Headphone Use While Skiing/Boarding

I have given this much thought while being passed by roadies on the Burke who are plugged in and don't call their passes. I assume that the belief system is "since I can't hear, no one else must be able to hear...". I may be wrong. In any case I have arrived at a middle path for myself: I set my iPod to mono output (it's under access in the general menu in settings) and listen to one headphone in my right ear so I can hear approaching cyclists on my left side. I do enjoy my music on longer skates (yes, I skate... It's great training for alpine and Nordic skiing. And yes, I do know the hardest part about being a skater...) and still feel connected to the world.

I think this system might well work for excursions in the mountains. I always feel safer being able to hear approaching snow sliders and always love to hear the wind, snow and the rest of the ambient symphony of the great outdoors.

Bruce

Cue the Rodney Dangerfield Caddyshack sceen, because...

ANY WAY YOU WANT IT THAT'S THE WAY YOU NEED IT!

I'm working on dumbing down all my senses so I use horse blinders and a nose plug too, so then I can't smell, hear or see.

Plug them into your transceiver.

People that have headphones on tend to be in their own little world when coming down the mtn. They can't hear around them so it actually can make a situation tough. A few times I've come up on a skier or rider and said "left" to have them then move into me because they can't hear with the music playing. If your out in the BC it doesn't matter as much since you won't have the traffic you do on resort trails.
For the same reason I never have headphones in my ears riding a motorcycle because I need to have full use of all my senses to keep it safe.

I use them sometimes lift skiing.  I really dig listening to music and skiing, as long as it's not too crowded. 

I' never use them in the backcountry.  I like feeling immersed in the environment, but wouldn't necessarily see them out of place if someone used them for a routine ascent like Muir or the route adjacent to Timberline, which can be like going for a run in a beautiful area, I guess.  To each his own (until Rodney Dangerfield brings the boom box, of course).