Any standard is a minimum set of requirements that must be passed for sale in where ever its regulated. Helmets can certainly be safer than the minimum standard but there isn't a requirement for higher standards and there isn't much consumer call for it, unlike automobiles.

Everything you wanted to know about helmets and more: http://www.helmets.org/#statistics

Go to the bike shop a try on a few helmets. Buy he one that fits correctly. Some models seem to fit round heads better than oblong heads.

Best advise i can offer is go to your local bike stores and try different ones on.I found that bell seemed to fit my big round head vs the others brands i tried


Giro came in a close second to fitting best. I settled on a Bell Alchera...

i would hate to crash and throw away a 150plus dollar helmet.

50/50 ride with helmets for me. Never during my commute, most of the time when riding exclusively for fun, sometimes when riding for utility.

I would agree with most of the posters here who advise going to a bike shop and trying on some helmets. All helmets sold in the USA are required to meet a minimum set of safety standards. However that does noet mean that all helmets are equally safe. From all I have seen, the more expenisive, higher end helmets offer a (moderately) better degree of protection that their lower end counteparts. This may or may not mean anything to you or to others. As for me, I saw no reason to go out and spend $175+ on a helmet when for the type of riding I do a $50 helmet would protect my head just as well in all but the most serious accidents. As for what helmet I own, I own a 2006 Bell Influx. There may be lighter nore stylish helmets out there but this one fits me well and feels good on my head.

Cheers,

Brian

This issue always causes a ruckus, but I don't understand why some cyclists wear a helmet sometimes but not others. I just figure...what the heck...I wear mine whenever I ride. I am not passing judgement here but it just makes me wonder.

Man am I sick and tired of people on this forum shooting their mouthes off about nonsense when it is CLEARLY very easy to realize that you are incorrect.

+1 to whoever said that to this chap also.

As an example, lets look at the Bell Sweep R vs. the Venture.

Bell Sweep R features.
Fusion In-Mold Microshell.
In-mold Bottom Wrap.
Clear GPS Fit System.
Internal Reinforcement.
Channeled Ventilation.
Cam Lock Levers.
Registered Graphics.

Bell Venture features.
Fusion In-Mold Microshell.
ErgoDial.
Sanp In Visor.
Cam-Lock Levers.
PinchGuard Buckle.

Features that are relevantly available on the Sweep R but NOT on the Venture.
You can read all of these on their site Im not quoting the entire thing.

1. In-Mold Bottom Wrap. this is designed to bond microshell material to the lower part of the helmet which is typically exposed and therefore... less durable.

2. Internal Reinforcement. This is a composite skeleton running through the core of the helmet. It allows helmets to have larger gaps for ventilation. When you say more expensive helmets are less safe because they aren't "as round" or because they have "more vents" you are incorrect due to this.

3. Registered Graphics. This is probably the top feature that one should consider when looking for a helmet. You don't want to get pulled over by the copyright police and have to goto jail for wearing a helmet with non-registered graphics. Thats copyright infringement.

Do a search. We already played the "more expensive helmets are better because" game.

I always ride with a helmet -- no exceptions. This is due to my personal history involving a cousin of mine who spent his last 30 years in diapers, with a feeding tube in his stomach, because he was hit by a car while on his bike (he was 11 years old) and suffered a major head injury.

I used to like Giro helmets until I tried Limar. Now I have three Limar helmets. You can usually find last year's models on clearance at Nashbar or Performance for about $60. Well worth it, in my opinion.

Yes, I wear a helmet.

I've been wearing one since 1991, but last spring I crashed, and among other injuries, ended up with a concussion ..... and my helmet cracked. If I had not been wearing a helmet, it would have been my head that cracked, and I'd have had a much more serious situation to deal with than a little concussion.

I have settled on Bell helmets as the most comfortable for me.

I never wore one either until I bought my Synapse last year. Bought the bike, helmet, shoes, shorts, etc. People may think I look goofy or think it's just a bike but I'm sure a crack on the asphault would do some serious damage. I would rather appear goofy in others eyes than be confined, or unable to fend for myself due to a serious head injury.

I've got two young daughters (partly why I started riding to improve my fitness) and I just feel much more confident on the bike knowing that should an accident happen, at least I've done all I could to protect my noggin.

I wear a Bell, not sure what the name is but it was about 60.00 on sale at LBS.

Well, no, you haven't. You just spent sixty bucks on some plastic and foam in the hopes that it will help if you fall over. "Doing everything you could" would involve a motorsports helmet, an intensive course of bike handling training, and staying off public streets while riding. The fact that your helmet is giving you "confidence" should be a warning flag -- are you sure you're not more likely to need it now?

The point, for the OP, is simply to keep in mind that despite all the "My life has been saved a dozen times!!!" foolishness printed at BF, a helmet is not a miracle. It is not likely to help when run over by a car or slammed into a light post, cannot protect against massive facial injuries or spinal trauma, and is no substitute for skilled and cautious cycling. And no, spending more money does not necessarily mean that you are "safer".

The best advice is to avoid falling off your bike, and again despite the "you never know when it's going to happen" rolling victim BF crowd, bike-handling skill can be developed and does make a difference.

