I was once running a half marathon where there is also a full marathon course. A1a in ft Lauderdale.

The hand cyclists were coming up behind us finishing the full marathon. There were bikes and horns and people yelling to get out of the way. Everybody moves except one lady with headphones who I guess hears nothing. A volunteer had to pull her out of the way seconds before a crash. It was dramatic.

That is when I first understood why headphones don’t belong on a race course. She meant no harm but she couldn’t hear.

This was before bone conducting was an option.

Just finished my run, and don't have the paperwork in front of me, but it says (roughly) headphones are defined as in the ear, or over the ear. The aftershocks bone conducting "headset" does not fit that definition. They are neither IN, nor do they cover the ears.

I think they're referring to "Headphones, headsets which are inserted in or covering the ears are not allowed during any portion of the event" and since bone conducting headphones are technically neither, they could be passable. I feel like it breaks the spirit of the rules especially since "Athletes may not use communication devices of any type, including but not limited to cell phones, smart watches, Bluetooth enabled or “smart” helmets, and two-way radios, in any distractive manner during the Race. A “distractive manner” includes but is not limited to making and receiving phone calls, sending and receiving text messages, playing music, using social media, taking photographs, and mounting the device to a bike for purposes of using the device like a bike computer. Using a communication device in a distractive manner during the Race will result in disqualification" means to prohibit any type of "distracting device"

Ya, I can't imagine how that is going to fly with Ironman and USAT. To me bone conduction is still a headset/headphone.

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They were pretty descriptive of what they considered “headphones”. But that is also why I mentioned using the phone as a possible no-no. iPod touch for the win.

I'm not seeing where they are descriptive about it being headphones and in your ears. I listed the exact passage above from the rules. If you have a big set of cans those aren't in your ears either. Regardless you can bet that if someone is using bone-conduction headphone that Ironman/USAT will explicitly define and insert that into the rules.

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Just replied the same to Culley22 above, but I am not seeing where they defining something as in your ears. Bottom line is there are plenty of old-school headphones that go over your ears and not in them too. The rule IMHO is basically in there to limited music, metronome, etcs

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“Headphones, headsets which are inserted in or covering the ears are not allowed during any portion of the event.”

Seems pretty specific to me.

ETA: why not just say “no personal music device” or something like that? But they didn’t. They went with the “dampens the outside noises” causing the inability to hear outside noises as well. The bone conducting ones don’t do this, and maybe they are loosening the rules. As ol’ Bob Babbit mentioned they used to use the bone conducting thing around their neck back in the days...maybe this is on that level.

And those wouldn’t be allowed under the rules as written.

I did a search in the official global Ironman rules doc for your quote and I can't find that quote. Where did you pull it from and are you looking at the quote I posted above which is directly from the rules doc. It is a bit different than yours. Here are the rules fwiw.

Regardless we are getting so far in the weeds, we can find any number of loopholes/technicality in anything, Products like "aftershocks" technically cover your ears, just not in the way you are thinking, they drape around the back side of your ear but still covering. If you can't agree to that then then just run the cans offset a bit so they are not covering the ear either. Or get a set of vertical sport headphones where the buds are tiny and don't cover them at all and rest outside of the ear canal.

I have no idea why Ironman and their lawyers/rules people write things the way they do. But it is more than just music. To me it is about audible communication devices than it is music. Music is a subset, and those device can be used to play music, but you also don't know if something else is going on, say a wireline to a coach or something else.

I don't think they are loosening the rules. If the doc you are referring to is old then maybe the clarification was for exactly this reason.

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Quote came directly out of the athlete’s guide for St.G that is in front of me. So not old.

I’d disagree that the aftershocks in anyway cover your ears, or are intended to (unlike other headphones). But you’re right we are in the weeds, but there is an argument there to be made if someone went with the bone conducting route.

I'd love to see them banned from other races. They were permitted on last years London Marathon and Tower Bridge became gridlocked due to the amount of selfie takers. I saw one guy at the end who'd sunburned his face but his oversized beats had resulted in some rather comical tan lines!

Saw one girl at Windsor half marathon on Facetime - another runner ran into the back of her and the phone went flying, smashed on the pavement and then someone else stood on it. (Karma?)

I used to run with headphones (earbuds) years ago but I always used to notice when one track ends and another starts and it made it me think "argh no, I'm only 4 mins further down the road!" so I find the time passes much quicker without music.

It clearly breaks the spirit of the rule.

No these are not a solution to all the issues mentioned above. Nowhere close.
Those here who want to wear headphones seem to be ignoring the point made earlier about distraction or zoning out. People don't zone out specifically because they can't hear. They do so because they are intentionally distracting themselves from the run with music. The entire intention of listening to music is to provide distraction, so it's very hard to see how you can also argue that it doesn't effect your awareness!!!

You might like music, but you don't need it. It's a crutch you're not generally allowed use, and for good reason in my opinion.

As well as the points you rightly mention they look like normal headphones. You would basically be asking to be stopped by whoever is enforcing the no headphones rule and then have a discussion about the ins and outs of the rule. Being stopped isn't what you want anyway but, IMHO, you'd be putting that steward in an unfair position.

This!

I saw at least 4 people running with them at Oceanside.....thought the rules had changed

I did my first marathon In New York in 1994 and I remember that before the gun you woud look everybody around you and say good race to each of them plus handshake or high five, then you would talk to the follow runners during the race if you are slow and for sure would congratulate your fellow runners after the finish!
Fastforward in 2019, i was part of a cheering section for he Paris marathon, more than 75 % of people ignore the support station since theylisten to music, nobody talk to eachother!
I still run about three marathons per year and few people even aknowledge eachother before, during and after the race!
I find this sad but this is the era of selfies and instagram!
I am a very old fart!
I have done 4 IM to date and I am glad that headphoes are forbiden!

This made me smile too. Actually laughed a little.

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The problem is that it has nothing to do with mental toughness as music has been shown to be a performance enhancing aid by lowering the PE of things so if you can use them you probably should.

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It may be that I'm not following you.

One would need to harden up to put out the same performance without using the artificial performance enhancer of music. Similar to how performance enhancing supplements are frowned upon, no?

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Well, not only the cycling logic behind it and all the subsequent posts. I rode 12hr time trials on the road which we were not allowed headphones. It was/is against the race rules not the road rules. As well as the marshalling, you could choose music to help pacing, I don't think the Pogues would help but dance music could!.

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Doesnt Challenge Roth allow headphones? I seem to remember pictures of Jesse Thomas wearing earbuds on the run a few years ago.

I now always run/bike with one AirPod in my ear, it completely changed my training and racing (where allowed). I can hear everything around me AND get inspired by my tunes. Best of both worlds. Wouldn’t have it any other way.

YMMV, IMHO, etc

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If I were you, I would not pass this up. I would not let this go by...this is rare.
Come on...what harm??

this