Would you mount a horn on your bike? That’s the proposition from a Boston-based startup, Loud Bicycle, which is currently attempting to raise funds on Kickstarter.
In short, the outfit hopes to mass produce a “bicycle horn that sounds just like a car horn.”
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The theory is that drivers recognize car horns, and the reaction to that sound — HOOONK! — is instantaneous and “occurs before they even look for a threat,” the company states.
The plastic horn mounts on a bike frame below the handlebars. The emitted sound, up to 112 decibels in strength, is a two-tone audio burst made to mimic a typical car horn in volume and pitch.
Explains the brand’s founder Jonathan Lansey, “A driver that gets beeped at while backing out of a driveway, for example, will immediately brake. These kinds of reflexive reactions are perfect to keep cyclists safe.”
The horn unit weighs 23 ounces and attaches to a frame with theft-resistant mounts. Its power comes from rechargeable li-ion batteries that will last several weeks.
A horn button snaps onto handlebars for easy honking with a finger or thumb. You can honk for up to 30 seconds straight at a time, the company states, but noting “please be respectful” out there.
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What do you think? Do bikers deserve horns just like drivers? Or would this be an annoying noise pollution product, silly and unnecessary for the two-wheel set?
If you like the concept, go to the brand’s Kickstarter page. Loud Bicycle is looking for funding at $43,000 to bring the bike horn to life.
—Stephen Regenold is editor of GearJunkie.com.