Do you listen to music when cycling

jam1ec

Following on from another discussion i thought this could be interesting.

From personal expericence i have found it to reduce my general awareness so don't anymore. I think it insulates you from the surroundings and you end up in your own little world.

AidanR

I used to, and probably will again on quiet roads when training, but certainly not for the commute! Actually, you can still hear a fair amount around you as long as you don't have isolating earphones and the volume's not too loud. Certainly more than in a car anyway!

TheFoolio888

I wouldn't even think about it...even a slight reduction in what I was able to hear is asking for trouble. Also...I would get far to distracted singing along... :oops:

Belv

Sometimes!

I go through phases of doing so, usually when i don't want to be cycling so getting into my own little world helps. When the clocks changed and it 'suddenly' got cold and dark, i did for a few weeks. 90% of my commute can be on cycle paths, if necessary, and i do use them when plugged in.

misterben

I'm deaf in one ear, so I try to avoid any additional background noise.

tardington

Not me - I have to cycle on the roads - with CARS, believe it or not! Plugging up your ears just seems pretty silly, IMHO.

I can see why it's nice though, but I tried it on a cycle path, and not being able to hear the local environment (trees, walkers etc) was kinda creepy - I just didn't feel safe.

Edinburgh Bikes do a nice poster with a cyclist with an iPod being run over, it's pretty cool. If more people at my work start cycling, I might put one up.

MB Robster

When I want to get run over I'll start listening to music. Until then I'll stick with the heady beats of London's rush hour tunes played out by the lovelly motoring public (or irate pedestrians) on the asphalt of our roads.

homercles

For me part of the joy cycling is getting in touch with the surroundings a bit more. Always feel a bit cocooned with iPod on the tube, while walking, etc, so cycling is my 'open ears' time.

adambro

The pleasure of listening to music is just not worth the decrease in awareness of what's going on around you in my opinion. If I was going to go for a long ride off road I might consider it but its only another thing to have to fiddle with before and after the ride.

Special K

no I don't listen to music for reasons already covered.

However I have used my handsfree kit on my phone to listen to Radio 4's Today or PM programmes to and from work. No more distracting than having the radio on in the car, and your still aware of cars approaching in a way that you're not when listening to music.

marchant

I don't listen to music on the bike, more of an audio book fan; 90% of my commute is on near-deserted cycle track, way outside of "office hours" so it's rare I see anyone.

Stig-OT-Dump

I listen to music & podcasts. I've even been known to laugh out loud at times - now that scares other road users!

I keep the volume down, right enough, so that I can still hear traffic noise.

I don't use a mobile phone though - whether I'm driving or cycling. That would just be pure stupid. I mean, I might miss out on a good tune or gag.

(BTW - the "Scotland's Funny Bits" from Radio Scotland is worth a listen)

Jabba165

I listen somethimes whilst riding to work, the volume is low so i can still hear the the general traffic noise that's about. i find it handy when the body is feeling low and i'm about to climb a hill. If the tempo/beat is right i find the music gives me a boost.

Anonymous

Don't you think that someone seeing you as you listen may be a bit confused about whether you know they are there or not? I listen as I ride, but keep the volume down to 1 or lower. I try to keep the road noise louder than the ear buds. I hate fixing anything, even though I can fix anything.

gavmac

I think cyclists that use headphones in traffic are in the same catogory as those with dark clothing and inadequate lights. The inevetable natural selection will happen and the gene pool will benefit. I would urge them all to carry organ donor cards as well to further benefit humanity.

Anonymous

Same thing for helmets and gloves. Any safety gear, actually.
I still have no problem hearing even with headphones. I make sure they are not louder than anything else, and besides, I don't want to miss Car Talk or any NPR or PRI broadcasts.
BTW, I carry an organ donor card.

BentMikey

gavmac wrote:

I think cyclists that use headphones in traffic are in the same catogory as those with dark clothing and inadequate lights. The inevetable natural selection will happen and the gene pool will benefit. I would urge them all to carry organ donor cards as well to further benefit humanity.

What about deaf people then mate? Or car drivers listening to the radio, or cyclists who can hear traffic over the sound of their earphones? Perhaps that wasn't a very well thought out first post?

If you rely on your ears that much, then you're not looking and observing properly according to Cycle Training UK.

gavmac

Perhaps the smiley meant it was not to be taken seriously. For someone that posts a lot you perhaps should have picked that up. Were you listening to headphones at the time?

Anonymous

Looks like the gloves are on. 'Knew that would happen, eh?

tardington

Fight! Fight! With appropriate safety gear!

Bentmikey is nice, and full of sense - even if he is a bit of a dad!

