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Cyclist with earphones vs driver with radio on

2

Comments

  • #32
    opti0nal
    Closed Accounts Posts: 892 ✭✭✭opti0nal


    monument wrote: »
    Learning how to look around -- mainly look over your shoulder often -- is one of the basic things cyclists should learn. Relying on sound mostly or mainly is not a good idea in an urban setting at least
    Hearing and looking over one's shoulder is better again.

    The engine tone I hear cues me up as to what kind of vehicle is coming up behind and how fast it is. In traffic, I'm listening for clutch movement and gear changes of vehicles especially given Irish driver's reluctance to indicate & the possibility that one's only warning of being cut up will be the change in revs.

    If i must concentrate on watching what's in front of me, my hearing will give me 'eyes in the back of my head'. Both ears will help localise what's coming behind.

    When passing riders, if they don't have headphones I know they will hear my polite greetings and not be alarmed as I go by. In cycling groups, headphone-wearing is banned as it affects the ability to communicate directions and hazards.

    Finally, it's a matter of being wholly present & engaged, sonically and mentally in the moment and the environment you're in.


  • #33
    monument
    Moderators, Motoring & Transport Moderators Posts: 14,120 Mod ✭✭✭✭monument


    opti0nal wrote: »
    Finally, it's a matter of being wholly present & engaged, sonically and mentally in the moment and the environment you're in.

    So you subscribe to the idea of removing sound proofing and radios from cars? :)


  • #34
    ednwireland
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 14,805 ✭✭✭✭ednwireland


    monument wrote: »
    So you subscribe to the idea of removing sound proofing and radios from cars? :)

    i do (actually not radios but less soundproofing would be good maybe a limit on radio volume i know i listen to mine too loud luckily the speakers distort), in fact remove the windscreen that would make drivers drive slower

    My weather

    https://www.ecowitt.net/home/share?authorize=96CT1F



  • #35
    jaqian
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,724 ✭✭✭jaqian


    my concern would be if you are in a crash you won't be able to argue that you were paying attention and were aware of your environment etc.


  • #36
    BofaDeezNuhtz
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 589 ✭✭✭BofaDeezNuhtz


    Ahh here, headfones are getting a bad rap lads, headfones are great...

    yisser just using them wrong, give her some Dubstep to listen to...


    ;)



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  • #37
    Cookie_Monster
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2, Paid Member Posts: 24,645 ✭✭✭✭Cookie_Monster


    I don't wear headphones because the wind noise annoys me too much when wearing them and I'm not bothered spending money on a set good enough to overcome it.


  • #38
    Wishbone Ash
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 25,128 ✭✭✭✭Wishbone Ash


    I never wear them because I can manage to get through life without this obsession with listening to music at every opportunity.

    (....and, as my username shows, it's not that I've no interest in music, there's just a time and place).


  • #39
    buffalo
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,190 ✭✭✭buffalo


    zombie.jpg


  • #40
    piston
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 522 ✭✭✭piston


    It's often windy on the routes I cycle and I rarely hear anything above 15mph anyway.


  • #41
    cdaly_
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,440 ✭✭✭cdaly_


    Cookie_Monster wrote: »
    I don't wear headphones because the wind noise annoys me too much when wearing them and I'm not bothered spending money on a set good enough to overcome it.
    I wear them 'cos the wind noise annoys me too much when not wearing them.
    Wishbone Ash wrote: »
    I never wear them because I can manage to get through life without this obsession with listening to music at every opportunity.

    (....and, as my username shows, it's not that I've no interest in music, there's just a time and place).
    And the time and place is when I'm out on the bike 'cos nobody's asking me to turn it down or saying 'Dad, I think you're ready for this band now'...


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  • #42
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    thanks for resurrecting the thread, or I wouldn't have seen the iLuv speakers.
    Ordered from Amazon, soon the Clash will be ringing out the length of the N4...


  • #43
    b318isp
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,669 ✭✭✭b318isp


    I wasn't really impressed with the OP's link. It ignored the fact that we tend to only listen (as opposed to hear) one thing at a time - we cannot follow two conversations at one time, for example.

    When music is playing, there is a risk that the rider will listening dominantly to this. As others have said, this situational awareness is more critical for cyclists than dirvers - and I'm thinking about avoiding potholes, drains, debris, etc.

