Ding, Ding! Bell or No?

[crazycanuck]

Pam...I've never come accross anyone of a NESB on the bits of the bike path I ride on...Older upper middle class folk manily. In Sydney it might be different but in Perth nope. Not all bike infrastructure is the same accross the planet....

(however....most of the NESB folks in my neighbourhood ride on the footpath..which is illegal..no lights, no bell, helmet on the wrong way etc and scare the $($($( out of us when walking...)

As I mentioned before..I now take avoid certain bike only paths & take the road which is actually safer than the bike path.

There's a few corners in Perth that a bell might help but heaps of people cut them & don't give a $*$&*$& anyways....It's one big testosterone laden bike path here..oo nooo we can't slow down.. we might have a slower ride in... and we then can't tell all our friends that we did our ride 20sec faster than the previous day and 40 sec faster than the day before that...

Aslo, most of the roadies i pass have $*$$& Ipods on & wouldn't notice if someone had a bell...

Most of the kwinana bike path going south (i don't go north very often) doesn't have anything along it...The houses are set back from it with a small noise wall then after that, pretty much nothing.

One more thing...our mtb trails in Western Australia aren't walker/rider shared. The walkers have the Bibbulmun track & we have our dedicated mtb trails. I've never ever ever seen anyone walking on our mtb specific trails.

There's a well known recreational walking/bike path in the hills here that cris crosses roads etc. I might come accross one or two folks w doggies but I stop even before they see me so i don't frighten them. It's better at night!

[Susan]

I have a little bell on my Commuter but not on my MTB. I don't use it if I can avoid it, because people tend to either turn around, give me a scared look and then jump in any direction if they hear it or feel offended. Calling out, as many of you describe, would be considered rude and I guess it wouldn't work anyway - nobody is used to it. So I usually just approach them slowly and pass if there's enough space somewhere.
We have a lot of mixed bike/foot-paths and they are real hazzle as a cyclist.

[Catrin]

Around here, at least, it seems that all of the walkers and runners have buds or other music-listening apparatus stuck in their ears or they are plastered to a phone (walkers). I haven't bothered to get a bell for this reason, and there really isn't any place to put it on my handlebar. Between my shifters/computer/HR monitor mount there really isn't any other room. Also there aren't many pedestrians on my country roads to worry about.

If I were to start commuting, however, chances are I would break down and find a bell for whichever bike I chose to use as my commuter, and remove the HR monitor mount.

[lph]

Just to add my two kroner - I wear a not-an-ipod bike commuting, and I can easily hear a bicycle bell at any distance within which I have to do something about it. I can also hear traffic, horns and sirens ditto. Sure there are many clueless gits out there, but wearing an ipod doesn't necessarily mean you have it on full blast or are not paying attention to your surroundings.

I am not starting a discussion on ipods on bikes, just don't not ring your bell behind an ipod-wearing runner because you assume he or she can't hear you.

I use a bell and find it very handy for warning people well in advance that I am approaching "their space".

[OakLeaf]

Do you never deal with people from other countries? It's rude to assume everyone speaks English (IMO).

I don't think it's rude at all when you're dealing with rules of the road, which encompasses pedestrians as well. We're not talking about complex communications.

When we drive - or walk - in Europe, we're expected to know and obey the road signs whether or not we understand the language (and on our first trip, some of the signs were very counterintuitive to Americans). IMO the same thing applies to people who don't speak the predominant language wherever they may be. Even assuming someone is tooling around in the middle of the lane where they're not supposed to be anyhow - so that it may be important for them to understand which side you intend to pass them on - I think the words for "right" and "left" are some of the first words anyone learns in any language, and I think it's safe to assume that even a tourist would understand those words.

Re: a bell, I've never heard of that being a requirement, but I'll take your word that it is in your state. In Ohio, there's actually a section that permits a bicycle to have a bell, as distinguished from prohibited sirens and whistles. Florida doesn't mention it. Most states have a requirement that anyone passing, in any vehicle, give an audible signal, but a verbal warning qualifies when you're riding a bike.

