Originally Posted by
DanBraden
Ruh-roh... do you know what a "dog pile" is? You may soon find out because THIS topic is only slightly less contentious than chain maintenance!
Yeah, I sometimes ride sans helmet and, like you, my helmet has a mirror... During the summer though, I value sun protection so I wear a brimmed hat, bigger than a fedora but smaller than a cowboy hat. Also, walking around in my hat is only SLIGHTLY less goofy looking than carrying my helmet like a purse...
I have taken to ditching the helmet for errand rides, no more than 1-2mi down our main street with bike lanes, wide empty sidewalks, many stoplights and 35 mph speed limits (posted anyways), so traffic is pretty calm. Especially at the times I'm out running errands, which is not rush hour. Always nice.
My commute though is along bigger, faster roads, full of cagers hellbent on 'winning' the race they seem to think they're in. I admit that probably there's only a negligible chance I'd be in an accident where a helmet would make a difference, but it certainly doesn't hurt anything to wear it.