    I have also found that headphones seems to affect my sense of balance, I seem to be a little less steady on the bike, but it may just be me.


  • #44
    cassette50
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 481 ✭✭cassette50


    I play it safe and only use my earphones when I have my helmet on. ;)


  • #45
    P_1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,681 ✭✭✭✭P_1


    Personally I think that when you're driving you tend to use you sense of vision more thanks to having the use on mirrors but when cycling you tend to use your sense of hearing more thanks to not having the use of mirrors


  • #46
    07Lapierre
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,428 ✭✭✭07Lapierre


    I prefer to listen to music ( at a low volume) while cycling to work. Makes a change from wind, car tyre roar etc.


  • #47
    droidus
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,544 ✭✭✭droidus


    P_1 wrote: »
    Personally I think that when you're driving you tend to use you sense of vision more thanks to having the use on mirrors but when cycling you tend to use your sense of hearing more thanks to not having the use of mirrors

    Dont agree.

    As a cyclist, your primary sense is visual. Of all road users you have the best visual field. You're higher than everyone else, you have peripheral vision and you can turn your head freely.


  • #48
    Iwannahurl
    Closed Accounts Posts: 8,156 ✭✭✭Iwannahurl


    Good topic for a thread.

    I used to think cyclists with earphones were irredeemably stupid, but now I'm somewhat ambivalent on the issue.

    On the one hand, especially in the cycle-hostile Irish roads and traffic environment, cycling with earphones in is asking for trouble. Playing loud music while driving can be a serious distraction, although it's not known whether that translates into significantly increased crash risk. When I cycle I use audio cues a lot, and I feel I'd be significantly impaired if I had earphones on.

    On the other hand, I had a change of attitude after visiting Copenhagen. The picture below is enough to send a lot of people in Ireland and the UK -- including a large brigade of do-gooders -- into a state of stratospheric apoplexy. No helmet! Pregnant!! Earphones!!! Burn the witch.

    My impression of Copenhagen cyclists was that droves of them cycled with earphones and headphones on. They looked relaxed and happy, and why not? The city of Copenhagen has provided them with a generally easy environment for cycling, so they feel safe and confident most of the time. It's a form of risk compensation, perhaps, but the context is that Copenhagen City Council has made cycling an easy choice. If motorists can blithely cruise (or race) around with the radio on, why not cyclists? Why should cyclists have to make sacrifices to make the streets safer, cities more pleasant and transportation more sustainable?

    If you can create a roads and traffic environment where headphones can be used with confidence and without disapproval then you have reached a state where cycling is genuinely a more attractive option than using the car. That's a good result, in my opinion.



    7358647506_4f4c80739a_z.jpg


  • #49
    Cienciano
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,154 ✭✭✭✭Cienciano


    I think the main difference is that in a car you don't need to hear traffic. You can't, you're in a car!
    While cycling, hearing is an extra sense you have available to you. Why would you want to lose it by sticking in headphones?
    Personal choice, but definitely not for me.


  • #50
    P_1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,681 ✭✭✭✭P_1


    droidus wrote: »
    Dont agree.

    As a cyclist, your primary sense is visual. Of all road users you have the best visual field. You're higher than everyone else, you have peripheral vision and you can turn your head freely.

    True but you can't turn your head freely to see what's going on behind you. You can do that in a car with the mirrors, on a bike you need to hear whats going on behind you.


  • #51
    check_six
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,245 ✭✭✭check_six


    Cienciano wrote: »
    I think the main difference is that in a car you don't need to hear traffic. You can't, you're in a car!

    Umm... I open the windows on my car when turning out of blind tricky side roads so I can hear things coming. Maybe I'm doing it wrong. Do I need to jam up the volume instead?


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  • #52
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    P_1 wrote: »
    True but you can't turn your head freely to see what's going on behind you. You can do that in a car with the mirrors, on a bike you need to hear whats going on behind you.
    Even with mirrors, you have blind spots. Whatever I'm driving/riding, I'll use the motorcyclist's "life saver" every time. The audio channel just gives a little bit more info, a preview of what you are going to see when you turn your head.


