When cycling, do you like listening to music?

I’ve tried to listen to music while riding. I love music, but between the wind noise and the fact I can’t hear the surrounding traffic, I just can’t wear headphones. I do have a Bluetooth speaker that is at my shoulder on low volume. I can hear my surroundings and not worry that I’m blasting other passerby’s and scaring their dogs. I’ve been listening to Faith No More, Stick Figure, Rebelution, A Perfect Curcle, Metallica, and Tool.
 
I also got a chubby buttons a Bluetooth remote so I can skip commercials and adjust the volume

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Big believer in keeping a close eye and ear on my surroundings when I ride. Thought I might be able to monitor ambient sound well enough with Shokz bone-conduction earphones, as they don't cover or plug the ear canals. But not so in my case. Listening to earphone audio leaves that much less auditory attention for ambient sound, and I'm just not comfortable with that distraction in traffic — especially in a place crawling with near-silent electric cars.

I'd listen to lots of different genres with no traffic around — jazz, classical, funk, R&B, classic rock and country. Would be fun to make a mix of tunes that sync well with the 85-90 RPM cadence I fall into when I get in the zone. Steely Dan, Earth, Wind, and Fire, Tower of Power, Stevie Wonder, and Hendrix come to mind. (Showing my age here.) Mozart and Mendelssohn might work, too.
 
One of the pleasures I get from riding is listening to the ambient, which is safe, too. I'm very sad to realize so many cyclists and pedestrians/hikers isolate themselves from the ambient and are unable to hear any warning sounds...

No wonder Garmin Varia radar has really caught as any warning sounds fall on deaf ears...
 
I use a Sena helmet with built in speakers, and Cat-Ears wind noise suppressors. The helmet has a built in intercom & FM radio, and pairs with my smartphone for music but I rarely listen. I'd rather focus on the enjoyment of cycling and the surrounding scenery.
 
Most definitely!
Small Bluetooth/ sd card speaker mounted on the handlebars that's easily controlled blindly with buttons on its side. Not loud enough to block or insulate ambient like anything in/on the ears or annoy others.
Totally enhances speed sensation and adds motivation for hill climbs.

Though I do totally unplug on some more relaxing rides as well. I find both equally enjoyable.
 
When riding by myself I sometimes put my right earbud in and listen to tunes. That does leave my left ear open to hear whats going on. Would never ride with both in, even with transparency mode on. Also don't do that on routes I'm unfamiliar with.

Also have a JBL Flip speaker that fits in a water bottle cage that I sometimes use on remote gravel rides. Definitely would never ever play music on a road or trail with other people around.
 
My buddy does the same thing with his speaker. Puts it right in the water bottle holder. Perfect spot.

I use the JBL Clip. JBL makes really nice speakers. They sound very good. Their speakers usually go on sale as well.
 
Only time I turn the music down in a motor vehicle is when I’m turning on to a road with blind turns. Radio goes off and windows go down. Now I can hear the vehicles as they approach the blind turn. This or when someone is trying to talk to me.
 
No, I listen for the traffic. I cannot use a mirror; cross motion of my vision makes me dizzy.
At home WUOL-FM is on the radio 10 hours a day. Or I play pop CDs or LPs if WUOL plays too much wiggly violin music. Sheena Easton Conga & Get on Your Feet last night.
 
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Not a big fan of speakers on bikes. Would much rather hear the birds chirping and the waves pounding and the Tesla coming up behind me than someone else's music.

I'm sure the speaker users above play theirs at considerate volumes. But in my local SoCal beach towns, we get a lot of posers on e-cruisers blaring absolutely awful music you can hear half a mile away, thinking they're the coolest dudes alive. (Yep, all male and most old enough to have some manners.)

Good thing I don't have a handlebar-mounted RPG.
 
Jeremy McCreary said:
Not a big fan of speakers on bikes. Would much rather hear the birds chirping and the waves pounding and the Tesla coming up behind me than someone else's music.

I'm sure the speaker users above play theirs at considerate volumes. But in my local SoCal beach towns, we get a lot of posers on e-cruisers blaring absolutely awful music you can hear half a mile away, thinking they're the coolest dudes alive. (Yep, all male and most old enough to have some manners.)

Good thing I don't have a handlebar-mounted RPG.
Click to expand...

Hah. I pretty much only run mine when riding rural gravel, where you can go miles without even seeing a car, much less people walking or riding. I fully agree when riding around other people. I ride a MUP out to access some of my routes and don't start up the music until I'm well off it.
 
Jeremy McCreary said:
Not a big fan of speakers on bikes. Would much rather hear the birds chirping and the waves pounding and the Tesla coming up behind me than someone else's music
Click to expand...
This is exactly why I have my JBL Clip attached near my shoulder. My volume doesn’t have to be so loud. My bell is louder than my music. Unless I’m riding with heavy traffic, then I turn it up to 11.
 
Slaphappygamer said:
wind noise
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If you don't mind looking a little silly, these "cat ears" https://amzn.to/4cEvXGK are very effective. Put the thicker part between the strap and your head. As long as the strap keeps it in contact with the side of your head, it removes almost all wind noise.

When I got them, I kind of hoped they wouldn't work because they are a little goofy, but they work too well to give up.
 
fooferdoggie said:
of course right after I bought my wife Boses spacial audio earbuds they came out with these they would be great on the bike.
https://www.bose.com/p/earbuds/bose-ultra-open-earbuds/ULT-HEADPHONEOPN.html?dwvar_ULT-HEADPHONEOPN_color=WHITE SMOKE&quantity=1
Click to expand...
Interesting design. Wouldn't adress my issue with dividing auditory attention between ambient and earbud sound in traffic, but others might be a lot better at that.

Maybe this business of listening to music on a bicycle is unmasking a loss of bandwidth I didn't know I had. A lot of things get lost on the way to 75.

Wait, this could work to my advantage! Wife's been complaining that I don't listen for decades. Of course, it's always been selective hearing learned from the masters — our dogs. But now I can say, "Sorry, honey, I was listening to my breathing. I can only hear one thing at a time now."
 
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