View Poll Results: Helmet wearing habits?
I've never worn a bike helmet
178
10.66%
I used to wear a helmet, but have stopped
94
5.63%
I've always worn a helmet
648
38.80%
I didn't wear a helmet, but now do
408
24.43%
I sometimes wear a helmet depending on the conditions
342
20.48%
Voters: 1670. You may not vote on this poll
The helmet thread
#2776
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I was told about an insurance company requirement for rides in my area. When questioned, the bike shop owner who informed me of the requirement, admitted that the "requirement" was essentially nothing more than a device the local club leaders used to keep out casual and recreational cyclists who don't fit the profile of the self declared "serious" club member cyclists who dominate the rides. The insurance company connection to the "requirement" was totally bogus.
"other liability concerns" could require the prohibition of ANYTHING some worrywort wishes to imagine could be a liability concern, including riding a bicycle in any manner.
Last edited by I-Like-To-Bike; 07-02-12 at 07:47 PM.
#2777
cowboy, steel horse, etc
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No, I've never put on a cycling event or contacted any insurance companies in preparation for doing so. Your premise may represent the reality of the situation.
It could. Some of those rides oughtta require full leathers
It could. Some of those rides oughtta require full leathers
#2778
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He makes a compelling argument and I generally think he's right. I wear a helmet now because I recently had a concussion bad enough to cause amnesia (not cycling related) and because I live in the worst country in the world with regard to road fatalities per capita.
Last edited by Omiak; 07-03-12 at 08:58 AM.
#2781
You gonna eat that?
Okay, okay, having watched the talk... I'm just not sold. I understand the tradeoff on a population-wide basis of urging/legislating helmet use versus scaring people off bikes. On a personal level, though, I wouldn't ride without one.
One statement he made, though, intrigues me. I think he said that helmet wearers are 50% more likely to crash. I wonder whether the low-speed cycling transport crowd, which is largely helmetless, skews the data, and that a large proportion of helmet wearers engage in sport cycling, to include high speed road riding and road racing, and also MTBers pushing themselves on challenging courses. Of course they crash more; they are pushing the limits, which is why they are wearing their helmets to begin with.
One thing I've considered was that for non-sport riders, once they get past a certain learning curve, their likelihood of crashing is greatly reduced. My personal experience seems to back that; I crashed once early on after starting to ride again, and nothing since then. But then our mayor recently went down, suffering a broken collar bone and concussion that is still affecting her vision (she had to get new lenses), even with a helmet.... her first fall in 25 years of riding.
Yeah, I prefer the look of a non-helmeted rider to a helmeted one, and that's kind of a draw when a good chunk of the appeal of cycling has to do with style (yeah, admit it). If others don't want to wear a helmet, they're adults; they can make their choices. It's none of my business. But I personally value my noggin enough to protect it.
One statement he made, though, intrigues me. I think he said that helmet wearers are 50% more likely to crash. I wonder whether the low-speed cycling transport crowd, which is largely helmetless, skews the data, and that a large proportion of helmet wearers engage in sport cycling, to include high speed road riding and road racing, and also MTBers pushing themselves on challenging courses. Of course they crash more; they are pushing the limits, which is why they are wearing their helmets to begin with.
One thing I've considered was that for non-sport riders, once they get past a certain learning curve, their likelihood of crashing is greatly reduced. My personal experience seems to back that; I crashed once early on after starting to ride again, and nothing since then. But then our mayor recently went down, suffering a broken collar bone and concussion that is still affecting her vision (she had to get new lenses), even with a helmet.... her first fall in 25 years of riding.
Yeah, I prefer the look of a non-helmeted rider to a helmeted one, and that's kind of a draw when a good chunk of the appeal of cycling has to do with style (yeah, admit it). If others don't want to wear a helmet, they're adults; they can make their choices. It's none of my business. But I personally value my noggin enough to protect it.
#2782
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Originally Posted by Doohickie;14435965...
Yeah, I prefer the look of a non-helmeted rider to a helmeted one, and that's kind of a draw when a good chunk of the appeal of cycling has to do with style (yeah, admit it). If others don't want to wear a helmet, they're adults; they can make their choices. It's none of my business. But I personally value my noggin enough to protect it.
#2783
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Honestly, I think safety should come first... not wearing a helmet because of style is reckless to me..
I agree with ^Doohickie in that your noggin is valuable enough to protect it. I have friends that felt that they were "too cool" to wear a helmet, but recently found some pretty decent looking ones that are disguised as hats. It's pretty cool actually. I was thinking of buying one for myself. Found it here - https://luckychic.com/TS/Protected/Ve...9&&GroupId=725
I thought it was a cool concept. Hopefully ideas like these will encourage more people to wear helmets.
I agree with ^Doohickie in that your noggin is valuable enough to protect it. I have friends that felt that they were "too cool" to wear a helmet, but recently found some pretty decent looking ones that are disguised as hats. It's pretty cool actually. I was thinking of buying one for myself. Found it here - https://luckychic.com/TS/Protected/Ve...9&&GroupId=725
I thought it was a cool concept. Hopefully ideas like these will encourage more people to wear helmets.
#2784
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Over 10 times as many people per year die in accidents on stairs as on bicycles, if safety comes first, shouldn't we mandate helmet use when walking on stairs? We could save far more lives by requiring helmet use in motor vehicles than requiring it on bicycles - If you feel compelled to place safety first and wish to wear a helmet while riding a bike, or climbing stairs, or washing the dishes, I fully support your right to do so, but please, do not require me to wear safety gear so that you feel better about it.
