Listening to music whilst out on a ride

i'm typing this whilst listening to music and don't just stand there let's get to it, strike a pose, there's nothing to it's not a problem, my brain is perfectly able to cope with a few things at once without being distracted

The lorry driver who ran over Mary Bowers was on a hands free mobile phone. Distracted?

Someone pointed me in the direction of these the other day: http://www.aftershokz.co.uk/Bone-Conduction-Headphones-AfterShokz-s/1818...
Terrible, terrible name, but apparently they do work quite well. I've always been wary of wearing headphones on a ride, even on quiet roads. I do like to have all my senses available to be aware of my surroundings.... but when you've got a lot of shit going through your head, sometimes you need to block it out with music.

Another comedy cycling debate like helmet wearing and wearing non-fluro jackets, those that do it think it's fine those that don't think it's ridiculous.

For me cycling is about getting away from the normal drone of everyday life so I don't want to listen to music, if you do go for it.

'who are we to criticise?'
'Anyone who listens to music whilst cycling is a PRATT!!'

Oh, the irony.

I use to do it when I first started my 4 mile commute on my old (and too small) MTB, but as I got more and more into cycling and started doing longer rides I stopped because a) I like to just ride, look at the scenery of the surrey B roads an just relax more and b) I could always guarantee that at least 1 ear bud would fall out every mile for whatever reason leading to more annoyance. I can see why people like to, I use to but i can also see the dangerous part and why people don't.

I got hit by a bus a few years ago while on my motorbike and the driver had a hands free phone ear piece in.

Was he distracted because of this? maybe but no more than driving a car whilst talking on an in car phone or listening to music.

I personally don't like to listen to music while out riding, nothing to do with safety, i just like the sounds when Im out riding.
I do like to listen to music while driving the car though. guess that makes me a PRATT!! sorry for the shouting and over use of exclamation marks

There ain't no sweeter music than tyre on tarmac.

Hearing a maniac screaming out of a blind turn into my left shoulder. Or a truck speeding up to do a left hook in front of my face. Not so sweet, but nicer to hear than not so I can do something about it.

If your music isn't distracting, then it probably isn't worth listening to. Just saying.

I have those headphones that go right in your ears and listen to metal on full volume most of the time when commuting. It blocks out the background noise of all the shit going on around me and helps me keep a rhythm and concentrate on what I'm doing and avoiding getting squashed. I can still hear motor vehicles quite clearly due to their lower frequency and sheer volume.

Going out for a ride is a completely different matter and I would never where headphones, but this is when my mind is more likely to wander.

as much as i love the general feeling of immersion and zen that comes from being out on the bike, there are times in the depths of winter at 5.30am when i need something to distract me from the hour long ride to work in pissing rain, pitch black and howling wind. at this point, a decent soundtrack can work wonders and enables me to maintain motivation and get the miles in. i compensate for the slight reduction in auditory awareness by looking behind a lot more. it's not ideal, but there is no tangible reduction in safety. you can see headlights behind and in front, and at the side (and it's invariably dark). of the 'accidents' i've had, driver error has been the cause and there isn't anything i could have done to avoid them, even if i was using an ipod at the time, which i wasn't.

in summer, when life is better and nature provides a more compelling and cheery soundtrack i tend to not use the ipod.

i fear for the general level of bike handling and awareness people have if they think they're going to suddenly become street pizza on account of blasting out a few Susan Boyle tracks on their commute.

IMHO riding my bikes around London and South East England is either an exercise in tilting the odds towards survival as much as possible, or a matter of enjoying it.

Busy roads, even on Boris blue lanes, are dangerous places (partly due to reckless cyclists) and I'll take every 0.1% advantage I can get. I've been properly mashed once in ten years of regular riding and despite a great service from the NHS its not good, probably with lifelong future joint problems. Dozens of less lucky cyclists have died - the pedestrians and cyclists will always come off worse in a wrestle with a big lump of steel. The human brain is very good at picking up clues and processing them instantly on a "System 1" automatic level, so I don't want to compromise any of that.

Out in the sticks I can't see the point of even partly cutting off the environment, the breeze in the trees, the joy of the birds twittering away whilst winching up a quiet climb, the patter of footsteps as a hedgehog overtakes me etc etc. And, the possible early warning of a mechanical problem from a change in bike noises.

So for me no headphones on the road and personally I would lobby for all of you out there to keep your ears peeled as well when out on the public highway, or on towpaths etc.

Keeps you safer, keeps everyone else safer.

It's not for me, I love the whole sounds of nature and rush of the wind and tyres on tarmac thing. What do you listen to and why do you prefer it?

I listen to music on the rollers (gotta find some way to entertain yourself) but, for me, on the road music's a no-no. I get enough entertainment from the world around me and, even if I was bored to death, safety first! Rather bored than dead!!!

Anyone tried aftershokz they conduct the music through the bone near your ear?

Surprised at the number of people condemning headphones as dangerous. Car drivers, pedestrians and even motorcyclists listen to music, don't see what the big deal is.

Nothing beats storming uphill to a decent dance track - great for your rhythm, motivation and keeping up the pace

let's not allow the health and safety police to take another one of life's pleasures away!

As some people have mentioned wind noise is sufficiently loud to be a major problem when going at reasonable speeds on country roads. That is why I'm thinking of getting a mirror. After all no-one would dream of driving a car without one, so why go on a bike without one, although I have been for 44 years. Used to have an iPhone on max volume in my back pocket occasionally but could only hear it if I turned my head a bit, which shows how loud wind noise is, especially compared to modern quiet cars.

i don't listen to music, but when i have my head band on over my ears in this cold weather I can't hear a bloody thing with all the the wind noise added in.

Commuting: no way I would listen to music. Morning traffic over here is distracting enough as is.
Training/Rec: Of course! Get a little adrenaline from a great song, catch up on NPR (BBC Radio over here), or listen to what's going to be coming up on you schedule-wise.

I have to say, the concern over the image of cyclists as a whole is impressive. If you really think about it, where else is there such a large community (with loose to no ties to each other) so concerned with their public image?