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I just started riding with one on trails I know are going to be busy. Since I wasn’t sure about it when I bought it I made a review.
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I always ride with a bell. I tried the Timber and it’s a neat concept, but I prefer to ding my bell only when necessary.
My wife got me the Knog Oi bell and it looks really nice, but I found that it’s not very loud.
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In our group rides the leader always has a bell. I rarely lead unless someone can’t make it, but I prefer to not use one just because it’s less of a haul. If I’m alone I just yell “Coming up!” or “Coming ’round!” or sometimes I’ll even give a wolf howl just for shits and giggles.
When I think of bike bells I usually think of the old school thumb trigger bells. I must say these newer user friendly bike specific bells do look interesting and are probably more effective than yelling to others on the trail.
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No… I use my voice on the trail and the road (commuting to work). I try to channel James Earl Jones and say “on your left” or “on your right” or “rider up” etc. Seems to work extremely well and I don’t need to move my hands. I am also finding that more and more people are wearing earbuds or full on head phones! (mostly when commuting but some folks on the trail as well….which is absurd IMHO)….so a bell makes little or no diff.
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I’ve noticed a lot of people use them where I ride. I honestly should use one too because a lot of the trails we have here are in/out style with a lot of blind corners.
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I have alot of blind corners where i live so i always use one. However i use bear bells since they are always going. Thought they would be annoying and I wouldn’t see wildlife, but it doesn’t seem to bother wildlife and I have gotten use to them and tuned them out.
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Thought they would be annoying and I wouldn’t see wildlife, but it doesn’t seem to bother wildlife
Yeah, I don’t find a constant bell too annoying, but the guys I ride with do. 🙂
Serious question tho: If your bear bell doesn’t bother wildlife, do you think it will keep bears away?
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Well I think the bell is more meant to let the beer know you are there so you don’t startle it as that is when they are more likely to attack. However though, that is a pretty interesting point. I havent seen any bears on the trail, but I did run across a bobcat which is as skittish as it comes to wildlife and it didn’t bother him much. Not sure what would happen and hope not to find out.
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I use the same bell that is reviewed here and love it, hikers and equestrians seem to really appreciate it too. I think all bikers should try them, would help with improve our image on the trails.
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Active bell – that way its not always making a noise…
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I should get one, its summer time and frontrange trails’ crazy busy.
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@JeffBarber: “I always ride with a bell. I tried the Timber and it’s a neat concept, but I prefer to ding my bell only when necessary.
My wife got me the Knog Oi bell and it looks really nice, but I found that it’s not very loud.”
Okay, I’ll bite. What do you use? I have the Knog which is very unobtrusive and works reasonably well, however I too would like something louder. The Spurcycle Bell seems pretty sweet, but it’s hard to justify $50 for a bell.
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What do you use?
Nothing fancy. I have a few different bells on different bikes, and I usually choose whatever is cheapest at the bike shop. A few of them are this style:
https://www.amazon.com/Bicycle-Bell-Alloy-Mini-Silver/dp/B00L7MZL5Y/
I also have one that looks like a teapot–no idea where it came from. 🙂
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no I don’t. I use my voice to let people know. But what’s funny is when other people use the trails and have an attitude when you call out your intentions?!Thought trail courtesy is the norm…guess not.
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I use my voice to let people know. But what’s funny is when other people use the trails and have an attitude when you call out your intentions?
This is actually why I use a bell. Sometimes using your voice can startle people, especially if you mis-judge your volume level. If your greeting comes out as a shout, it can seem aggressive, even though you don’t mean for it to be.
The other advantage bells have over a voice is that they’re high pitched and seem to penetrate headphones better.
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Never thought about needing a bell since I don’t hesitate to use my voice. I keep it friendly sounding because my voice can carry and sound a bit aggressive (so I’m told by my girlfriend), so I’ll say something stupid like “ahhh can’t stop!….just kidding!” and then pass, or “on your butt, mind if I pass”
I’ve been wearing earbuds the past couple rides that I was out there solo, and I realize it then becomes up to me to watch my back for passers, since I’m not the fastest guy out there. I’m just surprised that others with earbuds seem so carefree about not being able to hear anything.
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@RaymondEpstein here’s a knockoff of that Spurcycle bell for about half the price: http://www.jensonusa.com/Crane-Bell-Co-E-Ne-Bell
It doesn’t have quite the ring to it that the Spurcycle does, but it gets the job done.
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