Walter S

$75?!?!?!?

You must be trying to talk me into getting the top of the line cat-ears for only $18

wolfchild

Go ahead and waste your money on a gimmick which will do absolutely nothing to improve cycling safety.

Walter S

Do you even realize how worthless a comment like that is coming from somebody that has not tried it? I created the thread to hear from people that have tried the product so I could hear what their experience has been like.

geehue

In all seriousness, I have never tried it, so I can't comment. But I've never found wind noise to be a problem, either.

Walter S

Pedal harder

I-Like-To-Bike

You asked for other posters to warn you about wasting your money!

Apparently you changed your mind and choose to insult posters who are giving you the warning that you requested.

Walter S

I asked for comments. That doesn't mean I just want an opinion with no associated rational. But point taken anyway. You're right. No need to respond.

geehue

What, without ear protection? Are you crazy? That would be dangerous.

ro-monster

Motorcyclists often wear earplugs, the kind that are sold for a couple of dollars in any drugstore, while riding. Even inside a full-face helmet, wind noise can be deafening on a motorcycle. The earplugs mitigate that, but still let you hear your surroundings to a sufficient extent. You could try some of those to see what it's like. In California there's a specific provision in the law allowing them to be worn for this purpose, but they could be illegal in some places, so you'd have to check up on that.


Personally I can't ride fast enough on my bicycle for wind noise to become a problem, though.

davidmcowan

Walter S., I've known several people with these. I asked them about the cat ears and after their responses I was interested in getting some too. (thought I never pulled the trigger) It does reduce wind noise. The part that I thought was useful was when riding in a pack (which, believe it or not, transportational cyclists also can find themselves riding for recreation too!) they said with wind noise reduced it was easier to partake in conversation. As someone else mentioned, if this doesn't break the bank you should give it a shot.

Roody

It sounds like wind isn't the only thing you're a little sensitive about this morning. If you don't want the answers, don't ask the question.

Roody

I'm not saying you do care (or should care), but what kind of reaction to bike shorts do you get in Lansing? Or do you mostly stay in the suburbs?

My personal preference is to wear bike shorts on very long rides--what I would classify as recreational rides or exercise rides. For transportation riding around town, I wear what I'm wearing. I definitely want to be able to jump on my bike and ride out without changing clothes or making any other special preparations. Bike riding is fantasmorgasmic, but it isn't "special". It's just part of my ordinary everyday activities. I hope you won't hold that against me if we happen to meet on the mean streets of Lansing.

2manybikes

I ride in the winter, mostly two days a week. In the cold weather I wear head covers (balaklava?). They reduce the wind noise in my ears and make it easier to hear some things. The background of the wind noise in the summer makes it hard to hear some words from another cyclist. I'm sure the ear covers reducer wind noise. Some think it's helpful, some don't, and some don't care. I'm sure they help, but in the warm weather I prefer not to have anything covering my ears, and I don't think about it, until winter and the first ride with my ears covered.

I don't see anything wrong with the claims of hearing better without wind noise. I've experienced it for a few decades.

TenSpeedV2

My commute is 8.5 miles and regular clothes just don't cut it when I am doing 28 mph down the main drag. I have always been a believer in you use the right gear for the job, no matter what it is. That means you don't use a butter knife to screw in a light switch face plate, you don't use a Honda Civic to tow a trailer, you don't run a marathon in a business suit....you get the point.

Roody

If you're doing 28 mph on a daily work commute, you will need different gear than the average or typical transportation cyclist. I suppose you're over in France at the moment? Good luck on the next stage!

TenSpeedV2

I don't tool around town on a heavy bike with racks, fenders, baskets, etc. I ride for fun, but I also ride for exercise. I am not in France, nor will I ever be on the tour.

Roody

You should be. At 28 mph cruising on flat terrain, you are on the high end for professional cyclists.

TenSpeedV2

I can see that this is simply not going anywhere. If I was cruising the entire time at 28mph, yes, I could be in the Tour. That is not the case, as we all know. I hit 28mph in certain spots. I do not ride the entire 8.5 miles at that speed. Apparently if you do not spell it out, assumptions are made. Next time I will try to dumb it down so that you can understand.

rhm

I got Wind Blox a while back. Can't say whether they do any good at all. Certainly not enough to make a noticeable difference.

Roody

Oh, you said you needed special clothes because you were doing 28 mph on the main drag. I guess you just meant a couple short portions of the main drag. Thanks for explaining it for us dummies. I will be sure to get out of your way if i see you on the streets of Lansing. Where do you usually ride?

rhm

I can't find any constructive purpose to your remarks. OP asked what I consider a perfectly valid question. He got some pretty helpful replies. And a lot of just plain nonsense. What's the point of the nonsense? Are you trying to drive people away from this forum? I come here, occasionally, because the subject of car-free living actually interests me. Sadly a lot of the posts here are basically people poking at each other with sticks. This does not really interest me, and there are plenty of alternatives.
@Walter S, please alert me if you retry this thread in another subforum, I'll follow it.

Roody

I was just answering the OP's question. He seemed aware that he was wasting his money if he bought this product. I actually had no idea that anybody could take seriously the idea of putting a sock on your ear in order to ride a bike. Or the notion of somebody "doing 28 mph on the main drag." Now that I know these are both serious ideas in your mind, I will give them the respect they deserve.

Fastfingaz

,,,,,,, Yea u right ,,,,, Monster

rhm

Well okay, @Roody, I'll tell it to you straight. When I ride with other people, wind noise prevents me from understanding most of what they say. Wind noise seriously diminishes what I can hear of birds, cicadas, peepers, and other sounds of nature; as well as potential dangers like cars. Wind noise is a real issue for some of us. This is not up for debate.

If I hold my hand up beside my ear, palm forward, that noise stops. It's not blocking out sound (like ear plugs) and not creating white noise (like an iPod). It's just changing the air flow around my ear. I can't ride like this, but clearly a product like Cat Ears has the potential to help.

The question is whether Cat Ears (or Wind Blox) are a viable solution or a waste of money. And I don't know. My experience with Wind Blox has not been encouraging.

Walter S

Thanks for that first-hand take on it!