Bicycle Helmets ????

[CATCH22]

I have a question for any other members that should happen to read this.

How many of you wear a helmet while riding your bikes along the roads or around town ?

Now I'm not talking the bullet shaped helmet, because that style is not me....but I'm talking the skateboard or mulit-sport type helmet that looks fairly cool.

I would like to know just for my own knowledge and to prove a point to my son and wife.

Thanks, Don

 

[CCR]

I've got a 3 year old and I've always made him wear one, last year he asked why I didnt wear one, told him I didnt have one so he picked me one out for Christmas. So this year I wear a helmet when he rides with me, I still don't wear it for quick trips by myself though like I should, I'm not against it, I just don't think I've made wearing it into a habit yet is all.

Thread from a little while back ...

viewtopic.php?f=70&t=66299&p=637181&hilit=show+your+helmets#p637181

 

[Pushie Pirate]

It's none of my business and you don't have to listen to me, there is many debates about
the pros and cons of helmets. To be honest how can hitting a car or the road with your
head be better without a helmet on? Remember sometimes an accident is not your fault.

A true story, I live in an a very isolated location on an island a long flight from a serious
hostipal. A few year ago a gentleman fell off his bike in the late afternoon, get this had
a helmet on but not fastened! The result a serious head injury, medical evacuation by an
Airforce C130 Hercules and a lot of worry and concern for many people. Since that day all
the locals where I live wear fastened helmets!

Sure get a cool one but wear it and do it up, please!

 

[raggedjim]

I don't wear one on my cruisers, but I do on the road and mountain bikes. I also ride the cruisers on sidewalks (I know, my brother thinks I should do jail time for that...)

Do what makes you feel happy and safe.

Rg

 

[schwinnmesa]

I feel naked without one.

 

[two spot]

I have the nutcase 8 ball helmet. I get the allure of riding without one but I went down pretty hard one time while riding my Electra Rockabilly Boogey and ever since then I won't ride without it. I owe it to my wife and family to be as safe as possible.

 

[Bill in Houston]

I wear one allll the time. Even when I am just riding on the path with my wife who refuses to wear one ever. No matter what bike I am on, I will try to ride over a pile of construction debris, or down into a ditch and back out, or something else silly, so I am never safe from my own bad judgement. AND anytime I'm near a street, I'm afraid a car is going to hit me.

 

[Fahrrad]

I wear a skateboard helmet, I do it for safty, and now I do it so my son will hopefully start imitating that, since he imitates my bad habits. Agree with two spot, I owe it to my family to be around if possible.

 

[ZygoteLittle]

I always wear a helmet when riding on the road bikes; hardly, if ever, however, when riding on the BFK, LongBike, ’07 Manta Ray or any of my other Rat Rod Bikes, due primarily, to their considerably lower speeds.

 

[clamdigger]

I wear one to protect myself from the seagulls.I am sure glad that cows don't fly!

 

[fixed1313]

I wear one when I am out on my road bike (at speed), always when mountain biking (the only time I have been seriously injured was in the woods) but I almost never wear one while commuting or running errands. No explanation for my choices.

 

[Hay Burner]

.....I am sure glad that cows don't fly!

I don't care who you are that's funny. Like others I wear mine on my road and mountain bikes but not on the cruisers.

 

[XC204]

I commute daily and started out 13yrs ago not wearing one. About a yr into it we decided to do Chicagos Late Ride 10,000 people on bikes at midnight. The ride required a helmit so I bought one a week before and started wearing It to get used to it. 3 days later riding and looking elsewhere I curbed and went over the bars ...the helmet worked! I use one daily but sometimes not on the cruiser. I do wear one in Chicago when riding with Skipton and his kids. In the 13 yrs riding on streets 3 times it saved my a.. Er. Head have a mtb helmet that goes low in back and better venting than skate style and for the cruisers a leather covered giro skate style.

 

[Wildcat]

I always had trouble finding one large enough at a decent priced. Then a new bike shop opened and had this for $25. I wear it all the time. The only time I've crashed in the last 10 years was when I wasn't wearing a helmet.

