Bicycle Air Horn

[da]

On the topic of bicycling with an air-horn. I might buy an Air Zound, which is mentioned in the comments. It refills with a bike-pump and doesn't use cartridges, and the control mounts on the handlebars. And maybe one of these days it will save my life. I've relied on my voice to shout at drivers in situations where my safety is at risk, but I don't think my voice is loud enough because occasionally the driver has no reaction. But 110db? Yeah.

[bike odometer: roughly 50mi when I put it away for the winter]

Comments

[oldgrover.livejournal.com]

Curious - do you also have a bell? Those of us that walk dogs on shared paths REALLY like people with bells :)

[da-lj.livejournal.com]

I use the bell a few times a week, usually for clots of pedestrians on biking paths.

I have complete sympathy for pedestrians and dogs on shared paths; I know when I'm walking with the dog the last thing I expect is to be overtaken by a bike.

It's worst at night with bicyclists zooming past without a light, who for obvious reasons might not see a dog. which is why they should USE A DAMN LIGHT!

[psychedelicbike.livejournal.com]

With the teeny-tiny handlebars on my bike (ridden praying-hamster style), there's no room for any sounding device once I've got my bike computer and light on them. IMHO, a dinky little bell won't be heard by anyone in a car, and I can (and do) use my voice effectively on shared-use paths. Usually, the phrase is "on your left," though occasionally, I just cry out "ding ding."

[insaint.livejournal.com]

That's pretty awesome. Sounds like a good idea to me... And I'm definitely in the "driver" category. I'd rather know that I'd HEAR a cyclist and avoid harming anyone.

[mynatt.livejournal.com]

I've always wanted one of those, since shouting really only works in summer when people's windows are down. I don't think I'd actually carry around another thing that has to be removed from my bike every time I lock up, though. Sure would be fun for critical mass, though.

Speaking of bike safety, after a helmet, the one thing that I believe has saved my life the most has been my reflective vest. Allow me to highly recommend that you consider trying one, if you don't already.

[da-lj.livejournal.com]

Yes- for the last few weeks, I've always gone out with an orange vest and an extra light.

[mynatt.livejournal.com]

glad to hear it.

[nobodyhere.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure whether I'd want to give up my water bottle cage to it since I don't have room for a second one, but I'll be curious to hear your experiences with it.

[catbear.livejournal.com]

Man, I can't read that shit. In three minutes of paging back through his blog my heart rate has jumped 30 and my BP has my ears pounding. I honestly don't know what I'll do when I start commuting to the studio every day -- half an hour on foot, or ten minutes on the bike, with crossings at Queen and Victoria.

I've often thought that, as a pedestrian, I should carry around a pickaxe and swing it around joyously when crossing an intersection. Any vehicle that runs into a pickaxe is obviously one that isn't paying attention.

Anyway, it's my firm belief that anyone operating a motor vehicle who damages someone who is not should be off the road for a minimum of a year unless a court hearing decides they were absolutely not at fault. Automobiles are just too dangerous for humans to operate without taking full responsibility for their actions.

And I'm still pissed off. Argh!

[da-lj.livejournal.com]

re: pickaxe: a monofilament might do the trick nicely. Though, likelihood of severing own body-parts: still frustratingly high.

[catbear.livejournal.com]

[ wistful sigh ]