Riding on the road with headphones...

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Riding on the road with headphones...

66 posts & 44 voices | Started 3 years ago by funkynick | Latest reply from owenfackrell

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funkynick - Member

Do people who do this on the road have a death wish or something?

We'd just had a nice bimble around Leith Hill and surroundings and was just in the car going back to our friends house. We were driving through Coldharbour and had already been close behind this guy once, but we'd had to pull over for another car... so, we come up behind him as we leave the village, I holding back to make sure it's safe and then just as the road goes up a hill and widens a little he gets out of the saddle and wanders all over the road. Luckily I had half anticipated him doing something like this so although I had started to pull closer to get round him I was able to slow down again...

Anyway, this goes on for a little bit until there's a flatter section and I can get past safely and he's not all over the place... but from the look on his face as we came past all I can think is that he had absolutely no idea that we were behind him.

So, is it some suicidal instinct? Or merely rank stupidity?

Posted 3 years ago #
mrmo - Member

if it isn't safe to pass, it isn't safe to pass, why should he get out of your way?

Headphones are a minor issue, Plenty of times i use them, you tend to know when a driver is behind, call it sixth sense, and it doesn't mean i am going to do anything to make the drivers life easier, and probably put me in a dangerous position as they squeeze by, If you ride up a hill you tend to wander, it is why the highway code is very specific on the room you should give when overtaking a cyclist.

Posted 3 years ago #
Gary_M - Member

I use them on the traffic free part of my commute then take them out when I get on the road. I do occasionally use them on road rides and to be honest with the volume low then it's not a problem. Wind noise can cut the sound of an approaching car just as much. Should we not ride in the wind either?

Posted 3 years ago #
druidh - Member

I was gonna say - I wonder if there's any long-term damage could be caused through wind noise and if earplugs might actually be a good idea.

I can appreciate what the OP is saying - I've only tried earphone once while riding (on a quiet road) and really didn't like the sense of isolation. But then I also guess that, as a driver, you should be considering that any cyclist could be deaf.

Posted 3 years ago #
djglover - Member

Shouldn't you have given him enough room to use the whole lane when overtaking??

Posted 3 years ago #
Oggles - Member

I have no problems hearing approaching cars with earphones, use them on most rides. I wouldn't use them in-ear jobbies though.

Posted 3 years ago #
coatesy - Member

Wouldn't use them on the bike if you paid me. There's no way i'd want to deprive myself of a valuable sense that may help in fending off the idiots that I have to share the roads with.
If a judge can cut damages to somebody with head injuries because they weren't wearing a helmet at the time of the accident, then you'd probably not have much defence if wearing headphones in a similar situation.

Posted 3 years ago #
funkynick - Member

mrmo... there would have been plenty of room to pass if he wasn't wandering quite so much across the road, and the reason I didn't pass him there was because it was not safe to do so having no idea whether he was going to wander even further across the road. It just seemed to be that he was completely oblivious to the fact that there was anything behind him.

Gary_M.. I don't seem to have any trouble hearing cars behind me when I'm riding in on my commute, even if it's windy, and if that is a problem surely it's just made even worse by wearing earphones!

Posted 3 years ago #
funkynick - Member

djglover... I was trying to make sure I gave him as much room as possible when I overtook, and when I did finally I was fully on the over side of the road... but it's kinda hard to do that when he's veering across the road, so I didn't overtake at that point.

In which case, surely I did the right thing in not overtaking at that point!

Posted 3 years ago #
Teetosugars - Member

I always ride with headphones on while I'm on the road..

Some nice D'n'B keeping me company..

Always have it at a level that I can still hear traffic, but yeah..

Posted 3 years ago #
trailmonkey - Member

natural selection

Posted 3 years ago #
Gary_M - Member

Gary_M.. I don't seem to have any trouble hearing cars behind me when I'm riding in on my commute, even if it's windy, and if that is a problem surely it's just made even worse by wearing earphones!

And I don't have aproblem hearing cars approaching when I have headphones in. It's not just about hearing them anyway, you can 'feel' a vehicle behind you.

Posted 3 years ago #
Jon Taylor - Member

Wouldn't use them on the bike if you paid me. There's no way i'd want to deprive myself of a valuable sense that may help in fending off the idiots that I have to share the roads with.

QFT.

That said, courtesy goes both ways. I am aware of traffic around me and I treat them with the respect they may or may not deserve. If I, a cyclist am heading up a hill or I know I am impeding traffic I may choose to ride closer to the verge than otherwise to let them pass. It depends on the road width/lane width/verge/traffic in opposite carriageway/road speed/conditions/mood. To ride courteously one must be aware of the other traffic on the road. Nay, they have a DUTY to be aware of the other traffic on the road.

funkynick - I wish the folks who have to overtake me thought ahead enough to think "what he does..." and were prepared to slow down because it wasn't safe to overtake.

Posted 3 years ago #
Ed2001 - Member

Gary M your psychic! You could make a fortune on sky living.

Posted 3 years ago #
Smee - Blocked

Anything above 15mph and I cant hear a thing behind me.

Posted 3 years ago #
mansonsoul - Member

When you drive, can you hear other road users about you from within your metal shell, with the sound of the gratuitous power of your engine? If you have the radio on too, listening to The Archers?

Cyclists are road users, and the ability to hear or not (through headphones or deafness) should not influence their safety, nor a judge's decision to let off yet another driver that has slaughtered one more cyclist in one more 'accident', one more RTA.

