Hardcore Headlights Get You Hardcore Respect

The days are getting shorter again, the fair-weather commuters are returning to their exoskeletons and the cyclists are turning on their headlights again. I’d say that 80% of the night riders (knight riders!) have headlights. They are the same ones that have yellow bike jackets or anything made from lycra. That guy that commutes in jeans on a crackle-paint mountain bike with half-flat tires does not (but you can usually see even him sufficiently because of his flapping flannel shirt). A little glowing LED goes a long way to improve your visibility. A bike with a light is much safer than a bike without a light. Common sense and statistics back it up. But might we be even safer?

I was riding home in the dark one day last winter, on the burke Gilman trail, Seattle’s primary mixed-use arterial (hikers, bikers, and dog walkers). There is no automobile access on this paved path. It is probably wide enough for a car, but they are not allowed, and the crossings are blocked with cement-filled steel bollards that only allow us skinny types through. Imagine my surprise then, when I came around the bend in the dark, and was staring into the headlights of an oncoming car! I almost dove into the bushes to avoid certain death. I pulled to the side and watched in disbelief and horror. As the light approached and whooshed past me, I realized that it wasn’t a car at all. It was a goddam cyclist with a goddam car-headlight on his bike. Awesome! That’s the way to do it. That’s the way to get noticed/avoided/respected amongst the cars. I’m getting one.

In the dark, you can only judge a vehicle by its lights - you usually can’t even see the rest of it. Most cyclists have LED bike headlights, but how visible are they amongst the street lights, cars, stoplights and reflections of the city? Especially in the rain, even a bike with a light can disappear into the visual background “noise”. But not with a light like that!

I’m sometimes amazed that people in cars will turn or cross right in front of me, or stand on the road/path/crossawalk like there isn’t a cyclist flying toward them at 20mph. They either don’t see me, or they just figure that a cyclist is too slow/small to worry about. I bet they’d move if they thought a car was about to smash into them, and a bright-ass headlight will make them think exactly that. I’ve seen a few others since then, and talked to one rider sporting a super bright light. They are in fact made for bikes. Most are rechargeable, and cost anywhere from $80 - $300. The nice owners put a hand over their light when they are passing you head-on on the trail. Look for me out there with my new light soon, you’ll see me. I just might come up with a better tail light too. Any ideas?