From: jbrandt@hpl.hp.com (Jobst Brandt)
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: Road commuters: headlight on helmet or handlebar?
Date: 14 Aug 2001 18:58:56 GMT

anonymous quips furtively:

> Should I buy a headlight that goes on my bar or on my helmet?

That depends on what you expect from the light.  If you want safety at
night on the road and want to avoid being hit by oncoming cars, get
one on the bicycle.  If you are spelunking or night time trail riding,
get a helmet light.  The function of a bicycle light is primarily to
be seen as a vehicle, rather than illuminating areas of interest,
those not in the bicycle's path, as helmet lamps can.

As an auto driver I find helmet lamps distracting because they are
sometimes there and sometimes not, depending on the rider's current
area of interest.  Beyond that, the path of the bicycle cannot be
determined by watching the light, so it is as if the bicycle were
without a light, which it is.

Jobst Brandt    <jbrandt@hpl.hp.com>