Aplogies if people took my Dirty Harry quote as a cheap insult.
Im a pretty competant rider. I know all the usual dangers to avoid and most of the unusual ones. I dont just fall off, and in my 30 years riding I have had 1 self inflicted crash, a couple of scary moments and 1 car-inflicted crash. The worst injury was a grazed knee.
Still, I am aware that sometimes things just go wrong. When several things go wrong together you just got unlucky and are probably going to crash. A helmet may help in some cases to reduce life-changing injuries.

A lot of safety advocates put helmets at the top of the cycling agenda. I put them at the bottom, quite literarally your last resort after everything else hs failed to protect you.

mmm, try shopping for car helmets :)

At the moment, I'm putting a 6 point roll cage and 4 point harnesses into my car. That should give you an idea of my views on safety. I put my seatbelt on whether i'm driving 50 miles or 50 inches.

A helmet is definately a good idea, and a good one won't be uncomfortable.

Btw, for anyone that thinks i'm crazy for putting all that into my car, I drive a 240sx and i'm hoping to get into track racing, so I do have a reason for it :D

I guess a helmet would be a good thing, especially when you read about those who's life they've saved, I don't wear one right now, sweat and aggravation are my rationalization for not wearing one at the moment, I'll need to look into these expensive ones that fit better and are cooler temperature wise as I'm not that vain that I don't wear it because of the ~Cool~ factor.

BUT, if you don't ride in heavy traffic and are very careful and don't take chances I don't see the immediate need for wearing one...in my riding career, not a racer, I've taken a couple of tumbles, turned a complete somersault in the air once trying to get back onto the highway, hit the ashpalt that had built up into a curb and the front tire sort of halted my motion forward...the feet strapped in the pedals made for me to ride that pony to the ground but my head came no where near getting a beating in that, shoulders and legs took the brunt. Now I ride with toe clips that are strapless that allow me to quickly dismount if need be, I know...I can't lift with it but I do some amount of pulling with that style.

I'll need to evaluate this more, I think the thing that also has me not running out and getting a helmet right away is the way our Safety department at work reigns down on the people all in the Safe Name of Safety, it truly leaves no room for discussion, you just adhere or you're in deep trouble, there are places for safety gear and places that are over kill...

One thing I noticed is that during the Tour De France you'll see a lot of the riders not wearing helmets all the time, now THERE would seem to me to be a HIGHLY LIKELY place of wrecks to occur and you know these guys have ridden a few miles in their lifetime...

Sorry for the long rant but I am getting more and more into the healthy aspect of riding, building stamina and endurance and things like the helmet battle does nag at me, I've read that other thread and glad to hear that lady Sandra took advantage of wearing the helmet and possibly saved her life, Hind sight is almost always 20/20 vision...

Off to ponder, thanks for the thoughts guys/gals,
G2

I young and just started biking & I wear one ALL THE TIME. It's not about looking cool or anything. I just rather be safe than sorry.

The positives of a helmet definitely out-weighs the negitives.

Another thing, I think the #1 reason why people don't wear one is because they think they will feel uncomfortable and and hot. Someone mentioned about large vents in helmets nowadays, and it is true. I got used to my helmet just after a week of riding. After it's on my head for 3 minutes, I don't even feel it anymore.

Do it for yourself, do it for the people you love. :beer:

If I had been unlucky, and had not been wearing a helmet, the doc says I would have lived. With luck, and no helmet, May 17, 2002 would have been on my tombstone as the end date. But I'm here, posting this and have a helmet in more than ten pieces--it does its job.

I have seen many rationalization on this thread about not wearing a helmet, about competencies, about sweat, etc. But rationalizations will not bring back life. That's what my helmet has done for me. I still have it in my garage, pieced back together so people can see the impact it took, and I can tell them that I'm here because it is in pieces.

Thanks Giro!

And just remember, if and when that accident does come, you may not know--may never know for sure what happened or why.

John

you can buy a helmet for as little as $12. Helmets are like bikes, you can spend as much or little as you want. Fortunately, with the ANSI/SNELL regulations, a $12 helmet maybe nearly as good as a $50 one.

For the record I have hair down to the middle of my back and live in FL. If a helmet is going to bother anyone by being too hot or sweaty it's gonna be me. But strangly enough it doesn't bother me in the slightest. in fact the directed ventilation is a very nice touch and the brow pad keeps the sweat out of my eyes very well. SKID LID = GOOD CRACKED BRAINCASE = BAD

Sweet, man. I also have a 240SX and am buying a 350Z come September. I have plans to turn one into a track car eventually. Preferrably the 240 since I spent way less money on it and the lighter weight is an advantage.

You guys auto-X? I was thinking about it too.

I'm with you on this one... heat shouldn't be an issue with helmets and I've got the same hair and live in the south too. I do wear one. I won't even sit in the saddle without it on. Although I've never really banged my head hard in the bike wrecks I've had, I splatted into the street a couple of weeks ago and noticed some scuff marks at various points around the helmet. Perhaps that accident could have been worse had it not been for the helmet? I'd rather not take the chance of finding out.

Inches make all the difference in my non bike activities:

You can see why I think a roll cage is important.

