Every morning, before the sun fully stretches across the skyline, I slip on my safety reflective vest—the neon armor of our trade. To most people, it might just look like another piece of high-visibility gear. To me, it’s a second skin. I wear it not just for safety, but as a silent declaration: I’m here, I’m working, and I want to get home safe.
5:30 AM – First Light and First Layer
The day starts early in our line of work. Coffee in one hand, vest in the other. Even in the gray-blue dawn, that fluorescent orange with its reflective silver stripes stands out. It’s light but tough, weathered from long shifts and heavy lifting. I’ve had vests soaked from rain, stiff with cold, and sweat-drenched under the summer sun—but I never leave without it.
7:00 AM – Climbing the Heights
Once we arrive at the job site, the vest becomes more than just bright fabric. Whether I’m on the ground or 60 feet up a ladder tightening bolts, it makes me visible—to drivers flying by, to the crane operator moving the new billboard panel, and to my crewmates keeping an eye on each other. Up there, with wind tugging at your clothes and your harness clipped in, visibility equals trust.
10:30 AM – Heat, Dust, and Highway Noise
There’s something about standing on a catwalk above a highway that makes you respect every part of your gear. I can feel the sun baking down on the vest, making it almost too hot to touch, but I’d rather deal with sweat than take chances. Cars whiz past beneath us at 70 mph. It only takes one distracted driver for things to go wrong. That reflective vest might be the only thing that makes them tap the brakes.
1:00 PM – Lunch and Locker Talk
During our break, we sit in the shade of the truck or under the billboard itself. We might joke about how ridiculous we look in these vests—like human traffic cones—but no one questions wearing it. We’ve all seen or heard stories where visibility made the difference between a near-miss and a tragedy.
4:00 PM – Wrap-Up and Wind Down
By the time we’re loading the truck and logging hours, the vest is dust-streaked and sometimes torn from scraping against metal edges. I’ll hang it up to air out, maybe stitch a rip or swap it for a spare. It’s a part of the uniform that never lies about how hard the day was.
The safety vest isn’t glamorous. It doesn’t get the praise that steel-toe boots or harnesses do. But it’s the unsung hero of roadside and high-rise work. It’s the thing people see before they see you—and sometimes, that’s the difference between safe and sorry.
To anyone thinking of skipping it, even for a second: don’t. Out here, visibility isn’t optional. It’s survival.
I’m Jake—13 years up the ladder, over 1,000 billboards installed, and countless shifts in all kinds of weather. My safety vest has been with me through every one of them. Wear yours with pride.
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