Earphones whilst riding - yes or no - ?
- Thread starter simongt
- Start date
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NickNick
Well-Known Member
[QUOTE 5033922, member: 45"]Couldn't/shouldn't you be doing that anyway?[/QUOTE]
It's the sort of thing that happens at a quasi subconscious level, the brain is a master at piecing things together from various senses and joining the dots, it's not a process you have much control over.
E.g. how when you read you don't actual look at each letter in a word, but the start and finish of the word as well as the context your are reading the word in, your brain them assumes what the other letters are. It's how you can read "polite" as "police" on a poster formatted in a way that looks official.
It's the sort of thing that happens at a quasi subconscious level, the brain is a master at piecing things together from various senses and joining the dots, it's not a process you have much control over.
E.g. how when you read you don't actual look at each letter in a word, but the start and finish of the word as well as the context your are reading the word in, your brain them assumes what the other letters are. It's how you can read "polite" as "police" on a poster formatted in a way that looks official.
NickNick
Well-Known Member
[QUOTE 5034116, member: 45"]So how does listening to music when you're cycling make this easier?[/QUOTE]
E.g. If your brain isn't receiving those subconscious queues when you're judge oncoming vehicles/their speed it has to use your eyes which is the most reliable method rather than piecing it together from a less attentive look and the sound/pitch/amplitude of the vehicle, which is much less reliable as your aural perception can/will be altered by wind speed, direction, atmospheric pressures...
E.g. If your brain isn't receiving those subconscious queues when you're judge oncoming vehicles/their speed it has to use your eyes which is the most reliable method rather than piecing it together from a less attentive look and the sound/pitch/amplitude of the vehicle, which is much less reliable as your aural perception can/will be altered by wind speed, direction, atmospheric pressures...
NickNick
Well-Known Member
[QUOTE 5034123, member: 45"]Back to my question then; shouldn't/couldn't you be paying a more attentive look, and then have the added advantage of being able to hear more as well?[/QUOTE]
Re read post before last, it's not a process you have concious control over, it's how our brains work.
Re read post before last, it's not a process you have concious control over, it's how our brains work.
CanucksTraveller
Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
- Location
- Hertfordshire
Cod psychology and mental physiology aside, I'd still rather have all my senses in play when cycling thanks. No music for me.
D
Deleted member 26715
Guest
[QUOTE 5034233, member: 45"]You seem to be arguing that a subconscious skim-view is more accurate than focused observation.[/QUOTE]As oppose to you who seem to be arguing just for the sake of it or to take any usefulness out of the post.
Whether you listen to music/pod cast/audio book whilst riding is purely personal choice, along with how loud you also have the volume. You claim it is more dangerous to ride with headphones rather than without, or at the very least it is safer to ride without them. The problem I find with your stance & with @hoopdriver's is that both of your hearing is going to be far better than mine to start with, let's say the average person has hearing of 10, I suspect, as I am totally deaf in one ear & limited in the other I am probably a 3. So if somebody with hearing of 10 is listening to audio at a reasonable level their riding hearing is now 6 (subjective number) which you think is dangerous, then clearly I should not be allowed to ride on the road on a bike. Sorry but I cannot understand either of your blinkered views, this is a personal choice, there really is no safety issue here. Although granted if you are listening to music at full volume as you ride along you are likely to destroy your hearing over time but that is a completely different argument & one I would fully support.
Whether you listen to music/pod cast/audio book whilst riding is purely personal choice, along with how loud you also have the volume. You claim it is more dangerous to ride with headphones rather than without, or at the very least it is safer to ride without them. The problem I find with your stance & with @hoopdriver's is that both of your hearing is going to be far better than mine to start with, let's say the average person has hearing of 10, I suspect, as I am totally deaf in one ear & limited in the other I am probably a 3. So if somebody with hearing of 10 is listening to audio at a reasonable level their riding hearing is now 6 (subjective number) which you think is dangerous, then clearly I should not be allowed to ride on the road on a bike. Sorry but I cannot understand either of your blinkered views, this is a personal choice, there really is no safety issue here. Although granted if you are listening to music at full volume as you ride along you are likely to destroy your hearing over time but that is a completely different argument & one I would fully support.
hoopdriver
Guru
- Location
- East Sussex
You are putting words and thoughts into the minds and mouths of others that are simply not there. I am weary to death of this utterly fruitless conversation but since you have mentioned me, I will respond this last time. As I have said, several times now during the course of this rambling thread, my main argument against wearing headphones while riding is a purely personal one in that I like to hear the sounds of the countryside around me. I enjoy the intimacy with the landscape that cycling brings me. I like to listen to nature - I can listen to music any old time home or in the gym, but I can hear the countryside like this only when I am cycling. I can't be any clearer than that, I shouldn't think. In terms of safety, yes - I believe one is far safer not wearing headphones while cycling.
