Fifty Plus (50+) - As a 50+'r, I wear my helmet:

Public Poll

As a 50+'r, I wear my helmet:

Tell us why (or why not?).

I know I have given the sensible answer- but I have busted too many helmets in falls to realise how much safer it is to always wear a helmet on the bike.

Saying that- Haven't had to buy a helmet since I became a roadie. I did buy one though as I like to have a spare one for the day that it does happen.

The helmet is integral, so it's every time, no exceptions, will cancel a ride if I get somewhere without it, and won't ride with them as won't.

Why?

1. My first career was in the hospital business, and

2. I've eaten the pavement many times including once when my helmet bounced (with my brains safely nestled therein) three times before coming to rest. That one busted my shoulder and cracked a hip which to this day can predict bad weather and has left me vaguely asymmetrical. My brains are no more addled than they were pre-dump.

I wear a helmet every time I ride, because the day before my 16th birthday I got doored and spent my birthday in bed recovering from a concussion and broken collarbone. Concussions suck.

I always do ... but sometimes when I'm riding a sedate dirt rail trail, I feel like a wuss for doing so. Not that many other riders are wearing helmets. Especially when I'm riding my recumbent, where I'm not sitting all that high.

On a hard surface, I wouldn't dream of riding without one. No way do I want to go down off of an upright bike on asphalt without a helmet.

My helmet has never come into play during a ride. I've never banged my head, never damaged a helmet.

I made my kids wear helmets so I had to (Do as I say AND as I do!). Also always wear gloves. Never crashed hard enough for the helmet to make a difference but tore up the palms on a pair of gloves during a fall earlier this year. Better the gloves than my hands.

Public Poll

As a 50+'r, I wear my helmet:

Tell us why.

I wear it because I am on the board of the local Bicycle Advocacy group.

Other than that, 40 years of experience weighs against the need for it except for times such as running down high speed mountains and it's uncomfortable.

However, when I lived in the desert, I did find that the helmet did tend to keep my head cooler when riding home in the summer because of the styrofoam insulation.

I have had one motorcycle incident where I was very glad I was wearing a full-face helmet when I noticed it shifting on my head as my face was on the pavement and was happy that my face was not getting torn up at that moment.

I wear my helmet 100% of the time because my wife makes me and I'm more scared of her than the emergency room. ;)

To set a good example for my kids.

Wow, I'm a real looser. I'm the only indiot so far who voted "most of the time." The truth is maybe once a year I won't wear it when I go to the grocery store around the corner, but that's probably the time I'd fall....

Most of the time for me, too. I'll often Test Ride a repair out front w/no
helmet. Stupid me.

I just was in Chicago for three+ days and as excited as I was to see a
LOT of bicycle traffic, I was hard pressed to see many helmets...of course
it's also a non-helmet required for motorcycle state.... :twitchy:

I replied that I wear mine all the time. Truth be told, I do occasionally skip it when I ride a bike around my cul-de-sac to check out an adjustment or minor repair. I do wear it 100% of the time for any longer ride.

Haven't needed the helmet yet, but I've read enough comments here and in other places that I may be one of the lucky ones so far. My falls to date have been the slow-mo variety after failing to clip out on the side I'm leaning to. :(

Al

I always do ... but sometimes when I'm riding a sedate dirt rail trail, I feel like a wuss for doing so.





Ever have a squirrel run itno your spokes? I haven't, but I've seen pics, and they aren't nice. Err - minced squirrel? One damaged rider.

Ever have a squirrel run itno your spokes? I haven't, but I've seen pics, and they aren't nice. Err - minced squirrel? One damaged rider.

I keep trying but I always miss them.

Darn, and I was hoping to get a good helmet war started here.

Darn, and I was hoping to get a good helmet war started here.

Shame on you! Shame! Shame! Shame! :lol:

I wear my helmet 100% of the time because my wife makes me and I'm more scared of her than the emergency room. ;)

YEP :lol:

"What's a helmet" one response from guybierhaus

For shame!

