I agree. For those who think their situation is exceptional, consider that you may create a problem for yourself if you get into an accident even if it is no fault of yours. If another party's insurance company can weasel around some way to find you partially liable they will do it in a heart beat. I don't personally have a big problem with it, except for when it happens on group rides. In that case I simply just make sure I don't ride near the person.

Too big an aero penalty with the boom box!

I was actually completely ignorant about it being against the law here, good to know.

I think I've only been without headphones a few times over the last couple years... And one of those times riding without music was actually the time I was hit. So based on my indisputable super scientific facts, I declare riding with tunes safer then riding without.

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Long Chile was a silly place.

I used to run with headphones, then one day the buds kept falling out and the strap kept slapping my chest- drove me nuts, took them out and have never run with since. I prefer without but if someone needs music to run (or ride), more power to them if they can do it safely. Not to judge your actions because I wasn't there, but it does sound like you didn't give this guy enough room if his left slide almost took you out. OR his left slide was too exaggerated and that's more an issue of line control than music probably.

That said, I agree with your principle in a general sense. I hate the fact that my phone has taken over so much control. I compulsively check it when I have it near which is all the time unless I am running and it never goes with me on a run. I was sitting at a local brew pub saturday with the Mrs. and a crew in full kit rode up and sat down with some pints. I was jealous of the good time they were having until I noticed that ALL 5 of them were sitting on their phones rather than enjoying the company, That's sad to me.

To your point, if you can do it safely, do it. I think runners would be better off without music because you can hear the sounds of your body and know what it's going through better but from a safety perspective, the poster above that said we need to all pull our heads out of our asses is spot on.

I ride with one ear bud in my right ear, never both. I do the same thing on my motorcycle.

I can hear cars and other riders no problem. I don't do it if I ride with anyone, but solo sure, there's no harm. I don't crank it up to 11! Do what's right for you and I will do the same.

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"4 wheels move the body, 2 wheels move the soul"

This is a pet peeve of mine, a couple of times I have tried to yell/signal other riders who were oblivious because they had their stupid ear buds in. I get wanting music, but what did we all do before we had skip-protection? What always really shocks me though, is when I see young women running alone at night or early in the morning with their headphones in, unaware of what is going on around them. I am thinking, "haven't you seen...the news?"

FTFY.

John

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Top notch coaching: Francois and Accelerate3 | Follow on Twitter: LifetimeAthlete |

I run/ride with headphones, but I don't use headphones when I mountain bike. How do I fit into your intellectually simple generalization? Do we need to apply weighted averages to the time spent with headphones in nature vs. time spent without headphones in nature to see if I lack common appreciation? Maybe we should also define 'nature'. Riding roads in farm country is not really 'nature' too me, however riding fire roads would be nature. How do we discount these differences to get closer to the answer of appreciating 'the symphony of nature'?

I take it headphones were a crutch to your motivation. So you are a firm believer that if one person benefits then everyone benefits (fallacy of composition). Thus because you benefit for not having headphones then everyone must also benefit. You must LOVE Obamacare.

What nutrition do you use? Since it works for you it MUST work for everyone. Let's break this down to the shoes you run in, the bike tires, chain, pedals, helmet, clothes, etc.

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The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design.

I definitely ride with headphones, makes everything much better!

I can hear with earbuds. in. Nevertheless, don't yell at me. If you're turning in front of me, signal. Or wait. That's normal in traffic. Signal or wait.

I don't see how the women are hurting you by doing that, and if there is some problem, maybe you should focus on the people causing the problem.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

If you are outside, you are in nature. Taking in your environment, be it trees, fields, the sky, or even the interactions with other people (yes, including cars) in a urban setting is nature. But by all means, if listening to Niki Minaj & Pitbull on repeat for hours on end to block out all of that, then have at it. Just stay out of everyone else's way as you swerve side to side to the beat.

And BTW, fuck Obamacare.

Running with headphones is less of a pet-peeve because things happen much more slowly when we are running so someone in obvlivion-land is less of a problem for me. What surprises me is that women willingly let themselves lose situational awareness. Lets be frank, people aren't out to assault or do much harm to me, they could but I am less of a target than a young woman. Being aware of your surroundings as best you can is not only polite to everyone else but it is better for your personal safety.

As far as cycling goes, I will always shout and or speak loudly when I need to get someone's attention. This isn't to hurt anyone's feelings but as others have noted, wind noise is very apparent and speaking softly wont cut it. I don't want to hit you, I don't want you to hit me, I want to warn you about the car or the pothole you are about to go over, I want to ask about your day, I want to compliment your bike, I want to assist you if you are having a problem - I will do all that with a loud voice so you can hear me over the car and wind noise.

Obviously it is possible that someone without headphones can be just as oblivious as someone with headphones but in my experience, and I am not unique, the one tends to lead to the other. Not exclusively mind you, so you could be the one exception and I wouldn't be the wiser.

Your name fits your personality. Well done.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

I have said it before that headphones are a crutch as a motivator and if you need music to keep you entertained while enjoying the great outdoors, then you lack common appreciation for the symphony of nature.

