Interview - Miloš Nykodým about headlamps

Some love it, others hate it. Running with a headlamp. It's that time of year, for an afternoon run after work, light will be integral. How's Milos Nykodym? "I like to run at night. Almost every time I feel like I'm running really well." How many headlamps has the Czech representative changed, what to look out for when choosing a light and what headlamp would he recommend?

What do you enjoy about night races?
The race has such a special aura. In orienteering you often feel like it's just you and nature. This feeling increases significantly with the element of darkness. And that's also why a lot of people have trouble, at least at the beginning, getting used to that feeling. There is also a fear that comes with it that needs to be overcome.

Can you combat that fear with a good headlamp, for example?
I think so. The better light you have, the safer you feel, and the faster you can run because you can see under your feet. But the strength of the light is not the most important thing. It's all about the size of the light cone. You can have a mega powerful light, but if it's a "sniper", narrow cone, it won't do you any good.

There are a lot of parameters to examine in a powerful headlamp. The weight of the headlamp body and battery itself, the endurance, the aforementioned cone of light, the combination of optics for map and terrain clarity, color rendition, color temperature, etc. It seems to me that performance is what matters most. Is that right?
Every meter of range further out counts, of course. The sooner I see a terrain break, a rock, a scree, a thicket, the smoother/faster I can run and map. But equally, the width of the cone reveals more information to me, which is equally important for orientation in space. It's not just about the number of lumens.

Yet, can you tell the difference between 8000 and 3500 lumens in the woods?
In the open woods, where you can see clearly even in daylight, I can tell the difference between 8k and 3.5k lumens. If I'm in more closed terrain, I won't know the difference.

Do you know how many headlamps you've had?
Lots. But if we're talking about headlamps for orienteering, there have been about seven. The difference between the first one I got for being nominated for the 2006 European Youth Championships (Silva - halogen) and the last one, the Lucifer Ultra 2023, is abysmal. In lumens it's like 7750 lumens. (laughs)

Now it's that time of year when a headlamp is almost a necessity for afternoon and early evening runs. Can you calculate how many training hours you'll run with a light?
I don't keep track of that parameter, but I'd estimate about 150-200hrs per season. I always take a big, strong headlamp to the OB so I can get used to it and be 100% comfortable with it during the race. For normal running training, I'm fine with a much smaller light that doesn't need a big battery.

Your career has been going on for quite a while, first WC was in 2013. As far as prestigious night races go, you won the Jukolu in 2015 with the Kristiansand OK team. With your current club OK Linné you won Tiomila in 2022 and have been on the podium at Jukla several times, this year and last year it was silver each time. How much has headlighting changed over the years?
The evolution of headlighting has been very fast, as in the whole technical sector. The first powerful lights appeared around 2010. These weren't made specifically for OB, though, so the light cone was quite narrow and the light colour was a piercing white. A few years later I came across a light specifically built for OB purposes with a power of around 3.5k lm that was significantly more comfortable. The current wattage of the best headlamps is more than double the wattage from around 2015.

Have you ever had your headlamp go out?
Yes, I've had my headlamp go out a few times while racing but mostly while training. A few times it was my own stupidity for not having it properly charged before training. During the race, the contact in the connecting cable always betrayed me. Reliability of the headlamp and its components is the number one parameter for me.

Did you resolve the lights going out somehow with the manufacturer?
I had borrowed the headlamp from a teammate, so I thanked him nicely after the race (laughs) and didn't address it further. I couldn't run with my own headlamp, which I trust implicitly, because we have a contract with another company in the squad. But this problem was not a complete exception.

It was during a pretty important race, what was the reaction of the team? Did you lose gold because of the light going out?

Fortunately I had a spare small light that saved me/us and I was able to finish my section. It definitely cost me some minutes that could have been decisive in the end. But there are so many circumstances that determine the course of a race that it is not safe to say that we would have won the race without this incident. My teammates complimented me on how well I handled the race with my limited vision. There was even a comment that I should get a medal just for my performance. The squad spends considerable resources throughout the year to be able to fight for the best possible placings in the 10mile and the Jukola and can end up losing out on such "little things". Reliability of the material should be a high priority in future years.

Is there any way to avoid this?
Double check before the start, have a spare light with you in the tent. Spare jumper cables etc.. we have and do all of that, but even so, the occasional mistake slips in. You just don't start on a night section without a spare light and a buzzer. I'd still prefer we could trust the main light more though.

When you say Lucifer headlamps, what comes to mind?
Czech brand premium quality, reliability, champion of night OB in a country where at least 1 in 2, or more likely 1 in 5 don't have a Lucifer on their head. Two people who stand behind the brand and do their job with love and care.

Now you are running with Lucifer ULTRA, how satisfied are you?
It is the best headlamp I have had the pleasure to own so far. It is very lightweight for how powerful it is. The attachment of the headlamp itself to the head strap is elegantly simple and practical. I also like the ability to attach the battery directly to the head strap (smaller battery) for shorter workouts. One feels more free than when carrying a large flashlight on the back.

How is the Lucifer better than previous headlamps?
It fits better on my head. It's easier to correct the angle at which I need the light to shine. I don't have to loosen or tighten anything anywhere, I just have to readjust with pressure. When I need to look at a map, I don't need to lean over particularly, because one of the diodes is there for just that purpose. It will reduce power on its own if it should overheat. Quality of components, reliability. The operating system (both the modes that are available and their control). And overall, storage. The whole light takes up twice as much space as previous lights.

Where do you see potential for improvement, on the other hand?
I see it mostly in the flashlight vest.

If you had to choose and recommend the ideal combination of race and training light for orienteering, what would you reach for in our range?
For the needs of orienteering I would choose from the L+, X, Ultra models.

Why would you recommend Lucifer headlamps?
Because I believe in their quality. And I also believe that if something were to go wrong, they would be quick to help.