Bike Helmets - Kids Yes Parents No ??????

[c.d.]

I see this all the time and for the life of me I cannot understand it. Saw a husband and wife on their bikes and each of them had a small child with them seated in a child carrier attached to the bike. Both of the kids were wearing helmets but the parents were not. What exactly are the parents thinking? "I'm an adult so my head will just bounce off the cement. No problem." I am always tempted to ask them who the bread winner in your family is, you or your children?

What the hell are these people thinking??????????????

To quote Mark Twain, "God must have loved fools, he made so many of them."

c.d.

[johns]

I write as a keen, active and regular cyclist.

I see situations like the one you mention and it boggles my mind too, but don't forget that some people are just stupid.

Furthermore there are some cyclists who think that crash helmets are of little or even no benefit in any situation.

[Errata]

Not an avid cyclist, don't even own a bicycle. But the few times I have ridden as an adult, I haven't worn a helmet for the same reason I tend not to put my seatbelt on in a parking lot. I judge that I am unlikely to have an accident at any speed that would truly cause me danger. It's not based on any science or fundamental truth, just something I judge to be true enough for the circumstances. Of course, I've had two concussions standing still, so it's also entirely possible that my skull is doomed.

[John Wheat]

Exactly how much protection do those polystyrene helmets actually give?

[sdreid]

I wore a helmet on a motorcycle but bicycle helmets just look too dorky.

[RivkahChaya]

Exactly how much protection do those polystyrene helmets actually give?

A lot. I know two people who are alive because of them. One person hit debris going down a hill, and her bike flipped over, and she hit the road with the top of her head. She wasn't completely OK immediately-- she was a little shaky for a couple of months, and needed rehab, but eventually, she was all right. The other person was broadsided by a car that ran a red light. His leg was smashed, and had to be repaired surgically, and he got thrown against another car, the side of which was dented when his helmeted head slammed against it. I'm surprised he didn't break his neck.

I used to bike all the time, and I always wore a helmet. I've never had an accident, except once when I hit a fence when I was eight. Me and bike both undamaged.

The last several cities where I have lived have had child helmet laws, so I'm sure that's why the parents have the kids in helmets. They wouldn't get a block without being ticketed, and even just a first offense is about a $500 fine. But there's no fine for adults not wearing helmets.

FWIW, I know a lot of adults who bike with helmets, and some of them have kids. Both biking clubs in town require them, and one of the US's best known bicycle races, the Little 500, which happens in the city where I went to college, requires them. It may be that a lot of adults wear them do so because the racers wearing them make them look cool. You see racers practicing and getting into shape riding around on the back roads with lots of hills, in streamlined helmets, all the time as soon as the snow melts. On the other hand, I know a lot of people who don't like using them because they feel they're an unnecessary expense. The cost of a child's helmet against the cost of a ticket is an easy decision.

[Scorpio]

Grown men who wear helmets when riding a push bike who are not descending a mountain at 30mph,are at the olympics,or facing London traffic looks odd to me. Perhaps they are the same breed who go to aerobics classes.

[RivkahChaya]

Grown men who wear helmets when riding a push bike who are not descending a mountain at 30mph,are at the olympics,or facing London traffic looks odd to me. Perhaps they are the same breed who go to aerobics classes.

Of course. Real men get concussions.

[johns]

I'm a 49 year old man who wears a cycle helmet while cycling on roads. One that doesn't look like the regular cycle helmet, but more like this>> http://images.blisssnowboards.co.uk/...Teal_Sd_hr.jpg because I think that the regular "Tour de France" cycle helmet is a poor design, looks idiotic and I've never found one that's comfortable and fits well anyway.

I think they are a valuable piece of kit when riding a bike and I would advise anyone to wear one while cycling on or off road..

I think their effectiveness is obvious.

[The Good Michael]

I'm a 49 year old man who wears a cycle helmet while cycling on roads. One that doesn't look like the regular cycle helmet, but more like this>> http://images.blisssnowboards.co.uk/...Teal_Sd_hr.jpg because I think that the regular "Tour de France" cycle helmet is a poor design, looks idiotic and I've never found one that's comfortable and fits well anyway.

I think they are a valuable piece of kit when riding a bike and I would advise anyone to wear one while cycling on or off road..

I think their effectiveness is obvious.

The same with rollerblades. Wear a helmet and wrist guards at the least. My helmet has saved my skull and the wrist guards really really stop the wrists from breaking. The road rash is another problem. Always wear a bicycle helmet and something for the eyes when cycling. Anything less is choice, but a stupid one.

Mike

[RivkahChaya]

The Tour de France helmets are aerodynamic. If you are trying to win a race, the one pictured in the link really will create drag, and seconds count. Almost everyone I know in the US wears a racing style helmet, although people who ride in traffic probably would be better off with the hockey-type ones. The racing ones are really good at protecting your head if you go off the bike, but they don't offer as much protection if you are hit by a car sideways. They offer some, though, and are better than nothing. They are 95% of what are available in stores, too.

[c.d.]

I think polystyrene refers to the inner liner which is meant to crush and absorb some of the force from a fall. The outer shell is lexan, a very hard plastic. Amazingly, I see people who have taken off the outer shell of their helmets for God only knows what reason. I guess they think it makes the helmet lighter and thus more comfortable. Of course, in doing so, you also eliminate most of the protection. For some reason, you sometimes see much older adults who have done this.

I also see people in-line skating (rollerblading) without pads, and again,that amazes me. I guess maybe I am over cautious but that just seems to be an accident waiting to happen.

I find this whole subject incredibly interesting and a real glimpse into human nature. I think a lot of it is arrogance and not wanting to admit that you are vulnerable just like everybody else.

And then of course there are those people who ride their bike with their helmets strapped to the handlebars. Don't get me started on that.

c.d.

[RivkahChaya]

Apparently real men need scars on their actual bodies. There's nothing cool about showing people the big crack in your helmet.

I've never seen anyone biking in just a polystyrene helmet, but those might not be helmets someone has taken the outer covering off of. They may be helmets designed for another purpose that people are wearing for biking when they shouldn't.

People who are in danger of sudden falls wear plain polystyrene helmets sometimes. They're very light, so they can be worn for a long time, by people who sometimes don't have very strong necks. Usually these are children with hard-to-control epilepsy, or cerebral palsy, but sometimes adults rehabbing after a stroke or broken hip wear them during PT. The people you see wearing those bike riding may have appropriated a spouse or parent's old PT helmet that was "free" (insurance-paid), because they don't realize how big the difference is, and don't see why they should pay for a regular bike helmet, since they have access to a free one.

[c.d.]

Hello Rivkah,

You may be right. I always thought they just took the outer shell off a regular helmet but as I mentioned it usually seems to be people around 70. So maybe this was a polystyrene helmet that was used for other purposes. Interesting.

c.d.

[johns]

Motorcycle and cycle helmets (maybe other types too) are a skin of polycarbonate (tough plastic) over a polystyrene inner.