Bikendrums, you have long hair?

Who knew?:D

rockcrawling in the TJ-cool. You need some more articulation! :D

I need longer front shocks, and there is a big wish for the Currie folks to come out with a rear version of the "anti rock".

Really, some people put to much in to articulation. You can build one with all kinds of articulation, but if you've got no downward presure on the axle (ie. from springs), what good is it?

Lockers, now there's the tickette. Now that I've got lockers, I don't spin much tire at all.

35's, flat skid, ARB's, works pretty well.

You have a TJ?

Another plus point for crash helmuts is the fact it gives Flies something to aim for other than my mouth:D . those vents can suck those beauties in like nothing else.

A good helmet protects also against the sun rays, as it has the visor.

It is also usually made from bright colored + reflective plastics, what makes you more noticeable to motorists.

One hears more and more about exposure to sun rays and resulting health problems. It means one has to wear a cap or hat anyway. So why not a bicycle helmet for that matter?

I could stick a yellow reflective stickers on my helmet and they hold there OK. Can you stick reflective stickers on a textile cap?

Let me put it another way. Imagine such a crazy situation, like one is to be hit on his head by a club, say, as punishment for some crime in an exotic country. One has a bike helmet and a textile bike cap to wear. Anything can be put on one's head. Tell me honestly, what would you wear? Or what is your guess - what Ken would put on in such a situation?

And what makes you so optimistic that a crash will not be similar to a hit with a cudgel on the head?

Update: I bought a helmet yesterday although it was for a different purpose than biking. I'm getting a freebord this week and I know that I'll be falling off of it alot. http://www.freeboard.com . It's a BMX helmet because I need a little more durability in minor crashes. I am trying it out on my commute today and it didn't seem too hot this morning. The afternoon ride will really be the benchmark, though.

like i always tell my 7 year old: because that is where you keep your brain. i've cracked two shells in all the years..... my limited thinking powers are intact for now.

always always always always always wear a helmet. even though you think you are a good cyclist stuff happens...

i.e. my front forks come APART while riding on a flat in the mountains.

or

i.e. your crank arms break while riding, you go down.

you just never know what can happen to you out there, better to be overly safe then to regert that you were not safe enough.

I’m pretty sure I’d be riding a wheelchair instead of a bike if I hadn’t worn a helmet for the last 12 years.

I've said it above, but I'll say it again, I would not be here right now without a helmet on May 17, 2002. Wear a helmet--they're not bad lookin', provide ventilation, give sun protection for your eyes, and may allow you to live to a ripe ol' age.

John

hehe I think some of them look kinda cool... Giro pneumo comes to mind :D

When I read news articles about accidents with serious injuries or death that end with statements like "Alcohol appears to have been a contributing factor" or "The driver was not wearing seatbelts" or "The rider was not wearing a helmet," there usually is not an accompanying statements that suggests whether the opposite would have prevented the death or injury. It is just a statement.

Though I am always disheartened by the misfortune of the victims in these cases, I generally react with a bit of a shrug as though suconsciously concluding that the person was a contributor to his or her own fate somehow. I don't react with a definitive statement like, "They deserved to die for not wearing a helmet," or anything like that. There's just this "feeling" that they somehow must have gone through life with at least a bit of disregard for their own safety.

I also don't have a reaction that says "At least they died with their rights and freedom in tact," or anything along those lines.

Generally I support a person's right to choose. That right exists in my mind whether or not I choose the same or have an opinion about a person's choice.

I don't suppose even for a second that all of the available information on a story is given in a brief news report nor that the absence of the alcohol, seatbelt or helmet statements necessarily absolves the victim of all fault or responsibility.

I suppose I wear the appropriate gear for cycling habitually so that should I die during cycling, regardless of fault, there is no one who is allowed to shrug it off even subconsciously, just because of a brief statement that says "Rider was not wearing a helmet." If my helmet contributes to my survival or prevents an injury at some point, I suppose I'll feel justified in my position while being irritated at having to buy another. I am under no illusion that my helmet will save me from all consequences of a moving encounter with a stationary object or another vehicle.

Carl

The outrage and anger of some cyclists toward others who don't wear helmets always cracks me up. "Knee jerk" is the only phrase that is apt. If anyone ever doubts the effectiveness of advertising or political propaganda all he need do is read a thread about helmets to see otherwise intelligent and articulate people reduced to shouting slogans.

Helmets increase safety, surely, but they're a marginal safety device, particularly for road riding. They help, but they reduce an already small chance of serious head injury or death from proper cycling by some unknown, significant, but ultimately small amount. Whether someone wears them or not just isn't that big of a deal, and it's certainly not worth all of the fulminating it generates here on this board.

To see this, notice that no one here on this board wears a cycling helmet while driving a car. Certainly no one here would get angry, indignant, or start with the predictable remarks about life insurance, organ donation, etc., etc., if someone posted here that he didn't wear a helmet when he drove his car. But why not? It's not because wearing a helmet while driving would provide no benefits. After all, the pros do it. And even in a car with front air bags-- and not all of them have air bags, even today-- there are always side collisions to worry about. Yes, helmets won't prevent all serious injuries in motor vehicle collisions, but they might well prevent injury from your head colliding with the interior of your car. And isn't your brain worth the money and effort of strapping on a styrofoam hat before you start driving? What about your family? What about your ablity to type without drooling on yourself? What about, to use the most hackneyed and overused remark on the internet, Darwin? Yes, an accident is unlikely, but all it takes is one. And so on and so on.

