The Age: Police warning for iPod users

On 2006-02-15, daveL (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

"Anything that distracts drivers' attention is bad because you won't see
a pedestrian, you won't see a cyclist or - even worse - you will go
through an intersection and kill yourself and others."

"You will kill a cyclist, or even worse, another car driver!"

--
TimC
When the revolution comes, we'll need a longer wall. -- Tom De Mulder

daveL said:

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way they
live their lives and the way they conduct themselves."

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your hands.
You're taking a huge risk," he said. "People have just got to take some
responsibility."

Of course, it's about responsibility. As much as I dislike seeing cycling wearing earpods, riced out smogbox sound systems are just as fecking annoying. 😠

daveL <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

<snip>

Quoted message said:

But he said that people needed to take responsibility for themselves,
rather than relying on extra regulation.

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way

Good lord, what an innovate concept, especially from a traffic cop. How's
about we roll back some of the 1000s of other bits of inane pieces of over
zealous legisaltion.

--
Trevor S

"Unthinking respect for authority is the greatest enemy of truth."
-Albert Einstein

TimC said:

On 2006-02-15, daveL (aka Bruce) was almost, but not quite, entirely
unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

"Anything that distracts drivers' attention is bad because you
won't see a pedestrian, you won't see a cyclist or - even worse -
you will go through an intersection and kill yourself and others."

"You will kill a cyclist, or even worse, another car driver!"

Heh, I also like that the entire article seems to be based on "Friends"
opinion that "she may have been killed as she couldn't hear traffic
noise over her iPod" and that "A friend of Ms McMillan's told London's
Evening Standard she may still be alive if she hadn't been listening to
her iPod."

How does the friend know that? We don't have any actual information that
the accident had anything to do with the iPod, or even that it was on.

She might still be alive if she never left the house in the first place?
Good grrief. She might still be alive if the driver that hit her had
never been born. Might. Might. Might.

--
daveL

TimC said:

On 2006-02-15, daveL (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

"Anything that distracts drivers' attention is bad because you won't see
a pedestrian, you won't see a cyclist or - even worse - you will go
through an intersection and kill yourself and others."

"You will kill a cyclist, or even worse, another car driver!"

You could kill a whole mob of cyclists... the [censored] ride around in
bunches. Fortunately, you'd only get one person in a car...

Tam

daveL said:

TimC said:

On 2006-02-15, daveL (aka Bruce) was almost, but not quite, entirely
unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

"Anything that distracts drivers' attention is bad because you
won't see a pedestrian, you won't see a cyclist or - even worse -
you will go through an intersection and kill yourself and others."

"You will kill a cyclist, or even worse, another car driver!"

Heh, I also like that the entire article seems to be based on "Friends"
opinion that "she may have been killed as she couldn't hear traffic
noise over her iPod" and that "A friend of Ms McMillan's told London's
Evening Standard she may still be alive if she hadn't been listening to
her iPod."

How does the friend know that? We don't have any actual information that
the accident had anything to do with the iPod, or even that it was on.

She might still be alive if she never left the house in the first place?
Good grrief. She might still be alive if the driver that hit her had
never been born. Might. Might. Might.

Her friend must clearly be an expert on the topic for the media to be
taking such an interest in the friend's comments... *rolls eyes*

Tam

On 2006-02-15, cfsmtb (aka Bruce)
was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea:

Quoted message said:

daveL said:

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way
they
live their lives and the way they conduct themselves."

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your
hands.
You're taking a huge risk," he said. "People have just got to take
some
responsibility."

Of course, it's about responsibility. As much as I dislike seeing
cycling wearing earpods, riced out smogbox sound systems are just as
fecking annoying. 😠

Coming to the Fully Sick ride on Friday night, Lygon st?

Bikes, loud fully sick music, fuzzy dice, should be fun 🙂xs

--
TimC
I hate mornings. I know they hate me back, too. -- Joel Gluth

cfsmtb said:

daveL said:

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way
they
live their lives and the way they conduct themselves."

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your
hands.
You're taking a huge risk," he said. "People have just got to take
some
responsibility."

