Anyone else notice this trend? When I joined BF a couple years ago the "riding with an iPod" argument seemed to be in full swing. Just mentioning an mp3 player was good for a 3+ page lecture on how much of an idiot you were. Now I notice that someone can discuss riding with music without getting totally lambasted. In fact, music was a common recommendation in a recent thread on how to deal with boredom while training. Have people finally started to believe that you can ride a bike with earphones without putting yourself in mortal danger?

Mac

Edit: Please don't turn this post into an iPod vs. Not debate, that's not why I posted this.

no

No, it's a boring argument and no one is going to change anyone's mind. If people genuinely believe they are just as safe riding with music on and their attention elsewhere - bless them, there's no point in trying to convince them otherwise.

Among many, it will never be considered smart or safe. The fact that it might not generate an argument means nothing.

The antagonism died down because most of the i-pod riders have died off.

Don't know how other people feel about it, but pretty much from the second trip after I started cycling again this summer, I was wearing phones. For me, cycling to class/Kroger/etc is just like when I walked everywhere in undergrad. Back then, music helped turn long walks into fun walks. It was a natural extension when hopping on the bike. Besides that, I started fearing going deaf from all the wind noise. Plugging in phones reduces that significantly.

Wow, really?

I used to ride with one ear plug in and always played some back ground music. This season I discovered again the sounds of nature. I prefer to hear the wind and the birds. Never did I feel in danger by using my ipod I just felt I was missing some of the experience of the ride....

i think people are tired of the threads. just wait til the real boredom sets in in December

Yeah. It gets really loud on a bike (to me, anyway) above, say, 15mph. Sustained levels of high sound over time will lead to hearing impairment, which is irreversible.

No.

The real idiots are the ones that will judge others that listen to music while being clueless of the particular riding situation.

Some will say it is never safe to ride with music.

I have a feeling some of them may even feel the same about music on a trainer.

Any idea how many decibels we're talking about on a 20MPH bike ride?

I've heard that early onset deafness is a genuine problem among professional riders, doing like 20,000 miles a year at 25MPH.

And I'm sure what's coming out of an earbud, straight into one's ear is far, far better than a howling wind.

What amazes me is that people feel like they need permission from others to do stuff like this. Do what ever you want... and don't try to make others change what they're doing.

It is a real problem with motorcycle riders; I imagine it's a similar problem with high mileage cyclists, but less discussed, since people think hearing loss is a natural part of aging. But it isn't! At least, not to the degree we're talking about here.

At 20mph, I don't know offhead. But I do remember a thread in the commuting forum where someone taped a lapel mic to his chest while riding at around 21mph or so, and measured 105 decibels. That's definitely enough to produce hearing damage over time. The damage threshold is 85 decibels.

As a counterpoint to this argument I offer any number of threads that are posted ad nauseam and never die off - Campy/Shimano/SRAM, leg shaving, "is this really aero?", etc. These threads are a near daily occurrence and people still love to discuss/argue them...

Mac

Correct.

By some Miracle of St. Shimano, I have managed to survive well over 100K miles riding with music in my ears here in the NY Metro Area. We do have a little traffic here.

No.

1. It's illegal in California if you ride on roadways.

2. I've had too many close calls from cars and other cyclists to justify blocking out my hearing.

Save the iPod for spin class.

Oh, okay then. You're right. Everyone is now accepting of iPod wearing riders.

Correct.

How is attempting to drown it out with even more noise going to help?

Incorrect....

"The law has actually been on the books since 2004. Under the California vehicle code, "A person operating a motor vehicle or bicycle may not wear a headset covering, or earplugs in both ears." It applies to any street, any sidewalk - even the Mission Beach boardwalk."

I do not require acceptance by anyone to wear my iPod while riding. And if it's illegal, the state does have its due recourse. I would look forward to contesting the summons in traffic court. Pcad does not plead Guilty to traffic violations. Not ever. I enjoy traffic court.

With (good) in ear phones, you're blocking out a significant amount of external noise from the start, due to the isolation properties of the seal you form between the phones and your ears. This allows you to drive your music at lower volumes. It's not like having 100 decibels outside and turning the music to 120 decibels to overcome it; it's more like cutting the outside 100 decibels to 70, and then listening at 90. That said, it's a good idea to set a volume limit beforehand (you can do that on the iPod, and likely on other players too) to ensure you aren't just turning the music up louder and louder. Testing the volume in a quiet room is a good way to make sure what you're hearing out on the bike won't slowly damage your ears.

As a sidenote, in ear phones (or canalphones, or IEMs) are an entirely different thing from earbuds (ie, the things that come with iPods). Most people refer to the former when they're really talking about the latter.

Close calls because you couldn't hear them? Or maybe because you didn't see them or they didn't see you? How good are you with your eyes when you ride? Do you use a mirror? Do you need to hear what you can see?

Just curious.

C'mon, sure you do.