Contest Time: One Good Earbud
Contest Now Closed: Thanks to everyone who entered our One Good Earbud contest, and thanks to them for supplying us with some sets to give away to y’all. Three winners were randomly selected from those who left comments (using www.random.org). The winners are: @simonro, @egggman, and @ayogist. Please send your mailing address to [email protected] so that we can get your earbud to you.
First….My Little Rant
There aren’t too many issues out there that get me fired up and force me to stand my ground. In fact, I rarely voice my opinion strongly one way or another. I sort of prefer to just cruise along at my own pace, doing my own thing, and laying low.
But when it comes to cycling laws, there is one thing that I really don’t agree with and my feelings are strong enough to voice my opinion about it. In a few of the States, it is illegal to ride a bike whiles listening to music with earphones. As far as I know, California, Rhode Island, Maryland, Florida, and Delaware all impose this law. I don’t think it’s illegal anywhere in Canada, and not too sure about the UK, Australia, or anywhere else in the world….let me know if you have details on it.
Only 5 states regulate the use of headphones by bicyclists. Florida and Rhode Island absolutely prohibit the use of headsets while cycling. California, Delaware and Maryland prohibit earbuds use in both ears- you can only wear them in one ear at a time so that the other ear is left uncovered.
Let me clarify myself on my stance a little. I believe that cycling while listening to music and wearing earphones is okay….as long as you’re still able to hear the traffic and surroundings around you. I don’t think the music should be so loud that you totally block out any and all sounds, and I also don’t think it’s a good idea if you’re cycling in an area where there are a lot of pedestrians. I also think this is a personal opinion and am fine with y’alls views on this one. I’m not here to start a debate, but I’m bringing my thoughts up due to the nature of today’s contest. While researching the legalities of cycling with earphones, I came across an interesting bit of information….if you’d like to check out more on this topic and other cycling law, check out “Road Rights” by Bicycle Law.
Before I leave you with the details of our One Good Earbud contest, I would just like to say that I feel there are far more dangerous things out there that people do while driving and cycling…..don’t take away my tunes, man.
One Good Earbud Contest Details
Okay, so you’ve heard my stance and seen me go on record as saying that cycling with earphones is cool as long as you’re smart and safe about it. But what do you have to say about this law? We’ll randomly select 3 winners from the list of you that leave a comment. Feel free to leave more than one comment and it will increase your odds of winning. But you have to argue your case, for or against. We want to hear both sides….but if you’re against it, you might not be too keen on our winning prize.
I you live in California, Delaware, or Maryland then this prize will totally help you out. Remember, in those states “you can only wear them in one ear at a time so that the other ear is left uncovered.” So the One Good Earbuds folks have got you covered. As the name implies, their products mix both stereo channels on your iPod or MP3 player and sends them through one earphone….and into one ear.
Three winners will be selected and you’ll have your choice of any of their three models. Leave your comments below and get them in before Midnight (CST) tonight. Winners will be announced tomorrow.
One Good Earbud Review
In case you’re wondering how well the One Good Earbud performs…..here’s a review from my friend Jon who uses it.
“I have been using my One Good Earbud now for approximately 6 weeks and I absolutely love it. I purchased the right ear version since I ride my bike with traffic. As someone with a hearing impairment, I have to be very careful with what little hearing I have left. I have a 70% loss in my left ear and 15% loss in my right. Unfortunately for me, I am an audiophile and love good, clear sound which I get from my One Good Earbud. I cannot get this from standard headphones due to my hearing loss. I also need to keep my left ear available to pick up the sounds of traffic. As an added bonus, I use my One Good Earbud with my iPhone and it allows me to answer my phone if need be.”
Been looking EVERYWHERE for a single ear set up. Thank you much and may all thr dual earbuds I have sent to the grave in my failed attempts rest in peace! A-yeah!
Legal in the UK mate, although not something I would do on the road. I leave my listening to music while riding to my off road trails.
From the time I was little and started riding up the highway to the corner store with my walkman, my parents pressed the importance of being able to hear traffic, other cyclists, and pedestrians (not that many people walk along the highway way out my way). I pressed back with the importance of my music to my ride. My parents (in all their medical school wisdom) told me (in their ‘doctorly’ way) that even with the music low, your brain will tune out noises that don’t fit with the music and other extraneous sounds, and that with both ears receiving music as the primary stimulus, by the time you’d hear a car it’d be on top of you. When I argued my case for only getting audio input in one ear, and saving the other for traffic, etc., I was once again allowed to pedal to the power of the almighty cassette tape. I ripped the earpieces off my headset (earbuds didn’t exist yet) and jury rigged the right one into my helmet, keeping my left ear free for ambient noise.
