FLvector

That's my attitude as well. I figure it will find its way out, but is a bit annoying until it does when you hear or feel the buzzing. I figure its probably a beetle anyway.

Btw, a bee can only sting once because they have a barbed stinger that comes out of the body and the bee dies after stinging. Yellow jackets, hornets, wasps, etc. can sting multiple times. I usually get popped when the bee/wasp gets trapped between the clothing and skin. An unzipped jersey is a welcomed invitation.

DBrown9383

I once had a bad encounter with an angry bald faced hornet while on a riding mower. I had travelled under the nest and this sentry would have nothing of it. I stopped the mower and dismounted to engage him after he had made countless aggressive low passes. This particular hornet was an excellent pilot and seemed to be enjoying the fight. I would anticipate his moves, this guy would always try and fake to the right, then quickly bank left and try to get behind me for an easy attack from my blind side. I was spinning around, not letting him have the upper hand and holding up quite well when a few of his buddies showed up and I was doomed. You absolutely can't win when there's a squadron of them but I've been successful at out maneuvering a single kama kazi attack many times however it's really exhausting and you have to learn the attackers strategy very quickly to have a chance.

Hypno Toad

Look anything like this:



My fat lip after a wasp hit me on the way to work. Not fun.

obed7

I have not had bees sting me... usually they just fly off, if not when I stop and take off the helmet they fly away... bees are not usually aggressive... yellow jackets are a different story, they seem to take getting in your helmet or jersey or jacket pretty personal. This time of year with all the wild flowers blooming beside the roadways and MUT's there are lots of bees around...got one in my helmet last weekend, but no sting.

lkngro

I wasn't biking at the time, but going for a 9 mile run with my cross country team and at about mile 3 I felt a terrible pain on top of my ankle. Turns out a wasp somehow got stuck between the tongue of my shoe and the front of my ankle. I finished the run and my ankle was about the size of a tree trunk for the next 24 hours.

Rootman

Mine was all on the right side, so it looked lopsided and swelled up to a tremendous size. Flapped around and felt numb like novocain.

Dave Mayer

I've had several large insects fly into helmet vents. But I always ride with a cap under my helmet, so I've never been stung.

I did have a wasp get caught between the nose of my saddle and my groin. It stung me in several sensitive spots. I pulled over at the side of the a busy road and just by chance there was a group of trainee paramedics outside on a break. They had seen my hollerin' and after asking some questions about sting allergies, they suggested that they have a look. So a cordon forms around me and right there they check me out.

In hindsight that is pretty weird.

utahp8ntballer

First off, I used to work with a guy that has the exact same name as your username. Weird.

I was moving along at 27mph going for a kom when I felt this searing pain in my knee, I looked down and a yellow jacket was stuck in my leg by his stinger. I brushed it off and I could see the stinger hanging onto my leg hair. That spot bruised pretty bad and itched for 2 weeks.
I don't worry about them in my helmet because I ALWAYS wear a cycling hat under my helmet. It helps with sun. sweat, and insects. Never leave home without it.

I also had a bee get into my motorcycle jacket and I would up with 5 stings. That kind of sucked. Luckily I was on a little used road and could pull over and rip my jacket off.

the engine

I have not been stung under the helmet ... probably because I wear cycling caps under my helmet. I have been stung inside the jersey, and on the hand. I've been hit on the front of the throat by a bumble bee ... just about knocked me off the bike and left a bruise the size of a golf ball. Had a few bees or bugs hit me on the mouth, but never "in" my mouth. I guess I don't ride with my mouth open, or just lucky.

I've probably cursed myself and will ride through a swarm of angry hornets on our 300k this weekend.

bbattle

I once got a busted lip from a June bug. Bee or something stung me on the head; I only had three more miles left on the ride.

Not on the bike but in the backyard, I got swarmed by yellow jackets. Got stung four times; ripped my t-shirt off as it was covered with them. Not a good day. That night, poured some gasoline into their nest.

bbattle

And here's the infamous Jonathon Vaughters after being stung by a bee at the TdF.

