Playing the Ukulele while driving

captbaritone

captbaritone

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I take my uke with me everywhere I go, so it often rides shotgun in my car while I drive. At stop-lights and in stopped traffic I often find myself reaching over, grabbing the uke and getting a few chords in before the light changes. I suppose these are warning signs of a full fledged addiction, but I can't seem to help myself even thought I know it's not a great idea. However, to be fair it has yet to cause any actual problems because my eyes stay on the light/car in front of me.

Anyone else do this? Am I alone?
 
I used to have a full size guitar I did that with all the time. then I kept a recorder that I played along with music. then a melodica. now a uke :p. except I drive with my knees a lot and play while driving. ha. the ukulele is actually my favourite while driving. glad to know
there's others out there!
 
homEsick said:
except I drive with my knees a lot and play while driving. ha. the ukulele is actually my favourite while driving
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haha thats what I do too. Been doing it for a long time. 1st with a soprano, now with a concert. In a few weeks I'll have my first tenor and you know I'll be drivin down the road with her :D
 
Is it just me or does this seem . . .err, wrong? I don't know, maybe I'm being too much of an old geezer here, but something tells me that playing a uke while driving a car may not be exactly the best idea in the world. But to each his own, I guess . . .
 
Fitzy said:
Is it just me or does this seem . . .err, wrong? I don't know, maybe I'm being too much of an old geezer here, but something tells me that playing a uke while driving a car may not be exactly the best idea in the world. But to each his own, I guess . . .
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it works fine -- it's not too tricky unless you're still reading off of the tabs :)
 
I was leaning towards FITZY's reply until I read NotoriousMOK's reply and I couldn't stop laughin. thanks MOK you helped me laugh out the geezer in me, at least for the moment.
 
Hey Rob, as a fellow Old Geezer (assuming you're as old as I am) I thought you would back me up on this one!:D

Hey, guys, not trying to be judgmental or anything, it's just I'd hate to see a young guy or gal with the potential of becoming the next Jake Shimabukuro have their uke-playing days cut short cause they wrapped their car around a tree. Just sayin'

My dad, who taught me the rules of the road, would slap me upside the head if he saw me do that. You might be able to get away with it on some desolate stretch of road somewhere out in the Midwest, but not in Boston.

Okay, I've had my say. No more old geezer comments from this " old geezer" until at least next week.
 
I did wonder.....

I don't know what the laws are like in the USA, but I do know that if a well known Ukeist posted a Youtube video like that (with their name in the title) and they were based in the UK, I imagine they should expect a knock on the door from the police.
 
I can see doing it in stopped traffic or while at a light, but while actually going forward it makes me nervous to think about it. I think my old geezer ways come from the fact that I have 7 kids and the thought of someone hitting my car because they are texting or even playing the ukulele and hurting one of my kids frightens me. As long as you are being prudent and putting in down when going in a forward motion I see no problem with it. Just don't put innocent people at risk while on the highway and what-not.
 
hahaha! I thought I was the only one... I pulled it out of the case when I've been stuck in traffic on the FDR. People in the car next to me definitely were giving double takes. But yeah - I'd limit it to stopped traffic so you don't kill anyone... :eek:)
 
I'm with Fitzy on this one. It might be do-able, but that doesn't make it a good idea. As much talk as there is these days about distracted drivers texting, etc, I think Law Enforcement and the Judicial System would most likely frown on driving while playing ukulele. POSSIBLY it might be ok on some long and lonesome highway in the middle of the night, but even then I think it's probably not a good plan. Personally, as an avid bicyclist AND ukulele player, I would be really bugged if someone creamed me off the face of the earth while I was riding my bike and they were driving with their uke. There are enough inattentive drivers as it is. It only takes a second to put your car in a ditch, or worse. If you're the PASSENGER, however, knock yourself out! And you might be ok at a stoplight or otherwise not moving, but I still doubt you'd want a police officer to see you that way!
On a somewhat related note... this is kind of embarrassing to talk about... but I sometimes play the ukulele while attending to other "business" in the bathroom. Am I alone in this? lol
 
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I have been thinking about mounting a plastic Makala to the top roll bar of the jeep, but would only imagine playing in stopped traffic or in all other non-moving scenarios. Maybe I am not good enough yet.

Does anyone else play their trombone in the car? Any suggestions on dealing with the windshield damage?
 
Obvious safety issues aside, my problem is that I drive a Honda Element. It has very high doors. Which means that if I were to play my uke while driving, most people wouldn't actually be able to tell that I was holding a uke.

All they'd see is me driving along with a big grin on my face and my right hand moving up and down in the vicinity of my lap.

So, no, I do not uke and drive.

JJ
 
Ukulele JJ said:
Obvious safety issues aside, my problem is that I drive a Honda Element. It has very high doors. Which means that if I were to play my uke while driving, most people wouldn't actually be able to tell that I was holding a uke.

All they'd see is me driving along with a big grin on my face and my right hand moving up and down in the vicinity of my lap.

So, no, I do not uke and drive.

JJ
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LOL! :D My husband just came into the room to see what I was laughing at. When I told him, he started laughing, too.

But seriously, I'm with others on the safety issue and distracted drivers. Just don't think it's a good idea, and in California you could probably get a ticket for it just like talking on your cell phone or texting, even at a red light.
 
Fitzy said:
My dad, who taught me the rules of the road, would slap me upside the head if he saw me do that. You might be able to get away with it on some desolate stretch of road somewhere out in the Midwest, but not in Boston.

Okay, I've had my say. No more old geezer comments from this " old geezer" until at least next week.
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maybe that's my problem!! my dad's been doing this since i was in the single digits! fortunately he's still around. like all things in life, moderation is the correct answer. right now i'm living in a fairly small town with open roads. playing has actually kept me awake on some long drives home, day and night (i'm unfortunately infamous for falling asleep at the wheel so much - no health problems, i just tend to stay up late.) driving on busy roads is another story! i've seen firsthand what distractions can do, no matter how busy the street is.

but as you stated and i said, i do it a lot here in northwest mississippi, not so much when i'm living in los angeles.

Chris Tarman said:
On a somewhat related note... this is kind of embarrassing to talk about... but I sometimes play the ukulele while attending to other "business" in the bathroom. Am I alone in this? lol
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about two or three years ago my roomates were talking about this. before then, the idea had never occured to me. a floodgate was opened! been doing it ever since, ha
 
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I don't want a pickle. . .
 
Fitzy said:
Is it just me or does this seem . . .err, wrong? I don't know, maybe I'm being too much of an old geezer here, but something tells me that playing a uke while driving a car may not be exactly the best idea in the world. But to each his own, I guess . . .
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Well, I was just listening to an interview with someone who has done an extensive study about cars and the US love affair with them.

One of the more sobering facts was that over 3 million Americans have perished in auto accidents- more than in all of our wars combined. 40,000 perish yearly and hundreds of thousands have had life altering impairments, as in brain damage, paralysis, disfigurement, etc through accidents.

Sorry, I may be a party pooper as well, but I tend to like to keep my attention on my task while I am piloting a 2 ton lethal weapon.
 
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