Music while commuting

[kuksul08]

yeah I play it either radio or bluetooth from my phone. It was distracting when I first did it but now it's not.

 

[WWWobble]

Yep. There's only so much money to spend. If you have music, it takes away from attention paid toward riding.

I agree in principle, and I don't personally listen to music. HOWEVER...

Sometimes we don't pay attention to riding anyway? It's not just listening to music that can distract us.

If music helps somebody to be in the moment, paying attention to the ride while music stays background, then great. Many good riders do it successfully.

But I think all of us can day dream, think about other stuff, dwell on what just happened recently, or get distracted by some incidental vision or thought -- all while riding --- and that's no good either.

 

[reasonable_max]

Don't surgeons put music on in the operating theater?

If you feel like having a beat in the background will distract you when you're splitting you probably should slow down.

 

[Jalopyshoppe]

For those high and mighty about distraction: you're not everyone.
I've had race drivers who play music in the comms. I've had drivers that get involved in conversations about subjects that range from lunch to vintage airplanes.
I've also had drivers that can't read the gauges to me on the front straight at Thunderhill.
The performance delta and average lap times between the drivers is so minimal in a race, that it's easily explained by lap traffic. None were accident/incident prone. The ones that were talkative frequently gave me commentary on the events unfolding on track in front of them.
Law Enforcement training involves high speed driving and clearly communicating on the radio.
The human brain can certainly operate a bike comfortably with music playing.
I really enjoy music and comms when I'm on the freeway as well as when I'm hustling the bike on my favorite roads. My only complaint is the annoying beep when I leave FreeRyde in my dust and the Sena is trying to re-connect. Even then, I can still maintain my pace and operate my bike comfortably.

I started with ear buds and my phone in my jacket, but actually found that to be distracting. Every time I wanted to adjust the volume or pause the music, it was impossible. The Sena and other headsets make these controls easy with gloves on. Definitely made the experience much more enjoyable.

 

[KnifeySpoony]

Don't surgeons put music on in the operating theater?

I do, but i don't listen to music will splitting, as i find it distracting. Maybe it's not being able to hear the bike as well. I always do music on longer rides when not splitting but turn it down and focus when in the split.

 

[musiclucho]

Recently, I started playing some music while commuting and it´s been relaxing. My rule is that I need to listen the engine rumble so I can connect with the bike.

 

[sanjuro]

I listen to music and I find it a great focusing tool.

Firstly, I ride almost entirely on the highway, so I really can't hear anything anyway. I actually listen to the same playlist every time timed to exact points, like a slower song in a heavy traffic, lanesplitting section.

 

[seralat]

This topic is another religious war, like oil or tires. It always ends in tears for someone :~)

That said, I've commuted for 10s of 1000s of miles, and ridden for pleasure many more, while listening to music via a variety of sources, starting in the '90s with an Autocom system. I don't see any difference in my approach or ability to ride when I have music on or when I have it off. If I find it starts to be distracting for some reason, I'll turn it off, but that rarely happens.

 

[NoTraffic]

This topic has come up multiple times on BARF. If you're the type to do work with background music, commuting with music is no different. To me it's like driving, do you need that much skill to commute with music?

For me, no. I pair my blutooth everyday for a 40 mile roundtrip. In some ways, it lets me focus even more with the right soundtracks.

 

[Johndicezx9]

Not a fan of music while riding, I want to hear the road and street noises around me, just in case....

I don’t get the Harley guys with stereos either, they all seem to sound like that one speaker cassette player I got for Christmas in 1976. :dunno

 

[Kurosaki]

Not a fan of music while riding, I want to hear the road and street noises around me, just in case....

I don’t get the Harley guys with stereos either, they all seem to sound like that one speaker cassette player I got for Christmas in 1976. :dunno

You can still hear those. It's not all or nothing.

 

[dittoalex]

One suffers attention residue as a lasting fatigue cost of context switching, which impairs deep work -- where one learns. If you're riding for the purpose of deliberate practice and growth you should eliminate all context switching, such as noticing background music. I listen to music without lyrics. Lyrics are as bad as running an inner monologue.

 

[R6Elmo]

to OP: just try it and see if it works for you. many many Bluetooth and headphone options nowadays.

you may find it distracting or not. do you drive, work, workout, cook, etc with music? to each their own.

 

[kelsodeez]

After riding for the better part of 20 years without music, and now having purchased a Sena helmet last weekend, I have to say that i do feel less safe when riding with music.

The only way i can describe it is that i see with my ears. Hearing is a huge part of my awareness and cutting that off just tilts the odds ever so slightly in favor of being in a dangerous situation.

Although, if i am listening to a podcast, the sound of an engine or the rumble of tires is more distinct from voices in a podcast than it is from the wail of a guitar, or a siren in a rap song can take my focus off of whats in front of me looking for an emergency vehicle.

I know ithats all super circumstantial, but thats my view on it so far.

 

[Critter]

Been riding with music for about 20 years...i keep it at a moderate level where I can still hear tires screech or a siren. For me it keeps me more alert because I feel the music is making me hyper aware of my surroundings because I'm consciously thinking about not allowing the music to distract me from scanning.

 

[East Bay Mike]

Never listened to music in my under 2 years of riding but might try it someday.

I don’t commute on bike, though.

 

[Johndicezx9]

You can still hear those. It's not all or nothing.

Let’s see; helmet, wind noise, a dollop of Doppler, electric cars, my age, a helluva lot of concerts in my youth standing in front of speaker stacks...

I’d rather NOT add another layer to that cake.

 

[boney]

I don't listen to music while commuting to have something to listen to. I listen to music while commuting to silence the voices in my head.

Or something like that.

Seriously, though, the right background music can do wonders to quickly help one forget the day's stresses and silence the clutter that is left echoing around in the grey matter. The wrong soundtrack can completely transform your riding style and attitude in a hot-second, so beware of that too.

Often I ride in silence. Sometimes I just have to have enough background to keep me from hearing the transmission whine or tire growl.

 

[4x4Runner]

Seems to be a pretty divided topic. Some need it, others can’t operate with it.

Opinions on this matter are definitely deeply rooted.

Personally. I can’t function without music. I listen to music pretty much from the time I get out of bed until I go back to bed most days. The other days, I fire up the TV.

I’ve worked in spaces where we aren’t allowed phones or wireless devices and I ripped multiple playlists to DVD and would play them through the computer at work.

During my trip to Phoenix over Christmas I had to stop and charge my packtalk for bit. Put it in the tank bag so I could glance down and see when it was charged. Once it was, next exit I was off and reconnecting it for those glorious tunes.

I don’t listen to it loud but enough to hear it and make out the notes and lyrics. It’s loud enough to hear but not loud enough I can’t differentiate noises outside the helmet.

If you can ride without music, good on ya! Just do me a favor! Don’t tell me how my listening to music is going to affect me cause you ain’t me!

 

[berth]

I don't listen to music while commuting to have something to listen to. I listen to music while commuting to silence the voices in my head.

While riding out to Arizona one year, I "sang" the entirety of Rush's Moving Pictures album to myself in my head.

Not sure where that falls on the spectrum of stuff we're talking about here.