Safe Speed Forums

This music thing is interesting. Throughout my adult life I have used music as an aid to concentration. At its simplest, music can easily mask out unwanted sounds, but I think there are more subtle effects as well.

One of the subtle effects seems to be that it can calm the part of the brain that would otherwise analyse sounds. Clearly this could work when the music is familiar, but perhaps not if it's something you have never heard before.

In normal driving music definitely helps my concentration. Clearly there's a risk that the music might mask a sound that would otherwise be useful to driving, but that seems to be very rare, while the concentration benefit seems constant.

I also find odd rattles and clonks to be a distraction. One of my old friends calls them 'worry noises'. If the music masks the worry noises - and the worry noises are unimportant - then that's a good thing.

Speech is completely different. A radio - and especially idiot DJs and announcers - are a very significant distraction. Generally I don't have radios in my cars, and have often had to go a long way round to arrange a car stereo without a radio.

But when driving enthusiastically, I'd generally turn off the music and listen to the vehicle. It seems that the music helps the concentration when less than 100% is needed.

Then there's the whole emotional thing. Music can calm or excite. I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing. I've never got into any sort of trouble because of 'exciting music' but it certainly can alter your driving - perhaps making the approach more enthusiastic for example.

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Paul Smith
Our scrap speed cameras petition got over 28,000 sigs
The Safe Speed campaign demands a return to intelligent road safety

Slightly O/T:

Music gives me very vivid mental pictures of where I once drove listening to it - usually when I first 'got' the music in question. Example - Alice in Chains: 'Dirt' always reminds me of the A303, as does Led Zeppelin 1.

Conversely, driving along a section of road reminds me of music I listened to there before, so in the above example, driving on the A303 makes me think of the bands named above.

Is it just me

No its not just you Johnny - whenever I listen to Brothers in Arms I get a mental picture of a roundabout in Oxforshire. No idea where it is or where we were going because I was in the car with my parents at the time.

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Science won over religion when they started installing lightning rods on churches.

I am a very calm and composed car/van/lorry driver and will listen mostly to Classic FM talk radio of some description all depending on the noise levels in the vehicle I am driving.

Now on the bike is a slightly different mater.

On the bike I fall into one of two mindsets
The hyper attentive paranoid there all out to kill me of the daily commute witch is often accompanied buy then more “Rocking” end of the musical spectrum

Things like
Queen Fat bottomed girls
Doors/Stones Paint it black
Basically any thing loud that the average drunken crowd could sing LOUD

Then theirs the Twisty out for fun rides where I am more relaxed and mellowish well I am still on a bike and need my wits about me to stay in one piece.

Then I like more melodic music easy listening stile music.

So if you find me gracefully swaying through the corners on some nice sunny afternoon chances are I have a Strauss waltz’s like the Blue Danube on the mp3

But if you see me shoot pass head banging as I go breaking into corners and speeding off afterwards (to a safe speed for the conditions) chances are there is a 70s Rock revival going on in my helmet.

I don't bother even trying to listen to music on the bike - the wind noise through the open face would drown out most things!

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Science won over religion when they started installing lightning rods on churches.

Sony link

Not only allow you to hear music but act as very good earplugs at all but Motorway speeds

Try an Electraglide....they have a CD+Radio and built-in speakers.

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Speed camera policy Kills

Nay lad. Elton John, Chris De Burgh, Simply Red and all the other safe, overproduced rubbish and music are mutually exclusive categories. I find Eminem's constant self - justification a bit wearing at times, but the man's a clever lyricist and he writes a good tune. I listen to nearly anything with balls and bollocks - I love all the early AC/DC albums but also like Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, anything by Tom Waits, Laura Cantrell, Black Sabbath, Steeleye Span, lots of classical (especially Faure and Debussy)...hell, I can't list all my cds here! Some are better for driving to than others, but like I said before, I usually have Radio 4 on anyway, or just silence.

with me depends on which kid is in the front seat,

it could be the wheels on the bus up to anyone off the X factor

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now retired

That post is the best birth control method I've ever seen.

a bit late for that

a blast from the past through i have a copy of an old Dead Kennedys cd in my van, a holiday in Cambodia is a must on a sunny day outside a school

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now retired

Got a weakness for "California Uber Alles" off the same studio album ("Fresh Fruit...")

Dead Kennedys? Now you're talking!

Gismo, if I wanted a tractor I'd buy a Massey Fergusson! (PS the goldwing also has a sterio, but I like to be able to go round corners...)

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Science won over religion when they started installing lightning rods on churches.

Awwwlright pop-pickers. Try these musical underpants on for size. (To be read in a chart countdown sort of voice)

The Goombay Dance Band
Accidental Goat Sodomy
Smegma and the Nuns
String Cheese Incident
Thats Right Shoot the Wookie
Who Carries the Organ
Your Naked Mother
Screaming Moist Accountants
Girls Aloud (because I'm a man -flesh and blood)

various Country and Western for when it gets lonely on the road

I Still Miss You, Baby, But My Aim's Gettin' Better
Her Teeth Was Stained, But Her Heart Was Pure
I Been Roped And Thrown By Jesus In The Holy Ghost Corral
I Don't Know Whether To Kill Myself Or Go Bowling

And you can't beat a bit of Khoomei (Central Asian throat singing) and possibly something by Pigsty because everybody needs some Grindcore in their life.

Often I just sway to the strange rhythms in my head.

Not saying that anyone else's selections are a bit mainstream or anything (sniff)

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"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

curiously enough, i turn it down when im trying to find somewhere.
i listen to Eminem in the car mostly but in the truck, local radio every time (traffic updates)

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Richie

SSAFA supporter
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=126025031585

Great name for a band. Duly noted.

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"Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."

Regarding Sam's posts, we once had a (much beer fuelled) competition to think up the "best" heavy metal band names or song titles.

My friend Scott (candidate for funniest man in the world) came up with:

Band: Tom Bosley's Plutonian Love-Barge

Song "Crushed by the pillars of Satan's lardy outhouse"

While I was at uni we were going to start a Sabbath tribute called 'Bite the cat's head off'...

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Science won over religion when they started installing lightning rods on churches.

I do that all the time! If I've got a passenger who is not used to the car and who comments on a particular rattle I'll wind them up a bit by looking all concerned and then saying I'll soon fix it and proceed to turn the radio up. I know it's safe, it's regularly checked and serviced, it just comes with the territory of having a 25 year old car.

As for being a distraction, no I don't think it is - providing the volume is at resonable level, especially when lots of things are going on, eg heavy traffic in an unfamiliar area. I also find speech radio is more distracting, epecially when you get some numpty talking rubbish on a discussion show.

I like all sorts of stuff me, currently have Ministry of Sounds "Mash up Mix 2006" on the cd player. I've made my own road trip cd though for long distance drives including probably my favorite driving song, Jane Wielden - Rush Hour. I do tend to listen to a bit of radio, usually commercial and usually "Rock Fm" or "Century Fm". I miss working in Leeds though as they have Real Radio which is probably the best radio station around, plenty of variety.

Same here mate!
I currently have a cassette-pickup-thingy with a cable coming out of it, so my teenage daughter can connect her mp3 player to my car stereo... so I get to enjoy lots of PussyCat Dolls, Kelly Clarkson, Black Eyed Peas and... Robbie Williams !

My choice? Supertramp (of course!), Crisis what Crisis album. Checkout "another man's woman" - brilliant stuff.