Wear a helmet or not?

[lillianwilson]

Re:

I have Giros and Bells. I really like my Bell Super and plan on getting the Super 2R MIPS for more technical trails where big jumps and drops are present.

 

[The History Man]

If' that's you Lillian, you be careful out there. But if you're not I'm sure you'll get plenty of assistance.

Two posts in two years. Is this a record? :mrgreen:

I was about to say welcome etc.

 

[rjkg]

Re:

Although I have little doubt that a helmet can provide invaluable protection in the case of an accident, it seems to be a peculiarly British obsession within Europe.
Having recently returned from Belgium, and having ridden extensively in Germany and the Netherlands, my observations are that comparatively few cyclists in those countries wear helmets.
Yes, I know that they are better served with cycle tracks and cycling is more mainstream; but there even cyclists on the roads appear to frequently shun helmets, whilst in this country whole families on tame dedicated off-road cycling tracks, with minimal risk,such as the Forest of Dean family trail (where i was last Sunday) appear to routinely wear helmets.
I suspect that the H & S obsession in this country, and the omnipresent American influence are big factors in this.
Personally I rarely wear a helmet, purely because I think it detracts from the sense of freedom that cycling offers. I also seem to have noticed a trend away from helmets amongst urban cyclists recently.

 

[The History Man]

I came of on Sunday. Really. Mild concussion and bruised ribs. If I hadn't been wearing my helmet blah blah blah A&E blah blah, personal choice blah blah personal health insurance blah organised rides blah blah blah, scientific evidence blah.

PARKLIFE!


All of the above is actually true. Fancy a pint:
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restauran ... gland.html

 

[tintin40]

i saw 'lillianwilson' in Swinley forest last Friday. Change your BF your to good for him. No justice in the world

 

[dongward]

Re: Re:

Although I have little doubt that a helmet can provide invaluable protection in the case of an accident, it seems to be a peculiarly British obsession within Europe.
Having recently returned from Belgium, and having ridden extensively in Germany and the Netherlands, my observations are that comparatively few cyclists in those countries wear helmets.
Yes, I know that they are better served with cycle tracks and cycling is more mainstream; but there even cyclists on the roads appear to frequently shun helmets, whilst in this country whole families on tame dedicated off-road cycling tracks, with minimal risk,such as the Forest of Dean family trail (where i was last Sunday) appear to routinely wear helmets.
I suspect that the H & S obsession in this country, and the omnipresent American influence are big factors in this.
Personally I rarely wear a helmet, purely because I think it detracts from the sense of freedom that cycling offers. I also seem to have noticed a trend away from helmets amongst urban cyclists recently.

I think the continental European, car-driving contingent have a different view on cyclists and they probably get a little more respect in general. I wear a helmet any time I'm on the bike and think it's an integral part of the experience - it's a preventative and defensive measure for the most part. It won't save me if I go under a car but it will mitigate the risk of head trauma if I do fall off. I would also ensure my kids wore a helmet regardless of what they are riding because accidents will happen anywhere. Saying that, as a kid I never wore a helmet until I started mountain biking proper but I've seen enough head trauma from biking/skiing accidents to know that for me, wearing one is kind of part of it all.

Actually cycled the Forest of Dean a few years back on lejog - beautiful place!

 

[legrandefromage]

Sometimes I catch myself trying to put my seatbelt on, whilst on my bicycle.

 

[danson67]

My brother, who is a barrister occasionally involved in personal injury work, always says that not wearing a helmet could lose you 30-40% when it comes to possible claims of contributory negligence if anything goes to court. Money well spent IMHO.

Much can, and should, be improved by both driver and rider training.
The stats seem to say that there's no overall gain from making helmet wearing a legal requirement, possibly not even any gain from wearing at all. There are well-documents adverse sides to helmet wearing, such as car drivers treating you less carefully, helmeted riders being less risk-averse, and bigger effective head size leading to worse impacts, but at least the MIPS system helmets are an attempt to address the rotational damage issues found with more static helmet designs.

I do suspect damage is more often done specifically to child cyclists by ill-fitting helmets, than wearing no helmet at all.

On another track, my mother died from brain injuries incurred just tripping over a curb in the street. I wear a helmet, but it is my personal preference, and I would not dream of stopping others from not choosing not to wear one.

All the best,

 

[HansOberlander]

Re:

Speaking for Germany, the trend amongst young people like myself definitely goes toward wearing a helmet.
Living in a crowded city like Cologne as I do, you would not want to not wear a helmet. Bad bike lanes, crazy drivers (turning right at full speed without watching for cyclists), even more crazy pedestrians walking onto bike lanes while wearing headphones & looking at their smartphones..

I was against wearing a helmet, but since riding a road bike, I always do. Also my sister was hit by a (slow) car, banged her head on the curb, luckily she wore a helmet, so nothing happened.

In the Netherlands on the other side, almost no one wears a helmet.

 

[dyna-ti]

So when youre paralyzed from the neck down after being crushed by that car/taxi/bus, you can remain sharp minded, and live the experience in full colourful detail.

Offroad where there are trees, rocks and stuff, and youre riding in an uneven and hilly, twisty, turny rooty, slippery ground then yes a lid is a must.

On the road death comes under the wheels and crushing to the body and helmets arent very strong for that.