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Night rides are allot of fun and a great way to keep riding when the days grow shorter.  Most riders will enjoy night rides at the beginning and end of the season (mid September - mid April).  However, you will probably need to be a bit of an enthusiast once it starts getting colder.  So don't run out and buy a light until you have tried it a couple of times to make sure you like it.  If you ride with our group a few times (on non night rides) you will probably find someone willing to loan you their old light the first couple of night rides.

To join one or our night rides you will need to have a headlight that can burn at least 3 hours and is bright enough for you to keep up with the group.  If you ride with a light that isn't bright enough you will fall behind the rest of the riders and cause the group waste allot of time waiting for you.

What Not To Use

Commuter headlights that run on replaceable batteries won't be bright enough.
If a headlight doesn't advertise how many watts it has, it won't be bright enough.
If it costs under $200 it won't be bright enough.  Sorry if that one sounds snobbish but unfortunately it is true.

What To Use

Best Choice - HID Headlights (High-Intensity Discharge) are currently your best choice for night rides.  They typically use a 10 watt HID bulb that produces the equivalent light of a 40 watt Halogen bulb.  The base models come with a rechargeable Nickel-Metal Hydride (NiMH) battery which will burn for 4 hours on full power.  You can also get a Lithium Ion version to save weight but be advised that some models have shorter burn times (ie. 2:15 hours with the NiteRider Flight).

Acceptable Choice - Halogen headlights are what everyone used before the HID came along.  The problem with Halogen is they don't burn long enough on full power.  A top end dual beam Halogen light will only burn 1:20 hours on full (32 watts) and 3:10 hours on low (12 watts).  Remember, the HID burns 4:00 hours at 40 watts.  You can get by with a dual beam Halogen by constantly switching power levels but if you aren't careful you will run out of light before finishing the ride.  The single beam Halogens usually have 10 or 15 watts with burn times of 2:20 and 1:45 hours respectively.  You will find it hard to keep up with the group with only 15 watts and you will probably run out of light before finishing the ride.

Bottom Line - If you have or you can borrow a bright enough Halogen you can probably make due.  But don't go out and buy one.  The basic dual beam will cost you $200+ on sale.  You can probably pick up a HID for around $300+ (check out BeyondBike.com, they always seem to have the best prices).  It is allot to pay for a headlight but it is better than spending $200 and regretting it later.