The most successful trigger mechanisms to make a purchase are fear and (the hope of) sex. In that order As far as sex is concerned, it often goes wrong in the average motorcyclist's practice.
Women usually have a tolerance policy towards engines rather than being very excited about them. And a helmet is the plague for a carefully styled hairstyle. So! But with the sale of fear, the sellers get away very broadly. Because who wants - for example - to become deaf now?
The somewhat older people among us, or the fathers of the somewhat younger ones, may have been given it: masturbation makes you deaf. "WHAT ARE YOU SAYING ?!" I say: "Oh, never mind ..." That proven, unsubstantiated threat has been translated into the more current approach: "You will be deaf from cabriolet / motorcycle / concert visits." And a revenue model has been devised for this: Hearing Protection Articles. That is three times the word value by the way.
Becoming deaf from motorcycling or driving a convertible. Fortunately I didn't know. Otherwise I wouldn't have heard anything anymore. Because: when I was 15 my first motorcycle was stolen by the police. And in the meantime I almost run into the four crosses on two and four wheels. But on the whole I am on 20D motorcycle miles a year. All this at most with a middle class helmet on the head. And without hearing protection.
During my service, I had to use earplugs at the shooting range. But they always fell inside. Very traumatic. I have never been a really fast driver. Only the drive home from somewhere under Milan in a jerk was something that made me think a few years ago. On BMW R60 / 6, the speed was kept constant at 150 + kilometers on the counter per hour. Almost 1100 kilometers long. Through the rain. That is a pace at which my favorite ROOF helmet does not feel completely happy. Rightly so. Because he didn't learn for that.
The next day I walked to bedtime with a whistle in my ear. In bed I wear earplugs because my love is snoring. The whistle is safely locked behind the plug. Then he will suffocate. The next day everything was fine again. In the sense of: nothing whistled anymore. But that makes you think. Unfortunately I don't think so quickly.
But still: In company I have difficulty focusing on a speaker. For me, a normal speaking voice is only too easily absorbed in the buzz. Then I only hear an undefined "Rhubarb barber." It helps considerably if you then look closely at the gentleman or lady in question, but that can lead to misunderstandings. And with guys with beards you can't see what they say.
Prevention is of course better than cure, but afterwards it is quite funny to test those hearing damage arguments. And in the meantime, there is a whole row of providers that are changing the aging population; all companies or chains that gamble on the coming decline of baby boomers. You can't be quick enough! Of course, all those specialists are focused on conducting hearing tests to sell hearing aids. But often they also provide mufflers / earplugs. Apparently for customers with a good hearing aid. Or for us motorcyclists.
The friendly sellers will then certainly encourage the purchase of such a sound pump in one or more ears. And they will probably score well with their target group. But whether a young God already becomes a customer after XNUMX years of motorcycling?
The test must provide a solution. I get a headset that beeps. Think of it as a visit for a new pair of glasses to the optician. But then for your ears. At home I still have a little Google browsing. It drizzles on the net of the hearing tests. I prick a few and score 'good' to 'reasonable'. So that is also quite correct.
Better late than never: In fact, the damage turns out to be not so bad. Moreover; I have a great hearing for someone from 65. That falls within the margins of 10 year left and right of the average. And remember that those 65'ers are big cracks. So I'm glad I never got scared. Because apparently it is not so bad with all the cracked hair in my ears. So I can just continue heating without hearing protection. Nothing wrong! But I was curious about the ready-to-wear hearing protectors that I had plugged in.
Because the interviewer did have a cunning question: "But don't you think the sound of the wind is annoying?" Mwahhh. Never thought about it that way ... Never heard anything else. And now I am converted. Because with those soft silicone plugs in your ears, driving became much more comfortable. The filtering made the sharpness of the wind noise without the feeling that I was sitting on the motorbike with hearing damage. The set of 'Road' ear plugs cost 10 euros in the offer. They go gross for 14,95 euros. A good investment in terms of driving comfort. And that they prevent hearing damage? Great anyway!
And what is the current state of affairs? Noise protection 2.0 has arrived. The ten-year soft plugs were so good that I became curious about a more structural approach. I ended up with an ear-plugger known from the motorcycle world. They make measured otoplastics. You tap that for 130 euros or so, but then you also have something. Because where the soft pleated filters were such a surprise, there is such a fitting set of mufflers in your ears as well-worn jeans that do your butt. I received the hearing test for free. The outcome was the same as with the colleagues.