Helmets look stupid

Yes, I know they are there for a purpose, but in races, a helmet removes any traditional we see in the cap!

Surely in a race they can do without them or make it a matter of choice. When I see all those helmets it really spoils the visual aspect!

 

Should'nt that be *Helmets look alan* by stupid b'stard M

 

Rather look stupit then be stupit.

 

Wearing helmets isn't stupid....not wearing helmets is stupid

 

Albert. You obviously missed the part when I said they serve a purpose. But they are stupidly designed and I'm not the first to say so!

 

"Surely in a race they can do without them or make it a matter of choice"

That is what the topic starter said. My daughter worked in rehab hospital as an OT. She saw head injuries from bike accidents. Those with helmets usually walked out after observation. Those without stood a much better chance of going to a home, not their own home.

You choose, but inevitably others to bear the costs of your choice. That i do not like.

 

In an organised race that has been raced without helmets more than it has with helemts , there are no cars or other vehicles that cause a problem. A bike race is not as hazardous as the public street where I understand wearing a helmet is sensible!

 

After more than one crash in an organized criterium...I saw scuff marks and scrapes on my helmet that would have been lacerations and contusions on my head...than you USCF for making helmets mandantory...

 

Are you suggesting that Saul Rasin would still be alive if he hadn't been wearing a helmet at the [size=-1]Circuit de la Sarthe? Crashes happen more often in races than they do on public streets. Just because there aren't any cars doesn't make the pavement any softer.
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Having spoken to someone who has brain damage from a crash while not wearing a helmet, I will always wear a helmet.

 

You want to bet. Try bouncing off the car onto the pavement! Worse than any race! Anyway, regardless of the practical good of a melmet, they really take the traditions from a race

 

I have.

 

I never doubted the value or reason for their existence!

 

"OUCH"

 

First off I am not advocating riding without a helmet.
That being said, current helmet designs do not offer much, if any protection in high speed crashes, and in some cases even low speed crashes may be more serious with a helmet on than without, due to rotational forces.
(i.e. like a whiplash as your helmet glances of a hard object)

Still I prefer to wear my helmet, it might not be the most becoming piece of attire but I still feel more secure with it on. (Not to the point that I would take extra risks thinking the helmet will protect me from my own stupidity, because I know it wouldn't)

In my opinion the two most important cycling saftey tips under any cycling condition are:
1. Keep a well maintained bike and don't ride it if it needs servicing.
2. Ride smart, be aware of your surroundings and be as prepeared as you can be for evasive manouvers.

After that proper protective clothing appropriate to the cycling environment.

 

surely alan you're taking the piss.

 

Yeah, you should try it some time. And if you're lucky enough to survive, maybe you'll think twice about suggesting that professionals risk their lives to uphold your little "traditions".

 

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawn!!
Not ANOTHER helmets look stupid thread I have seen some horrific crashes in races where I am sure the riders themselves were glad they were wearing helmets. No crashes in races...idiotic, the presence or absence of cars notwithstanding.

 

What sort of "traditions? Serious head injuries?

 

Hey alan I don't know if you have ever wiped out but I have.

I wasn't racing. It didn't involve a car. Me and the asphalt and I lost. It was a corner that I took too quickly and the asphalt was in bad shape. Let's just say that even WITH my helmet I suffered a minor concussion. The right side of my face was mashed up pretty good and I hate to imagine how much worse it would have been if I had no helmet.

I suppose that in a race you would probably be going faster and the chances of you falling would be slightly higher because you're in close contact with other riders. It's not only your cycling skills you need to worry about but also the guy beside you. You never know when the guy beside you is gonna make a sudden move and down you go.

The fact that you even began this thread is stupid. Yes I agree that racing with helmets takes away from the tradition but I think that if cyclists back then were handed a helmet like the Giro Atmos or the Specialized Decibel, they may have been more inclined to wear them. The difference in the tradition of racing and todays safety is the advances in technology that create a helmet that is very aerodynamic and light compared to what was available 30, 40, or 50 years ago.