I never thought that I’d need anything but the open road and my keenly tuned motorcycle, but I have found enjoyment in riding with music. I know that many people talk about how music distracts them and they are unable to enjoy riding and partaking in the fantastic sounds of (fill in the blank!). Each of us has different tastes in music and it’s certainly a personal choice, but I find that my music only adds to the enjoyment of any trip on my motorcycle and my own enrichment.

I ride with an old style iPod, connected to an AirClick remote control, and it’s filled with many different genres of music. I often find myself matching music to the ride. I have to admit to turning off the entire affair if I find the road extremely challenging. However, on most roads I can enjoy the music and actually sing along with it and I find myself adjusting my riding mode in tune with the feel of the music. I have tunes that are for hard riding, tunes for the boredom of the Loneliest Hwy (Hwy 50 through NV), tunes for the sunsets… well, you get my drift. Variety is what music is about for me and I totally enjoy combining music and riding.

There is much debate on riding with music. Many say it’s dangerous and can be a distraction. Some have it blasting for all to hear as they ride their big machines accessorized with satellite radio and robust speakers. Others have personal earbuds bringing music to our ears. We are breaking the law according to some states, requiring one ear to be free of any sound device. But breaking the law or not, many riders are out there listening to music as they ride the highways, by-ways and back roads of our great country.

Will we be ticketed? Will we be hurt? Will we be distracted to the extent of making a riding error? Probably not, but there’s also those who choose to listen to nothing but the sound of their motorcycle cruising on down the road. That’s the beautiful thing about personal choice… those of us that enjoy the flow of music in our ears are able to do just that. So, I’ll don my earbuds, queue up Pink covering the Led Zepplin classic, Babe I’m Gonna Leave You, and ride off into the distance.

What about you? Do you listen to tunes while riding??