Now, you have hearing difficulties - I get that. And nowhere have I - or indeed anyone on this thread that I am aware of - suggested that hearing impaired people should not ride. So climb down off your high horse or unicycle or whatever it is you're on. The point is, if you do not have to be hearing impaired on a bicycle, why do it? Hearing what is going on around you is very useful when you are on a bicycle - if you can, if you have that ability, it makes sense to use it.
But let me repeat - yet again - my primary reason for not wearing headphones and that is to enjoy the sounds of the countryside around me. Are we clear?
Now, you have hearing difficulties - I get that. And nowhere have I - or indeed anyone on this thread that I am aware of - suggested that hearing impaired people should not ride. So climb down off your high horse or unicycle or whatever it is you're on. The point is, if you do not have to be hearing impaired on a bicycle, why do it? Hearing what is going on around you is very useful when you are on a bicycle - if you can, if you have that ability, it makes sense to use it.
But let me repeat - yet again - my primary reason for not wearing headphones and that is to enjoy the sounds of the countryside around me. Are we clear?
D
Deleted member 26715
Guest
Please accept my apologies I thought it was you that wrote this post.
hoopdriver
Guru
- Location
- East Sussex
Apology accepted.
Next time though, if you want to quote me, perhaps you will do me the courtesy of quoting the whole post - or at least the essence of it, not an edited excerpt, carefully tailored to suit your idiosyncratic viewpoint and love of victimhood
Done now. Good bye.
Next time though, if you want to quote me, perhaps you will do me the courtesy of quoting the whole post - or at least the essence of it, not an edited excerpt, carefully tailored to suit your idiosyncratic viewpoint and love of victimhood
Done now. Good bye.
MontyVeda
a short-tempered ill-controlled small-minded troll
- Location
- Lancaster... the little city.
I love the idea of it... great music, great scenery ...but thew wind noise just gets in the way.
Plus there's the risk of being caught out by a sound effect... one had me on my knees in a shopping centre, thinking i was about to be blown to smithereens by an incoming missile. Thankfully it was just a noise in my headphones. I didn't half feel a berk though.
Plus there's the risk of being caught out by a sound effect... one had me on my knees in a shopping centre, thinking i was about to be blown to smithereens by an incoming missile. Thankfully it was just a noise in my headphones. I didn't half feel a berk though.
Cat-ears - they appear to double a comedy side-burns too!
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Cat-Ears-Classic-Cycling-Noise-Reducer/dp/B01KWEXUGY
https://www.cat-ears.com/
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
It's your choice to ride with or without earphones but your first stated reason for choosing not to is "the obvious safety consideration", and I was wondering: is this evidence-based or just a 'stands to reason' viewpoint?
BoldonLad
Not part of the Elite
- Location
- South Tyneside
To answer the question:
No earphones for me when cycling.
When riding motorcycle, earphones for passenger intercom / satnav only.
When driving i do listen to music, but, not at a level which means it can be heard outside the car.
To pose another question:
Do pedestrians, dog walkers or runners, who are "plugged in" to earphones and cannot hear your bell, as you approach from behind, annoy you?
No earphones for me when cycling.
When riding motorcycle, earphones for passenger intercom / satnav only.
When driving i do listen to music, but, not at a level which means it can be heard outside the car.
To pose another question:
Do pedestrians, dog walkers or runners, who are "plugged in" to earphones and cannot hear your bell, as you approach from behind, annoy you?
MontyVeda
a short-tempered ill-controlled small-minded troll
- Location
- Lancaster... the little city.
Personally, no. No more than the hard of hearing annoy me, which they don't.
D
Deleted member 26715
Guest
no actually it's cyclists who come up behind me & expect me to get out of their way which annoy me, I equate them with the drivers of cars who continue at the same speed or occasionally increase their speed when I cross the road.
