tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post8219821948789257629..comments2024-01-04T02:28:32.637-07:00Comments on athenadiaries: Banning the tunes.Herself, the GeekGirlhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17990186920123895227noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-91123590943691879802007-12-07T14:42:00.000-07:002007-12-07T14:42:00.000-07:00I'm riding in on a low horse to say I totally agre...I'm riding in on a low horse to say I totally agree with you.<BR/><BR/>If you don't like tunes, don't listen to them. I'm a big girl, used to be a bigger girl, and I am adult. Let me listen to my damned iPod if I want to.<BR/><BR/>Running purists can bite me. My experience is my own. When I run I usually have one ear bud in, one open. On runs I listen to music, books, podcasts, and even study for tests. (Yeah, not kidding.)<BR/><BR/>Do I "run through the pain" like an idiot? No. See my leg bones are NOT connected to my ear bones. <BR/><BR/>Do I tune everything out? No, I am not stupid and I have four other senses, last count.<BR/><BR/>Do I chat with people on races? I sure do! But sometimes I don't WANT to chat with you. If you start talking to me and I'm not responding, go the heck away. I'm not interested. I'm currently climbing the wall or slamming into it.<BR/><BR/>I've run HUNDREDS of races and I can count on exactly no hands the number of times I've seen someone with headphones endangering others. Never. At a big start, most people don't have them on yet because there is music at the start. <BR/><BR/>I've run races where half marathons met up with fulls and the full frontrunners came up behind me and guess what, I could hear the siren because I like my eardrums and didn't have my music blaring. <BR/><BR/>Why listen? Because music is emotional and motivating. Music is soulful and beautiful. Music is silly and spastic. Sometimes I want those things, not NEED, want.<BR/><BR/>I'm going to run a marathon next year where they are banned. I'll have my Running Buddy with me. Will I listen? Maybe, maybe not. But if I do it's MY business and if I get DQed, oh well.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18031232209853522144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-34919341854373172492007-11-08T18:44:00.000-07:002007-11-08T18:44:00.000-07:00I don't wear them, since I can't stand to not hear...I don't wear them, since I can't stand to not hear what's going on around me.<BR/><BR/>I was floored several times during last weekend's half-marathon. Miles 4-13 were on open, public road. Several fools, (oops, I mean runners) were running right down the center line of the road with headphones on. It took several attempts by folks screaming or whistling to get there attention to move out of the way of the car coming up behind them.<BR/><BR/>I'm amazed that some didn't end up as road kill.Billhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17596205932932108573noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-35684193930897046112007-11-08T07:13:00.000-07:002007-11-08T07:13:00.000-07:00I can vouch for Pirate that she is sensitive to ot...I can vouch for Pirate that she is sensitive to others and can hear what's going on around her when she's got her music on. In the half mary in September (I didn't even know her then), when she passed me I said "good job" to her, she turned around and said "no, good job to YOU!"...she had her plugs in, but still heard me, and I'm not that loud.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-68681058959257556882007-11-07T20:11:00.000-07:002007-11-07T20:11:00.000-07:00I too always run with music in training but take i...I too always run with music in training but take it off for the race. I'm so slow it doesn't change my speed alot. But I do stay more focused when I don't have it.IronWaddlerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02065549723453997421noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-20774017663572699632007-11-07T20:00:00.000-07:002007-11-07T20:00:00.000-07:00Hmm. Very hot topic.I personally almost always tra...Hmm. Very hot topic.<BR/><BR/>I personally almost always train with music and never, ever, ever race with music.<BR/><BR/>And I really am faster w/o music. I think I have a tendency to disassociate with the music and sorta forget I'm running, but when I race, I am usually very much in the moment, monitoring every aspect of my race.IronSnoopyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01981949502472813578noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-56985446178880293122007-11-07T19:59:00.000-07:002007-11-07T19:59:00.000-07:00I mean that in the sense of, "the rules don't appl...I mean that in the sense of, "the rules don't apply to me...my situation is different."Herself, the GeekGirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17990186920123895227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-5489004176881665712007-11-07T19:57:00.000-07:002007-11-07T19:57:00.000-07:00Yes, they are a lot like the cell phone people in ...Yes, they are a lot like the cell phone people in that respect, aren't they? And the people who let their dogs off leashes in an area that requires dogs to be on a leash.Herself, the GeekGirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17990186920123895227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-62073326297294770372007-11-07T18:37:00.000-07:002007-11-07T18:37:00.000-07:00You know, I've never known anyone who used earbuds...You know, I've never known anyone who used earbuds all the time who didn't insist that they were totally aware of sounds around them all the time. <BR/><BR/>And in my experience trying to talk to them or alert them to something, they are almost never able to hear anything.