CliffordK

When I was walking, years ago, I swatted a few bees into my ear, thinking they were mosquitoes. I've learned my lesson.

Last year I got stung on the neck while riding. I also got what I think was a bee in the mouth, but I spit it out quickly. At least not much of a sting. I know my brother got stung in the mouth years ago while training for the Midget National Championship road race.

So far, no stings through the helmet, so I haven't gotten a mesh cover for the helmet. Perhaps times will change.

A couple of years ago I was hiking and boating along a river in southern Oregon. I lost the trail, hiked down to the river, then boated back upstream to my campsite, and where I knew I could find the trail again. So, exploring I was climbing up to the trail and must have stepped on a ground yellow jacket nest. A whole swarm came after me. Some quick thinking. I ran back to the river and dove in. The bees actually lost interest pretty quickly. I did get several stings that time, with nobody around for miles.

hairnet

A bee stung my jaw after getting caught in my helmet strap. ****ing helmet strap

roadiejorge 

One time during an attack a yellow jacket or some other stinging insect went into my helmet and got me a few times. Of course this happened during a breakaway and I was tugging at my helmet while trying to hold a 25mph pace. One of the riders asked if everything was ok so I explained what happened. He asks if I want to drop off which I refused but man those stings were annoying.

PiLigand

Never had a bee hile riding, but I've been butterflied in the face on a few occasions. That's a surprise and a half.

Drew Eckhardt 

The last bee I hit bounced off my face, into my mouth, and stung me inside my bottom lip.

The next day it was so swollen I had problems drinking without spilling.

knobster

I use to all the time until I got this helmet.

SnowCYYCling

My helmet has an insect net and my hair is quite dense because I need more money to spend on my bike than a haircut. I did have a bee fly right into my sunglasses and it frightened me a little, another one flew into my jersey. I immediately got off the bike and ****zed out, but it didn't sting

roadwarrior

Yeah...and he had to abandon because the cortisone he would need to fix the problem was a banned substance. He tried to ride for a wile but had to give it up.

A wonderful part of upper Midwest living is that, unlike in the south stuff here dies. Bees don't get aggressive until later in the summer. Since it went back to below freezing last night, no worries.

I had a bumble bee hit me in the face and knock off my sunglasses. I was stung in the lip a couple of years ago in a city park. Swollen lip. Go to the gate (it's a park you have to pay to get in to), "Do you have a first aid kit with something for a sting?" "We are not allowed to give that out due to liability."
Great. Thanks.

kc0bbq

Don't know why, but this thread is triggering Monty Python memories. Every time I open it I end up with a John Cleese monologue in my brain for twenty minutes.

mrfreezesdefy3

Interesting storys
I have thought about wearing a cap but I figured it would hold the heat from my head in so I went without one maybe I'll get one, I also thought it would make me sweat more as if I don't sweat enough now

DirePenguin

I think it's astonishing how a creature so small could cause so much pain and misery (even death! -- so sorry for your loss, billyymc) to other creatures that are 1,000's of times their size. Bees are bad enough (they only get to sting you once), but hornets and wasps are vicious and evil.

utahp8ntballer

I wear them because I sweat like crazy and it catches a lot of it and will drip off the brim instead of into my eyes. I've gone out twice without it and regretted it both times because I couldn't keep the sweat from blinding me.

Drosophil

Not in the helmet, and not a bee (it didn't have the decency to stick around to be identified, and I'm no entomologist anyway), but yesterday something got under the jersey and stung me. I unzipped and let it fly out. On the way back home, on a descent, at high speed, i felt another sting above the knee, and then another. I don't know what it was but it hurt really, really bad and got even worse every time the pedal got near 12 o'clock. It's only a little bit swollen, but it itches like crazy.

RPK79

Yep. Had a bee get caught in my helmet last year and it tagged me on a speedy decent.