One Headphone...

charliew87

So quite often now, be it on a solo long road ride at the weekend or in my commute through central London, I will stick an earphone in my left ear and listen to either Radio 4/5Live/Talksport/a Podcast on half volume. [I listen to the R4 Today show in the morning commute as don't have time to read newspaper any longer.]

I don't have noise cancelling earphones, it's only my left ear and it's not loud. I feel that I can hear everything going on around me at all times when on quiet and busy roads. If a lorry/loud vehicle is anywhere nearby it usually totally eclipses any noise in my left ear anyway.

There's nothing I hate more than seeing reckless cyclists careering around without lights, huge can style headphones over both ears and not wearing a helmet. BUT I'm fully lit up, wearing the right clothing and can hear everything around me.

How stupid does that rank from 0-10?

GiantMike

You're 'golden' until you get hit by something, then somebody will call you an idiot.

MartinGT

Earphones IMO are distracting, even if you wear one.

Anonymous

Its your life, you decide. Actually, maybe ask your family though.

Did the talk of London cyclist deaths on Radio 4 not put you off a tad? :shock:

Its not the volume, its the distraction IMO.

marcusjb

I use onegoodearbud a lot - but not commuting or in towns.

My thing is riding big distances - night-time riding is much improved with a bit of music, a podcast or whatever.

So, depends on where/when you do it.

Anonymous

Talk shows are the worse thing to listen to. They are far more distracting than music.

majormantra

When riding solo I use two headphones. They let in a lot of background noise, I always ride predictably, and I am very careful to do life-saver checks over my shoulder when making any kind of maneuver. Sue me.

Colinthecop

GiantMike wrote:

You're 'golden' until you get hit by something, then somebody will call you an idiot.

This is the internet. There is no need to wait that long. 8)

Anonymous

MajorMantra wrote:

When riding solo I use two headphones. They let in a lot of background noise, I always ride predictably, and I am very careful to do life-saver checks over my shoulder when making any kind of maneuver. Sue me.

Who do you think cares anywhere near enough to sue you?

katiebob

10.

When you've been squashed by a lorry, the people shovelling you into a bag will assume you had both in and that it was your fault...

Gentracer

You're an adult, its up to you.

IMHO 10. If you get knocked off, it just another thing for the driver to pick up on that you weren't paying attention, and might affect any claims that you might need to make.

Personally I like the quiet when I am riding.

navrig

This ^

and it is up to you judge the risks. I don't use any music or radio when riding. Didn't on the motorbike either. I think it is a big distraction but yet I listen to music/radio and will take hands free calls in the car. Clearly my judgement is entirely geared at my saftey when driving rather those on any sort of bike!! I guess most drivers are the same, unfortunately.

You will get all sorts of viws on here about using headphones however if everyone was as risk averse as their comments suggest there wouldn't be threads about maximum speed or night riding. We would all be toodling about on fat tyres, with mirrors attached to the bars and not going above 20mph.

charliew87

Less 10s than I anticipated.

Will continue as I have been. In the grand scheme of things theres substantially more dangerous things to worry about.

Colinthecop

Katiebob wrote:

When you've been squashed by a lorry, the people shovelling you into a bag will assume you had both in and that it was your fault...

And we do actually use shovels. :?

GiantMike

Gentracer wrote:

You're an adult, its up to you.

IMHO 10. If you get knocked off, it just another thing for the driver to pick up on that you weren't paying attention, and might affect any claims that you might need to make.

Personally I like the quiet when I am riding.

Interesting, when I drive I have the radio on and I don't find it distracting, unless I'm shouting at the idiots who phone into the Jeremy Vine show. Why is it more distracting to have a headphone in (quite rare) compared to having a car radio on (almost every car)?

majormantra

Carbonator wrote:

MajorMantra wrote:

When riding solo I use two headphones. They let in a lot of background noise, I always ride predictably, and I am very careful to do life-saver checks over my shoulder when making any kind of maneuver. Sue me.

Who do you think cares anywhere near enough to sue you?

It's a figure of speech. Of course, you knew that.

Bozman

1. Use your eyes, if you start getting bothered by what's going on behind you tend to make mistakes, that's when accidents happen.

WindyG

charliew87 wrote:

How stupid does that rank from 0-10?

5 it would be 10 if both earpieces are used

Wirral_paul

I've never ridden a motorbike but for someone who has - would you say you can hear more with iphone type bud headphones, or a full face helmet and the noise of a motorbike??

I get the "distraction" point - but would be interested to hear genuine opinions on the above

Anonymous

GiantMike wrote:

Interesting, when I drive I have the radio on and I don't find it distracting, unless I'm shouting at the idiots who phone into the Jeremy Vine show. Why is it more distracting to have a headphone in (quite rare) compared to having a car radio on (almost every car)?

