Best lights?

[annie]

I absolutely LOVEmy Cateye HL EL 500 headlight. It's a single LED, 1000 candlepower (whatever that mean! To me it means that's it's really bright!) Takes 4 AA batteries. 30 hour run time. Very easy to mount on the handlebars. NO tools needed. It doesn't look like it'd be all that bright if you try it in the daylight. But go out in the dark, and it lights up the road surprisingly well. Not quite as bright as the big, heavy rechargeables, but every so much more convenient and lightweight. I've spent some good money on a couple different battery-pack rechargeable lights and have been very disappointed with their run-time, and the life of the battery. I refuse to spend that much money on something that I can't trust. So I've decided to stick with the LED lights and put two on the handelbars. Plenty of light for road-riding. Prob'ly not enough for knarly trails, but I don't do that at night. I think cateye is coming out another, even better LED, but I don't know if it's available yet. Pricey, too, even more than the EL 500. Still, being able to see and be seen on the road at night is so important! Like bikerHen, I have an assortment of blinkies, on my bike, on my rear bag, on my helmet, on my BOB. After once being hit by a car at night, I don't think it's possible to overdo the lights! The more, the safer. Let's all stay safe!

annie

[Sheesh]

We were just at our LBS looking for a new headlight and our favorite LBS guy showed us this new light.

http://www.niterider.com/prod_minewt.shtml

He didn't have any in stock, but is ordering more so we put our names down. It's rechargeable, very small, but also very bright. He said it runs about $169.

[Selkie]

Part of the trail I ride on is not lit, so it's pitch black. I invested in a Lights & Motion ARC Li-On headlight, which is very bright. This year, I bought a backup headlight after I had a minor mishap w/my regular headlight (that I easily fixed, but had to wait on a part from the manufacturer) -- a Niterider Flight. Got a good deal when Performance had a 20% off coupon! Also very bright. Because I ride every day, I need something reliable, bright enough that I can see safely, and durable/high quality. Both lights have their pluses and minuses, but I am completely satisfied with them. Both of them have batteries that easily strap into a bottle cage and I was able to get spare mounts so all of my bikes can be "after dark" rides. In addition, both lights offer high/low beam settings, which is great when I encounter other early morning commuters or joggers/walkers and don't want to blind anyone!. The lights have decently long run times, so long as I recharge the battery after each use. Also, I use tail lights, blinkies on the back of my helmet, reflective tape on my helmet & wheels, etc. You can't be lit up enough.