#2785
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I wonder whether the low-speed cycling transport crowd, which is largely helmetless, skews the data, and that a large proportion of helmet wearers engage in sport cycling, to include high speed road riding and road racing, and also MTBers pushing themselves on challenging courses. Of course they crash more; they are pushing the limits, which is why they are wearing their helmets to begin with..
#2786
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#2787
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Helmut Kohl
#2788
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Honestly, I think safety should come first... not wearing a helmet because of style is reckless to me..
I agree with ^Doohickie in that your noggin is valuable enough to protect it. I have friends that felt that they were "too cool" to wear a helmet, but recently found some pretty decent looking ones that are disguised as hats. It's pretty cool actually. I was thinking of buying one for myself. Found it here - https://luckychic.com/TS/Protected/Ve...9&&GroupId=725
I thought it was a cool concept. Hopefully ideas like these will encourage more people to wear helmets.
I agree with ^Doohickie in that your noggin is valuable enough to protect it. I have friends that felt that they were "too cool" to wear a helmet, but recently found some pretty decent looking ones that are disguised as hats. It's pretty cool actually. I was thinking of buying one for myself. Found it here - https://luckychic.com/TS/Protected/Ve...9&&GroupId=725
I thought it was a cool concept. Hopefully ideas like these will encourage more people to wear helmets.
https://www.cycle-helmets.com/elvik.pdf
Makes sense, once you consider what may typically cause severe brain damage. Anyway, this has been discussed ad nauseam in the helmet thread.
#2789
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#2790
incazzare.
The statistics can be skewed any way you want, depending on your bias. Just wear one if you want, don't if you don't want to. End of story.
__________________
1964 JRJ (Bob Jackson), 1973 Wes Mason, 1974 Raleigh Gran Sport, 1986 Schwinn High Sierra, 2000ish Colian (Colin Laing), 2011 Dick Chafe, 2013 Velo Orange Pass Hunter
1964 JRJ (Bob Jackson), 1973 Wes Mason, 1974 Raleigh Gran Sport, 1986 Schwinn High Sierra, 2000ish Colian (Colin Laing), 2011 Dick Chafe, 2013 Velo Orange Pass Hunter
#2792
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I agree about wearing or not. I do not agree about the Elvik paper having a bias, though. If you can find any, please let us know.
#2793
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Okay, okay, having watched the talk... I'm just not sold. I understand the tradeoff on a population-wide basis of urging/legislating helmet use versus scaring people off bikes. On a personal level, though, I wouldn't ride without one.
One statement he made, though, intrigues me. I think he said that helmet wearers are 50% more likely to crash. I wonder whether the low-speed cycling transport crowd, which is largely helmetless, skews the data, and that a large proportion of helmet wearers engage in sport cycling, to include high speed road riding and road racing, and also MTBers pushing themselves on challenging courses. Of course they crash more; they are pushing the limits, which is why they are wearing their helmets to begin with.
One thing I've considered was that for non-sport riders, once they get past a certain learning curve, their likelihood of crashing is greatly reduced. My personal experience seems to back that; I crashed once early on after starting to ride again, and nothing since then. But then our mayor recently went down, suffering a broken collar bone and concussion that is still affecting her vision (she had to get new lenses), even with a helmet.... her first fall in 25 years of riding.
Yeah, I prefer the look of a non-helmeted rider to a helmeted one, and that's kind of a draw when a good chunk of the appeal of cycling has to do with style (yeah, admit it). If others don't want to wear a helmet, they're adults; they can make their choices. It's none of my business. But I personally value my noggin enough to protect it.
One statement he made, though, intrigues me. I think he said that helmet wearers are 50% more likely to crash. I wonder whether the low-speed cycling transport crowd, which is largely helmetless, skews the data, and that a large proportion of helmet wearers engage in sport cycling, to include high speed road riding and road racing, and also MTBers pushing themselves on challenging courses. Of course they crash more; they are pushing the limits, which is why they are wearing their helmets to begin with.
One thing I've considered was that for non-sport riders, once they get past a certain learning curve, their likelihood of crashing is greatly reduced. My personal experience seems to back that; I crashed once early on after starting to ride again, and nothing since then. But then our mayor recently went down, suffering a broken collar bone and concussion that is still affecting her vision (she had to get new lenses), even with a helmet.... her first fall in 25 years of riding.
Yeah, I prefer the look of a non-helmeted rider to a helmeted one, and that's kind of a draw when a good chunk of the appeal of cycling has to do with style (yeah, admit it). If others don't want to wear a helmet, they're adults; they can make their choices. It's none of my business. But I personally value my noggin enough to protect it.
#2794
Bicikli Huszár
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Statistics themselves are actually quite reliable (usually); it's usually the conclusions we draw from them that tend to be fallacious (usually due to the good ol' fashioned correlation=causation fallacy).
#2795
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#2796
Senior Member
I agree. If adults can decide for themselves, and it's none of your business, you should respect anothers thoughts that may differ from yours.
#2797
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For some reason that Parthian shot is always so hard to resist...
#2798
You gonna eat that?
I really like the thought of going helmetless, and I can fully see why people do it. My personal experience just tips the scale away from that choice though. Maybe if I never had a header, I'd be helmetless today, but knowing that I've gone down before and have some likelihood of going down again, I just like having the helmet on. If someone took offense at that, it certainly wasn't intended.
#2799
Senior Member
I can appreciate you have your view, and I know you don't mean it that way but that's how it comes off. To me anyway.
If wearing or not wearing a helmet isn't anyones business but their own, why make the comment? It seems by making one, you're judging.
Last edited by closetbiker; 07-04-12 at 01:47 PM.
#2800
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