1/ Having earphones in/on is very different to having speakers in a car (I would never drive with earphones in).
2/ You are in a car with a safety cell around you and probably unlikely to die in a crash (especially on London commuter roads).
3/ People are more aware of you being there so you have more time to react if you are distracted.
4/ You are in your own lane so you have more time to react if you are distracted.
5/ You get used to the music/chat being on in a car in a way you probably never will on a bike.
6/ You simply do not need to concentrate as much driving a car so you can afford the distraction of the music/chat.

thegibdog

Navrig wrote:

Clearly my judgement is entirely geared at my saftey when driving rather those on any sort of bike!! I guess most drivers are the same, unfortunately.

Indeed. I wonder how many of the people advising against listening to anything whilst on the bike due to the distraction are happy for drivers to listen to the radio in their cars?

Anonymous

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've never ridden a motorbike but for someone who has - would you say you can hear more with iphone type bud headphones, or a full face helmet and the noise of a motorbike??

I get the "distraction" point - but would be interested to hear genuine opinions on the above

I think it is more about just being as safe as you can.
Your life is far more at risk on a motorbike, and even more so on a bicycle than in a car so its just not worth shortening the odds IMO.

You are wearing the helmet as a life saving aid on a motorbike so I do not see what relevance it has on noise obstruction.

A motor bike is more prominent a vehicle, is treated much more respectfully and has the power to avoid a lot of situations a bicycle does not.
These things make it silly to suggest its ok to obscure your hearing on a bicycle just because it is obscured on a motorbike.

If you get the distraction aspect, then why does it matter about what you can or cannot hear anyway?

Anonymous

thegibdog wrote:

Navrig wrote:

Clearly my judgement is entirely geared at my saftey when driving rather those on any sort of bike!! I guess most drivers are the same, unfortunately.

Indeed. I wonder how many of the people advising against listening to anything whilst on the bike due to the distraction are happy for drivers to listen to the radio in their cars?

I am personally more than happy for drivers to be possibly a little distracted by music etc. (not sure about hands free calls though).
You have to draw a line in the sand somewhere and for me its there.

Part of the reason people are anti listening to music while cycling (in traffic) is the very fact that people are listening to it (and possibly being distracted by it) in cars lol.

There are a lot of things I would do before even thinking about the distraction caused to drivers by music.
For cyclists its pretty much at the top of the list though.

Omar Little

If out cycling and i approach a cyclist from behind who is wearing earphones they are typically away in a world of their own and not fully aware of what is happening around them. Those that wear them will likely disagree and say its just as safe as riding without but then they dont see themselves riding so are not best placed to judge.

awavey

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've never ridden a motorbike but for someone who has - would you say you can hear more with iphone type bud headphones, or a full face helmet and the noise of a motorbike??

I get the "distraction" point - but would be interested to hear genuine opinions on the above

most motor bike riders I know who ride around alot on the main roads, actually wear ear plugs with full face helmets, because continued exposure to the noise of the wind/engine/road does damage your hearing and they want to cut the noise down.

obviously they aren't noise cancelling, just those little yellow ear bud things you still hear some noise, but no different to earphones really or listening to music as again some I know do on grand tours, some also have radio style intercoms (like the bike testers use) to chat to each other as well.

its not a 10, its your choice IMO, but yeah expect everyone to blame you for it if you do have an accident.

I found it distracting for a number of reasons when I tried it, so I don't bother, but its funny I was out in the summer on a quiet country ride and could hear these people talking getting louder and louder, which I thought was odd as I was making reasonable progress, and just couldn't work out how they were catching up with me, and just as I looked backwards to see what was going on this cyclist breezed past me, with a radio strapped to the handlebars listening to test match special out of the speaker...I was so surprised I didn't even ask what the score was

GiantMike

Carbonator wrote:

GiantMike wrote:

Interesting, when I drive I have the radio on and I don't find it distracting, unless I'm shouting at the idiots who phone into the Jeremy Vine show. Why is it more distracting to have a headphone in (quite rare) compared to having a car radio on (almost every car)?

1/ Having earphones in/on is very different to having speakers in a car (I would never drive with earphones in).
2/ You are in a car with a safety cell around you and probably unlikely to die in a crash (especially on London commuter roads).
3/ People are more aware of you being there so you have more time to react if you are distracted.
4/ You are in your own lane so you have more time to react if you are distracted.
5/ You get used to the music/chat being on in a car in a way you probably never will on a bike.
6/ You simply do not need to concentrate as much driving a car so you can afford the distraction of the music/chat.

