stapfam

I have recently bought a nice big expensive lamp for the bike and it is powerfull. Now I do not believe the quoted battery life but there are not many rides where I can get in a 6 hour ride at night to see if it is only going to have a 3 hour battery life.

Sunday I did a road ride so put the light on the bike and left it switched on for the ride- The battery does have the quoted life.

On the ride- I noticed a couple of riders with rear lights working- Why did I notice them? Because they had the rear light switched on. Especially when the sun went in on the wooded parts of the ride. Did not see any one else with a front light but I had a couple of friends on the ride. They shot off to enjoy their ride while I stayed back with a new rider and they said that at one point they were at the end of a 1 mile drag across heathland. We were at the start amongst a group of other riders. The only way they knew where we were- was the lamp. They picked out the one idiot with a front lamp on, and it was me.

I know it is a powerful light, but it was on low power, and it was pointed about 20 ft in front of the bike. Then I have realised that on my way to work- I see several riders going in the opposite direction. They all have lights on and it is their light that I spot before I realise that it is a bike. Then this morning in the rain and I spotted a light before I even saw the bike- let alone realise it was a bike.

So any of you out and about on these murky days of winter- might think about putting the lights on the bike- Even though it is brilliant sunshine when you start on the ride.

jcm

Yes, absolutely! Again, as a truck driver, I recommend that every cyclist use lights in the daytime. Batteries are cheap. Like you say, Stapfam, you can be seen for great distances with the use of either the red rear lights or the headlights. Just yesterday, four of us went out to the country for a 50 miler. Lots of dark shady areas that would burst into the sunlight. A driver with a moderately dirty windshield can easily be blinded by the afternoon sunlight in such cases. Those red blinkies are amazingly visable at over a 1/4 mile at least.

robtown

Dusk comes early when it's cloudy or raining. If I've been smart enough to pack my battery I'll have my front light on at least the low 33% setting.

greywolf

I believe in one of the Scandinavian countrys they made driving with headlights on in inthe daylight compulsary & it cut down the amount of daytime head on collisions by 40% !!