Yeah you are right . Check out the ubruceriggs answer . That ' ll work . <| sep |> I ' m going to pick nits . Reflectors are for when you ' re far away and within the cone of the headlights but too far for the headlights to properly illuminate you . And when you ' re close to something reflectors don ' t work because the angle between the lights and the drivers eyes is too large . The driver is supposed to be relying on their headlights fully illuminating the subject at that point and in that vein , headlights are supposed to provide adequate illumination for a driver to see and avoid a stationary object that does not have its own lights or reflectors , if not the driver is legally going too fast . Unfortunately few juries in the US are willing to convict a person over this , other countries have different views of driving . Lights on your bicycle are primarily under most laws for when you ' re outside of the cone of a person ' s headlight and secondarily so you can see obstacles again you should be able to avoid an unlitunreflectored stationary object or you ' re going too fast . This is why , in many jurisdictions a headlight is the only required light on a bike but generally requiring tail and side reflectors . Because this is the only light necessary to be seen before you enter the headlights of a motor vehicle .