Of course, it's about responsibility. As much as I dislike seeing
cycling wearing earpods, riced out smogbox sound systems are just as
fecking annoying. 😠

Its up to the person surely. I should think hearing traffic noise
wouldnt be a problem. Might even be a plus

Mind you I watched a very non aware cyclist in a bunch go down while
wearing an iPod last year. Two guys in front clipped and went down and
she plowed straight into them.. I just missed her. She said the same
thing had happened a week earlier

Triathlete tho

Dave

dave wrote:
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Mind you I watched a very non aware cyclist in a bunch go down while
wearing an iPod last year. Two guys in front clipped and went down and
she plowed straight into them.. I just missed her. She said the same
thing had happened a week earlier

Triathlete tho

Now there's some shining social skills. Sit in a bunch, wheelsuck, but
don't chat, oh no, listen to your iPod instead...

Tam

Tamyka Bell said:

dave wrote:
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Mind you I watched a very non aware cyclist in a bunch go down while
wearing an iPod last year. Two guys in front clipped and went down and
she plowed straight into them.. I just missed her. She said the same
thing had happened a week earlier

Triathlete tho

Now there's some shining social skills. Sit in a bunch, wheelsuck, but
don't chat, oh no, listen to your iPod instead...

Tam

Yeah sort of what I thought actually. I said Hi.. was ignored.
Seem to recall she was pretty with fresh scabs... but can;t say I really
noticed. Still Joggers.. Triathletes... not really social animals 🙂

Dave

dave said:

Tamyka Bell said:

dave wrote:
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Mind you I watched a very non aware cyclist in a bunch go down while
wearing an iPod last year. Two guys in front clipped and went down and
she plowed straight into them.. I just missed her. She said the same
thing had happened a week earlier

Triathlete tho

Now there's some shining social skills. Sit in a bunch, wheelsuck, but
don't chat, oh no, listen to your iPod instead...

Tam

Yeah sort of what I thought actually. I said Hi.. was ignored.
Seem to recall she was pretty with fresh scabs... but can;t say I really
noticed. Still Joggers.. Triathletes... not really social animals 🙂

Dave

Oh, I agree entirely. Who wants to talk?

Tam (who took the opportunity to dance when the Locomotion played during
the 12 hour run..., and made the spectators discuss the virtues of
Vegemite sangers...)

daveL said:

Police warning for iPod users

By Ben Schneiders
February 15, 2006 - 3:59PM

Police have warned that cyclists should never listen to an iPod while
riding unless they have a death wish.

"If you're a cyclist and you want to stay alive, I wouldn't wear an iPod
under any circumstances," Assistant Commissioner (Traffic) Noel Ashby
told theage.com.au this afternoon.

On the subject of music and vehicles, I was wandering through a car
wrecker's yard one day and came across a vehicle that looked like it
must have gone underneath a semi-trailer. The roof was just about fully
caved in, the dash was up near the front seat. Not much chance of
survival. I noticed a cassette sticking out of the player and reached in
to see what it was: an album of Christian music with memorable numbers
such as "When Jesus Is With Me, I'll Be Safe". I'd say avoid any form of
Christian music unless you have a death wish.

Peter

BTW What's the current status of St Christopher statues?

--
Peter McCallum
Mackay Qld AUSTRALIA

daveL said:

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your hands.

I need to find the photo of me trying to do a handstand atop the middle of
the 3 sisters. Life's too short to wear cotton wool.

--
Dave Hughes | [email hidden]
Love wouldn't be blind if the braille wasn't so damned much fun.
- Armistead Maupin

dave said:

Mind you I watched a very non aware cyclist in a bunch go down while
wearing an iPod last year. Two guys in front clipped and went down and
she plowed straight into them.. I just missed her. She said the same
thing had happened a week earlier

Triathlete tho

Bunches are different. I never use the radio when in a bunch.
The verbal calls are too important for bunch safety.

Does that also included Radio National? :o

cfsmtb said:

daveL said:

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way
they
live their lives and the way they conduct themselves."

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your
hands.
You're taking a huge risk," he said. "People have just got to take
some
responsibility."

Of course, it's about responsibility. As much as I dislike seeing
cycling wearing earpods, riced out smogbox sound systems are just as
fecking annoying. 😠

I use them (mp3 players) on a velodrone when doing intervals, and also
on long country rides on my own. I don't have them up loud enough to
cover traffic noises and thus far have not been suprised by traffic (or
anything else!) because of an inability to hear them.