Anonymous

I think what is usually overlooked is that, even though safety gear is worn by the activist, or participant, it also protects the observer, not that it keeps them from injury, but that it determines who the litigation will directly affect.
In the Seattle, WA. area, in the county of King, helmets are required outside of the city of Seattle but inside of the King county area. Seattle being that counties seat (center of comerce, etc.) I never really came to grips with that logic, but in the long run, safety gear helps to define who is and isn't liable.
To be selfish enough to say it is an infringment on ones 'rights' is a bit on the side of lending decay to the image of the activity and participant the gear intends to ultimately protect.
If helmets, or any other gear, were a fashion statement, I would use them without thinking twice because of their obvious and intrinsic safety value. To be able to wear a form of personal audio equipment is a privledge in my eyes, and to blame an accident on someone else when the wearer couldn't hear them coming is asking for the consequences. There is no chance I would ever allow my NET MD to drown out my surroundings.
Oh, crap, stop me before I fall off of this box.
Hey, you can whine, but that doesn't avoid or lesson the danger of accidents.
K, I'm done.
P.S. Do these edit boxes have spell checkers? I don't see any.

TheFoolio888

BentMikey wrote:

If you rely on your ears that much, then you're not looking and observing properly according to Cycle Training UK.

I don't agree...In my personal, humble opinion....anything which reduces your awareness of anything, even if it is only by 1% is a bad thing...and asking for trouble. Listening to a walkman does exactly that...no matter how quiet you have it...it still impedes your hearing in some way...that CANNOT be good.

BentMikey

TheFoolio888 wrote:

BentMikey wrote:

If you rely on your ears that much, then you're not looking and observing properly according to Cycle Training UK.

I don't agree...In my personal, humble opinion....anything which reduces your awareness of anything, even if it is only by 1% is a bad thing...and asking for trouble. Listening to a walkman does exactly that...no matter how quiet you have it...it still impedes your hearing in some way...that CANNOT be good.

My comment was aimed more at the previous poster's insistence on the essential need for hearing when cycling, when clearly looking is the primary and most important thing to rely on. Hearing isn't a very good sense to rely on for your safety, you need to look properly first of all.

Taking the earphones issue separately, I think you're probably right that they reduce awareness a little, but I'd differ in that I don't think it's nearly as critical as you make out. Cycling is about as safe as walking, it's quite possible to both listen to music and the traffic around you, and thus I don't think the effect earphones have on your safety is worth being especially worried about.

BentMikey

LOL @ tardie!!!! I am a Dad, although I was one of the naughtiest kids in my year at school, more in a mischievous way, and I don't think I've lost my sense of fun since. I might know what I should be doing, but it doesn't mean that I always manage to do that!

Gambatte

When I’m on the road, surrounded by tonnes of fast moving metal, I want my head to be concentrating on ‘here & now’ as much as possible, with as few distractions as possible.

I’ll put the earpiece in at work!

BentMikey

Yes, but even without earphones in, your hearing isn't going to be helping you much in that situation, is it? Too noisy, both from traffic and wind noise.

Gambatte

BentMikey wrote:

Yes, but even without earphones in, your hearing isn't going to be helping you much in that situation, is it? Too noisy, both from traffic and wind noise.

But wind and traffic noise are conditions of the present environment. Music etc can take you away from that. Its nothing to do with the volume, it’s the distraction that it can encourage.

BentMikey

Ah, but that's a mental thing, and not to do with earphones/music. Distractions come from many sources, bee stings, work or domestic troubles, pretty girls walking on the pavement, etc. It's like many things you encounter whilst riding/driving. With the proper care and concentration, such as reduced volume and not blocking traffic noise, earphones whilst riding shouldn't be a problem.

I'm saying that listening to music on a bike is no different than whilst driving a car. Do it stupidly, like a chav boom box driver, and your safety will suffer, do it well and with the right attitude, and there's no issue.

spen666

BentMikey wrote:

Ah, but that's a mental thing, and not to do with earphones/music. Distractions come from many sources, bee stings, work or domestic troubles, pretty girls walking on the pavement, etc. It's like many things you encounter whilst riding/driving. With the proper care and concentration, such as reduced volume and not blocking traffic noise, earphones whilst riding shouldn't be a problem.

I'm saying that listening to music on a bike is no different than whilst driving a car. Do it stupidly, like a chav boom box driver, and your safety will suffer, do it well and with the right attitude, and there's no issue.

But it is different because you are far more vulnerable on a bike than in a car

Clever Pun

I listen to tunes on my journey as it helps keep my pace up, if I listen to slow crushing music my pace drops dramatically, so it's fast and heavy... I keep the volume low enough so I can hear unusual road noise

To the safety side on things.. on my commute there is a steady stream of cars so hearing the constant buzz of engines offers no benefit whatsoever imo, I can hear sirens easily.. bus lanes I'm on my own, if I change my road position I'll check my shoulder and go. I don't see how taking the headphones off gives me any benefit on my commute

Gambatte

BentMikey wrote:

Ah, but that's a mental thing, and not to do with earphones/music. Distractions come from many sources, bee stings, work or domestic troubles, pretty girls walking on the pavement, etc. It's like many things you encounter whilst riding/driving. With the proper care and concentration, such as reduced volume and not blocking traffic noise, earphones whilst riding shouldn't be a problem.

I'm saying that listening to music on a bike is no different than whilst driving a car. Do it stupidly, like a chav boom box driver, and your safety will suffer, do it well and with the right attitude, and there's no issue.

But you see I also have issue with the whole concept of ‘in car entertainment’. We see enough examples of distracted drivers out there as it is. We’ll never get figures, but I wonder how many of those are singing along, listening to the news etc?