in Williamsburg, we veered to the left (arm up!) to this hidden little park overlooking the East River and Manhattans twinkling skyline. Then, after about 20 minutes of star and skyscraper gazing, we headed back south, toward home, but first we stopped for tacos. This afforded me another half-dozen brilliant turns onto main roads and side streets. By the time we got to my apartment around 10 p.m., I felt like a bonafide night rider. The cherry on top was when my neighbor Pepper, who was standing outside the building, looked at my shining armor with envy and asked where she could get one.What I likedFull disclosure: I love bright things. I own a fluorescent pink bike helmet and snazzy white sneakers. So I was kinda excited to wear this highlighter-yellow number out in public. That said, even I was a little self-conscious (see cons below), but I did feel very hard-to-miss. Knowing that my fashion statement would stop traffic did make me feel extra safe. This ultimately allowed me to enjoy stepping outside my comfort zone and expand my little world.What I didnt likeAs much as I love all that glitters and glows, I still felt a little shy in this hello-high-beams number. Its hard not to feel geeky in safety apparel in general (looking at you, knee pads), especially something this eye-catching. Also, I was pretty warm under all of these lights. The rainproof fabric, coated with Teflon to keep you dry, is breathable thanks to air vents, but on this temperate night it felt toasty. I had to roll up the sleeves to my elbows to let in the cool breeze as we rode, and that seemed to do the trick.Another concern: The motion sensors didnt always pick up on my turn signals. As the night wore on, my gestures became a bit more elaborate to set off the flashing. That could be because I only charged the battery for an hour beforehand. It probably needed a few more hours to be fully charged.Worth it?Yes, though I havent completely gone to the dark side. Riding on a cool, sunny day in a car-free zone will always be my preference. But with this jacket, I feel less vulnerable, more protected and truly open to opportunities to experience my favorite activity in a new way. In fact, I already have evening plans with another friend to hit the town on two wheels next week. Yup, Im officially taking this dazzling show on the road, and would recommend it if visibility is one of the key reasons holding you back from riding at night too.Custom Minnesota Vikings Jerseys . Tevez, who has had conflicts with coaches in the past, has not been called up since Sabella was named coach in 2011. Argentina boasts Lionel Messi, Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Angel Di Maria. Garrett Bradbury Youth Jersey . If ever they start actually putting pictures beside words in the dictionary, the Blue Jays left-handers mug will appear beside “Consistency. http://www.authenticvikingspro.com/Mike-hughes-vikings-jersey/ . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Irv Smith Jr. Vikings Jersey . Bradwell was scheduled to become a free agent Tuesday. Born and raised in Toronto, Bradwell is entering his sixth CFL season, with all six played for his hometown Argonauts. John Randle Womens Jersey ., and Rudi Swiegers of Kipling, Sask., took sixth spot on Saturday in pairs at the NHK Trophy ISU Grand Prix figure skating competition.I have a sense of déjà vu this season. Again and again, I keep getting out. Bowled, early on in my innings, when the ball is pitched up. I swear the same delivery last year was dispatched over the boundary rope. This summer its shattering the bails.Whats gone wrong?I cant blame my bat, its great piece of willow. Ive definitely been unlucky, though, at least once, as I was run out backing up when the bowler feathered a straight drive off his fingertips into the stumps. But that was once.Some batsmen like to blame the umpire for a run of barren form, and I wish I could. Except for the game where I was triggered lbw sweeping an offspinner - the bowler came up to me after the match and said, I was a bit surprised by that decision - the officials have been flawless. And the fact is, if Id been in form in the first place, Id have connected with that leg-side full toss.Early in the season I tried blaming the pudding wickets, the soft tracks prepared by that Great British groundsman, the wet weather. Soon after I trudged back to the pavilion muttering about the ball not coming on, the next batsman hit a hundred.There is occasional solace when dismissed by a genuine jaffa, and there was certainly that one ball that pitched outside leg and nipped the off bail. That wouldve got Joe Root out, chirped the umpire. And Joe Root would have got a double-hundred in the next match, in which I was yorked by a slow outswinger, on a perfect deck.So whats the solution? Is it a mental problem? Two of my team-mates sought the advice of a bona fide sports psychologist before the season had even started, and both claim the powers conveyed in their counselling sessions have made them better players. The problem is that I studied psychology at university. I know the tricks of the trade. It would be like a magician going to watch a magic show.If my form were a stalling car, Id take it to a mechanic. If my knee was smarting, Id see a physiotherapist. Therefore the cricket equivalent is the coach.Enter Tom Flowers, not only the current leading run scorer of the Leicestershire Premier Division but also the national assistant coach to the England Learning Disability squad. I first met Tom when he was a toddler watching his dad and I play nearly 25 years ago, and I again bumped into him this winter leading my old clubs pre-season training. I gave him a call, reminded him that I once bowled at him as a kid, and then booked a net. Although I grew up with intensive one-to-one coaching, from the woodwork teacher at my comprehensive school telling us to hold the bat like an axe, and from the willing players of Leicestershire CCC wheen they came out on club visits, I hadnt had specialist intervention for years.ddddddddddddFrom the moment I put on the pads and started hitting back Toms throwdowns, I was under scrutiny. Instead of a doctor examining my chest with a tap of the stethoscope, Tom was diagnosing my batting illness with each ball that passed my outside edge or drilled into my pads.Unlike the pro player, who has his technique magnified by HD cameras and scything pundits, the average club hacker has guesswork and team-mate gossip. I knew Tom had made the right prognosis when, without seeing me get out this season, he mimicked how I usually end up being skittled - falling over with my head lopped to one side.Head, hands, feet, he told me, and then showed me. Like a nervous tic, I had developed an odd trigger movement. A short step with my front foot before the ball had even been bowled, as Tom demonstrated by feigning to throw and watching me shuffle forward when the ball was still 22 yards away.In a single season I had worked this faux dance step into my stance. From where? Through injury and age, our bodies change. We develop habits that we dont notice. Jonathan Trott began playing in front of his pad, part of a problem he developed in moving too early to play the ball. There is a big difference with having it in your head to get forward, as Geoff Boycott noted when Trott was in the West Indies in 2015, and moving forward before the bowler actually lets go of the ball.I might not be fending off bouncers in Port Elizabeth or Perth, but my twitchy feet mean Im unbalanced when actually hitting - if lucky - the cherry. After a few drills to retrain my impetuous step, I asked Tom how hard it was to blend this technique tweak into my natural game.Look at Jonny Bairstow, Tom instantly replied. What a transformation.Shortly after Bairstow made his Test debut in 2012, he was dropped. Worse than that, there was the sense hed been found out by quick bowling. His technique simply wasnt sound enough for international cricket. So he went away, changed his stance, hands, and backlift. He broke down everything from chest position to how low he crouched. And wow, has it worked. Bairstow has gone from a failing prospect to a regular star. On his technique rehaul, Bairstow says, If I dont keep improving and evolving my game, its not going to work.Inspiration, surely, for this amateur clubber to stop twitching that front foot and to get his head in line. I shall find out if the tweak turns into runs soon. ' ' '