I try to ruck in the mornings after the sun comes up, as that is generally a safer and much more enjoyable experience. But there are times when I need to go out for my workout before the sun rises — and doing that is something I am always hyper aware of how well I can be seen, and how I am perceived.
I used to mitigate these concerns with reflective everything, but I wanted a little more active “here I am” and a flashlight is not something I need for these workouts (still take one, I just don’t have it on). So I snagged this Felix E-LITE to help. This is a short look at what it is, and why/how I use it.
E-LITE Itself
This light is pretty simple. It’s a tiny little thing with a plastic clip on the back and USB charging (USB-C specifically, which is a nice upgrade from micro USB ports). It has a white light that can be used to illuminate an area, and red/blue lights to provide a ‘here I am’ light (as well as blinking modes).
The interface is simple, and I am a fan of how easy it is to use. Unfortunately the red and blue modes don’t have brightness levels, and as they are I find them to be decently bright. So if you want something dim, look elsewhere.
The battery life has been excellent, but I only use this light in red mode for about an hour a day. I only recharge out of caution, never because I have seen this light die. I have no complaints, in red mode Fenix rates the battery life at 8 hrs.
Why
Ok so there’s a two part why to this light. First is basic safety. I don’t want to be hit by a car because it’s dark out and that’s pretty simple. My hat has a reflective glowing patch on it. My Rucker 3.0 has the built in reflective stripe as well as an additional reflective patch. I reflect well when headlights hit me. But I also want people to be aware of me perhaps before their headlights hit me, or the car hits me.
Rated at 3 lumens, but it feels brighter to me.
But the bigger reason for all this is that I don’t want to freak people out. It’s one thing if you are running/jogging around neighborhoods in the morning — most people shrug that off. But a guy walking with a backpack on in the dark, even with reflective stuffs — that can be unnerving. So I wanted to add some light as a way to signal “I am not trying to be hidden/stealth/sneaky at all, I am RIGHT HERE”. That’s the biggest benefit for me. And if you are worried about red being weird, there’s a blue mode on this light too which runs for 8hrs as well.
Use
One of the big things I was looking for when I was looking for this type of light was the ability for it to clip onto the MOLLE/PALS webbing of my bag. That makes it very easy for me to use the light with my gear.
Right now I clip the light onto the side MOLLE of my Rucker 3.0. Specifically the side which faces the street when I am rucking (I walk against traffic) and that means that I am lighting up the street area and not the houses. It has been great for this use and I don’t even notice it for the most part when I am rucking.
Done
That’s all I got to say about this. A nice little add for about $20. Find it here.