Originally Posted by
dougmc
And here's a picture of a bike completely covered in reflector and reflective tape with a rider wearing a reflective vest, but your car's lights are facing somewhere else ..
But, isn't that a pretty unlikely scenario? If your car lights are pointing somewhere else than in front of you, you are probably not going to be driving on a dark road anyway
Many people claim that reflectors or car headlights are "too directional" - but this is not the case, really. The reflective tape I have that has slightly bubble-like surface, when slapped on the wall, still reflects rather well from about 45 degree angle to the side (10 feet back, 10 feet to the side from the centerline, flashlight next to my head).
Car headlights are not that directional either, there's always plenty of scattered light.
Your "bright floating blip in the dark" seems to be based on really wimpy lights. This is 2012 -- good, really bright lights are easy to get for not too much money, and you're a hell of a lot more than a "floating blip".
Not really if you are seen, but also how it makes you appear
The most important thing, of course, is for the drivers to see there's something on the road. But, in addition to being seen, it also increases your safety that you are identified as a cyclist, so they know you're probably doing about 20 MPH. It's also important that they can somehow judge your distance. Usually this is done judging from your size, and with a single light it can be a bit difficult to tell.
Here's a bright light after dark:
http://www.utahbikelaw.com/images/st...dlight_opt.jpg - very hard to tell the distance or speed, until you see the reflection from the ground and can judge it based on that. To my experience, it's actually the same thing with powerful car hi-beams, if you have a long stretch of road.
I do admit that I put "better than lights" in the topic to rise a bit of attention
I use both - but I consider that reflectors are 50% of the system.