I'm with CACycling - I insist that my daughter wear hers, so I feel obligated to wear mine (although in all honesty I don't expect to ever need it - how far can you fall from a recumbent tadpole trike? :D )
- Bob

- how far can you fall from a recumbent tadpole trike? :D )
- Bob

Off of a cliff?

http://www.mountainbikebill.com/images/Trails/CarrizoGorge/CarrizoGorge-1JAN04-Eric-53.JPG

I always wear a helmet because I'm afraid of having a severe head injury and not dying.

Always...it's part of the look.:giver::D

Off of a cliff?

http://www.mountainbikebill.com/images/Trails/CarrizoGorge/CarrizoGorge-1JAN04-Eric-53.JPG

I'm incredibly more likely to be struck by lightning than to fall off a cliff. I have a very well developed case of acrophobia. My wife knows that if I fall from a cliff, balcony, high window, ladder or whatever, to tell the cops to investigate thorougly, because it sure wasn't voluntary. Once (and NEVER again!) I went up to the observation deck of the Sears Tower. I never got more than 5 feet from the central core of the building, and didn't stop shaking until the elevator doors opened back down at street level.
- Bob

Although I started out with a desire to wear that helmet every time I got on the bike, this winters trainer sessions just got too hot. The helmet would protect my head however when I stand up to sprint and bounce off the ceiling.......................:p

I always wear a helmet while riding. I know what sound a helmet makes when hitting the trail or pavement- don't want to know what my head would sound like hitting the same, or if I would be lucky enough to hear or remember hearing it!

As a 50+er.....
How about "As someone with stuff in their head they don't want to lose."
I've worn a helmet since the mid 70s. My very swell Bell Biker. (No, not literally. Only when i bike. Jeeezzz you guys.)

I ride this innocuous woods road behind my house on my mtn bike and hardly ever wear a helmet while doing so. I started riding in the late 70's when practically no one was wearing a helmet except racers who used those leather hair net things. Occasionally you'd see a road rider wearing one of the new Bell "turtle shell" helmets with the red stripes on them. I have never hit the ground in 31 years of riding.

I always wear a helmet. I always wore a helmet on motorcycles as a kid; I knew two folks w/severe brain damage from bike accidents so wearing a helmet on a bike always seemed the right thing to do.

I ride this innocuous woods road behind my house on my mtn bike and hardly ever wear a helmet while doing so. I started riding in the late 70's when practically no one was wearing a helmet except racers who used those leather hair net things. Occasionally you'd see a road rider wearing one of the new Bell "turtle shell" helmets with the red stripes on them. I have never hit the ground in 31 years of riding.

Ah, yes, the good ol' days. I had one of those Bell Brainiac helmets that I took on a bike tour across Europe in 1984. Back then, few people here in the states wore helmets--and NOBODY in Europe did. I remember a newspaper photographer in Austria jumping out of his car to snap a picture of me. The caption probably read: "Weirdo at large. Appears to be harmless, but you never know."

Much worse, was when I approached a lovely young woman in Italy to say buongiorno--and she laughed in my face.

Much worse, was when I approached a lovely young woman in Italy to say buongiorno--and she laughed in my face.
That still happens to me ...helmet or no helmet.:cry:

Ah, yes, the good ol' days. I had one of those Bell Brainiac helmets that I took on a bike tour across Europe in 1984. Back then, few people here in the states wore helmets--and NOBODY in Europe did. I remember a newspaper photographer in Austria jumping out of his car to snap a picture of me. The caption probably read: "Weirdo at large. Appears to be harmless, but you never know."

Much worse, was when I approached a lovely young woman in Italy to say buongiorno--and she laughed in my face.

http://www.pointhappy.com/gcf/VENICE.JPG

Maybe that's what the guy was staring at. ;) When I was riding in Europe in 1978, a playground full of kids in the Netherlands burst out laughing as I rode by wearing my Bell helmet.

I always wear my helmet. I feel naked without it - it's like driving the van without a seatbelt.

