Road Cycling - New ride accessory bad? I like it! a lot..

Well I thought about it and got a Sony CD player that has a remote on a cord. The remote can hook on my jersey zipper and can operated the unit. Stashed the player in my back jersy pocket. Never rode with tunes before ;what a blast; ridding like being chased and having a riot doing it. Seemed like the music increased my endurance. Was in downtown traffic and I think it made me about 50% more agressive because of the rock&roll in my ears. I got the feeling the drivers could tell I was having fun. It improved my attitude during the ride and if anyone was saying anything bad I didnt hear it, a car pulled out and I didnt care for a change just laid her over and swerved around and kept jammin down the road. Even though I lost a large sense of hearing because of the CD player I feel it made me more alert. Found myself scanning the areas all over unlike I usually do, and I do use a sunglass stem mirror too. Got home and thought back on all the stuff I got away with and had to laugh and thought 'wow, that was so cool'.

Ever watch the coroner in CSI? Wonder what he's gonna say.

Just becareful dude. You gotta hear whats going on. maybe only keep one ear plug in?

Congrats!.... I'm sure it can enhance one's riding to a certain extent. I've never tried it and I'm afraid if I try listening to tunes while I ride, I'm might get hooked..... and I'll be responding to late's post above.

I confess that I use the Sony with the remote too. I use only 1 ear and it seems to be a good compromise.

Is it absolutely the safest? No. It does make it easier to deal with the constant 15-20mph onshore breeze that's been blowing the last 2 months.

Not easy mind you, just easier.

Music on a ride is great. Music on a ride making you take foolish risks is dumb. I LOVE my MP3 player but I NEVER let it egg me on to take foolish risks. Sounds like you're not taking ths approach. If you're not careful, your $100 investment may result in thousands of dollars of hospital bills. Use the player to increase endurance (which it certainly does) and take your mind off some of the more mundane aspects of long rides. Do NOT use it to ride more aggressively in traffic, etc. There's some other idiot out there in his car with similar music feeling similarly aggressive. You will not win that little duel...

Yeah the music is definately a nice kick on a ride. I just wish I could afford an iPod for my 3-5hr rides, its a bit hard to carry 3-4 CD's with me on a long ride without a pack!

Music on a ride is great. Music on a ride making you take foolish risks is dumb. I LOVE my MP3 player but I NEVER let it egg me on to take foolish risks. Sounds like you're not taking ths approach. If you're not careful, your $100 investment may result in thousands of dollars of hospital bills. Use the player to increase endurance (which it certainly does) and take your mind off some of the more mundane aspects of long rides. Do NOT use it to ride more aggressively in traffic, etc. There's some other idiot out there in his car with similar music feeling similarly aggressive. You will not win that little duel...
Hey thanks for saying what you did here... makin me think,,,,,I probably should settle down before my luck runs out and the odds catch me. That could hurt. Starting tomorrow I will try to tone it down a notch or two and enjoy the cd player as a mood enhancing add on and try to not dominate in heavy traffic. But its just such a rush. Maybe I should lay off the heavy metal....? Im getting depressed already.

1) I'd upgrade to MP3. A CD player on your back is now a little like a record player in your rack. Too heavy and skip prone.

2) I started doing my weight workouts with headphones, and it is so much nicer. It helps me tune out the clanking of weights, the grunting of weightlifters, and the untasteful background music in most gyms. Even if the tunes on my headset are not the greatest, it is helpful to put me in my own zone. So I see why riding with tunes would be fun. I even read recently that people get better performance listening to tunes during general workouts.

3) just be careful, like others said.

4) I'd be too stoic to listen while riding. I think it would spoil me.

I highly don't recommend you ride with any music being pumped into the ears or even one ear. You cannot hear the traffic noises around you as well even at low volumns; what happens at lower volumns is that you can hear the traffic but not intill the cars are much closer. The tendancy for most people is that after riding with the volumn low they can't hear their music over the traffic so they increase their volumn...see what is happening here? You need to use your ears and eyes IF you want to be as safe as possible.

Riding with tunes playing in your ear is akin to riding without a helmet...you may go for a long time without a problem then BAM; you wish you were wearing your helmet or had full hearing capabilities.

Maybe I should lay off the heavy metal....? Im getting depressed already.
Nah, just don't listen to it in traffic :D If AC/DC makes you dance on the pedals like Lance, then go for it. But if Ozzy makes you think "I can take that 18 wheeler", you might consider some Barry Manilow instead ;)

I love listening to music on the stereo when I'm on the trainer. On the road, especially if the wind is up, I really want to hear if something is coming up from behind. Too often when I'm out on the country roads, a truck or car will decided to blast their horn just as they pass my back wheel. If I know they are coming then I'm ready for it. If not, I'd probably crap myself and fly off the road! Besides, I've never found earplugs comfortable and I don't think I could wear them. Tinnitus sucks too :D

Riding with tunes playing in your ear is akin to riding without a helmet...
So with your theroy, deaf riders are taking as much risk as people who don't use helmets? Sorry, that doesn't fly.

I think hearing is an added safety measure, but not necessary. My hearing isn't the greatest, but the majority of the time I hear the wind rushing by my ears, and only hear approaching cars as they are a few feet away from me, if that. If I turn my head to listen behind me, I'm also using my perphial vision as well, so it's a wash.

I see nothing wrong with replacing the rushing wind with music. As matter of fact, it's most likely better for your hearing beacause you are blokcing out the loud, constant rushing with softer playing music (assuming you listen at safe levels).

Mike (who is considering a small MP3 player for rides)

I knew there would be some hard line "safety" responses to this thread. Granted, having all your senses working perfectly is better than not for safety's sake. However, the space between "safe" and "unsafe" is a large gray area.

What would you say to someone who is hearing impaired? ...no pun intended.
...the person who needs a new eye correction prescription?
...forgetting to put sunscreen on? ...skin cancer is very prevalent.
...the person who is a little under the weather but needs his time on the bike anyway?
...running stop signs and stop lights?
...excessive speed?
...bad handling skills?
...poorly maintained bike?

I would say to what degree and are you comfortable with the consequences? I wouldn't say that you're unsafe because there's really no safety line to cross in life ...it ain't black and white.

The list could fill pages. But we don't live our lives checking off safety issues everytime we move an inch. Maybe the person without a helmet is acctually safer than you ...very possible.

I think in this issue, it's more a matter of style and priorities. Listening to music while cycling demonstrates a person's style and priorities. It doesn't equate to being unsafe. It's just not that cut and dry.

BTW, I don't listen to music while skiing or cycling. I even find it annoying in the car when traffic is heavy. I like to listen to music and not use it as white noise. I like that style for me.

i frequently have my ipod in my jersey pocket for the somewhat tedious central park laps. it's a 6 mile loop and i pretty much go nuts after about 8 laps. the music helps a lot. i tend to ride at off hours when there are no cars and few people in the park, but i keep it at a reasonable volume so i could hear if someone were to yell something.

one note - now that it's getting warmer, the thing gets sweaty... i don't want to damage it. i might try sticking it in a ziplock or something.