As with many things, it's not necessarily what you use, but how you use
it, that can make something dangerous. Riceboys parading down crapple
st doofing away may be pains in the [censored] and annoying [censored], but
they're not dangerous, for example, and at least they're easy to hear
coming 🙂

Sorry to say, but I think that whole article is a bunch of shvt. It's up to the individual to CHOOSE if they ride with music or not... and if so, they can govern how loud they have it.
I commute once a week and would go insane without my ipod! For the 30.5kms to and from work, can't go wrong. Obviously, the music is not blaring and I can clearly hear traffic and of course, abuse dished out by tradies along the way.
Riding in this morning I had the white plugs in and could hear everyword of a tradie warning me that they were going to turn left up ahead... yes, the shock horror of not being abused!!!

cheers,
Bill

Bleve said:

I use them (mp3 players) on a velodrone when doing intervals, and also
on long country rides on my own. I don't have them up loud enough to
cover traffic noises and thus far have not been suprised by traffic (or
anything else!) because of an inability to hear them.

As with many things, it's not necessarily what you use, but how you use
it, that can make something dangerous. Riceboys parading down crapple
st doofing away may be pains in the [censored] and annoying [censored], but
they're not dangerous, for example, and at least they're easy to hear
coming 🙂

I only started usign one a couple of weeks ago and have found I enjoy
using it on the commute into work but not on the way home. I only have
it just loud enough to hear, but with the increased traffic on the way
home I find a lose a bit of an edge so only use it on the way in now.

As for long country rides, I go by the words of the great sage Darryl
Kerrigan and "feel the serenity". Besides, on a BR I wouldn't hear
anything over the noise of my breathing.

DaveB

daveL said:

Police warning for iPod users

By Ben Schneiders
February 15, 2006 - 3:59PM

Police have warned that cyclists should never listen to an iPod while
riding unless they have a death wish.

"If you're a cyclist and you want to stay alive, I wouldn't wear an iPod
under any circumstances," Assistant Commissioner (Traffic) Noel Ashby
told theage.com.au this afternoon.

Assistant Commissioner Ashby said police were seeing increasing numbers
of people using iPods on bikes, while walking and even while driving a car.

"They're becoming increasingly popular and there's no issue with that
but the point remains you cannot hear what is around you," he said.

"People that have been brought up their whole life relying on a whole
range of human senses and if one's removed they are at a significant
disadvantage."

The alert comes after a 32 year-old Australian woman was knocked off her
bicycle and killed in London. Friends said she may have been killed as
she couldn't hear traffic noise over her iPod.

A friend of Ms McMillan's told London's Evening Standard she may still
be alive if she hadn't been listening to her iPod.

"She was obsessed by that thing," he said.

Mr Ashby said the small size and large playlists of iPods meant they
were being used in different ways to CD walkmans.

"It was unusual to see people using walkmans on bikes and the reason is
the iPod can store 400 to 500 songs," he said.

But he said that people needed to take responsibility for themselves,
rather than relying on extra regulation.

"I really do think it's an awareness thing. I think we really need to
think very seriously about over-regulating, there's a whole range of
behaviours in life that people simply have to be careful in the way they
live their lives and the way they conduct themselves."

He said people were misjudging the risks of listening to music and
commuting: "You don't get onto your house roof and stand on your hands.
You're taking a huge risk," he said. "People have just got to take some
responsibility."

Assistant Commissioner Ashby said there was a number of distractions
that commuters should be aware of, including sms messaging, smoking,
loud CDs and the playing of DVDs in cars, which is illegal.

"Anything that distracts drivers' attention is bad because you won't see
a pedestrian, you won't see a cyclist or - even worse - you will go
through an intersection and kill yourself and others."

Apple did not return theage.com.au's calls.

--
daveL

I hope this is another case of journalistic reporting, cos this article is a crock of shyte (which indicates it probably is solid journalism) - where to start????

1) cos an ipod holds 400 - 500 songs and a cd 17-20, an ipod is more dangerous (do the earpod leads slowly wrap themselves around your neck and strangle you??)??? do you get musicked to death???

2) hand stands on the roof - how the hell am I meant to do that when my feet are still locked into my pedals???

3) I have yet to see a commuter smoking

4) going thru intersections can kill you?????

I reckon our Aussie sheila died whilst trying to lasso the truck with her earplug cords.