And before someone starts quarrelling about the relative risk of helmetless driving vs. cycling, my point is not that the comparison is exact (though the comparison is reasonably close). It's just that the difference between the two activities is hardly enough to explain why helmetless cycling in particular should be the focus of so much special ire.

I'm all for wearing helmets; it's a fine idea. If it makes you feel better, do it. But it is a hugely overblown issue, made so by so many cyclists who for reasons unknown to me want to get all p*ssed off about other people's hats. Stop, will you?

As far as the original poster goes, I myself will run errands helmetless a lot. I do it because I don't always like strapping that thing on to run across town, or head to work, or even to take a ride. I've done it for years, and I will do it as long as the law allows. Maybe longer. But I have helmets. I wear them sometimes too. When I visit countries that require them I wear them, too.

Commuting without a helmet is not some deathwish; it's just running another very small risk for some certain convenience or pleasure. Just like a lot of other choices you make. It's certainly not worth feeling like you're throwing your life away or some nonsense like that.

personally, i always wear a helmet. i feel i owe it to myself and my family. you can lose your life and/or well being in an instant.

now let me hasten to add how distasteful i find self-righteous riders who criticize people who choose not to. if you want to ride without a helmet, more power to ya. it is your right.

to the self-righteous: how easy it is to criticize when your choice to ride a bike (instead of drive a car) could just as easily be judged stupid and irresponsible. who are YOU to decide where anyone draws their personal risk line? isn't that a little pompous and arrogant? i think so.

personally, i will respect all cyclists on this list, both those who ride with helmets (like me) and those who choose to go lidless. the only group that i have big-time issues with are the judgementals. you people really need to get a life.

Wear the helmet!

I never ride without mine. No matter what! ;)

Okay, let's talk about helmets for driving, and let's get personal. You don't see professional race car drivers going helmetless in races. I wonder why?

In the 1970's, I was involved in a head-on auto accident. Shortly after that, I decided to drive in some stretches of highway with my motorcycle helmet on. I reasoned that I wore a helmet while crewing an Air Force helicopter, and the impacts were about the same as a helicopter crash from an engine-out autorotation. After a while, I stopped that, but it was a reasonable reaction to my accident. I've had three auto accidents of significance, and no head injury (although seat belts saved the day on one, and I always wear the seat belt).

I've also had three bicycle accidents of significance. As a kid, I fell off a bicycle going home for lunch, and smacked the side of my head on the pavement--no helmet, and the start of life-long migraine headaches. Last May's accident was my last one. I've said it on other threads (and perhaps here too, above, a while back); the doc said that, if I had been unlucky that day in May, 2002, I would have lived without a helmet. With a helmet (now in more than ten pieces), I have recovered fully, and can type this reply.

Those of you who continue to bicycle without a helmet are in denial--the "it cannot happen to me" syndrome. It can! Ask whether you and your family would benifit from the minor inconvience of wearing a helmet if there was an accident involving a head injury? Then, I ask you, if you continue to not wear a helmet, who are you trying to fool? Certainly not the ER doctor.

John

let's talk helmets and taking a shower, and let's get personal.

the fact is, more people are injured and killed in shower stalls and bathtubs than any other place in the home and on the road. if you REALLY want to be safe, wear your lid while scrubbing.

oh, and if you really, really want to be safe, don't think of riding a bicycle. don't even think of driving a car. just stay at home and watch soap reruns.

wait! harmful radiation from that television. sit quiety in your room and read (under flourescent lights, natch) while eating only foods high in fiber and low in fat. no alcohol. only open windows on low-smog days.

my point is: let's let each individual decide what's safe and what's not. that's all. one person's recreational pursuits are another's maniacal dare-deviling.

i am not about to judge someone else's sensibilities. live and let live (or die, whatever the case may be).

personally, i'll always wear a helmet while cycling and motorcycling, but i'm not likely to wear one while driving my auto, thanks much. if you feel compelled to do so, be my guest. who am i to judge?

come to think of it, who are ANY ONE OF US to judge?

*yawn* Is this thread dead yet?

I think there may be a generation gap about "getting personal." The context I meant it in was about my personal experience. I can have my own views that people who don't want to wear helmets are not facing the reality of an accident. That doesn't mean that I go around and tell people that they must wear one, nor does it mean that I favor helmet laws.

What it does mean is that I want to build a culture where wearing a helmet is "in," and protecting oneself in many different ways is also "in." This includes highways and roads engineered for bicycles, well-built bicycles, and good riding techniques.

'Sorry if I bent someone out of shape, but then you might want to look at your own thoughts about it too. Having just escaped death from an accident by wearing one, I felt my personal feelings about helmets might just be valuable to someone. Just so you'll know what I'm talking about, here's a photo of my helmet, as it is now (held together with scotch tape).

John