[Velocivixen]

My rides through both regional parks and neighborhood parks on multi-user paths dictate that we give a verbal warning that we are approaching (biker warns pedestrians) & it is also considered a courtesy.
There is a senior woman who only rides about two months out of the year and I would be walking my dogs and she would be right up on me, not saying a thing, and scare the cr*p out of me. I always had to watch for her, and finally I stopped to talk with her and gently told her that it is customary (around here), to call out. Especially to dog walkers because it can take a few seconds to get out of the way or whatever.

[Catrin]

I think it is an actual law in Indiana to have a BELL on the bike, not that everyone pays attention to that... I could be wrong, but that was what my first LBS told me.

[Eden]

Is it unusual for bells (or equivalent) to be required by law? Granted, if you are mostly dealing with cars, it's useless (though I ring mine anyway just for fun) but if you deal with peds or other cyclists, it is essential, I would think.

Out here it is bell or voice warning when passing - and that is only when on a MUP. I also avoid MUPs when at all possible.....

[Aggie_Ama]

One of the trails I like to ride is a spider web layout. I use the bell at intersections and have again had people thank me. It keeps us all safe. On my road bike my voice is plenty to alert people. I don't use MUP. I will take a picture of my bike set up once the new one arrives. I use a tiny stem and bars but my bell is minimal and doesn't take up any valuable space for me. Road bars there is a shortage of real estate though.

[MomOnBike]

I have a bell and love it. Sometimes I ring it just because I like the sound. It has more serious, adult, boring uses, as well.

On the MUP - I ring when coming up on walkers, joggers, etc. Most have earbuds in, but most acknowledge me and move over. I also call out, as a courtesy.

On RAGBRAI - When DH & I rode RABRAI a few years ago, we'd use our bells as a SLD (Spouse Location Device). Whomever was in front would occasionally ding. If the following spouse dinged back, all was well. If not, maybe we needed to be looking around more.

It is also a compass. I like to tour. A compass is nice to have when in unfamiliar places. Here's a view of my bars on one tour. The compass/bell is right there where I can see/ring it.

[Velocivixen]

Ohhhh, I didn't know they made bike mounted compasses!!! What kind is that? Is it bike specific? I don't have a smartphone and can't afford any Garmin devices, so that is so cool.

[MomOnBike]

I was afraid someone would ask that. I have no idea who made it, or any other helpful details. It was at the LBS and I snagged one, then got another for DH. It is bike specific, so if you want one, ask at your LBS. We've had them a while, I don't know if they are still made, even

Sorry, wish I could be more helpful.

[OakLeaf]

Several options, although it kind of looks like they all come from the same factory in China

https://encrypted.google.com/search?...w=1440&bih=712

The Adventure Cycling catalog was the first place I looked, and I was very surprised that they don't have one.

[Becky]

The commuter has a bell for the section of my commute that's on a MUP. I tried the voice thing, and too many people couldn't figure out what "passing on your left" meant

The commuter's bell occasionally gets moved over to a roadie for large organized rides and tours. I can only say "on your left" so many times, and I prefer to give some kind of notice before passing other riders.

Each of the MTBs has one too. A bell is a nice thing to have going into a blind corner, or coming upon some hikers.

[soprano]

I'm pretty much out of handlebar read estate, plus the bell clamp didn't want to play nicely with my drop bars; the clamp wasn't large enough.

So, I unscrewed the bell mount assembly, chucked it, and screwed the bell + ringer arm directly into the downtube shifter boss.



When I had my tuneup this winter, I asked the mechanic if I was asking for trouble with this arrangement, because the bell screw is shorter than the screw that was originally in that location. He said nope, it was fine, and if it wasn't, I'd have known immediately.

I had thought about ordering one of those headset spacer + bell mount combos from Velo Orange, but since this solution was free and works just fine, I'm sticking with it. I do occasionally reach down and make sure that the bell is still firmly screwed on. I should probably Locktite it down.