Modern Vespa

There's been a few ear plug threads over the past month or so, as well as a bunch of people who have said that they should try them. I was once an ear plug skeptic, but now I'm a pusher . . .

I understand this isn't a huge financial outlay, but here's the deal:

If you buy a set of earplugs, use them on every ride for a week, then stop using them or dislike them, never to use earplugs again, I will reimburse you for said earplugs (up to $5 USD).

The rules:
1. This applies to the first 10 people who post to this thread committing to accept the challenge (I'm hoping that if 10 sign up, that someone else will step in and sponsor the next 10 riders).

2. You buy a set of decent earplugs (good info on styles and availability in this thread).

3. Use the earplugs on every ride for a week.

4. If you are not happy using earplugs for whatever reason, post your reason/experiences to this thread (and PM me your email address).

5. I will send you $5 USD via Paypal.

It's that simple. If just one person out of 10 likes using them, quite frankly, it would be a great $45 investment.

I love it! Good Karma for you stinkyjones! Thanks for promoting hearing protection!

Robyn, I still need a set but I did not like insta molds so to the lab for me

I'm an earplug supporter, but I'm looking for the perfect set. I'll probably get some molded ones soon. Way to stick to your guns, stinkyjones.

After reading the recent threads on ear protection here I wore some when I rode this past weekend. I was uncomfortable with them for maybe the first five minutes or so, but then I kind of forgot they were there. I took a short ride this afternoon without them and the difference was remarkable in a scary sort of way. I'm going to do my best to wear them whenever I'm on the scooter.

I'm willing to throw in by offering a free set of earplugs to anyone who wants them. I just ordered three pairs of Etymotic Research ER20 plugs when I really only needed two pairs. Rather than having the extra pair sitting around I'd like to see them put to good use. My preference would be to see them go to someone who is perhaps too skeptical to go out to buy a pair, but you don't really need to have a reason. I'm not going to do any means testing - if you want them, let me know.

For anyone who is having (or who fears having) inner ear discomfort issues with the use of plugs, see if you can find a pair of these:



They are made by E-A-R and are called E-A-Rsoft. Be careful, because there are also E-A-R Classics as well as "Superfits." Never the less, you can find them with cords or without (I use without), and they claim to be the world's softest earplugs. From personal experience, I can unequivocally say that they are, in fact, the softest ear plugs I've ever tried - and I've tried a whole bunch of the cheepies right up to the Etymotics. Next step would be to the Audiologist's office for me, but these work *really* well for me, AND I have smallish ear canals to begin with. Even after an hour or more with these in, I have experienced no plug-related discomfort.

Best of all, they're cheap. If you're not yet a believer, go out and try a pair of these. Remember, just make sure to get the EARsoft variety!!!!

Are you an earplug manufacturer Stinky?
I'm only just getting into them but on a long trip my flyscreen fires up so much wind and noise I reckon I could be doing some damage/

Manufacturer, no.

A stupid teenager who listened to music way too loud all the time, stood 3 feet from the PA at concerts, fired shotguns and rifles and participated in various other extremely loud activities and thought that hearing protection was for the weak, old and feeble, yes.

Now I'm just trying to make sure that the ringing doesn't get any worse.

you can find ear plugs at most m/c and scooter shops, also walmart carries them in the sporting goods area and in the pharmacy area. Swimmers ear plugs work too. Also CVS, Walgreens, Rite aid, Lowes, Home depot all carry them too.

New hearing aids with all new programing and impressions for new custom protectors today.....

I've been using HEROS for the past few years. They are sold at Rite-Aid etc. Lately I've been using Radians that I got at Gander Mountain. They sell them near the fire arms. They only have a NRR of 29 compared to the Heros 32 or 33 but they are made of a firmer material and really work for me. They are 49 cents a pair. Just anothe option...

Personally I think the helmet design you use makes a difference if you wear ear plugs or not. My helmet really helps reduce noise. If I rode without a helmet I would probably wear them. I am one of those people who wants to hear everything around me and I don't want my senses dulled whatsoever. Our scoots are extremely quiet too, it's not like we are riding Harleys with loud pipes. I'm not knocking those who wear earplugs or telling anyone what they should do. What is going on with this topic lately?

I guess some of us got old enough to realize we didn't know everything, and ear damage is imperceptible and avoidable. Data would indicate you don't have a helmet that provides adequate hearing protection at highway speeds. But it's your choice, I made mine and I was wrong.

wind noise is noticable in all helmets and hearing damage by acute or chronic sources is terrible. What the ear plugs do is block the high pitchs that do the most damage and they actually help your hearing when wearing them as they block out all that wind noise and you can still hear everything else going on. Try the challenge for a week. give it a serious go then go a week with out and lets us know your thoughts good or bad.

