Out On the Trail: Jeff’s Take
I’ve been using the Urban 850 Trail in conjunction with other lights over several night rides and it works great. Many riders can get away with running this lamp by itself in a helmet-mount configuration. I used the Urban 850 Trail as a fill light on my bars, just for the sheer convenience factor of being able to slap it on without having to route and wrap power cables. As a fill light I’ve had no problem using the light on medium for my entire ride.
As a single LED light, the beam pattern is completely round, but Light & Motion has done a good job tuning the reflector to avoid a super-concentrated bright center, though the center of the beam is still the brightest part. For this reason, I wouldn’t recommend using the Urban 850 Trail by itself as a bar-mounted light for mountain biking, though as a helmet light it will work very well.
The Urban 850 Trail ($180 MSRP) is a legit mountain bike light masquerading as a commuter, perfect for those who do both or for riders looking for a bit of extra refinement in their gear. Pick up one or even two, and keep your wheels spinning year round.
Thanks to Light & Motion for providing the Urban 850 Trail for review.