</rant>

PS. I ride with a helmet about 95% of the time, because something is better than nothing -- as long as you're not under the impression that "something" can really be counted upon.

Helmets were strips of leather when I raced. Never had a problem with them. These modern helmets just look too weird. Give me wool shorts and jerseys, leather helmets, and silk tires. A true man doesnt wear lycra clothing and styrofoam strapped to his head. And never ever wear a helmet when your out training.

Stop the madness now, people. Any minute this apparently innocent thread will become this weeks "helmet nazi vs righ-to-die nazi" slug fest

Since all existing statistics show that they reduce neither fatalities nor injuries, it is certainly optional. In my case I like having that little rear view mirror attached to it... and I've had no luck getting that thing to stick to the side of my head. Sometimes it's nice to leave the helmet at home though...

Agreed... I think a little tumbling and rolling practice would be a great idea, too. And if we could get the damn cars and trucks off the road... we'd really be getting somewhere.

I'd wear a helmet for sure. Two days ago I was out skiing, now I know skiing isn't biking but something similar could've happened. Anyways, my skis got caught in some heavy snow and I ended up going down. I would've been ok but the skis popped up and I was sent flying, it ended with my head in a wooden post. The ski helmet is dented a bit and I was unable to move for a few seconds. Needless to say I was a little loopy too, today my neck and back are better but after the accident I couldn't read and my vision was really bad. I am convinced I could've been seriously disabled or even killed without a helmet, the helmet made the shock much wider I hit at the corner and would've split my head. Like I said, it wasn't biking, but I can see something similar happening. Please get a helmet!

Anyone got any pictures of people wearing Giro Atmos or a Bell Sweep R, Im thinking about picking one of these up but I have to see how they look so I know which will fit my big ol head.

Two comments:

1) Although I agree that bicycle handling skills are very important, sometimes no amount of bicycle handling skills can prevent a crash. I've asked several people here about mine, and no one has been able to tell me what I could have done differently.

2) A helmet may prevent head injuries ... it did in my case. But it does not radiate a shield around a cyclist. In other words, it did not save me from a painful separated shoulder which still gives me trouble now and then a year later.

I personally have broken two helmets and while I don't have any statistics on hand as to what would have happened if I had not been wearing them I'm sure I'm better off. One thing though, make sure that you have the chin strap on reasonably well. I don't mean constricting your throat, just secured in such a way that your helmet won't slide up and leave a 2 inch wide chunk of road rash on your forehead (not one of the 2 broken helmets). I did that once as a kid and have had a properly secured chin strap ever since.

During a 20 year racing career I fell dozens of times, I'm sure. If I'm brutally honest with myself, there was maybe one fall that I couldn't have avoided with better planning and/or skills. I won't comment on someone else's crash, but I will go as far as to say that I've read very few acounts of crashing at BF that seemed entirely neccessary to me. Moreover, I get the very strong feeling from many members here that they believe wearing a helmet makes them "safe". That, really, is what concerns me: the "courage for your head" attitude that seems to go along with helmet use. In my experience, the rise of helmet use correlates very closely with the decline of skill, or at least the idea that skill can be supplanted by money and equipment.

As for #2, I will take your word for it, at least insofar as your helmet prevented some scrapes or bruises. It may even have prevented serious trauma or death, but as I have often pointed out, this site is chock full of people who have "had their lives saved" by helmets -- often multiple times. And yet anyone who was around prior to foam helmets knows that serious head injuries and deaths were fairly rare, just as they are now. So either modern riders are overestimating the usefulness of foam helmets, underestimating the resilience of the human brain/skull, or simply falling on their heads a lot more than we used to.

I only wear one when some event requires it, or on group rides where I don't want someone to ruin the good fellowship by making a fuss over having my purdy head out there for all the world to marvel at, like that ride we did the night before the Lancaster metric last year. ;)

Sometimes I wear one on winter commutes, because it helps keep my head warmer and gives me a place to mount another light.

I have a big ol head, too. I wear a 7 3/4 or 7 7/8 motorcycle helmet, and Giro bicycle helmets are the only ones I've tried that actually fit. I hear the Limar lids are large, too.
To the OP, you can sometimes find non-current helmets on sale for huge discounts.
It's your head, and I wouldn't try to tell someone to wear one, but if you smack your cavesa on the asphault, you'll wish you had one on. I had a pretty bad concussion, and always ride with one now. I have broken two of them, and had no head injury either time. I don't know what would have happened if I wasn't wearing one, but I'm glad I was.

Well I certainly understand this after seeing your purdy head:D

Well, of course. However, my uncle was pretty satisfied that his helmet helped him avoid injury after he stopped, tried to unclip, and fell, smacking his helmeted head on the edge of the curb.

+1

The death rate per mile for professional cyclists prior to the helmet rule in 2003 was better than it is for all cyclists in the US. Those guys crashed a lot... anybody who races competitively crashes a lot. I've done over 500 races in my life and have crashed at least 20 times. Serious head injuries without a helmet were rare. One factor I think is that the "feeling" that a helmet offers a lot of protection leads people to not protect their heads nearly as well when they crash... after all, the helmeted head is the only thing that *is* protected.