<BR/><BR/>There is a disconnect there somewhere....Nancy Tobyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18402516081283603553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-5790904524809930772007-11-07T18:27:00.000-07:002007-11-07T18:27:00.000-07:00I like my music when I'm training, I try not to ra...I like my music when I'm training, I try not to race with it, though I have been known to plug in for a race when I see that others are plugged in. I go with what others are doing. <BR/><BR/>I'm very sensitive to others when I've got them - I keep it low so I can hear what's going on around me. It irritates the bahookie out of me if someone else doesn't hear me. <BR/><BR/>I call them "the pod people." The Pod People are most irritating when I'm on a bike and I'm trying to pass them on a bike trail. I shout ON YOUR LEFT!!! and they don't even acknowledge. How irritating! <BR/><BR/>I consider my music a bit of a crutch sometimes. I would like to train more without it - so when the battery dies or I forget it, I take it as a sign and I go with it.the Dread Pirate Rackhamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06758895507726373202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-34179222398979176222007-11-07T14:44:00.000-07:002007-11-07T14:44:00.000-07:00Geekgirl, I'm really glad you posted about this......Geekgirl, I'm really glad you posted about this...it got me thinking about running and my running coping strategies! <BR/><BR/>S.Baboo's comments are very interesting, too...helped me to understand why I use the iPod on my long training runs. I usually focus on external stuff like music and scenery. I want to try and focus internally more if I can.<BR/><BR/>Ya'll make a great pair :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-49885764967104628952007-11-07T14:28:00.000-07:002007-11-07T14:28:00.000-07:00The wearing of headphones would not be a DQ it wou...The wearing of headphones would not be a DQ it would be a time penalty and it is not outside assistance it is unauthorized equipment.<BR/><BR/>The research Fe-Lady refers to is talking about associative versus dissociative cognitive strategies. Associative is when your focus is on your body, breathing…it's internal. Dissociative is when your focus is external like on music. Both techniques can be effective at enhancing performance but more experienced runners use associative whereas more novice runners use dissociative strategies. A less experienced runner should try and use associative strategies to better monitor their performance and develop a better idea of how their body and mind works during exercise; this can lead to performance enhancement. However, they can use dissociative strategies just to get through a long or difficult workout…also a performance enhancer. The same is true of elite runners. Sometimes the pain or discomfort of maxima or prolonged effort is so unpleasant that in order to really reach peak performance they need to use dissociative strategies to get through a difficult part of the course, sprint ahead to the finish line of just finish in the first place like in an ultra.<BR/><BR/>Sorry for the lecture. Maybe I should do a post?S. Baboohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11975687184596635887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-3597052772848071872007-11-07T13:08:00.000-07:002007-11-07T13:08:00.000-07:00I have mixed feelings. RRCA has had a disclaimer a...I have mixed feelings. RRCA has had a disclaimer about headphones in its policy for several years now. As a race director, I included that on the registration forms, but, really, there's no way to police it. I run so many races now that have upwards of 50% or more of the people wearing headphones. Only a minority ever seem to be a problem. I'm not sure that the ban is really necessary. Or even realistic, especially at big races.<BR/><BR/>I'm not sure it's fair to compare wearing headphones to being deaf, though. A deaf person has much more keenly developed senses than someone just sticking in earbuds and cranking the tunes in their head. I would guess that deaf people are pretty aware of what's going on around them.KayVeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15336141228428540419noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-51720689781832696082007-11-07T08:39:00.000-07:002007-11-07T08:39:00.000-07:00I remember seeing the same, or at least similar, r...I remember seeing the same, or at least similar, research fe-lady mentioned. They took groups of elite runners and mid-packers, and had them perform a run to exhaustion at 80% VO2 max twice; once while watching tv, and once without.