Now that I've voted I always wear one I have to admit that I rode my bike for 3 miles Sunday without one. But I had a good reason. The helmet was locked in the van with my keys:mad::mad: I grabbed the bike off the bike rack and rode home to retrieve the extra set of keys:o

--

Regarding test riding after repairs and adjustments - IMHO that's the time when a helmet is mandatory, because God only knows what could happen if you fouled it up! I'll do a test ride in sweatpants and sneakers with no gloves, but I always wear the helmet.

--

True.

Helmet always.
My brain has enough trouble as it is.

--

I don't wear a helmet unless an event requires it.

Why?

Exactly.

Okay. I selected "Most of the time." The facts are that when I ride my road bike I wear the helmet, period. But if I go out for a Sunday afternoon toodle around the neighborhood (gated, nice roads, little traffic) with my wife on the Navigators I usually wear my Tilley hat as a palm frond defelctor and sun shade. We're talking ~10 MPH rides stopping to chat with people along the way regularly, and yeah, I know, I could hurt myself then too. But you asked, I gave the honest answer.

My first helmet was a hard shell Bell Tourist, circa 1985. I crushed it following a power dismount during a moonlight mountain bike ride. The impact knocked me cold. I came to my senses surrounded by concerned friends. I guess I'm proof helmets work.

Anyway, I voted "whenever", but realized I pedal "exposed" while testing adjustments.

Always follow the rules. I was the first-born.

My opinion is that bicycle helmets are too light and flimsy to provide any significant protection. It is also my opinion that bicycle helmets are so light and flimsy that they'll do no significant harm.

The fact is that they are required by law where I live.

The result is that I always wear one when riding.

I don't wear a helmet unless an event requires it.

Why?

Exactly.

You aren't 50+ and shouldn't be voting.

The wisdom comes when you ACTUALLY reach 50.

Always follow the rules. I was the first-born.


I was the first-born and follow the rules when it suits me and make up new ones when i need to.
What kind first born are you if you aren't sure the world revolves around you?

My opinion is that bicycle helmets are too light and flimsy to provide any significant protection. It is also my opinion that bicycle helmets are so light and flimsy that they'll do no significant harm.

The fact is that they are required by law where I live.

The result is that I always wear one when riding.

The first salvo has been fired.

Never fails.

http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/321/7268/1035

Bicycle helmets: it's time to use them

The evidence that they reduce head injuries is too strong to ignore

Papers p 1055

Bicycling is a worldwide activity. In both developed and developing countries it serves as an important means of transportation as well as an enjoyable recreational activity for adults and children. Thus, injuries related to bicycling are comparatively common, and head injuries account for one third of visits to emergency departments, up to two thirds of hospitalisations, and three quarters of deaths.1 Head injuries also carry a substantial risk of long term disability. Thus, preventing head injuries associated with this common, worldwide activity is important.

Safety helmets for bicycling have been available for at least 20 years. Although randomised controlled trials have become the gold standard for providing evidence of the effectiveness of clinical interventions, these trials are not feasible for examining whether helmets prevent head injuries. Given that the rate of head injury is about 20 injuries per 100 000 people, a randomised controlled trial would need to involve tens of thousands of people.2 Evidence for the effectiveness of helmets has come from two other types of studies: case-control studies, in which the proportion of people wearing helmets among cyclists with head injuries is compared with that of cyclists without head injuries, and ecological studies examining changes in the rate of head injury over time among populations wearing helmets and those not wearing helmets.

The strongest evidence for the effectiveness of helmets comes from case-control studies; this design is one of the cornerstones of modern epidemiology. A systematic review of five case-control studies, published in the Cochrane Library, found that helmets reduced the risk by 63-88% for head, brain, and severe brain injury among cyclists of all ages.1 Four of the studies controlled for a series of important covariates.3-6 Helmets seemed equally effective in reducing injuries in crashes involving motor vehicles and in accidents associated with falls and other causes.

