Deaf/Blind on a Tandem

[biggs682]

Despite what the hearing community may think, hearing aids don't make hard of hearing/deaf people hear perfectly again so dealing with all of the outside noise will most probably make me struggle to hear him up front as well as the other possibilities that I have already mentioned. My aids were certainly not cheap so would hate to damage them.

ok fair enough i never thought about the background noises etc etc

apart from this issue , i bet you will enjoy it we certainly enjoy our tandem moments together

 

[classic33]

What sort of battery life would you be looking at?

 

[Nibor]

There appears to be products directly aimed at this market
http://www.precisiontandems.com/tandemcomwireless2.4questions.htm

 

[annedonnelly]

f you spot two tandem newbits riding around the South Beach area sometime over the weekend that will be us!

Small world - I live on South Beach Look out for a blue hybrid with Cyclechat stickers or a green Brompton.

 

[Sharky]

One of the great cartoons by Jonny helms, I recall was something like ..

A couple on a tandem riding up a steep hill.
On reaching the top, 'Baz' or 'Honk' at the front turned round and said to his Mrs, "that was one of the hardest climbs I've ever ridden"
to which was the reply "certainly was, If I hadn't have had my brake on, we would have rolled back!"

Hope your communication is a bit better

 

[ufkacbln]

There are a couple of intercom apps that allow smart phones to be used as an intercom, including voice activated comms

 

[jefmcg]

There are a couple of intercom apps that allow smart phones to be used as an intercom, including voice activated comms

This is an excellent idea, and you can pick up tiny bluetooth earphones for less than £20 from Halfords or amazon.

 

[Mrs bean]

My husband and I had the same problem on his motorbike, I'd get on and hang on for grim death, would never let got of him, he would tap my knee to make sure I was ok and then we bought an intercom system, although it's a crash helmet rather than a cycle helmet I'm sure something similar would be on the market for cycle helmets, all I can say is...... It's brilliant, we chat to each other as if we are sat at the kitchen table. Well done. I've recently purchased an adapted tandem for me and my disabled son, he sits in a wheelchair which is attached to my snazzy bike, I pedal, he chats and he loves it. Mike at Get Cycling might be able to help you, he was fantastic when I bought the tandem.

Happy cycling xx

 

[GoodbyeGirl]

Thanks for the latest posts, for some reason I wasn't receiving notifications.

We took the tandem out on Saturday lunchtime, just thought it would be for a short time as we thought we would have real trouble getting used to it so hubby just had jeans and t shirt on, I was a little more suitably attired. 10+ miles later and we were home! It was great fun, I would have carried on further but as hubby wasn't really dressed properly that put pay to that. For most of the journey I managed to hear him okay but we were mostly on paths away from the busy road, which |I think I would struggle with so we are still planning on some kind of intercom system.

Can't wait until hubby is off again later in the week so we can go out again.

 

[GoodbyeGirl]

What sort of battery life would you be looking at?

Maybe about 4 hours max.

There are a couple of intercom apps that allow smart phones to be used as an intercom, including voice activated comms

We have Windows phones so will check that out.

This is an excellent idea, and you can pick up tiny bluetooth earphones for less than £20 from Halfords or amazon.

Now if I were to plan on keeping my hearing aids in I have a piece of kit which I hang around my neck which is a Bluetooth receiver and, once connected to another Bluetooth device, turns my hearing aids into a Bluetooth receiver so I have no need to wear anything extra - not all Bluetooth devices work with it but it is something to try.

 

[ItFellOnDeafEars]

I wear hearing aids in both ears as does my wife when cycling or participating in any sporting activity, sweat isn't really an issue. The only time I would be inclined to remove them would be when there's a torrential downpour - into a ziplock bag they go and in my back pocket.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I ride a tandem with a blind friend, he has no problems with his hearing.

We have a simple system of counting down to when we start pedalling and a similar countdown when stopping. Plus I call out right and left turns.

Maybe you could have a simple system of beeps on an air horn to compensate for the hearing? One blast ahead of starts and stops and two blasts for a left and right. I also warn if I am bout to change gear or a hill is coming up etc.

 

[TheDoctor]

The OP was well two years ago and hasn't been back since August 2016.
They may well be sorted by now.

 

[recumbentpanda]

Not a useful suggestion for the OP, as you already have your bike, but it’s worth noting that for some the Hase Pinot tandem makes communication easier by bringing the riders heads close together. The stoker rides in front in recumbent mode, while the captain rides at the back in normal upright mode. Sounds weird to non recumbenteers but I know a couple locally who find it works well for them.

 

[Globalti]

Here's a page on cycling intercoms and radios: https://www.cycletourer.co.uk/cycletouring/radios.shtml

Here's an ad I spotted this morning in Cyclist magazine: