Headphones (who wears them)

[gobles]

This is why the Camelbak with the speakers in the shoulder straps will be perfect for bikers. Right now I bike (when I rode outdoors) with one head phone in and the other over my shoulder so I could still hear it alittle bit.

[Kitsune06]

Cool idea, but how could you possibly get speakers with enough 'oomf' to play the thumpy techno I listen to?

Knot- you rubber necker! How could I possibly be a danger to myself and others (my claim to Team Danger) without being sorta dangerous?

[gnarwhal]

I don't wear them when i'm on the road going into town or cycling where there might be a lot of people or cars, but i often cycle on disused railway paths, which basically serve as bridleways and dog walking routes and then i pop the phones in and keep it lowish. Dependent upon the time of day obviously as there are certain times when there are more dog walkers and people sauntering about than others.

In the end music can often enhance a ride, but sometimes it's nice to enjoy the sounds of the countryside. Hell i have to "enjoy" the smells of it! Pigs on my route you see!

[light_sabe_r]

I've found a VERY happy medium!

I DO NOT WEAR HEADPHONES

I use the loadspeaker function on my Nokia 6280 (which is alos my MP3 Player) and ride home with that. I listen too my music but it's ALWAY's instantly drowned out by an approaching car. It's in my back pocket of my jersey on my commute.

Headsets ARE dangerous for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists alike.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I hate it when I ring my bell or call out to a jogger or dog walker meandering in front of me in the road only to find they are totally deaf to me because they are wearing earbuds. Incredibly dangerous and annoying. My DH used to wear them cycling but stopped when he himself began to realize he was not hearing traffic well enough.

Besides, I think part of the beauty of riding a bicycle is in being in tune with your environment- I love to hear all the tiny sounds around me when I ride:
the crickets, the tiny roadside stream gurgling, the birds, the sounds of the wind whistling through my helmet, the dry leaves scuttering across the road, the sound of my tires on the asphalt, the sound of my gears changing and clicking, the scolding squirrels, the hawk high overhead, someone raking leaves, a distant dog barking, the sound of children playing in their backyards...these sounds all feed my soul when I ride down the open road, and I myself on my bike become one of the sounds as well, I become one with them all. For me, it's really a sort of spiritual experience.

[pooks]

Yes, listening to music IS enjoyable while biking or jogging....but even aside from the hearing impairment, it DOES pull some of your concentration away from what's happening around you on the road at that instant, just like having your mind wandering.

Wait a sec -- now I can't think about my writing, work out plot points and characterization nuances and "listen" to dialogue in my mind while I'm cycling?

Besides, I think part of the beauty of riding a bicycle is in being in tune with your environment- I love to hear all the tiny sounds around me when I ride:
the crickets, the tiny roadside stream gurgling, the birds, the sounds of the wind whistling through my helmet, the dry leaves scuttering across the road, the sound of my tires on the asphalt, the sound of my gears changing and clicking, the scolding squirrels, the hawk high overhead, someone raking leaves, a distant dog barking, the sound of children playing in their backyards...these sounds all feed my soul when I ride down the open road, and I myself on my bike become one of the sounds as well, I become one with them all. For me, it's really a sort of spiritual experience.

But having a spiritual experience while you're riding doesn't distract you? It would me!

That sounds like a lot of distracting things going on there, to pull your attention away from the road and traffic (and potential traffic). Or maybe you're a better woman than I, and can listen to such things without having your mind wander....

I'm not picking you, Lisa. I enjoy your posts and your attitude. It just happens that these couple of posts by you seem to sum up eloquently what a number of people seem to be saying here and in previous threads.

I think it's fair to say that anybody with earpods or headphones who isn't able to hear what's going on around them is certainly a potential hazard and that's just plain stupid and dangerous.

But the attitude shared by many here that we mustn't ever let our minds wander, that we should find the experience of cycling so complete in and of itself that we don't NEED anything else, and if we do, there's something clearly lacking in us --

I think that's a lot of hooey.



Respectfully submitted by --

Pooks

[Bluetree]

My spiritual experience this morning involved singing the theme from "Rawhide" over and over through three beach cities. Considering my poor, sad singing ability, I'm sure more people on the bike path wished they were hearing impaired.

"My heart's calculatin'... my True Love will be waitin'... be waiting at the end of my ride..."

Joy
(Definitely of the NO headphone sect)

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

But having a spiritual experience while you're riding doesn't distract you? It would me!

That sounds like a lot of distracting things going on there, to pull your attention away from the road and traffic (and potential traffic). Or maybe you're a better woman than I, and can listen to such things without having your mind wander....

The "spiritual experience" I feel from riding has more to do with being connected to everything taking place and passing around me. I am a part of all the events unfolding around me as I pass. In a car I always feel slightly removed from my surroundings. (I'm not saying you don't feel a part of YOUR surroundings mind you, I'm just describing here how I feel)
Far from being distracting, noticing the many varied noises as I move through my environment makes me MORE aware and alert to what's going on in front, back, and to either side of me. It's a sense of hyper-reality I've only felt before when walking alone in the snow in the forest. I guess that's the best I can explain it.

[guanajagirl]

I wear them. I try to stay aware, keep the volume low and plan what roads and time iam going to keep it safe.

[Denise223]

Hi Everyone!

No, I WILL NOT wear headphones while riding my bike!!

Even with the volume set at LOW, IMHO, it's my feeling that 100% of your attention is NOT on riding your bike AND the environment around you.

If you are DRIVING YOUR BIKE, then you need to PAY ATTENTION -- YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS.

I won't wear headphones and I won't ride with anyone who wears them.

Stay safe!

Denise

[Eden]

I agree with Denise, sitting in an office chair with only one ear bud in, listening to NPR is enough to distract me into not "hearing" someone speak to me, so I don't believe that any earphones, no matter how low they are set can ever be safe while riding a bike. In many places it is a moot point in any case, because it is illegal to ride a bike, on the street or on a path, while wearing headphones.

[pooks]

Even with the volume set at LOW, IMHO, it's my feeling that 100% of your attention is NOT on riding your bike AND the environment around you.

Interesting point -- it's rare that 100% of my attention is on riding my bike and the environment around me. Same when I'm driving a car. Even if I'm not listening to the radio or music or an audiobooks while driving, my mind is going 1,000 miles a minute, thinking about all sorts of things, hopping from one tangent to the next. I sometimes even talk to myself.

Same on the bike (though I've avoided talking to myself). I have ADD. I can't focus 100% of my attention on just about anything.

Should I stop riding now?