Maybe some people just reallly like music, for more that it's mere value as a crutch or a motivator. Or perhaps you're just so higly evolved, at one with nature, and better than others. I find your judgmental and condescending attitude funny.

Last week doing hill repeats I nearly ran into the same jackass on the sidewalk THREE TIMES going up, down, and up the hill again while his face was buried in his iPhone & had his headphones in. It was a sidewalk barely wide enough to pass & this jackass was just trotting along with no regard for the world. You would think after the first time that he might blow it off, but after the second time he would maybe take notice. Nope. I ran the asshole over on the third pass.

You're doing hill repeats on a narrow sidewalk, and the other guy is the problem?

It's an asinine claim & will fast track you to eventually becoming another statistic. If you have made it this far without incident, you have an angel on your shoulder, but eventually I believe that angel will take a break, and so will you.

Apparently, you're not all that good at evaluating relative risk. Do you keep your kids home from school out of fear they'll contract ebola.

you lack common appreciation for the symphony of nature.

You lack the common appreciation of the symphony that is Nine Inch Nails.

Last week doing hill repeats I nearly ran into the same jackass on the sidewalk

What nature are you getting on a narrow sidewalk?

this jackass was just trotting along with no regard for the world. You would think after the first time that he might blow it off, but after the second time he would maybe take notice. Nope. I ran the asshole over on the third pass.

I think you may be misdiagnosing who the jackass/asshole is in this story.

I run about 50% of the time with earbuds, depends on my mood. I have ridden with them but it just wasn't my thing.

I ride in rural areas, the danger for me is someone rear ending me. I'm not sure how a car that is going to rear end me sounds different from one that is going to pass close by.

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I'm beginning to think that we are much more fucked than I thought.

Here's the thing. You might think you need to get someone's attention, but if I'm riding with earbuds, I actually don't want you to get my attention. I'm riding safely, and what you think or want isn't my business as long as I'm not actively bothering you. Really, it's not.

It might be nice of you to think you're helping me by warning me of stuff, but I don't agree I need those warnings. So leave me alone. Please. Your sentiment is nice, but if I'm listening to music it means I probably don't care.

And compliment my bike or ask about my day? Dude, I'm supposed to ride around without music so people can come up to me and make small talk? No. Please, just no.

Oh BTW, if you really need to talk to me for some reason (perhaps *you* need directions or advice or something), ride up alongside and talk. I'll pull the earbuds out. Really. I'll help. But don't help me. I'm not interested.

Oh, and if you know me and need to talk to me as a friend, ride up alongside me and talk, and I'll also pull the earbuds out and talk.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

As much as I think "on your left" is unnecessary (and douchey), you don't say it to get someone to move out of your way. At most, it's serves (poorly) to let the rider in front know your there so that he doesn't get startled or suddenly move off his line.

If you're passing, you're the one responsible for doing it safely. If you don't know the rider in front of you, you have no way of knowing whether they'll hold their line. You don't even know how they'll react to whatever warning you shout. So what if they're riding side by side and talking. You still make sure it's clear and then pass while giving space. That goes for whether there's a busy highway or not. If traffic means you have to wait a bit longer before making a safe pass, so what?

This.

Riding is fun. The way some people talk, they make it sound like some stressful battle.

I love me some Trent Reznor, but not when I'm outside on my bike or on a run.

Being outside alone is better than sitting at a desk in front of this computer monitor. We can't all escape to the country, so you take what you can get. Plus, Atlanta is pretty much covered in trees no matter where you are, so it's not like I'm running through the streets of Manhattan. Nature is everywhere down here.

It's more about how we, as society, have become so absorbed in technology, smartphones, headphones, and blocking out the entire world that we have become a culture of people who can't even be bothered to know what the person standing next to you is doing.

Didn't you get patsullivan's memo that women are weaker and inferior to men and that a woman is taking a huge risk, much larger than that of a man, by running with headphones?? /s

So true.

Says the guy in an argument on the internet...

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Take a short break from ST and read my blog:
http://tri-banter.blogspot.com/

x2

I always think back to a race I did while deployed. In the last mile, the guy that would have won it didn't take the correct route, despite the yells from the volunteers, b/c he was listening to music. I saw the whole thing. He was pissed after the race and somebody mentioned that he'd of won had he been able to hear.

I give ALL cyclists who use earbuds a wide berth. IMO, they're a danger to others. I've even seen cyclists texting before. I'm guessing we'll be seeing Darwin awards handed out to these ppl.

Word.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

I used to ride around no-handed eating spaghetti with a knife and fork till I crashed into a wagon-load of orphans and fell, splitting my head open like a melon while yelling "on your left" at the orphans/wagoneers and the nuns who were pulling the wagons.

But the nuns AND most of the little kids had on Beats by Dr. Dre(tm) headphones so they didn't hear me.

F*ckers is dangerous.

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http://www.jt10000.com/

You must have been listening to "on top of spaghetti" with your ipod...