crosstrainingenduro.com tractionerag.com Many long term motorbike riders will get this injury, but not even realize until it's too late. Life on two wheels. Nothing beats it. Thrills. Chills. Getting away from it all. The wind through your hair, if you have any left. Or at least through your helmet vents. And this brings me to a very serious issue. Schuberth claim dramatic noise reduction, but I can't find any independent scientific testing as yet. If you plan on riding a lot, you are very likely to get a common but little known injury. In fact, you may already have it, but you don't know it. What are we talking about? NIHLS, or noise induced hearing loss. Full face helmets are better than open face. Make sure it fits you properly. Riding cold weather? Try wearing a thick scarf or fitting a helmet skirt. A lot of the wind noise comes up from underneath the helmet. Ride with your visor closed above 70kmh. Do fairings make a difference? A Dutch study experimented with different fairings and managed up to a 6db reduction. A loud motorbike exhaust definitely increases your hearing loss, but the research shows it is especially the wind noise as you exceed 70kmh) . I was hoping it would mostly be the bike, long time viewers will know I am not a fan of loud exhausts or NIHLS (noise induced hearing loss). It doesn't take much for permanent hearing loss to begin. A mere 15 minutes on the highway with a standard full face helmet a small fairing, or none at all. Of course, you won't go deaf after 20 minutes on the highway. But noise induced hearing loss accumulates over time. And so gradually you won't even notice it until it's really too late. Schuberth, HJC and Shoei all claim to do wind tunnel testing. Tinnitus can be another result. A persistent ringing, in the ears, or sometimes a clicking, buzzing, hiss, or roaring. Like hearing loss, there is no cure, only prevention and management for wind noise, motorbikes, tinnitus and hearing loss. The good news for wind noise solutions... ear plugs, quieter helmets, fairings and windscreens. And it's nasty cousin, tinnitus. Ever had that ringing in your ears after a ride? Congratulations, that's the sound of permanent ear injury occurring. But who wants to hear about boring stuff like wind noise, motorbikes, tinnitus and hearing loss? For many, the wind noise solution may be ear plugs, quieter helmets, fairings or windscreens. And like a bad smell at the dinner table, it's usually the wind to blame. Research also found that some helmets actually resonate at 500hz and make the wind noise worse. Unfortunately they didn't say which brands. A key note here is that a fairing in the wrong position can create wind turbulence around your helmet and make things worse. Plenty of info out there, here are the usual tips for motorbike riders and hearing loss or tinnitus. Wind noise solutions include windscreens, ear plugs, quieter helmets and fairings. Wearing no helmet at all multiplies wind noise by 10, a bad idea for wind noise, tinnitus and hearing loss. It's very easy, and cheap, to prevent hearing loss and tinnitus for motorbike riders. Lets start with the less effective or expensive strategies. Quieter helmets. Studies show the quieter helmets can be 3 to 5 decibels quieter to reduce NIHLS, or noise induced hearing loss. And it can be an expensive solution depending on the brand.
Windshield height and how the air flows over the windshield
Add space for air flow under your windshield
Add lowers to each side under the windshield
The most effective NIHLS (noise induced hearing loss) solution is also the cheapest, starting at around $4. Ear plugs. These reduce noise up to a massive 32db. Use these and you don't have to worry about helmets and fairings at all. Potential problems?Some riders find them too quiet. But you can get ear plugs that let enough noise through for safety but keep you protected. What about active noise cancellation for NIHLS, or noise induced hearing loss? . Swedish research showed a 10db noise reduction with ear muffs. Some riders listen to music with ear buds. If these don't seal external noise out, it's tempting to crank the volume to get over the wind noise. A seriously bad idea that will speed up your hearing loss. Remember having anything in your ears can be illegal in some states. You can also get custom ear plugs designed specially for your mutated freak ears.
RESEARCH LINKS
stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/10052
www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/arti...
insidescience.org/news/loweri...
journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/...
www.bigearinc.com/blog/noise-...
benthamopen.com/contents/pdf/...
#crosstrainingadventure #noiseinducedhearingloss #nihl #adventure riding