Listening to music when riding

Does anyone listen to music when on long rides? I was thinking about taking my radio or MP3 player on longer rides. I am training for my first century ride and sometimes get bored when on 50+ mile rides. Is having music a distaction? I ride by myself, so I do not have anyone to talk to.

I have in the past but I never get bored on the bike anymore. My mind stays occupied with staying in the right zone or the intervals I'm doing. If you do try this, just be sure you can hear the traffic.

I was thinking of using only one earphone.

I've used my ipod on rides from time to time. I only use it when I'm riding down a rails to trails road or in the park. I do still leave it on riding to the park but I turn it down low enough that I can hear what's going on.

A lot of people really freak out over that but I don't think it's that big a deal. I'm rather a safety freak too but in this case if used moderately and under appropriate situations I don't think it adds significant risk.

The important thing is to turn it down before you get somewhere you need to hear.

Interestingly, when I rode motorcycles, we all wore earplugs while riding/racing because it was just too damn loud in there. No one thought it was a safety issue then.

Just about always on my solo rides. Full traffic or off the beaten path. I just don't crank it so I can still hear what's going on around me.

The conservative party line is that you shouldn't for safety sake.

From a practical point of view, low/med volume and only use one bud in low risk areas is probably fine. That's what I do and I find that it doesn't interfere with my situational awareness. However, I only use it for background music and not listen to podcast or other intellectually stimulating material where one could lose focus on the riding.

__________________
Morphed Bianchi Camaleonte IV 2006, Ridley Damocles 2006, Garmin, Mac

i use my ipod on low volume when i ride so i can still hear the traffic if i have to. i turn it off if im riding in a high traffic area like in town.

No, only on the trainer. In another note, anyone like DJ Markski, if you are into trance and progressive trance/techno. Hmm.....I couldn't stop listen to them.

__________________
In memories of my hero, Mimi.
http://geocities.com/victorhome/
http://www.myspace.com/thresholdpower
Photo collections:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/vracing/

I do it all the time. Not so much in heavy traffic or areas I'm not familiar with. I'm more careful on windy country roads where wind noise is low and visibility around corners isn't great. Sometimes in these cases it's hearing the car coming around the next corner that I need. That being said, I'll ride with the iPod any chance I get.

__________________
Cycling Blog - Training with Power

I am somewhat low tech in that I use earphones and a walkman type of cd player... I hang the earphones around my neck (not over the ears) and set the volume so I can hear it but still hear traffic flow... works great.

My first ride with my Ipod was a mountain bike ride, alone, at night. Within 5 minutes, the volume was low. Within 6 minutes, only one earphone was in. 10 minutes into the ride, I shut the damn thing off. It's a bit creepy in the mountains alone, and not hearing whats going on around you makes it worse.

As for road rides, I really do think having some music helps break the monotony of 6 hour days.

I use my MP3 player all the time, I too ride alot by myself[, and it helps keep your mind in check.QUOTE=FlyingJ]Does anyone listen to music when on long rides? I was thinking about taking my radio or MP3 player on longer rides. I am training for my first century ride and sometimes get bored when on 50+ mile rides. Is having music a distaction? I ride by myself, so I do not have anyone to talk to.[/QUOTE]

All the time , like others i have the volume down so i can hear the traffic when im on the road. I'm lucky though, the daily ride is through 37k's of a paved dedicated bike path through nature reserves then i crank it up , some rides its really motivational to have some music that makes one want to put the pedal down

I'm not sure what it is about modern humans, but it seems that most are afraid of being alone with their own thoughts. Most people that I know, as soon as they get in the car, on goes the stereo. As soon as they get home, on goes the TV, or the stereo. Got to be on the cell phone (or reading text messages) at all times. If they're not home or not in the car, get the iPod in the ear.

Personally, I think it's kind of sad.

A big ditto from me. Sound like something I would've said. The sad part is that they're not listening to music per se, but using noise as a distraction not to hear their own shallow chatter.

__________________