Although we may not think of them as “Safety Gear” per se, almost all of us use ear plugs of one sort or another; anything from cheap foamies to high dollar custom molded ear plugs.
I was following a rabbit hole on the Adventure Rider site yesterday and came across a very interesting observation by one of the reviewers for a motorcycle supply vendor. To wit- one of their testers had a very adverse reaction to a set of plugs that completely sealed the ear. Evidently the inability of the inner ear to quickly equalize pressure due to the sealing effect of the ear plugs caused the tester to suffer an extreme loss of balance. Fortunately. the problem manifested itself before the tester got on his bike.
Sounds like a fairly rare occurrence to me, but, then again, it only takes once…..
Keep this scenario in mind and use the same procedure you would in getting the feel of a new helmet prior to plunking down your hard-earned. If you’re contemplating using a set of full seal earplugs when you ride, first wear them around the shop/house for at least thirty minutes to an hour to minimize your chances of being blessed with a “surprise” in the middle of your favorite set of high speed twisites.
Although we may not think of them as “Safety Gear” per se, almost all of us use ear plugs of one sort or another; anything from cheap foamies to high dollar custom molded ear plugs.
I was following a rabbit hole on the Adventure Rider site yesterday and came across a very interesting observation by one of the reviewers for a motorcycle supply vendor. To wit- one of their testers had a very adverse reaction to a set of plugs that completely sealed the ear. Evidently the inability of the inner ear to quickly equalize pressure due to the sealing effect of the ear plugs caused the tester to suffer an extreme loss of balance. Fortunately. the problem manifested itself before the tester got on his bike.
Sounds like a fairly rare occurrence to me, but, then again, it only takes once…..
Keep this scenario in mind and use the same procedure you would in getting the feel of a new helmet prior to plunking down your hard-earned. If you’re contemplating using a set of full seal earplugs when you ride, first wear them around the shop/house for at least thirty minutes to an hour to minimize your chances of being blessed with a “surprise” in the middle of your favorite set of high speed twisites.
Be safe,
Dave