I run a solid LED on the rear of my bike, and a blinkie on the rear of my helmet. I always run the solid on my bike, and run the blinkie on the helmet in all but ideal daytime visibility.

I run a blinkie flashlight on the front of my bike, and a solid flashlight on my helmet. I run the blinkie in all but ideal daytime visibility, and the solid helmet light when it's dark enough that I would want a light to see stuff.

The forward blinkie probably saved my life yesterday afternoon. I had just moved past the left side of a tractor-trailer (it was turning right from a single lane) to turn left, and was slowly (barely moving) rolling to the corner so I could see cross traffic - when a cement truck decided he was going to turn left onto my road, cutting the corner closer than he should have - right where I was. Just before he was committed to the turn, he saw me and hit his brakes, and waved me on (I guess he thought I was going to dash in front of him, but I wasn't about to).

So... forward blinkies get a big "Yes" vote for me. I'll turn it off or solid when I get to a MUP, but when playing in traffic, I'll run the risk of causing epileptic seizures to anybody who sees them.

BTW, the person who taught me how to ride, and instilled a love of riding has epilepsy, as do two of my brothers. None of them are permitted to drive - in fact, most places won't issue you a license if you are prone to seizures. The idea of blinking lights causing seizures in oncoming drivers is mostly horse-squeeze, since they're not supposed to be driving at all.


Next up for lights: Amber/yellow tire stem LED lights, and a MagicShine once the battery issues are resolved.