listening to music whilst cycling???

[Part time cyclist]

I listen to music whilst cycling, I find it helps focus, but I have it turned down low so I can hear traffic spproaching from behind

 

[Norm]

... but I think it amusing that car drivers can smoke (some pretty fierce stuff at times), eat, drink, chat with passengers, shout at children, listen to tapes, cds and radios and have telephone conversations (all perfectly legally) not to mention the illegal use of handheld mobiles

I think we covered this one.

Do you drive a car and, if so, when was the last time somebody overtook you?

Cars, generally, travel at the speed of other traffic, generally, have three mirrors to see what's behind and, generally, are enclosed so you can't hear what's behind anyway. I'm probably also not the only one here who has wound down windows and turned off the radio to listen for traffic on some more remote junctions.

A bit of myth-busting. A driver who is distracted by any of those things is not doing so "perfectly legally" - there have been prosecutions for eating whilst driving, for instance and mobile phone records are always checked, you can still be done for driving whilst on a hands-free phone.

... yet we (cyclists) are to be told that we are at fault if we wear a headphone and listen to music or radio whilst cycling? Come on now. Something must be wrong in the world.

Headphones do absolutely not mean that the cyclist is at fault, IMO, no more than I think that someone who forgets to remove their lights when parking their bike is at fault if the lights are then stolen.

 

[blazed]

The only reason these discussions go on so long is because the idiots who don't listen to music when cycling and never have jump to the wrong conclusion that wearing headphones cancels out every other bit of noise.

I can listen to my music and still hear myself fart. Hearing traffic, sirens and the odd person shouting w@nker is not a problem.

 

[DiddlyDodds]

I have an old soni walkman mobile phone that has an inbuilt speaker , i made a handlebar mount and put it on whilst riding on quite roads , on full volume its nice on a quite road but as soon as the traffic starts to build up you can not hear it so i turn it off then.
Would never use ear phones on a road.

 

[DiddlyDodds]

The only reason these discussions go on so long is because the idiots who don't listen to music when cycling and never have jump to the wrong conclusion that wearing headphones cancels out every other bit of noise.

I can listen to my music and still hear myself fart. Hearing traffic, sirens and the odd person shouting w@nker is not a problem.

Top response to the topic ,, ever thought of going on question time

 

[Bromptonaut]

The only reason these discussions go on so long is because the idiots who don't listen to music when cycling and never have jump to the wrong conclusion that wearing headphones cancels out every other bit of noise.

There's a huge variation between ear sealed closed back and/or noise cancelling earpieces and open backed do-dahs that let noise in (and out!). I wouldn't ride in any but had to get the closed sealed type in order to hear my player while walking on London streets.