These days, I leave the left earpiece dangling, and still ride with the right earbud in. Even without music, lots of days, I still can’t hear the cars clipping along at 100 km/hr coming up behind me over the wind in my ears, so I’ve taken to checking behind my behind. But it’s certainly frustrating to miss half of a song that was recorded in stereo because it’s in the other earphone. The One Good Earbud certainly sounds like the solution…!
Thanks for sharing your story. Good luck in the contest…..I’d like for you to have a chance to see if the One Good Earbud gives you what you’re looking for.
Let me first say that I totally understand your reasoning, it’s just bicycling right? That’s the problem, you can’t drive a car and wear headphones anywhere I know of, so why should you be allowed to on a bike. I’ve been riding motorcycles for about 47 years and it has never been allowed. You can get speakers for mounting on your handlebars so you wouldn’t need to use any headphones. Let me first qualify this, bike laws are generally made to mimic regular traffic laws, this one is no different. One ear or two ears it make little difference, it’s about safety, yours and everyone elses. The number one cause of auto accidents is distractions outside of the vehicle, like people on a bike. With cars today that run really quite, like an electric Prius for example, you’d never hear it till it hit you and then it’s too late. As I said before I have been riding motorcycles for a long time and I’m a big avocate for being allowed to ride without a helmut, I think it should be a choice. But this is different, I have seen people walking along and get hit by cars while talking on their cell phones or listening to thier MP3 player. It’s human nature for people to get involved in what they are listening to, even with one ear pluged it’s still a distraction. Frankly I’m not superised that more states haven’t made laws like this, considering how all of them jumped on the cell phone problem hype.
Thanks for your comments….we appreciate it.
I think cycling with one earbud in is perfectly acceptable. As I’m still a novice cyclist, I’m hyper aware of my surroundings and would be afraid to have both earbuds in while I’m still perfecting my cycling technique.
Thanks for your comment, Meghan. Being aware of your surroundings while cycling is super important whether you have one earbud, both, or nothing in your ears. Keep on riding and getting better out there every day.
I enjoy riding with music because many of my rides are solo-and as most people do, I get bored after a few miles and usually cut the ride short. I have set up playlists on my iPod so depending how hard I want to push myself, I can tailor the music to fit.
Thanks Jon…..and thanks again for providing the review of One Good Earbud.
Yup, I am a geek a gadget hound and a bit of an audiophile. I enjoy running with music and cranking it in the car. I have never wanted music while out on the MTB and actually felt insulted at an 8 hour when a competitor decided to put a “boombox” on his bars and partially wreck the experience. on the road I have never missed the audio experience when commuting by bike. The ride is enough for me. that being said, if I were to do a road century or double century as I am contemplating a right earbud might just make the ride a little better, only if there arent other cyclists of a similar speed as me to chat with. I think for me that these would work better for running than riding. The whistle of the wind is enough for me on a ride….
I don’t see the problem on using them, I don’t think it’s smart to use them on a group ride, butnif you ride alone, and depending on the time and traffic, music gets you going.
I actually have to wear my headphones or some sort of ear protection…I have issues with earaches big time! Any wind in the ears and later that day I get an earache that makes me cry and sometimes I even become sick…all due to having Rheumatic Fever as a Child. Anyway I usually keep the volume down so I can hear traffic…Can we all just use our heads on this one? Do we really need to have someone tell us how to be safe? Well I guess there are those of us who may need a little help : )
Thanks for sharing your story. Unfortunately, I guess, it’s those who are respectful or safe that provide a reason for these rules and laws to be created.
I think it’s a pretty foolish law….right up there with a helmet law (although I won’t ride without a helmet). I don’t need anybody to protect me from myself, and I’m not going to intentionally put myselef in danger just to listen to music.
I live in California and was aware of this law because this is the law for all “vehicles” on the road, not just bicycles. As for me, when I take music I only wear it in one ear. I prefer the earbud type of headphones and regardless of how quiet I keep the volume, having an earbud in both ears would make it too difficult to hear other sounds. Since you brought it up, what drives me crazy is guys on group rides with headphones in both ears.
Thanks Matt. Yeah, I generally ride alone so I go with the music. I wouldn’t ever wear it when doing a ride with one or more other people. Doesn’t make sense.
I sometimes listen to music while biking, but not in a group or in heavy traffic. Always keep the volume low enough to hear traffic, etc.
