Had to get in my car yesterday for a groceries run, as there's really no space on the bike for bags and bags of mango mochi and the like. I really only drive once a week, now, for errands where I'll need lots of storage space, and it's always odd to start the car and just drive off. No warming-up time, no TCLOCS check, no gear to put on... I find that my riding is a positive thing in terms of safety in the Volvo; the scanning for dangers and keeping aware of my surroundings translates straight across. I do have to remind myself not to wander in the lane for best visibility, as I already fill the whole thing, and not to try for quick acceleration or braking, as the Volvo can't do either very well.

I have noticed a very unusual psychological change, though - when I'm in the car with the windows rolled up and the radio on, or talking to my passenger or (God forbid) on a cell phone, I really have to constantly remind myself that I'm hurtling down the road and not sitting quietly at home. I miss the feedback I get from the engine and the windblast and the noise of the road, and subconsciously I think that's what keeps me grounded and aware on the bike. Seeing the pavement hurtling past me is much less visceral than hearing my passage. When I roll down the windows and get a chance to hear the world around me, I'm much more in tune with it.

On my ride on the Olympic Peninsula a few weeks ago, I briefly tried wearing a pair of foam earplugs, as lots of folks have told me that not doing so can lead to hearing damage. I found that though I could still hear fairly clearly, the muted sounds that came through the plugs weren't enough to trigger that sense of speed and urgency that I normally have. After putting them in I only rode about a mile before I realized I just wasn't in the ride, wasn't paying the kind of attention to the road that I needed to, and I wasn't feeling safe. I pulled the plugs and instantly I was right there again. I find it strange that so much seems to stem from the sound of the ride.

I'm sure I could train myself to ride with the plugs in, but I'm not sure if I ought to. I really feel so much safer without them. Clearly there's some instinctual alertness that's getting triggered, here, and it seems foolish not to make use of it.