 

[expjawa]

I have a Nutcase stars & stripes helmet I wear most of the time and more vented MTB type Bell helmet I wear the rest of the time. Even if I'm not going fast (on a cruiser or rat bike), I can still be accelerated rather significantly if hit by a car before hitting the ground. I won't ride without one. I'm thinking of buying a Bern visor helmet as well to add to my choices...

 

[Dorian]

Seperate bike lanes help protect your whole body. Most of those bike helmet studies are for low impacts in a laboratory. Get hit by a car doing 40mph+ and your going to be toast with or without a helmet. Fight for seperate bike lanes not helmet laws. Sure have your kids wear them till they get physically co-ordinated. You would be surprised at how many pedestrians get hit by cars, even on sidewalks. I've never worn one.

Here is a good video on the subject of "bicycle helmets". http://video.tedxcopenhagen.dk/video/91 ... e-andersen?




:wink:

 

[expjawa]

I think I'd argue that bike lanes offer little in the way of protection. It is, after all, just a paint stripe on the road. I'm not going to trust a driver of car that's eating breakfast, texting, and applying make up while changing the radio station to respect the bike lane. A fully separated bike path that is either divided away from the main road surface (with a barrier in between) or that follows a route not paralleled to a road (like a rail trail) is much safer. But both of those things require extensive modification to infrastructure, cost and advocacy. Not that I'm opposed to advocating for such a thing by any means, but a helmet is much more immediate protection without all of that tedious mucking about with getting the town to paint a stripe on the road.

There's a video floating around the internet this week of pair road cyclists being wiped out by a bloke on a motorcycle that apparently panicked when he came up on the cyclists. He managed to rear end both bikes and all three riders were pitched to the ground, one of the cyclists head first. All three walked away from the incident without significant injury, after being a bit shaken up. I would not say that a bicycle helmet is useless under the circumstances. If you're hit full on by a car at speed, sure, your body isn't likely to survive the impact. But a lot of collisions are more likely to pitch the rider to the ground instead, and the helmet is useful there. I'd rather stack the odds in my favor as much as possible.

 

[Dorian]

Seperate and dedicated bike lanes and paths, like they continue to develop in Europe. Your right, a painted line will not separate a car from a bicycle, I shoulda been clearer. Pedestrians are just as susceptable as bicyclists to be hit with a car, I think a far greater number of pedestrians are hit by cars over cyclists, lets get pedestrian helmets then, lol! Dedicated bike lanes will help protect both pedestrians and cyclists, its the only way to go. Did you see those toddler helmets parents are supposed to put on their little tykes to protect them from head bumps at home? Playgrounds were also called too dangerous, no more swings or teeter totters in a lotta places, too risky!.

Bikes are better for the world and your body when the weather is good, but unlike Europe they are still treated like toys here in the U.S. A lot of groups would like to ban bicycles alltogether. It is our government that needs to see bicycles as a viable and excellent way of transportation, and treat them as such. Seperated bike lanes in big cities would be a great start, and it should happen eventually. I want my whole body protected, not just the outer skin of my face, our brains dont like any kind of sudden stops especially against 4000 pound metal projectiles going 40mph. Styrofoam barrier or not. Till then I'm still a no helmet kind of guy. We need it more like Amsterdam and less like New York.

 

[Dbubbleguy]

The video mentioned above....

http://on.aol.com/video/cameras-rol...=maing-grid7|main5|dl11|sec3_lnk1&pLid=306793

 

[Dorian]

14 million bike trips a day in Holland, and no helmets to speak of http://www.ecf.com/news/the-daily-dutch ... ips-a-day/

Seperated bike lanes help make it work. Even if everyone in the U.S. wore helmets you would still have just as many critical injury cases because the cars are still in the same space as cyclists. Less injuries are only going to come with seperated bike lanes. Helmets are not going to make the roads safer from car hits. If you want kids safer from accidents with cars then lobby for better bike only lanes.


Dorian