And whassup with that parachute jacket?
IMO, only on the trainer. This is becoming the norm however.
Dave in VA
Amen.
i heard a couple minutes of media coverage about that this morning. apparently gw rides on the ranch…off road, or at least no public roadways. i don’t see an issue with that. its the crazy folks training for their next race wearing those out on the roads that worry me.
oh the parachute jacket may be his method of resistance training. might also be a bpv underneath.
I live and ride in Chicago and I think that riding with an Ipod would be a deathwish. I love this city, but riding can be very dangerous in the traffic.
I think if you have a Secret Service escort, a lot of the usual safety issues are rendered moot. As for the baggy jacket, I guess he’s not lining up for a time trial.
I usually ride with one if I’m doing a long solo ride, but I’ll only put in one ear piece. I’ve found that by doing this I have no problems hearing the traffic around me and I still get to have some “background” music going. Guns & Roses is great stuff for intervals 
Mark
Outside of not wearing a helmet I can’t think of anything more foolish. To not be able to hear traffic is an accident waiting to happen. I can’t even run with them. The sound of my briething tells me more than my heart rate monitor and being less experienced than some I still have to listen for clean shifts on the front rings.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve YELLED…ON YOUR LEFT only to get no reaction, once I pass I’ll notice that the yahoo is wearing an i-pod (usually on the W&OD trail for all you Northern Virginians).
Dave in VA
I commute to work with my ipod all the time, I ride in the shoulder & ride very alertly. I can usually hear cars behind me anyway, but I don’t do anything at all differently when I hear a car. I’m already on the side of the road, I’m not going to dive into the bushes every time I hear a car. If a big truck was coming up behind me & about to hit me, what good would it do to hear it? Even if I heard it coming, I would assume it was going to just go past me.
I know it is all about YOU, You and You…
I am the guy who wanted to go by you on his bike and had to go into traffic because of your “state of alertness” preventing you hearing me beg to move over…
I just hope that you never get into a situation, when you could escape death by getting warned in time by a honk or yell.
Not to speak of that what you are doing is probably illegal in your state…
IMO, just something that I wouldn’t do. I may be scarred from riding many years in NYC where you had to hear the cars, but I still wouldn’t do it now. Although I certainly see the motivational benefit of riding with one, I think it’s a dangerous choice. Just my opinion.
What you folks are saying here is that you don’t think deaf people can safely operate a bicycle, right? I’ve found that I’m actually much more astute about staying as far right as possible, and checking over my shoulder more often if I have to venture to the left because of something in the road, like debris, on the right hand side. Whereas if I ride with no music, I’m perfectly comfortable veering off towards the middle of the road simply because I don’t hear anything behind me. Sensory deprivation doesn’t make you more lax in your judgement, I can assure you if you are blasting your music and can’t hear the world around you, you aren’t going to just swerve out into the middle of the road without beind completely sure there are no vehicles behind you. As for being able to say “On your left”, I don’t get that much, just pass 'em and be done with it.
It should be noted I drive about an hour each way every day to go ride in a fairly deserted area of the mountains. It’s rare for more than one car to pass and have another that is in sight behind or in front of it, and they almost always pass on the other side of the road too. More motorcycles than cars really.
This is one of those situations where I believe it’s better to play it on the safe side. We cyclists encounter enough hazards as it is and taking away one of your senses may not be the best choice. Also, you can’t wear them in a race, might as well train like you race.
You should see how carefully I ride when I close my eyes.
I use my I-Pod on all my solo rides. With only the right ear piece in and the volume turned down it really isn’t a problem. I certainly hear a lot more than when I am in my car.
I wear one on my long, solo rides when I’m out on country roads with little traffic. I keep the volume low enough so that I can hear cars approaching.
I’d never consider using one in the city or in a group ride where you have to be very alert.
“I certainly hear a lot mroe than when I am in my car.”
Do you also have an air bag, and a re-enforced steel protrective structure surrounding your bike?
Outside of not wearing a helmet I can’t think of anything more foolish. To not be able to hear traffic is an accident waiting to happen. I can’t even run with them. The sound of my briething tells me more than my heart rate monitor and being less experienced than some I still have to listen for clean shifts on the front rings.
Could not agree with you more. All you have to do is read any cycling/tri forum and at any given time there will be at LEAST one fatality of a cyclist being killed , due to no fault of his own.
Conclusion , unless you are riding in the middle of nowhere (or the like) cycling IS dangerous. For all you statisticians, yes, crossing the road , swimming in the ocean , sleeping around…whatever, is more dangerous or whatever your irrelevant argument is!
Riding without your utmost (best as possible) concentration and concern for your own safety (helmut) is just basically STUPID and irresponsible to your family,friends AND others on the road.
Actually T.Demerly summed it up nicely on another thread I just read ,“Not wearing helmuts on group rides” 5th or 6th down.
That’s not an iPod, it’s a wireless radio Dubya wears so that Dick Cheney can tell him from his underground bunker when to turn, slow down, and speed up.