+1

Go for it. What have you got to lose? Try them for even one ride of 30 minutes or more. Try riding again without them. Let us know what you think.

i find i actually hear more with my earplugs in - well, more important stuff anyway. without them, at speeds over 50mph, all i hear is wind noise.

as a former regular attendee at death metal and 'power electronics' gigs, and someone who already has difficulty hearing conversations if there's music and background noise above a fairly low level, I'm determined to prevent any further damage to my hearing. i don't want to be one of those old ladies who has one hand permanently cocked behind her ear and says 'eh? .... eh?' all the time

And also it leads to double posts

That's stereo dear boy - wonderful new technology! It may even extend to the wireless one day.

After reading about earplugs on MV, i did go out and buy some soft foam disposable earplugs from the pharmacy. These ones to be precise: http://www.ohropax.de/10-1-soft.html

I tried them once and everything was so quiet. TOO quiet! I was freaked out that I couldn't hear stuff around me. As a very new rider, I think I really need to hear every car, tram, or bus around me, and even the wind, because otherwise I feel a little disconnected from my surroundings.

I then tried my Sennheiser earphones to listen to GPS turn-by-turn instructions, and these earphones also block out surrounding noise very well (but not noise-cancelling). This was again quite an unpleasant experience for me, I would describe it as feeling disconnected. I took it off for my return journey.

I *do* want to protect my hearing, as I am still young and know many older people who don't hear so well! Do I just have to get used to the quietness? I've never worn earplugs before, not even in the library or to sleep. In fact, I like having my air purifer switched on when I sleep because the noise from the fan is soothing :p

basically, yes I found it a little odd the first few times i wore them, but you soon realize that they don't filter out all sound, only particular frequencies. if the ones you're using make you too deaf, try the 'christmas tree' style:

Google "ER20".

These are great plugs for blocking out dangerous levels but don't leave you with the "plugged up" feeling. These are a great first step for earplug wearing.

Get the baby blues if you have smaller ear canals--the regular ones for larger canals.

Thanks for the tip guys, I'll have to see if I can find them here in Zurich. Probably at inflated prices as usual :p

Edited: 10USD in US (Amazon), 30USD here!!!

Chia, note my post toward the top of this thread. If you want to PM your mailing address to me I'll put a pair of them in the mail to you.

Hi Chichikov,

Your offer is awfully kind! I saw it, but I didnt want you to pay crazy shipping rates to post something so small to Switzerland. I tried to order on Amazon right now but can't change the shipping from Priority International to just Standard International. (Priority shipping costs $40!) Any idea how much it would cost you to post to Zurich? Super slow but cheap shipping is perfectly ok :p

It'll cost me just over a dollar to put them in the mail. They aren't very large, so I'm just going to wrap them well and put them in an envelope. No worries. I'm happy to do it.

Is this helmet better than most at this, or do you use a FF?

VEZPA mine does too I can't hear anything which is bad when siren are coming at me because i usually see them before i hear them

I use Hocks Noise Brakers. They have a open tube in the middle, so there is no "stopped up feeling" at all. The stopper inside the tube responds to higher decibel sounds, protecting the ear. I know it sounds a little like voodoo, but it actually works. There is a great explanation here: http://earplugstore.stores.yahoo.net/honobr.html

They were too long for my ear canal, so I cut off the smallest flange with scissors and they fit perfectly. YMMV. They also make a custom fit version.

BTW, I am an ex-music teacher, and now a psychotherapist, so my hearing is very important to me. As a youth, I spent three years in a hard rock band and damaged my hearing just to the point where I am over-sensitive to certain frequencies - they hurt. So the time to start protecting your hearing is now. Any damage is permanent.

I used to think that the ear plugs block too much noise but once you get used to them, you actually "notice" the "bad/scary" noises more. I have tried several of the disposable ear plugs. I tried several pairs of the ones with cords on them but I think the cords transmit a lot of noise themselves.

My current favorites are the light blue ones at Wal-Mart. I bought about 6 pair of them for a few dollars. They are really squishy and they are first ones that don't push too hard on my ears once they are in my ears. They work very well for me. I think they are a Hearo's brand product.