Exactly….good points. Thanks for commenting. Good luck in the contest.
Darryl
Holy Cow you are getting the comments on this one!
I am kinda mixed on the subject. Sorry :(. I can definitely understand wanting to have music and I love running with music but with cycling I really worry about missing a warning sound that might help me be safe. I have been hit (badly) by cars twice and I really try to do everything I can to avoid repeating that!
Now with that said, I really don’t like riding in groups when someone has one of those water-bottle music things and I am forced to listen to whatever their taste in music is…. I sure wish THOSE people had earbuds.
So, I guess the way that you could summarize my position is, this is a subject of personal choice, I am unlikely to ever use them myself while riding, however, I think the risk to other people from me (or anyone else) using them, is so small that we all should be allowed to make that choice.
Thanks Eric. I agree, it really is a personal choice and as long as you’re being smart, safe, and considerate of others….I think it’s totally fine to wear them.
Depends on how loud your music is.
I don’t let my kids ride with headphones.
Yes, that’s probably a good idea. Thanks for commenting.
I don’t like the rule either. I don’t wear my earbuds on the road but I do wear them on the trail and it is a pain that I risk getting a ticket if I happen to cross a road and get caught. I love the review by the way. I perforated my eardrum just over a year ago and have gotten almost all of my hearing back but I am very careful about my hearing now. Great contest.
Good luck and thanks for your awesome comments. I’ve broken my eardrum a couple times in the past, but it all seemed to heal properly for me. I hope your hearing comes back fully.
Oh man, I was just thinking yesterday that I needed to find a single bud stereo headphone. I’m pretty sure here in Minnesota it is illegal to wear headphones while riding a bicycle. I wear the right ear bud while cycling. I’m lost without my music.
I’ll have to check into it. When I researched it, I couldn’t find anything on this law in Minnesota. Good luck and I hope you’re one of the lucky winners who gets a One Good Earbud.
Me too.
What better motivation is there for putting the miles behind you than your favorite tunes. I’m all for rocking while rolling and it should remain a personal choice whether to use headphones while riding. Personally, I will wear only ONE GOOD EARBUD while cycling. We have enough to deal with trying to stay safe with all the distracted drivers out there ‘sharing’ the road… and I want to hear them coming!
I totally agree with your comments and I’d like to thank you for leaving it here for us. It is a personal choice, and I’m definitely one of those people who loves to ride with music.
As a bike commuter in Los Angeles, I am very surprised by the CA law you cited, mostly because I constantly see riders with headphones in both ears. I never ride with earbuds since I like to be as aware as possible of what’s going on around me. I also find it frustrating that other riders don’t hear me when I’m passing and trying to communicate. The One Good Earbud solution is intriguing, however, and I’d be interested in seeing how safe I feel. Music would definitely make my daily commute much more pleasant.
The law must not be highly enforced. I hope you win one of the One Good Earbuds so that you can give it a try and see if it’s something you feel safe wearing. It is nice to have music along with you for the ride.
I’m curious. How many of the commenters here, who say earbuds are unsafe, have removed the stereo from their car?
I thought so.
And I suppose you wear a helmet while driving or walking as well.
Car stereo doesn’t block out ambient or environmental sound. Earbuds do.
Depends on how loud your music is.
If you want to run with one earbud in, great – but I feel that when you’re cycling, you need all your wits and senses about you. As such, I don’t think anyone should wear earbuds or headphones when operating a vehicle (bike, motorcycle, car or truck) on public roads. Call me when tunes can be piped into my helmet without plugging my ears.
Thanks Roy. There actually are options out there for having music play in your helmet. Check out http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/08/tunebug-turns-your-bike-helmet-into-a-speaker/ as one option. Some cyclists also have systems where the music plays out of a radio type devise so that it isn’t directly in their ears.
To be fair, in Cali at least it is also illegal to drive a car with ear buds in both ears ( I checked the vehicle code). I don’t ride with earbuds but I do appreciate that the law is being applied equally to cars and bikes.
I’ve often seen people driving vehicles with earbuds and wonder why they would do that. It’s so much nicer (and safer) to drive while having the car stereo on. I think most of these kinds of laws are generally created for both vehicle and bicycle riders. Thanks for adding your comments and getting in to win a set of One Good Earbuds.
