Helmets

[marcg]

What's the wisdom on good and bad helmets?  What features should one look for?  Any makes to go for - or to avoid?

[TimCPike]

Find something with as many holes in the most garish colours possible.

Realistically find one that is as comfortable as possible - the more you pay the better vented and lighter it will tend to be. The Met Stradivarious seems popular amongst many roadies, I find that Met helmets fit me comfortably (which is probably the single most crucial facor).

[marcg]

I've been trawling through the debates on cycle helmets.  All very interesting and all very predictable stuff.

I am surprised to find that no one seems to discuss the visibility factor yet this seems to be an additional clear advantage to the wearing of cycle helmets.  If you go for motorcycle training - especially on courses which are linked to the police or taught by police motor-cycle instructors, there is a fair amount of emphasis on helmet wearing and purchase.  One of the factors to consider is the visibility of the helmet with white coming out as the most visible and therefore providing the best chance of being noticed in the rearview mirror of an ambitious motorcar driver.  My own experience as a car driver tells me that this is true.

On the subject of head/helmet visibility of cyclists - nothing.  Yet to my mind the same benefits must apply.  In all of the studies that appear to have taken place, lots of discussion about the reduction in serious injuries but no mention of the accidents which didn't occur at all simply because the cyclist was noticed.  Of course this would be a tricky statistic to produce but probably not beyond the wit of some very clever person.  (In fact one could start from the assumption that bicycle victims of vehicle collisions must have been un-noticed and go on to ask what was the colour of the helmet - or hat - they were wearing at the time.)

I'm afraid that I can't agree with the suggestion to buy a helmet with as many garish colours as possible.  This cannot be good advice.  Even though the various colours may be very bright, the resulting mish-mash and the broken-up outline of the encased head of the cyclist would amount to a pretty effective camouflage.
 
If you are going to wear a helmet and of course it is up to you, then you may as well make it count as fully as you can.   Cyclists heads are going to be the most prominent part of their riding profile, so why not turn it into a safety beacon.   Bright, white, reflective at night.

I saw a hi-spec one at Decathlon in Paris for 50 Euros.  It seemed like a good investment to me.

[RunningWoman]

I recently got a Giro Pneumo that I like very much--hardly feels like you're wearing anything, and very breezy and cool.  Pricey kit, but worth the investment.

I bought it after a cycling accident that left me unconscious for almost an hour before someone found me on the cycling path ... up until then, I'd only worn a helmet for racing and group rides.  Now I don't ride without it, as I'm still having post-concussive problems over 4 months later.  Wish I'd been wearing one the day of the accident!

Kim

[tynevalleycommuter]

I have a Giro Mira,'carbon-effect' white which is great for visibility, very light, quite compact, comfortable, easily adjustable, one size fits all and best of all cost me less than £25.

In winter I often wear it with a light cap underneath - keeps out the draft thru' the vents, and you can use the peak of the cap to mask out the headlights of oncoming cars and avoid being dazzled.

I really think if some of the 'no-helmet' brigade actually tried a reasonable modern helmet they could be converted almost straight away.

I commute up to 23 miles (each way) and would not contemplate riding without mine, even though I have not had the misfortune of a commuting related accident. Some 30-odd years ago I took a dive over the handlebars and bounced 3 times on my head (no vehicles involved) and was lucky to get away with a lot of facial stitches. The outcome could have been much worse (I wasn't wearing a helmet in those days) and still vivid memories of that day are one of the reasons I would now always wear a helmet regardless of what anybody else chooses to do!

[Peter Gathergood]

The 'Why Cycle' website has a good section on helmets in general - see www.whycycle.co.uk/safety-helmets.htm.
My golden rule advice for you - make sure it fits.

[James]

A good fit and ventilation is the most important and generally 'you get what you pay for'.

[PeLu]

I like the Reevu with the built in mirror. But try it first if it suits your bicycling style, they do not work with drop handlebars (but there should be a different model next year or so). The rest (fit and ventilation) of them is like the better helmets I had.

[Chris Land]

quote:Originally posted by tynevalleycommuter

I really think if some of the 'no-helmet' brigade actually tried a reasonable modern helmet they could be converted almost straight away.

Not that I am a card-carrying member of this particular brigade, but I have recently laid off wearing helmets quite so much as I used to.  I have had a couple of minor tips whilst commuting - once when a car turned left on me (my own fault as I pulled alongside at a ped-crossing[:I]) two on ice.  On no occasion was my head involved.  Of course, I do wear a helmet sometime, but in the summer I have noticed that a combination of over-heating and sweat in the eyes (even on a  relatively new lid, with good venting) is actually dangerous for my riding and certainly reduces comfort and cycling pleasure. In the trade-off I sometime go for helmet free.  

Of course, the statistics and relative dangers can be debates ad nauseum but at the end of the day it's what you feel confortable with.