Just this morning I was smashed off my bike into a parked car by a boy racer who just drove on, apparently oblivious. I was riding (without headphones) about 2/3rds of the way across my lane to block cars from overtaking me in the narrow inner city road I was riding on. But boy racer decides there is just enough room to overtake me, and accelerates alongside, sees a car in the opposite lane, pulls in and smashes me off.

I'm sorry, but car drivers are all idiots, polluting and murdering, and being able to hear them or not won't stop them murdering you regardless.

Posted 3 years ago #
plop_pants - Member

I often use headphones if I'm out on my own for a long road ride but I only use one and in my left ear. I use ear buds which give clarity but with only using one bud I can still hear the traffic. I do tend to only listen to talky radio though rather than my metal collection!

Posted 3 years ago #
larry - Member

i figured I would still ride a bike if I went deaf so why not use headphones!

Posted 3 years ago #
mrsflash - Member

When you drive, can you hear other road users about you from within your metal shell, with the sound of the gratuitous power of your engine? If you have the radio on too, listening to The Archers?

No but you have these things called mirrors. And people don't tend to force themselves past you like they do when you're on a bike.

Posted 3 years ago #
DickBarton - Member

If I'm riding on my own, I have headphones in and listen to music - use in-ear headphones as they remove voices but I can still hear traffic without any problems - but I don't have loud volumes so no issues for me. Don't see the problem IF you can still hear traffic.

Posted 3 years ago #
druidh - Member

mansonsoul - Member

I'm sorry, but car drivers are all idiots, polluting and murdering, and being able to hear them or not won't stop them murdering you regardless.

No room for compromise then?

Posted 3 years ago #
Speshpaul - Member

No but you have these things called mirrors.
Thats a very broad brush Mrs Flash, firstly you are assuming that because they are there they will be used.
The cyclist in question here, didn't look over his shoulder when he changed road position.

mansonsoul -
Just this morning I was smashed off my bike into a parked car by a boy racer who just drove on, apparently oblivious. I was riding (without headphones) about 2/3rds of the way across my lane to block cars from overtaking me in the narrow inner city road I was riding on. But boy racer decides there is just enough room to overtake me, and accelerates alongside, sees a car in the opposite lane, pulls in and smashes me off.

Maybe you ment your match?

Posted 3 years ago #
cheers_drive - Member

funkynick-
So he was weaving all over both lanes? Drivers need to give as much room to cyclist as they would passing a car. What would you do if there was a tractor crawling along at 15mph?

BTW I do use headphones to listen to radio on solo rides but can always hear traffic, they're also great for stopping earache on cold rides.

Posted 3 years ago #
mansonsoul - Member

SpeshPaul, I was riding where I was deliberately to stop people overtaking me. But that doesn't stop idiots with a ton of metal and testosterone from trying.

Posted 3 years ago #
CaptJon - Member

What about deaf riders?

Anyway, don't most cars have horns...?

Posted 3 years ago #
IdleJon - Member

And the normal response if a car beeps at a cyclist is for the cyclist to make an abusive gesture back.

Posted 3 years ago #
Speshpaul - Member

I was deliberately to stop people overtaking me

To a ****t thats just a goal.

Posted 3 years ago #
CaptJon - Member

That's on them then, but at least they know the car is there.

I was followed up a climb last weekend by a car for about 3/4 of a mile (narrow country road). When i pulled into a passing place to let them past the driver smiled and thanked me which i thought was nice. I wasn't sure if the thanks was for letting them pass or because of my fine ass though.

Posted 3 years ago #
funkynick - Member

cheers_drive... I reckon he got to somewhere around the middle of the road before veering back again, and as I said, I didn't overtake then as I thought it wasn't safe to do so... anyone would think I barged past him with only an inch to spare! I later overtook him when it was safe to do so, on a flat section where he wasn't weaving... I'm not sure I could have done any better as a driver, unless not overtaking at all is the only acceptable thing to do.

mansonsoul... car drivers tend to have mirrors, but I will grant that not all use them and some drivers are utter c*cks.. but that doesn't mean they all are.

Just out of interest, is there any law surrounding this sort of thing?

Posted 3 years ago #
DezB - Member

I have a death wish. I've been commuting for 15 years+ with headphones and rather disappointingly, not been killed yet.
The knocks/scrapes/near-misses I've had would NOT have been avoided by being able to hear the traffic better.

Posted 3 years ago #
coatesy - Member

Jontaylor (or anyone for that matter), what does QFT mean?

Posted 3 years ago #
GW - Member

just set the volume loud enough that you can still hear your tyres on the road and you will hear any other traffic too.

Posted 3 years ago #
Hairychested - Member

Speshpaul - Member
Just this morning I was smashed off my bike into a parked car by a boy racer who just drove on, apparently oblivious. I was riding (without headphones) about 2/3rds of the way across my lane to block cars from overtaking me in the narrow inner city road I was riding on. But boy racer decides there is just enough room to overtake me, and accelerates alongside, sees a car in the opposite lane, pulls in and smashes me off.

Maybe you ment your match?

Paul, you're wrong. He did the right thing. Although saying all drivers are murderers etc. isn't fair.

Posted 3 years ago #
big_n_daft - Member

its a "trail hound" subject

those who do will defend it to their dying breath, those who don't think you are a ****

Posted 3 years ago #
Dom C - Member

Yeah, riders with headphones make me wary every time I drive past 'em. I always give them an extra wide berth. I suppose it would be a nice distraction if you're commuting along the same roads five days a week or out on a training ride churning out the miles, but I think it's your responsibility to yourself to be as attentive as possible on most roads if you're on a bike.

Posted 3 years ago #