More on Riding with iPods

Someone asked again about the whole notion of listening to the IPOD while riding your bike - should there be "laws" regulating it?

Like so many things, people get all whacked out about things and don't keep them in perspective.
Without a doubt, listening to stuff takes your attention from the task at hand, making you less proficient at the task at hand.

Period.

So what? Do we outlaw radios in cars? Do we make it illegal to have a conversation with your passenger while you drive a car?

People do this stuff to take their mind off what they are doing. I listen to all sorts of stuff while driving in the truck, (including FredCast), to give my mind something to do besides be numbed into senselessness by the traffic around me. No doubt in my mind that doing so makes me a less safe driver. Exactly why - when the weather gets really nasty - I drive in silence. I also talk on the phone while I drive - I know I am a bad person for doing this according to some people. But put this all in perspective. Creating more safety on the road can be achieved by outlawing all distractions. I just don't think we want to go that far - I think we are willing to accept some risk as a culture - what price are we willing to pay for total safety?

All this logic above is exactly why I DON'T listen to my iPod while I ride. I LOVE riding my bike. Just handling it getting ready for a ride makes me feel good and look forward to the ride. Why on earth would I numb myself to the great joy that I get from riding? Why would I distract myself? I have a couple of buddies who I ride with, who on long rides (as-in 6 or 8 hours) will listen to their iPod. When they do this, it really separates them from me on the ride - I might as well be riding alone. The minor little chatter that happens as you ride, the extended conversations, all of that falls by the wayside.

So, my opinion is to leave the iPod in the truck, and ride the bike. There are so many aspects of our life where we cut ourselves off from the people around us, and fall into this media world that we plug ourselves into. We need to find more ways to plug into the world around us, and the people around us, instead of shutting them out with earphones.

But for heavens sake, this is not something to be legislated. The last thing we need is more invasion into how we live our lives by legislative agencies. Sure we sacrifice a little safety, but look around at all the other places in your life where you do that gladly. Leave the iPod at home because you'll enjoy the ride more, and you'll enjoy your friends more.

Plus, all that sweat just can't be good for those things. :-)