Biking and Music

[KBIKES]

Illegal in Florida.

[lovelygamer]

I considered using ear buds and quickly decided that would be unsafe. I need to hear everything. If I get bored, I listen for birds or the wind in the trees.

[maillotpois]

I was all alone on a double century a week or so ago (in fairness, I only did 150 miles, but I was alone most of the time). Sure, it got a little dull at times. But I also heard a hawk screaming at one point, which was one of the coolest things ever (this was shortly after I left your stop, Veronica).

I often get GREAT songs stuck in my head.

[Maye]

Illegal in Florida.

Didn't know that they were illegal here. I have seen a lot of people using them in the Orlando area trails and even on the road.

[TsPoet]

Maybe it's just me but I think ear buds on bike trails are the worst ( walkers, runners, bladers and bikers) I suspect people think that because there is no motorized vehicle traffic to worry about, they are safe. Wrong-o, imsho. The whole onyerleft onyerleft ONYERLEFT thing has been mentioned already.

Check out the AirDrives - they are little tiny speakers that you hang in front of your ears. Awesome....

story: I ride a recumbent highracer - which means I ride a battering ram with my chainring out front. I was riding to work a couple of years ago (to work at 7 am), and a guy staggered out of the marina, wearing his white boating slacks and weaved all over the mutli-use trail. I yelled "on your left!" and he weaved right, then lurched left, I rammed my chainring right up the middle of the back of his white pants. Not intentionally, and I was going very slowly since I'd already figured out he was drunk... but left quite a "skid" mark for him to figure out later.
Yep, I know what that's like!
I hate earbuds, I won't wear them while typing they are so disorienting to me.

[deeannef]

I know in California, if you have earphones on while riding a cycle, you are automatically at fault regardless of what the other person did. Not worth it. I need to hear what is going on around me and what my bike is doing.

[Owlie]

Riding while wearing headphones is illegal here. I've contemplated taking my iPod with me, draping the earbuds over my neck and turning the volume all the way up so that I have music on long trail rides but can still hear everything.

[Amykins]

I listen to my iPod while riding sometimes. I don't know if you guys are aware, but iPods have an inbuilt speaker and you don't have to use ear buds at all. I just strap it to my forearm in an iPod arm band. The volume is low because the speaker is slightly covered in the arm band, so it can't be loud. Certainly loud enough for personal use though, but not enough to bother other people on the paved bike paths I ride.

I'd say that it is also not distracting me and perhaps even enhances my alertness as I use it when I get a little bored. Usually it is just there on my forearm doing nothing, until the last 30 minutes of a 2.5 hour ride, and I find this enlivens me. I generally (I'd say always, every time) hear bikers coming up behind me before they ring their bell to pass me. (I'm pretty new still and overweight, so I get passed a lot!) I have never gotten any surprises that I can recall because of the music being on. I can hear the birds and the creek, the sound of my tires on the pavement, and really everything imaginable quite well and it's a really nice experience. Riding with ear buds is unnecessary and I'd say extremely dangerous. I can only imagine why anyone would do that is that they assume that you need the ear buds for the device, but turns out you don't.

[Catrin]

I've given up on the whole "ONYERLEFT" thing as even those without buds don't seem to hear me, talking about pedestrians here. Instead I've taken to using my bell - several times - and saying "excuse me...EXCUSE ME", or "passing...CANIPASSYOU"

For me at least those seem to get attention much more quickly, though sometimes I am still forced to come to a screeching stop because someone is paying so much attention to the conversation they are in that they are oblivious to all else around them.

Music is one of those things that will always be debated about I think. I do have to struggle to not be irritated to those who ride with music blaring from their bikes (obviously not using buds) - inevitably it is someone who rides about my speed and I just..can't...get...away from them. I don't want to listen to their music. That is only because they have it much too loud though, I am sure they could set it at a lower volume so they could still hear it without disturbing those who don't want to hear it.

Thankfully this has only happened a couple of times to me, and I am quite sure that an iPod without buds isn't capable of getting near that loud!

[malkin]

I listen to the world around me on the bike - even if there weren't a safety concern, listening to music on the bike removes one of the reasons I love riding - to connect me to the world around me.

This too.
This world of ours is a pretty interesting place, isn't it?

[limewave]

I like to say "When you get a chance . . . "

Anywho, throwing my hat in: I choose to not ride with others if they wear earbuds/listen to music. Its a big reason I have stopped going on group rides. These young guys show up, thinking they're the s**t and wear earbuds--on a group road ride! I watched one of them nearly get blasted by a car as he finished his pull, sat up and moved out to the middle of the road. He was completely oblivious to everyone else in the group and the cars on the road.
I just don't believe their is a place for listening to music when you are riding with others.

However, I do occasionally listen to music when I do gravel road grinders or long bike path rides.

[Irulan]

There's always something like this:

Sleek Speak

[Irulan]

or,

[Maye]

Ha ha!! Love the boom box one! I was imagining all sort of songs that I can play in the boom box while riding.

[Irulan]

Ha ha!! Love the boom box one! I was imagining all sort of songs that I can play in the boom box while riding.

google "boom box on bike" images...... some of the get ups are pretty crazy.