Honestly, I don’t ride with earbuds, or at least not yet. I am still learning the rules of the road and believe that wearing even one earbud would be counter effective for me. I listen to music while walking and jogging but normally I do that because I will walk at the gym or at a neighborhood track. I like how listening to my favorite tunes helps pass the time though. Maybe once I develop more confidence riding, I will start to listen to my tunes with one earbud. Until then, I will stick to the sound of my breathing (heheh) and traffic…
Sounds like a great plan. Using earbuds isn’t for every rider, but I sure do enjoy it and feel totally safe when using them. I also don’t feel that I interfere with anyone else out there because I use them. Keep on riding and your confidence will come.
i’ve been a marathon runner for many, many years and i have to say that listening to music has been the only thing that has helped me keep my sanity while running all those miles. i have always made it a point, though, to keep an earbud in only one ear during training runs when i’m sharing the road with cars so i can hear them as they approach. i’ve found that the one-earbud approach also works during actual races because i get to hear the conversations around me. and i’ve heard some pretty interesting ones 🙂 by the way, the best way to avoid the “dangle” especially if you’re female, is to hook the dangling earbud onto your sportsbra strap. it stays in place and doesn’t bounce around.
while i don’t usually listen to music while cycling, on the few times that i did, i followed the same one-earbud rule out of habit. again, it’s so that i can hear approaching cars, pedestrians, and whatever else might be on the road. and i totally agree with what others have said about hybrid cars being very hard to hear – we have many of them here where i live, and i can’t tell you how many times i’ve been surprised to find them suddenly right beside me… even while my ears are earbud-free!
Thanks for your comments both on the running and riding side of things. Thanks also for the tip on the “dangle”.
For me, and where and when I primarily ride, this listening to anything just isn’t safe. I commute about 6 miles to work with moderate to heavy traffic (heavy being that I often arrive ahead of vehicles- love that!). The fact is that my area doesn’t even know how to drive with other cars, let alone cyclists on the road with them- I’m not even kidding here, it’s bad.
For these reasons and many more it just isn’t wise to add anything to distract me from my already precarious commute. That being said, there are areas in Boise that have one or two earbuds in while riding would be fine. And I would consider listening to some tunes when going on longer rides.
Overall though, I’ve found that I enjoy listening to what’s going on around me more than what’s currently in my playlist.
Good points…yes, it all comes down to your personal situation and the conditions in which you ride. Great to see you commuting to work. Well done.
I don’t ride with ear buds (I guess that’s a good thing since I live in Florida) and prefer to ‘listen to the birds’ as Jim suggests. I like being able to hear what’s going on around me and that includes vehicles approaching me from behind.
A couple of times during the winter I wore a headband ear warmer and didn’t like the way they totally shut down my hearing. I may be wrong but do you not get the same effect while listening to music with an ear bud in your ear? I guess I have a hard time believing you can turn the volume down enough, while still having something stuck in your ear, and still be able to hear anything else. I haven’t tried it so maybe you can.
Thanks Bryan. Yeah, as long as the volume isn’t cranked too high I can still hear everything around me. My earbuds actually block out a lot less outside sounds than the headband you would have worn.
I do it all the time. And I can hear the vehicles behind just fine (they are noisy). In fact, I often can’t hear the music for the idiot cagers and their internal combustion.
I’m against riding with headphones when sharing the road with cars. I sometimes can barely hear the hybrids coming without headphones, let alone having even low music playing. I live in San Francisco, so there are plenty of hybrids around (not that they aren’t popular elsewhere). But even quieter than cars are fellow cyclists who may be trying to pass and call out, but they remain unheard. However, I do agree with California’s law of only allowing one earbud. You can still hear the traffic or cyclists coming. I would suggest wearing it in the right ear, so you don’t block the sounds coming from the traffic side.
Thanks for your comments and suggestion.
http://www.bigfatbiker.com I’m also generally ok with riding with headphones as long as it’s either low enough to hear traffic or in one ear. I would love to have headphones that would actually cater to that.
TheDirtyWheel.com Personally this is a touchy subject for myself. I have done road rides here in CA and always use just one earbud and I let the other dangle. The Dangling bud can become problematic if you get a good rhythm, it seems to pull the other earbud out. It looks like ONE GOOD EARBUD has the solution to my problem with the single around the ear offering. Recently I have been growing disdain for the distraction of the earbuds as I ride with someone we shall refer to as Mr O(blivious). Mr. O will wear both buds in, at a volume which blocks out everything, and he does this on the trails. Dealing with this jack-assery has gotten tiring as he has almost plowed into people on blind corners, taken the wrong turn when leading , etc. Personally everyone is entitled to their choices but if we cant be courteous to others and safe then you might just end up hurting more than yourself.
Being smart and safe is still the most important thing and I hope Mr. O finds a way to use his earbuds but keep everyone around him happy about it as well.
