Earphones whilst riding - yes or no - ?

[jefmcg]

I don't see even the possibility of a compromise to this.

This thread is full of people comprising. My BT headset in one ear doesn't block any appreciable outside noise, and my podcasts are no louder than a conversation with a nearby rider.

I find podcasts add another dimension to my ride. My favorite example is listening to Will Self talking about psycho geography and different types of maps and their cultural meanings. I was following an audax route sheet as well as the thin line of a GPX track on my phone screen, two types of maps Self wasn't considering, which aided my understanding

 

[hoopdriver]

So does wearing a helmet. The question is to what degree does it affect it, and at what point does that significantly change the risk of riding your bike?

I don’t know about your helmet but mine does not cover my ears

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I don’t know about your helmet but mine does not cover my ears

I don't know about your ears but as I've put above mine don't work correctly, so taking them as a starting point, you listening to music are probably at a huge advantage to me already, are you suggesting I shouldn't ride?

 

[hoopdriver]

I don't know about your ears but as I've put above mine don't work correctly, so taking them as a starting point, you listening to music are probably at a huge advantage to me already, are you suggesting I shouldn't ride?

I have no idea what you mean here. One - I don’t listen to music while I ride. And I have not suggested that anybody shouldn’t ride, merely that having headphones on while riding is not a great idea. But if you actually read my posts, instead of jumping the gun, you would have known that my main argument against wearing headphones is that I very much prefer to hear the sounds of the countryside when I ride. Music I can listen to at home. Riding is special. I like being out and about and want to experience the countryside.

 

[Profpointy]

I have no idea what you mean here. One - I don’t listen to music while I ride. And I have not suggested that anybody shouldn’t ride, merely that having headphones on while riding is not a great idea. But if you actually read my posts, instead of jumping the gun, you would have known that my main argument against wearing headphones is that I very much prefer to hear the sounds of the countryside when I ride. Music I can listen to at home. Riding is special. I like being out and about and want to experience the countryside.

Do you think it's Ok to drive a car with the windows shut and / or listen to music in the car?

 

[gaijintendo]

This thread is full of people comprising. My BT headset in one ear doesn't block any appreciable outside noise, and my podcasts are no louder than a conversation with a nearby rider.

I find podcasts add another dimension to my ride. My favorite example is listening to Will Self talking about psycho geography and different types of maps and their cultural meanings. I was following an audax route sheet as well as the thin line of a GPX track on my phone screen, two types of maps Self wasn't considering, which aided my understanding

One ear would probably destroy your spatial hearing more than both ears.

 

[hoopdriver]

Do you think it's Ok to drive a car with the windows shut and / or listen to music in the car?

That comparison is truly idiotic. I have no further interest in this conversation. It is a waste of time.

 

[Tim Hall]

I wear headphones while riding. Sometimes they're silent and used for auto phone answering duties. Sometimes they have Osmand navigation cues. Sometimes they have radio 4. Sometimes they have music. Sometimes they do more than one of those things.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I have no idea what you mean here.

That's probably because you have a closed mind & do not want to have a rational argument

One - I don’t listen to music while I ride. And I have not suggested that anybody shouldn’t ride, merely that having headphones on while riding is not a great idea. But if you actually read my posts, instead of jumping the gun, you would have known that my main argument against wearing headphones is that I very much prefer to hear the sounds of the countryside when I ride. Music I can listen to at home. Riding is special. I like being out and about and want to experience the countryside.

What I was eluding to had you bothered to try to follow, was, your hearing listening to music whilst riding is/was probably better than I can possibly start with, therefore if you do not think it safe for you to ride with headphones then you cannot possibly think it safe for me to ride at all

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I don’t know about your helmet but mine does not cover my ears

It does not have to cover your ears to affect your hearing. Helmets can and do cause significantly loud wind noise that it can drown out many other sounds including that of traffic.

 

[hoopdriver]

It does not have to cover your ears to affect your hearing. Helmets can and do cause significantly loud wind noise that it can drown out many other sounds including that of traffic.

I'd say you need to buy a better helmet.
Mine doesn't do any of those things.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I'd say you need to buy a better helmet.
Mine doesn't do any of those things.

Yes it does there is not a single cycle helmet that does not generate that wind noise.

 

[hoopdriver]

That's probably because you have a closed mind & do not want to have a rational argument

What I was eluding to had you bothered to try to follow, was, your hearing listening to music whilst riding is/was probably better than I can possibly start with, therefore if you do not think it safe for you to ride with headphones then you cannot possibly think it safe for me to ride at all

Present a rational argument and I'll be more than happy to listen.

And I think you meant "alluding" not "eluding" unless you actually were trying to be elusive.

Anyway, I'm done. Bored now. I truly couldn't care less what you do.

 

[NickNick]

I don't think there's anything particularly dangerous about riding with headphones, it forces you to be that little bit more cautious and use your eyes properly rather than using them slightly less as you've made assumptions based on what you could/could not hear. The only issue if using in ear/noise cancelling headphones is not being able to hear emergency vehicle sirens, but that's easily solved by only using headphone in one ear.

 

[hoopdriver]

Yes it does there is not a single cycle helmet that does not generate that wind noise.

Perhaps if you turned your helmet around and didn't wear it backwards you'd have better luck.

Anyway, as above, bored now.