Actually, I think it's the "slow falls" for which a helmet, by design, really hits the sweet spot of protection -- keeping you from suffering any head injury at all, or one that is far less severe than you would have suffered without it. If you're bombing down a mountain at 50 mph and go butt-over-elbows over the handlebars, or even if you're just minding your business, commuting along, and the kid going 95 mph in his souped-up WRX takes you out with a direct hit from behind . . . yeah, the helmet isn't going to do bupkus in those situations to keep you alive.

And as for style . . . *all* helmets, for *all* applications, look dorky, *all* the time. ; Trust me; for every cyclist/skateboarder/snowboarder who's thinking, "Daaaaaayum, I am as cool as the other side of the pillow!" there are 5 onlookers thinking "Jeeeezus, what a doofus!"

But seriously, not serious! (Just kidding.) I've never been a helmet proselytizer ('tho I wear one rather religiously myself.) And, yeah, ya just gotta pull off a certain look if you're rollling on an English 3!