  • #53
    P_1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,681 ✭✭✭✭P_1


    rp wrote: »
    Even with mirrors, you have blind spots. Whatever I'm driving/riding, I'll use the motorcyclist's "life saver" every time. The audio channel just gives a little bit more info, a preview of what you are going to see when you turn your head.

    How does the 'life saver' work? Honestly its something I've never heard of before.


  • #54
    droidus
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,544 ✭✭✭droidus


    P_1 wrote: »
    True but you can't turn your head freely to see what's going on behind you. You can do that in a car with the mirrors, on a bike you need to hear whats going on behind you.

    You can, I do it every day, you just look over the shoulder.

    Why do you need to hear what's going on behind you when commuting? The noise behind me is always the same - traffic. If you glance over your shoulder you get much more information anyway.

    I could understand how your ears could be useful if you're cycling in light traffic or in the country- but when commuting in the city your eyes do 99% of the work.


  • #55
    b318isp
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,669 ✭✭✭b318isp


    droidus wrote: »
    Dont agree.

    As a cyclist, your primary sense is visual. Of all road users you have the best visual field. You're higher than everyone else, you have peripheral vision and you can turn your head freely.

    To be fair, I don't think that's the point - yes visual is the primary sense, but aural is proportionally more important for cyclists.


  • #56
    07Lapierre
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,428 ✭✭✭07Lapierre


    Cienciano wrote: »
    I think the main difference is that in a car you don't need to hear traffic. You can't, you're in a car!
    While cycling, hearing is an extra sense you have available to you. Why would you want to lose it by sticking in headphones?
    Personal choice, but definitely not for me.

    I use earphones when cycling. As previous posters have said, when cycling, all you can hear most of the time is wind! . In urban areas all you can hear is wind, car engines, tyre roar ( which is even worse if the road is wet).

    In fact, id go as far as saying that its hard to hear my music because of wind noise!


  • #57
    rp
    Users Awaiting Email Confirmation Posts: 1,227 ✭✭✭rp


    P_1 wrote: »
    How does the 'life saver' work? Honestly its something I've never heard of before.
    AKA the shoulder check. having done all the mirror .. signal stuff, before you do the manoeuvre bit, look over your (appropriate) shoulder. Its scary how often something has materialized there.
    Some motorcycle trainers speak of a "mental map" that you hold of all that's going on around you, and the life saver updates that map. I find that sound also updates the map -- I've heard the bus engine, so I expect to see it somewhere when I check.


  • #58
    Sugarlumps
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,002 ✭✭✭Sugarlumps


    I enjoy a few tunes whilst cycling. I’ve only a short commute of 20 minutes, in the cycle lane for the entire time. I need a pick me up in the morning and The Deftones usually do it. Keep things at a low level in the car though.


  • #59
    07Lapierre
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 8,428 ✭✭✭07Lapierre


    Qualitymark wrote: »
    Probably the best headphone to wear - when the price comes down to something possible - is the kind that works by resonating in the bones of your cheeks rather than blocking your ears, so that you can hear perfectly over it.

    If you are wearing headphones and can only hear the music, just turn the volume down. Having said that, i find road/wind noise so loud that its impossible to block it out completly


  • #60
    P_1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,681 ✭✭✭✭P_1


    rp wrote: »
    AKA the shoulder check. having done all the mirror .. signal stuff, before you do the manoeuvre bit, look over your (appropriate) shoulder. Its scary how often something has materialized there.
    Some motorcycle trainers speak of a "mental map" that you hold of all that's going on around you, and the life saver updates that map. I find that sound also updates the map -- I've heard the bus engine, so I expect to see it somewhere when I check.

    Yeah that makes sense to me. I guess it comes down to common sense. Having the music blaring through the headphones probably isn't the best idea but having it going on in the background isn't the worst thing really


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  • #61
    Crow92
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,017 ✭✭✭Crow92


    Crow92 wrote: »
    Just use this and you have the best of both worlds :D
    Loud enough even when traffics going by, though if the batteries low it doesn't play at the highest volume properly.

    645970-iLuv-Isp120Blu-Portable-Outdoor-Speaker%20-l.jpg
    I've since upgraded to a 12v stereo integrated into a handlebar bag which can hold an i pod or i phone or mp3 or smart phone. Very loud and clear.

    https://www.audiblerush.com/content/jam-pac-premium-handlebar-bag-music-speaker-system


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