Muley
Cruisin' Guzzisti
Yesterday, while I was waiting to unload my bike at the shop, a nice lady asked me if I wanted a free hearing screening. I agreed and filled out the necessary paperwork. The doc was in a back office conducting the test on another volunteer, so I wandered around, unloaded the bike, talked to the mechanic and shop owner, etc. When I went back inside, the doctor was ready for me, and she started by putting some kind of fiber optic thingamigig in each ear and the picture was displayed on a laptop computer. Fortunately, for the rest of you, I'm not able to post those pictures :laugh:
After looking at the innards and assorted goodies in my ear canals, we went to the back and did the hearing test. I've been basically deaf in my left ear since birth or a very young age, not sure when it happened, but it's nerve damage and incurable. My right ear, thankfully, works very well, and I've learned to be quite selective about certain sounds so I can identify specific things over the din. I cannot hear directionally at all, and a siren on an ambulance or police vehicle, or even a horn blowing causes a momentary crisis until I can actually see the source of the warning.
Anyway, I am concerned about hearing loss in my "good" ear so I normally use some sort of protection when working with loud machinery, shooting a gun, etc. The doc found that I have almost no hearing in my left ear which was no surprise at all so she moved on to the other one. I tested very good in all but the high frequencies where I had a significant loss of hearing . She said it was due to shooting guns AND riding a motorcycle without ear plugs I knew it was a good idea to protect my ears when riding even though I wear a full face helmet, but hearing all the mechanical and exhaust sounds always seemed to be a good way to "listen" for problems. I have seen many acquaintances insert ear plugs before they ride, so I know many of you are aware of the dangers already. But for those who are not aware of the risks, the doc said it is very important to have ear protection no matter what kind of helmet and what kind of bike you're riding.
Today I plan to mow a pecan orchard with a tractor, and I suppose I'll start using the ear plugs regularly from now on :dry:
After all, we don't want to miss out on that wonderful Guzzi music because we listened to that same music too long without protection
After looking at the innards and assorted goodies in my ear canals, we went to the back and did the hearing test. I've been basically deaf in my left ear since birth or a very young age, not sure when it happened, but it's nerve damage and incurable. My right ear, thankfully, works very well, and I've learned to be quite selective about certain sounds so I can identify specific things over the din. I cannot hear directionally at all, and a siren on an ambulance or police vehicle, or even a horn blowing causes a momentary crisis until I can actually see the source of the warning.
Anyway, I am concerned about hearing loss in my "good" ear so I normally use some sort of protection when working with loud machinery, shooting a gun, etc. The doc found that I have almost no hearing in my left ear which was no surprise at all so she moved on to the other one. I tested very good in all but the high frequencies where I had a significant loss of hearing . She said it was due to shooting guns AND riding a motorcycle without ear plugs I knew it was a good idea to protect my ears when riding even though I wear a full face helmet, but hearing all the mechanical and exhaust sounds always seemed to be a good way to "listen" for problems. I have seen many acquaintances insert ear plugs before they ride, so I know many of you are aware of the dangers already. But for those who are not aware of the risks, the doc said it is very important to have ear protection no matter what kind of helmet and what kind of bike you're riding.
Today I plan to mow a pecan orchard with a tractor, and I suppose I'll start using the ear plugs regularly from now on :dry:
After all, we don't want to miss out on that wonderful Guzzi music because we listened to that same music too long without protection