<BR/><BR/>The elite's did better without the distraction because they were better able to focus internally on breathing, stride mechanics, etc. The mid-packers did better with the tv because it distracted them from how uncomfortable they were feeling.cassio598https://www.blogger.com/profile/13879621378274508671noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-7357052877880820112007-11-07T08:22:00.000-07:002007-11-07T08:22:00.000-07:00I never heard of this ban until a few years ago at...I never heard of this ban until a few years ago at a triathlon, at the finish line, when a woman came in practically dead last (not me for once). She had an iPod. A friend of mine at the finish line, a multi time IM finisher who knows all the rules, said she should be disqualified because of it. I asked why? She said because it is considered outside assistance, meaning one could be getting coached along the course. In this case, as in many I'm sure, that isn't what's going on, but that apparently is one reason for the ban in triathlon. That and the cycling danger aspect, which is obvious. Never heard of it for any marathons though. On the other hand, I don't use music outside, but will use headphones when on a treadmill or elliptical. Its the only thing to keep me from going crazy, and there is no obvious danger there from using them, unless of course there is a fire and you can't hear the alarm. From my own experience, all headphones should be banned from bike paths, particularly for rollerbladers weaving from side to side. Not only can they not hear anyone coming from behind, but their swaying movements will likely cause an accident eventually.Vickiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12302710072433158197noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-16318034224745934262007-11-07T07:32:00.000-07:002007-11-07T07:32:00.000-07:00I remember reading about some research (this was a...I remember reading about some research (this was awhile ago and before runners ran with music)-about what one focused on when running a marathon. Top runners focused on their breathing, how their bodies felt and surrounding competition. Mid to back of the pack runners tended to look around at the scenery, sang to themselves and relied on the cheering crowds to get the through tough parts of the race.<BR/>Food for thought.Fe-ladyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07986479866903093934noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-78132494975875577802007-11-07T05:31:00.000-07:002007-11-07T05:31:00.000-07:00Wow, what a lot of good ideas so far! Based on al...Wow, what a lot of good ideas so far! Based on all these responses so far, I'm started to get the impression that music is relied on by the more novice runner, and those who have been at it longer don't rely on it. I'm curious as to whether I'd be faster without it.Herself, the GeekGirlhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17990186920123895227noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-84789583848445389452007-11-07T00:35:00.000-07:002007-11-07T00:35:00.000-07:00I am PRO ban. I've had too many experiences in rac...I am PRO ban. I've had too many experiences in races where people listening to music were in their own little world and caused problems for those around. <BR/><BR/>I love music while I workout though - when I am alone.<BR/><BR/>JuliaJuliahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07317985324165071497noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-3350976189380058132007-11-06T20:49:00.002-07:002007-11-06T20:49:00.002-07:00My .02I've been using headphones since 1987--when ...My .02<BR/>I've been using headphones since 1987--when I first started riding a bike. I move the headphones so they are not sitting directly over my ears, so that I can hear the music, carry on a conversation, or hear upcoming car noise, etc. Instead of wearing those cute little ear buds, I wear giant, UFO type, ear-muff shape head phones, that, these days, garner me a lot of LOOKs. I look funny, but I can move them off my ears, hear everything that's going on around me AND hear my music. <BR/>Works for me. <BR/>I know--most people wouldn't give up their good looks for a little music and safety, but I do--because I'm totally pro both.<BR/><BR/>As I've gotten better at running longer distances (my goal this past year), I've found that I rely less on my music, and settle into a running groove that carries me through. Can't imagine a full marathon--as I've never done one. <BR/><BR/>What does running with music do for you? Something to think about. <BR/><BR/>Might try some training runs without the music and see how it goes. I actually now enjoy going without the headphones--something I never thought possible.<BR/>:)skoshihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11923635456444004747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-72483696625954410232007-11-06T20:49:00.001-07:002007-11-06T20:49:00.001-07:00My .02I've been using headphones since 1987--when ...My .02<BR/>I've been using headphones since 1987--when I first started riding a bike. I move the headphones so they are not sitting directly over my ears, so that I can hear the music, carry on a conversation, or hear upcoming car noise, etc. Instead of wearing those cute little ear buds, I wear giant, UFO type, ear-muff shape head phones, that, these days, garner me a lot of LOOKs. I look funny, but I can move them off my ears, hear everything that's going on around me AND hear my music. <BR/>Works for me. <BR/>I know--most people wouldn't give up their good looks for a little music and safety, but I do--because I'm totally pro both.