I bought a NiteRider Flame Thrower HID+LED 13.2 volt light system off ebay. Took it out for the first ride this morning and holy crap is this thing bright! I usually ride in the morning long before sunrise and being able to see the road is very nice indeed! Probably complete overkill but man, sure beat the snot outta any of the LED only systems I have seen.

I do night rides on the roads of Southern Virginia with the HID system, and cars give me more right of way in the night than in the day. The probably wonder . ."what the hell is that. .?" :eek: And that's a good thing!

This time of year if you want to ride much a good lighting system is almost a necessity. I jumped on the HID bandwagon this year with a Lume Lighting system for both the wife and myself. Just the other night, a driver flagged me down and wanted details on what I was running and where could she get one. I ordered both a wide beam and narrow spot beam system and I cannot get over how well they work.

My wife has a 15 watt Trail Rat and it works pretty well but the HID are just so much brighter. Only big down side is the cost. Pretty spendy little flashlights. :(

Only big down side is the cost. Pretty spendy little flashlights. :(

The other down side is a car not seeing you with a weak light and running you over.. :rolleyes: Cost is insignificant when it comes to safety.

The other down side is a car not seeing you with a weak light and running you over.. :rolleyes: Cost is insignificant when it comes to safety.

I have found that no matter how bright the headlight on my bike cars will still not "see" you. Most people are in the mindset of only looking for other cars and not bikes at that hour of the morning. That single bright light coming down the road doesn't always register with drivers as much as you think it would. I have a little CatEye LED strobe on my helmet as well. If I'm coming up to a car at a stop sign and I have the right of way I will use the LED to give the car a little flash before I ride in front of them. The HID light is for me to see, the LED strobe is to help others see me. Your are right though, if it keeps me from getting splattered then it is worth the $$$. :)