Helmets

What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?

So many names....

Thanks for any help.

 

Lynn and James <[email protected]> wrote in news:BAF7C124.361% [email protected]:
> What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?

Buy one that fits well. Other features are much less important.

Full face helmets offer better protection, but the standard style is fine for beginners as long as
they're not crazy. In the USA, all helmets for sale in stores must meet the same saftey standards; I
hope Canada is similar.

 

Ken thoughtfully penned:
> Lynn and James <[email protected]> wrote in news:BAF7C124.361% [email protected]:
>> What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?
>
> Buy one that fits well. Other features are much less important.
>
> Full face helmets offer better protection, but the standard style is fine for beginners as long as
> they're not crazy. In the USA, all helmets for sale in stores must meet the same saftey standards;
> I hope Canada is similar.

and go to a bike shop where they will fit it for you. Full face is totally overkill unless you are a
downhiller.

penny

 

"Lynn and James" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:BAF7C124.361%[email protected]...
> What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?
>
> So many names....
>
> Thanks for any help.

The key is proper and comfortable fit. Go to an actual bike shop where a pro will fit you and teach
you how to adjust it. No need to spend a ton...

 

"determined" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> "Lynn and James" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:BAF7C124.361%[email protected]...
> > What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?
> >
> > So many names....
> >
> > Thanks for any help.
>
> The key is proper and comfortable fit. Go to an actual bike shop where a pro will fit you and
> teach you how to adjust it. No need to spend a
ton...

although at least bell's lower level does not come in sizes - its just a one-size-fit-most deal. I
sold two of those, luckily they fit on the two guys pretty decently. Fitting doesn't necessarily
have to be done by a "pro" - anybody who works at a decent bike shop should be able to fit one
effectively.

Jon Bond

 

On Mon, 26 May 2003 16:02:05 GMT, Lynn and James <[email protected]> wrote:

>What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?

The one that fits the best.

Different helmets have different shapes, as do humans. If you look at a head from the top, some
folks have round hears, others have oval shaped heads, etc... Also, people have different distances
between the head's features, like the brow and the ears, to the top of the head.

Try as many brands as you can, and buy the one that feels comfy.

Reputable brands include: Giro, Trek, Specialized, Briko, Bell, and many others. All of my helmets
are Giros, as they fit my candy apple noggin the best.

Look for CPSC, or better yet, SNELL approvals if you're in the USA.

Barry

 

Jon Bond thoughtfully penned:
> "determined" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>>
>> "Lynn and James" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>> news:BAF7C124.361%[email protected]...
>>> What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?
>>>
>>> So many names....
>>>
>>> Thanks for any help.
>>
>> The key is proper and comfortable fit. Go to an actual bike shop where a pro will fit you and
>> teach you how to adjust it. No need to spend a ton...
>
> although at least bell's lower level does not come in sizes - its just a one-size-fit-most deal. I
> sold two of those, luckily they fit on the two guys pretty decently. Fitting doesn't necessarily
> have to be done by a "pro" - anybody who works at a decent bike shop should be able to fit one
> effectively.
>
> Jon Bond

I meant pro as in someone who knows what they are doing, as compared to the guy from the toy dept at
a big box store but you knew that. ;-) Penny

 

Lynn and James wrote:
> What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?

I "BMX" or "Skare Board" type helmet. They are designed to sustain multiple impacts, provide better
coverag, and afford lots of space for stickers. ( And are less $$$$ )

Once you get proficient and rarely/never crash you can buy a tres'chic ultra-light, one-crash, big
$$$, type helmet.

 

Penny S. wrote:
> Ken thoughtfully penned:
>
>>Lynn and James <[email protected]> wrote in news:BAF7C124.361% [email protected]:
>>
>>>What is the best , reliable, helmet for an adult beginner mountain bike rider?
>>
>>Buy one that fits well. Other features are much less important.
>>
>>Full face helmets offer better protection, but the standard style is fine for beginners as long as
>>they're not crazy. In the USA, all helmets for sale in stores must meet the same saftey standards;
>>I hope Canada is similar.
>
>
> and go to a bike shop where they will fit it for you. Full face is totally overkill unless you are
> a downhiller.

Yeah, mostly. Unless you also ride bmx occasionally, in which case the full face option
comes in handy. I've got a Giro Switchblade myself. I had two really nasty crashes, one a
face plant at the BMX track, and one a head-on collision on the trail with a rider who came
around a blind corner, head down and crankin' away. Never even saw me. The front of his
helmet went right through that Switchblade - went between the helmet itself and the
jawguard. I got my chimes rung twice in two weeks and it scared me. Even though the full
face helmet did not protect me from a head-on collision, the face plant hurt way worse, and
a full face helmet would most definitely have been useful. I landed nose and mouth first,
and when I sat up, I was about 90% positive that the snap I'd heard was my front teeth
breaking off. My face was numb, so I had to put a hand up there and feel to be sure. The
teeth were okay, but the visor was toast. Still sometimes when I'm dropping off to sleep
I'll remember that sound and it'll jerk me awake. So that's when I got my Switchblade. It
got me through a time when I could easily have developed a full-blown phobia if I hadn't
MADE myself get out there and ride. Every curve made me flinch. The jaw guard made me feel
just a little safer. But last summer it got really hot, and my kid started riding a lot, so
I gave her my other helmet. I finally took the jaw guard off for a road ride on my 'bent,
and wound up just leaving it off. I guess I'm over my scare.

Kathleen

 

Kathleen said...

> Even though the full face helmet did not protect me from a head-on collision, the face plant
> hurt way worse, and a full face helmet would most definitely have been useful. I landed nose
> and mouth first, and when I sat up, I was about 90% positive that the snap I'd heard was my
> front teeth breaking off. My face was numb, so I had to put a hand up there and feel to be
> sure. The teeth were okay, but the visor was toast. Still sometimes when I'm dropping off to
> sleep I'll remember that sound and it'll jerk me awake.

I did a face plant on asphalt last summer. I was going about 20mph then tried to take the corner
into my apartment complex in a full lean, pedals to the pavement turn. Unfortunately the road
around the corner was drenched from someone who decided to water the pavement as well as the grass.
It might as well have been ice. Black eye, cut on the eyebrow, swollen face, contusions and
abrasions too numerous to remember. Backs of my hands have scars that are just beginning to fade.
$600 emergency room bill. Like you, I am just now getting up the nerve to take corners moderately
fast again.