<BR/><BR/>As I've gotten better at running longer distances (my goal this past year), I've found that I rely less on my music, and settle into a running groove that carries me through. Can't imagine a full marathon--as I've never done one. <BR/><BR/>What does running with music do for you? Something to think about. <BR/><BR/>Might try some training runs without the music and see how it goes. I actually now enjoy going without the headphones--something I never thought possible.<BR/>:)skoshihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11923635456444004747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-33421034295872349062007-11-06T20:49:00.000-07:002007-11-06T20:49:00.000-07:00My .02I've been using headphones since 1987--when ...My .02<BR/>I've been using headphones since 1987--when I first started riding a bike. I move the headphones so they are not sitting directly over my ears, so that I can hear the music, carry on a conversation, or hear upcoming car noise, etc. Instead of wearing those cute little ear buds, I wear giant, UFO type, ear-muff shape head phones, that, these days, garner me a lot of LOOKs. I look funny, but I can move them off my ears, hear everything that's going on around me AND hear my music. <BR/>Works for me. <BR/>I know--most people wouldn't give up their good looks for a little music and safety, but I do--because I'm totally pro both.<BR/><BR/>As I've gotten better at running longer distances (my goal this past year), I've found that I rely less on my music, and settle into a running groove that carries me through. Can't imagine a full marathon--as I've never done one. <BR/><BR/>What does running with music do for you? Something to think about. <BR/><BR/>Might try some training runs without the music and see how it goes. I actually now enjoy going without the headphones--something I never thought possible.<BR/>:)skoshihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11923635456444004747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-29856676356967867722007-11-06T20:35:00.001-07:002007-11-06T20:35:00.001-07:00I understand that there is a safety aspect during ...I understand that there is a safety aspect during races that may require a ban on headphones.<BR/><BR/>Duke City supposedly banned headphones, so I ran without music, but as S.Baboo pointed out (and something I noticed) there were several out there wearing them. And there were parts of that course that were very crowded, so I believe the ban was a good decision.<BR/><BR/>If there wasn't a ban, I would have had mine with me. If I had known there was a ban, I'm not sure that I would have signed up.<BR/><BR/>All of that aside...I vote for option 1. If you want to run with music, simply find races that allow it.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03231464198799653331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-77615929494043243152007-11-06T20:35:00.000-07:002007-11-06T20:35:00.000-07:00I understand that there is a safety aspect during ...I understand that there is a safety aspect during races that may require a ban on headphones.<BR/><BR/>Duke City supposedly banned headphones, so I ran without music, but as S.Baboo pointed out (and something I noticed) there were several out there wearing them. And there were parts of that course that were very crowded, so I believe the ban was a good decision.<BR/><BR/>If there wasn't a ban, I would have had mine with me. If I had known there was a ban, I'm not sure that I would have signed up.<BR/><BR/>All of that aside...I vote for option 1. If you want to run with music, simply find races that allow it.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03231464198799653331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-86845655614169295852007-11-06T17:40:00.000-07:002007-11-06T17:40:00.000-07:00Actually, timing chips are passive transponders:ht...Actually, timing chips are passive transponders:<BR/>http://www.championchip.com/products/championchips.php<BR/><BR/>But back to the subject - I'm for a ban. I spent five minutes yelling at some chick with earbuds running directly in front of a car at my last 5K and she never, ever heard me. Should have just let Darwin take care of her.Nancy Tobyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18402516081283603553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-39810923679226160742007-11-06T17:00:00.000-07:002007-11-06T17:00:00.000-07:00Oh yeah - I think the safesounds thing is a pretty...Oh yeah - I think the safesounds thing is a pretty cool alterative.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12985763949093728970noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11786280.post-3590265060658760952007-11-06T16:59:00.000-07:002007-11-06T16:59:00.000-07:00Never, ever on the bike, just because you are so v...Never, ever on the bike, just because you are so vulnerable to traffic anyway. <BR/>On the run, I love to have tunes. Not loud. I can still hear what is going on around me, but there is a little theme song activity going on in the background. I find it much easier to talk myself into hurting, stopping, walking without a little distraction, which paradoxically keeps me focused and steady. <BR/>I vote that I am a big girl capable of making my own decisions. I don't need the RD's to decide for me. And I signed the waiver, so it's all on me.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12985763949093728970noreply@blogger.com