<I don't see why every bike sold couldn't be painted with reflective <paint and embedded with led bulbs that would be powered by pedaling (now <THERE'S a novel idea!) it wouldn't light up the path in front, but it <would light up the bike, like it or not, and people wouldn't have to do <or buy anything - the lighting would be built in. Has this link gone <around? http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/09/reelight_reliab.php < <This seems like a great design challenge for any Wisconsin student with <some big PRIZE offered by BFW and WisDOT. <- cathy in la crosse
Actually the problems posed on that link have already been solved. A few years back I built up a bike with a hub generator and head and tail lights that have capacitors to keep lights on while you stop pedaling. The parts needed to do that are readily available; Shimano makes a hub generator -- though the somewhat-harder-to-find Schmidt is better -- and "standlights" can be found here, among other places: http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/. Now you can even buy a bike with standlights similar to mine as OEM. Here's one: http://www.breezerbikes.com/specs.html. And as far as light power goes, my pedal-powered, 2.4-watt halogen light actually does a decent job of illuminating the path. You can't go 20 mph in places with no streetlights, but it's not bad at all at 10-12 mph, and in places that are streetlit, you can go as fast as you want. In addition to eliminating the need for batteries, the system makes a great conversation starter as you're sitting at an intersection with a fellow rider, etc. Eric Sundquist
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