Helmets...Wear Them!!!

The last time I went down was in Winter on ice and I hit my chin hard enough to make me consider a full downhill helmet ,but I never did get one. They are too hot to wear in summer and I cannot bring myself to buy one in the hopes that I would only fall in Winter.
 
BigNerd said:
I'd like to add some context to that pic of my helmet.

I wasn't mountain biking or doing anything extreme... rabbit jumped in my way as I was going down a moderate incline (paved), I swerved, it swerved back, I lost control and went into a cement ditch where both me and my bike went airborne and the next thing I remember was trying to sit up.

Never thought that type of accident would happen to me and my helmet/side of head/face weren't the only things that got banged up... neck, back, arm/elbow, knees, thigh... I was lucky not to break anything and spent a few hours in the ER doing CAT scans and x-rays.

No matter how casual/careful a rider you are, there are some things beyond your control (which is why I try to avoid riding on roads... yes, I'll use the sidewalk because I don't trust drivers)... and that's what the helmet is for. I had just bought that MIPS helmet a month ago... had I been wearing my cheaper non-MIPS helmet, not sure if would be able to post any pictures.

Also... bike gloves also protected my hands quite a bit because I had a few rashes but my gloves were way more torn up than my hands. Now I need to start looking at body armor. :)
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Good info and in my opinion, furry little animals will be run over before I’m swerving to miss them on my bike or in my car!😳🤬🤕
 
Dallant said:
Good info and in my opinion, furry little animals will be run over before I’m swerving to miss them on my bike or in my car!😳🤬🤕
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My youngest sons raced cross country MTBs in school. During one race one of their friends held her line as a squirrel ran towards her. She didn't crash to avoid the critter, but it did get cut to pieces as it literally jumped through her spokes. She speaks of it still...along the lines of that poor stupid squirrel!
 
Iridebikez said:
The shower comparison is not a good one. Almost everyone regularly takes a shower, but only a small percentage of the population regularly cycle. The Treehugger author is comparing raw numbers, not percentages. I don't have the stats on hand but I'd bet that, as a percentage of the population who engages in the respective activities, cyclists are much more likely to get head injuries than folks who take showers.

However, I know of two common arguments against helmets and one prevailing issue that I think all cyclists can agree on. The area of agreement is advocacy for more bike infrastructure so that cyclists are inherently safer. In most jurisdictions cars are legally required to share the road with cyclists, specifically in urban areas and on residential roads. But any cyclist (or motorcyclist, for that matter) can tell you that sharing the road with even the safest drivers can be a harrowing experience.

The first argument against helmets, that BSNYC likes, is that mandatory helmet laws (not helmets themselves) deter new riders from getting on a bike. By extension, if there are fewer cyclists then drivers are less likely to respect them and the roads are less safe. As an example, I recently had a conversation with a friend and recommended a Burley trailer to get him on a bike and his daughter to come with him (she's two). His response? She refuses to keep a helmet on, so it isn't worth the effort and he doesn't own a bike.

The second argument is more difficult to prove and I feel like I've read it from BSNYC as well. But, it goes that wearing a helmet makes riders feel safer and therefore they're more likely to take risks, increasing the likelihood that they need the helmet in the first place. I don't know how anyone would ever really prove that, but it was an argument that appealed to me for a while.

I used to wear a helmet when I went on rides for fun or exercise, reasoning that I was going faster and therefore any fall would be worse. But when I commuted in the city I didn't wear a helmet, reasoning that my average speed was slower and I spent a lot more time focusing on not getting killed. Eventually I realized I ride basically the same no matter where I'm going or what bike I'm riding. I don't think I take a huge amount of risk, but I also like to go fast. I ride my class 3 ebike the same way. So these days, I always wear a helmet.
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Well, I can only speak for myself. There's no way wearing a helmet makes me think I should take more risks. (I participate in a woodworker's forum, where my "handle" is "Runswithscissors," (doesn't every mother teach us that is a dangerous no-no?) but my motto is " I admit to being an adrenaline junkie; fortunately, I'm very easily frightened."
 
Latitude said:
Mandatory for e-bikes but for conventional bikes, only up to age 16. Adults are free to choose.
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A think a number of riders feel that they will be able to protect their heads if they dump it. No they can't. My experience is the ground works like a magnet and your head is just a big iron ball ready to smash into it. I ride both motorcycles and bikes and a universal rule of biking is: " If you haven't dumped your bike yet don't worry, it will happen." Its not a risk, it's a eventuality and you need to accept that.
 
I disagree, (knock on wood....) I think it is an inevitability for mtn bikers, because of the terrain they choose and the hazards of trees lining their route and jumps. Particularly on rogue trails. In fact one young man is now a paraplegic from taking a stupid jump on a rogue trail in our local park. But an inevitability when just normal town riding? I don't think so.

Does seem stupid for helmets not to be required from age 16, when from 17 to 22, kids take the most hellacious risks in order to test their limits and to prove to peers that they can hack it.
 
I notice here in Palm Springs (tourist town) where the hotels provide acoustic bikes for guests and the bike shops rent them, most of the tourists out for a ride do not wear helmets. I'm surprised I don't hear more about injuries in the local news.
 
I ride motorcycle as well and to hear some of the arguments against wearing helmets is sad.. My favorite is that the weight of the helmet will snap your neck in a crash
 
DDBB said:
I ride motorcycle as well and to hear some of the arguments against wearing helmets is sad.. My favorite is that the weight of the helmet will snap your neck in a crash
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Never heard that one before! Truth is that humans can come up with the stupidest and most worthless lines of reasoning for anything.
 
DDBB said:
I ride motorcycle as well and to hear some of the arguments against wearing helmets is sad.. My favorite is that the weight of the helmet will snap your neck in a crash
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I'm a big bow hunter, you would be amazed at the reasons hunters don't wear a safety harness 20 feet off the ground in a flimsy metal tree stand! I personally don't leave the ground without one.
 
In my state - Pennsylvania - helments aren't required even for motorcycles much less ebikes. They apparently were required until Harley Davidson decided to build a factory here ... I'm sure it was just a coincidence 🤔.
 
Just seems like maybe helmets need to be heavy and uncomfortable at motorcycle speeds but only few ounces of plastic at bycycle speeds, so it isn't a big deal . I was told that even the Dutch roadies wear helmets on rural high speed rides.
 
ruffruff said:
Same in Mn, we are home to Indian/Polaris motorcycles. Just a coincidence here as well! LOL..
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Helmets were not required long before Indian/Polaris. Harley riders are seldom seen with helmets.
But BMW riders, almost without exceptions, wear helmets,
And then there's their idiotic, "loud pipes, save lives."
 
With a balaclava and googles, ANON.snow board helmet. I also wore a similar helmet dirt boating.
Screen Shot 2021-11-15 at 12.26.53 PM.png
 
Art Deco said:
In my state - Pennsylvania - helments aren't required even for motorcycles much less ebikes. They apparently were required until Harley Davidson decided to build a factory here ... I'm sure it was just a coincidence 🤔.
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Replying to my own post is sad, but I meant to include that Pennsylvania laws also allow me to ride on sidewalks if there isn't a clear bike lane. Good luck with that.
 
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