Years and years and even more years have passed since I’ve heard Rod Stewart crooning about Maggie May, but that’s the kind of things that happen on a good old fashion summer vacation roadtrip as miles and miles slip past with the radio scanning.
The only problem, at least with me, is that it feels like years and years before the morning will kick me in the head and get Maggie and Rod outta my noggin!
Oh Maggie I wish I’d never …
Of course we all know that you shouldn’t ride a bike with earbuds in. (It has been a while since I really filled the comment section, so go for it!) I find I hear danger long before I see it, especially from behind.
Today’s tech can help if you’re hellbent on listening to music instead of birds and dogs and people shouting “ON YOUR LEFT!” or bears WOOF WOOF WOOFING!
I have a Sena helmet with speakers built in. I can listen to music or carry on conversations with my wife through her helmet and still hear traffic.
I don’t need to listen to music externally because I seem to have an endless loop playing in my head most of the time.
Since I taught myself to play acoustic guitar — previously I’ve played sax in a rock band — some of my playlist songs get stuck on rewind. Classics like Old Blevins, and Bible on the Dash, and Wisconsin Small Town Polka if you want to get a taste of my bizarre selections. But you already know how strange I am.
Although I did stumble on Dayglow playing on Austin City Limits and they’ve got some real catchy tunes that get stuck in my head like a rock in your outside knobbies clicking away against your frame — I, I, I, I wanna run the world!!
Don’t get me wrong: I prefer listening to nature, but I understand the power of music. I’m lucky that I can hear it without assistance as I roll around on my bike.
So this week’s question is: What’s on your playlist as you drive to your ride (or what gets stuck in your head on a ride)?
BTW, I hope I keep you amused and I’m not being used, because if it’s the latter than I’ll just find me a rock n roll band that needs a helpin’ hand …
There are a lot of bands and tunes that get me going on the way to the trail. One in particular often pops into my head after I get out of the truck and begin riding single track. I guess It just has a cadence and vibe that match my riding style and temperament — Fugazi’s Waiting Room (https://youtu.be/cMOAXm94VWo) I find myself humming bass line and mouthing the lyrics as I start to warm into the zone on more rides than not.
Now Waiting Room is stuck in my head- but I hear the Jimmie’s Chicken Shack cover in my head!
Usually this one.
https://youtu.be/B9w77htFnyo
I never wear earbuds riding, but I do listen to the phone speaker during my commute. I can hear it during the quiet stretches but it fades away when I really need to be aware of traffic. I favor 70s rock and 80s new wave with a bit of 90s grunge.