I use (ear muff style) outside the ear protectors at the gun range always but needed something to fit inside the ear when I got a Prima pipe on my old Gts 250. I went to an audiologist who goes to our Church. She fit for me a set of molded "musician's earplugs" that reduce all sound by 25db. I can still easily hold a conversation, hear sirens and horns, all the necessary stuff but they cut out the wind noise (which is terribly destructible long-term I'm told) and the excess exhaust noise, etc. Now I ride with them all the time-no matter which bike I'm on.

Hellen Keller (blind and deaf for those who may not know) said that being deaf was worse than being blind because being blind cut you off from things: You can't find your keys, shoes etc. Things. Being deaf cut you off from people: You can't talk to your friends, the police, your spouse your grandchildren. People. I doubt there are many here who ride without eye protection. Don't you want to talk to your grandchildren?

I wear the Radians custom earplugs the you mold yourself. I don't even know they are in when I'm riding and they seem to do the trick.

[img]http://ep.yimg.com/ca/I/earplugstore_2119_48900142 [/img] QuietEar Reusable Variable Noise Reduction Ear Plugs (NRR 22). (Oops that didn't work.)

Has anyone tried these? The soft flanges appeal to me since I have small ears and anything I have tried before has just popped out when I put my helmet on.

I use the EARsoft ear plugs. I get them free at work.

When people tell me that I won't hear things like sirens I ask, "How loud are these things? Are they louder than my engine and wind noise?" If they're quieter than the noise then I won't hear them even without earplugs. If they're louder than the noise, then I know I'll be able to hear them, because even with the earplugs I still hear the noise.

I've used that type. I have no difficulty hearing emergency vehicles, or horns.

I used to use earplugs and found them to reduce the wind noise and yet not the lower frequencies such as traffic noise, exhausts and horns.

I gave them up after I started wearing skullcandy earbuds with my iPod nano.
I keep the volume on the iPod low so I can still hear what is going on around me. The earbuds cut the wind noise as well as the earplugs and I can listen to music as I ride, without installing a stereo in the scoot, just shuffle the iPod on low volume and it works great. The earbuds come with three sizes of rubber pads for a semi custom fit to your ear.




http://www.amazon.com/Skullcandy-Dub-Stereo-Ear-buds/dp/B003H4Y4QW/ref=sr_1_4?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1283491871&sr=1-4


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I pretty much always wear earplugs now, but I've noticed that I tend to ride faster with them in. It's either because I can't hear the engine revving as loudly and don't notice how fast I'm going, or because I'm less distracted by noise and more focussed on my actions (and therefore more confident in my move-busting abilities), or some other thing I haven't thought of, but it's noticeable.

I am a wearer of $4500 digital, state of the art, hearing aids. Yes, $4500 and they are only good for about 5 years. Mine have about a year left before they go belly up.

I have abused my hearing for many years. Back in 1964, my first "real" job was in an automotive plant and I was surrounded by loud machinery. I remember driving a 1955 Chevy 6 cylinder that had the absolute rattiest valve train. The engine sounded like it had nuts and bolts banging around inside it. Well, at the end of my first shift working there, I got into the Chevy and started it up. I couldn't hear the engine at all. It was several hours later that my hearing came back. I worked there for a couple of years.

Subsequently, my working life consisted of being around loud machine tools and factories for the next 40 years. Throw in playing drums in a rock band during my youth and listening to stereos cranked to the limit. I have severe hearing loss.

After years of asking people to repeat themselves and have family ask why I need the TV on so loud, I went for a hearing test. I have 25% hearing loss in my left ear and 40% loss in my right ear. I have a certain range in the hearing spectrum that I am completely deaf in. Unfortunately, that range happens to be the frequency that many common sounds are, such as my wife's voice. If she is not facing me when she speaks, I cannot understand her. Believe me when I say that this causes serious problems.

Now, to the hearing aids. I can hear a pin drop. I can hear the wind rustle on the leaves and rain sprinkling on the steps. I can hear those things because my existing hearing capability is enhanced by the state of the art hearing aids. I CANNOT HEAR SOUNDS IN MY DEAD ZONE ANY BETTER! The damage is done and nothing will fix that! Sorry to yell, but sometimes it is so frustrating.

My advice to anyone who thinks ear protection is a waste of time is this: If I could go back 40 some odd years ago, I would wear toilet plungers over my ears to protect them, regardless how they looked or felt.

Hearing is one of our 5 senses and it must be protected at all costs. Do it, do it today.

Ditto. I realized yesterday that I could hear the hum of the wheels on the pavement.

It's because you're not being assaulted by the violent wind. When you are under that kind of constant assault, you slow down to make it more tolerable.