In this week's journal Cook and Shiekh (p 1055) describe a study that used an ecological time series analysis.7 Examining all admissions to NHS hospitals in England over a four year period, the authors found that head injuries as a proportion of monthly admissions for trauma related to bicycles fell from 40% in 1991-2 to 28% in 1994-5 while total emergency admissions for trauma related to bicycles did not change. These changes showed a consistent year to year trend in which the proportion of head injuries related to trauma from bicycles became lower in each successive year. Changes occurred in all age groups and are ascribed by the authors to an increase in the use of helmets. Similar findings from ecological studies have also been reported in the United States, New Zealand, and Australia 8 9 10 ; these findings were associated with an increased use of helmets occurring as a result of educational and legislative initiatives.

Despite this large body of evidence on the effectiveness of helmets in preventing head injuries in cyclists and their beneficial effects for populations of cyclists, critics, especially in the United Kingdom, continue to question the usefulness of helmets. Their criticisms fall into two main categories: "risk homeostasis" and lack of adjustment for other confounders. Hillman has argued that while helmets may offer some inherent protection to cyclists there is no overall benefit because cyclists who wear helmets ride in a less cautious manner so that their overall risk of injury is unchanged.11 This theory of risk homeostasis has been discussed for decades, but the evidence that it applies to helmet use and bicycling is non-existent.12 The other criticism is that case-control studies on helmets have not adequately controlled for all potential confounders, especially unmeasured factors such as differential risk taking behaviour in cases and controls. Adequate adjustment for differences between cases and controls is important for the validity of any case-control study. Four of the five studies in the Cochrane review controlled for potential differences between cases and controls, such as age and severity of the crash. 3 4 5 6 Crash severity can be used as a proxy for the hypothesised effects of risk taking behaviour. The magnitude of the protective effect of helmets found by these studies (threefold to eightfold ) makes it clear that unmeasured confounders cannot explain the differences in the risk of injury between cyclists who wear helmets and those who do not.

Healthcare providers and public policy makers have a duty to promote the health of the public and to base their recommendations on evidence of effectiveness. The evidence that bicycle helmets prevent head injuries is as strong as that for any injury prevention programme. While many programmes have their critics, the weight of the evidence for the effectiveness of helmets is strong; the evidence for a lack of protection is weak, circumstantial, and largely based on rhetoric. Further delays in promoting the use of helmets will be measured in the number of lives ruined by the devastating consequences of preventable brain injury.

Frederick P Rivara, professor of paediatrics.

(fpr@u.washington.edu)

Diane C Thompson, research scientist.

Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center, Departments of Pediatrics and Epidemiology, Box 359960, 325 Ninth Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104, USA

Robert S Thompson, director.

Department of Preventive Care, Group Health Cooperative of Puget Sound, 1730 Minor Avenue, Suite 1600, Seattle, WA 98101, USA

I've crashed countless times, on road and off. Twice, for sure, the helmet saved by life. Several other times, quite likely, but twice for sure.

I always wear my helmet when I ride. Back when I lived in St.Louis, I didn't wear one when on an indoor trainer, but that was the only exception. Since moving to CA I have no use for an indoor trainer, so I wear a helmet all the time. Well, technically, different helmets at different times, but still, . . . some helmet 100% of my riding time.

I do take the helmet off at rest stops on rides, or when stopping for coffee. I notice a lot of riders leave theirs on, even when they're off their bikes. Now that does seem odd to me.

Rick / OCRR

DnvrFox, is this you??

I always, always, always wear mine.
Almost learned the hard way.
Worse than me landing on my head, it could've been Mrs S. and it was my fault.
Back before she was Mrs S, we were out riding in the Park.
I was hot dogging it a bit and I clipped her front wheel with my rear.
Down she went. Hard.
The only thing that came between her head and the asphalt was her arm.
A guy came up behind us to make sure everything was OK.
"Get a helmet" he said. We did.
I'm a believer.

Always follow the rules. I was the first-born.

Rumor is you first-borns make the rules--and makes sure everyone else follows them. In the nicest possible way.