I'm lucky because my father was a mining engineer educated in hearing protection. From a young age I wore earplugs on motorcycles, but not everyone had my dad. Here's a little video to help you catch up. This is what Industrial Paramedical Services, Inc., write on the subject: “...according to OSHA’s regulation of industrial noise exposure, an average worker surrounded by levels around 85-90 dB for an eight hour day will not exceed the limits of exposure time within a 24 hour period of time. “However, when the sound levels exceed 100 dB, your exposure time is reduced to two hours. When sound levels exceed 115 dB, your exposure time is drastically reduced to 15 minutes. This puts riding a bike a whole other (sic) realm as ‘wind noise’ at highway speeds can measure up to 103 dB, or comparable to a running chainsaw. At these levels the rider is not only fatiguing physically from the excess noise exposure, but it also puts him into a position of needing a hearing aid later in life." Earplugs help retain riders' hearing and decrease fatigue. Stick 'em in! More Next Tuesday!
