I feel the same way about people who listen to music in cars, or drive with their windows up, and I imagine that it is quit difficult to hear things when you are wearing a motorbike helmet as well or when you are driving a tractor. These are people making a choice to take away their sense of hearing, or people designing vehicles on the assumption that you don't need to hear in order to operate them safely.
I don't wear headphones when I ride (it's extra weight :) ), but the only justification for getting on a high horse about it is that in order to operate a vehicle safely, you should be able to hear everything. And this is just not true in general, and there is no good reason for thinking it is true for bikes.
2 further things. The car that is going to hit you sounds just like a car that is going to miss you. And anyone who relies on their ears to tell them where something is without doing a visual check is a crap cyclist.
I feel the same way about people who listen to music in cars, or drive with their windows up, and I imagine that it is quit difficult to hear things when you are wearing a motorbike helmet as well or when you are driving a tractor. These are people making a choice to take away their sense of hearing, or people designing vehicles on the assumption that you don't need to hear in order to operate them safely.
I don't wear headphones when I ride (it's extra weight :) ), but the only justification for getting on a high horse about it is that in order to operate a vehicle safely, you should be able to hear everything. And this is just not true in general, and there is no good reason for thinking it is true for bikes.
2 further things. The car that is going to hit you sounds just like a car that is going to miss you. And anyone who relies on their ears to tell them where something is without doing a visual check is a crap cyclist.