Runbell is a bicycle bell for runners

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runbell

Did you have a bell on your bicycle when you were a kid? Now runners can use a similar device to herd pedestrians out of their way. The light weight Runbell is designed to wear on your index and middle fingers and features a spring-loaded striker that activates with flick of your thumb to produce a ringing sound that can be heard up to 20 feet away. The Runbell was designed by Kevin Nadolny and Tomoko Yano as a Kickstarter project that was successfully funded last year. The device is priced at $25 through Amazon and is available in gold or rose gold and sizes for men and women.

Hat tip to Rachel E for sending this gadget tip.

11 thoughts on “Runbell is a bicycle bell for runners”




  1. Gadgeteer Comment Policy - Please read before commenting
        1. As someone below stated, shouting ‘on the left’ or even ‘passing on the left’ seems to be confusing. As to being pretentious – I don’t understand why using a bell, an object that people are conditioned to respond to, would be considered pretentious. Obviously this is a niche product – meant to be used in urban areas/areas that are highly congested with people. I can tell you when running on the track in NYC, people don’t follow proper running etiquette at all, meaning that walkers and slow joggers tend to take up the inside lanes which are meant for people who are running at a faster pace.

  2. Does buying this bell give you the right to ” herd” people out if your way? Some one does that to me and they might the bell shoved up somewhere uncomfortable!

  3. Believe it or not, “on your left” is confusing to many people. I used bike to work on the Golden Gate Bridge for many years. It’s crowded with pedestrians half of the time. When you say “on your left” many people interpret it as “move to your left” which is the opposite of what you want.

    I ended up getting a bell, one with a pleasant chime. When people hear it, they either look to see where I am, or if they see that there is enough room, they just proceed as usual. The point is to announce my present so that pedestrians can choose their evasive action :).

    There is are advantage to a bell: it’s more pleasant than many people’s voices 🙂 and it can be heard over longer distance without the user having to shout. Believe me it gets tiring after a while, and you may decide not to call out once in a while and end up pissing off some people. Beside, if you decide to use your voice, you have to decide on what to say. I often say “Hi” but then people think I expect a response so when I just ride past them they think I am rude.

    It’s a complicated thing only runners and bikers understand, hence the bell.

    1. I dont see why pedestrians should be getting out of the way of cyclists or runners. The name sidewalk clearly shows it is for walking.

      1. I guess someone should tell that to the planes on the runway… or perhaps to cars that park on a driveway & drive on a parkway.

      2. No, definitely not on the sidewalk. It’s illegal where I live for adults to ride on the sidewalk, and I hate it when people do.

        The path I was referring to was on the Golden Gate Bridge. The road way were for cars only (45 mph narrow lane traffic and it’s is illegal and suicidal to ride your bike there.), so bikes and pedestrian shares the sides which are about 8 feet wide. Half of the time if the pedestrians stick to their side there is room for cyclists to pass, but often time people walk side by side and take up the whole width, or they wander about looking up taking photos of the bridge and as a cyclist you have no idea wether they will walk backward or forward while looking up with the camera in their face. So often time as you ride by them, it’s prudent to ring your bell or make some noise for safety.

        Besides that, there are many wonderful multi use paths around near me shared by bikers and pedestrians.

        So yes, I don’t ever ride on the side walk. I have ridden on the shoulders with traffic next to me going at 45 mph and people in parked cars opening their doors unexpectedly, and I am dreading the day when someone open their door on me that would would send me to the hospital, but that’s the life of a cyclist.

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