What kind of distraction am I likely to suffer from (as detailed in your points 2-4 above)? As I sometimes cycle with headphones in and I can't tell the difference between my distraction levels in either case, what am I missing?

If I were to have an accident, could I blame it on the boogie?

navrig

awavey wrote:

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've never ridden a motorbike but for someone who has - would you say you can hear more with iphone type bud headphones, or a full face helmet and the noise of a motorbike??

I get the "distraction" point - but would be interested to hear genuine opinions on the above

most motor bike riders I know who ride around alot on the main roads, actually wear ear plugs with full face helmets, because continued exposure to the noise of the wind/engine/road does damage your hearing and they want to cut the noise down.

obviously they aren't noise cancelling, just those little yellow ear bud things you still hear some noise, but no different to earphones really or listening to music as again some I know do on grand tours, some also have radio style intercoms (like the bike testers use) to chat to each other as well.

its not a 10, its your choice IMO, but yeah expect everyone to blame you for it if you do have an accident.

I found it distracting for a number of reasons when I tried it, so I don't bother, but its funny I was out in the summer on a quiet country ride and could hear these people talking getting louder and louder, which I thought was odd as I was making reasonable progress, and just couldn't work out how they were catching up with me, and just as I looked backwards to see what was going on this cyclist breezed past me, with a radio strapped to the handlebars listening to test match special out of the speaker...I was so surprised I didn't even ask what the score was

I had custom fit ear plugs made for the motorbike. They had a small tube fitted which allowed some filtered noise through but generally they kept out most but the loudest of road noise. Whilst they blocked some noise I could hear nearby vehicles. The important thing was there was no distraction allowing me to concentration on riding my bike.

Some m/bike riders have mini speakers fitted into the sides of their helmets meaning that they get some music/entertainment but they don't drown out the background road noise unless they also wear hearing protectors in which, I suspect, they will hear nothing of the road noise.

I remember before I got the custom ear plugs I used the usual bright yellow foam protectors. One day I was fitting them and discovered they slipped right into my ear canal completely deafening me - I had shaving foam in my ears and it lubricated the foam bud as I lid it in. After my very silent ride my wife had to pull them out with tweezers!

StillGoing

awavey wrote:

Wirral_Paul wrote:

I've never ridden a motorbike but for someone who has - would you say you can hear more with iphone type bud headphones, or a full face helmet and the noise of a motorbike??

I get the "distraction" point - but would be interested to hear genuine opinions on the above

most motor bike riders I know who ride around alot on the main roads, actually wear ear plugs with full face helmets, because continued exposure to the noise of the wind/engine/road does damage your hearing and they want to cut the noise down.

obviously they aren't noise cancelling, just those little yellow ear bud things you still hear some noise, but no different to earphones really or listening to music as again some I know do on grand tours, some also have radio style intercoms (like the bike testers use) to chat to each other as well.

I wore the yellow foam ear plugs and custom made ear plugs when on the track. It's wrong to say they are the same as earphones as they don't cut out all noise. I could still hear a conversation with the helmet on and ear plugs in until the bike was started up but then I wouldn't hear a conversation with the bike running and no ear plugs either. With the noise of the engine and wind noise, you can't hear other traffic so are reliant on your eyes. Even when racing around the track the only traffic I could hear was a big twin with no baffles whether it was in front of me or behind me.

As for headphones; it's the individuals choice, but for me only a fool would do it. When I first started, yes I wore headphones with an ipod. I soon realised I enjoyed a ride far better just observing the scenery and mulling my thoughts. You don't need to have something going on in your ears to enjoy a ride. Save the music for the turbo.

Bozman

I personally never really wore earplugs on a motorbike, trackdays being the exception.
On a motorbike or pushbike I have no interest what so ever on what's going on behind me, if you start worrying about an approaching vehicle you're getting distracted.
When you do a trackday on a motorbike you have to tape up or remove your mirrors, why? because if you start worrying about what's happening behind you you're not concentrating on where you're going.

robz400

I've just arrived at work having cycled in listening to music with 2 head phones as I have done for 8 years of commuting and training. Use your eyes and be aware of whats around you.

For all the headphones are stupid camp.. what are you expecting to hear? If a car is coming up behind you and hasnt seen you its going to make the same noise as one whos going to move over 3 feet and pass????

adr82

I do basically the same as the OP, I use one non-isolating earphone in my left ear at moderate volume. I don't see much of a problem with it. Is it more of a risk than not using one at all? Yes. Is that extra risk significant? I don't believe it is. If anything it forces me to take even more care than I usually would because I know I've got to compensate for it, however slightly.