It’s illegal in BC too… Not sure about the other provinces though. I too prefer to listen to music while riding and agree with the comments t_starry made.
Thanks for letting me know about the laws in BC. It’s one law that I just don’t get.
I read your blog a lot, but don’t comment much. This was worth a comment, though. I, don’t wear earbuds in heavy traffic – actually, I try to avoid cycling in heavy traffic at all, so that solves that. But I will wear one earbud while out away from it. And I don’t want a law that tells me I can’t! I like my music. Of course one ear bud is not exactly stereo sound. So One Good Earbud? So awesome!!!
Hi Ally, I’m glad you finally jumped on in with your comments….oh, and thanks for being a reader of Loving the Bike. Yeah, this is a sensitive issue to me and I honestly do not see a problem with wearing earbuds while cycling if it’s done safely. Great to hear from you.
I live in California and was completely unaware that I was even breaking the law by listening to my tunes in both ears on the bike. I’ve always felt that if I kept them at a safe level and could hear traffic/pedestrians then it was all good. It sucks to know that I was breaking the law but I guess you’re only breaking it once you get caught huh? Love the idea of the single ear-bud though.
Random thought…I wonder if the no text while driving (or operating your ipod while driving) is applied to cyclists as well?
It must not be a very highly promoted law….but it is out there. I agree with your comments and thanks for leaving them here for us. I’m pretty sure that the texting and ipod laws apply to drivers of vehicles and of bicycles.
I love my music! On my way to one of the dedicated paths for bikes here in Toronto I’ll have one of my ear buds in while the other dangles.
I find that car’s blasting music don’t hear the sirens when needed yet the cyclists wearing earphones have pulled over. I’m with Tim on his first point.
That’s a good idea to let one dangle on your way to the bike path so you can hear foot traffic. Plus, it’s just fun to say the word Dangle, isn’t it?
let me do a counter-rant:
1. Promoting a single ear solution is just pandering to the illogical, irrational basis for the laws that ban earbuds in the first place. If you ban listening to music on a bicycle then you have to ban car stereo systems.
2. Unless you run your iPod at volume 11, traffic noise is still there, even with two earbuds. Unless you happen to be on a fast decent then the wind noise washes out both the music and the traffic noise.
3. Depending on hearing alone is a silly way to participate in traffic. First, the cars don’t do it. Second, hearing won’t save you. Lots of deaf cyclists out there, who cycle in complete safety.
Rant over.
Thanks Tim. It looks like we agree on the laws on banning earbuds, but not sure you see any benefit to the single earbud. I think it provides a good option (especially in those States that only allow one).
Single earbud is the segregated bike path of music equipment.
I just have two points to add:
1. @T_Starry is brilliant (certainly no big Dummy)
2. I prefer listening to the birds
I like listening to the birds every now and then as well. But you can have my playlist when you pry it from my cold dead hands.
let me do a counter-rant:
1. Promoting a single ear solution is just pandering to the illogical, irrational basis for the laws that ban earbuds in the first place. If you ban listening to music on a bicycle then you have to ban car stereo systems.
2. Unless you run your iPod at volume 11, traffic noise is still there, even with two earbuds. Unless you happen to be on a fast decent then the wind noise washes out both the music and the traffic noise.
3. Depending on hearing alone is a silly way to participate in traffic. First, the cars don’t do it. Second, hearing won’t save you. Lots of deaf cyclists out there, who cycle in complete safety.
Rant over.
Bicyclists are not the problem — It is the pedestrians! I would love to give a One Good Earbud to each and every pedestrian around here. In Montgomery County, MD it is both legal and encouraged to cycle on the sidewalks on major roads. You will see cyclists everywhere on secondary roads and in neighborhoods, but only the extremely rare roadie will compete with cars on 355 and Veirs Mill Road. And the issue isn’t that the cyclists blast past the pedestrians on the sidewalks — everyone I see is going a reasonable speed and being courteous. The problem is that is that many pedestrians are walking along the sidewalk, and even weaving back and forth, with their ear buds on and their music turned up to 10! No amount of bell ringing or shouting will get these people’s attention! After yelling at a really oblivious woman for 3 minutes, I finally managed to tap her shoulder, which made her jump back literally out of her flip flops! I yelled, “Your music is too loud!” to which she replied, “Obviously!” and quickly turned it down.
I think all of us (cyclists, pedestrians, and vehicles) need to do what’s necessary to be safe and courteous to everyone else. Thanks for sharing your experiences.