helmet, yes or no?

[ton]

whilst out exploring the hills/trails/mountains, do you wear a helmet?

or rather, is there anyone who does nor wear one.

[whitestone]

Off-road: always. On road: most of the time. The last time I came off a road bike, water wings would have been more use as I landed in the canal

[Single Speed George]

off road always why wouldn't you . feel pretty stupid if you fell off and gave your self brain damage if you wernt !

on road also always ass other people are likely to knock you off allso you can go dead fast on a road bike so potential for getting really messed up ! so again you would feel pretty stupid if you died cause you were too cool or to traditional to ware one ...

but its up to you if you want to feel stupid when above happens

[Moder-dye]

Yep all the time. Had a couple times when it would have been a life changer without it.

Once just playing chase with my 7 year son on flat tarmac area on Xmas eve. Chain snapped and I headbutted tarmac. As it was it spoilt Xmas with cracked ribs and bruising, without helmet there'd have been no Xmas. Ironically I very nearly didn't wear it as just messing about with son but thought to to show a good example.

[Scattamah]

99.9% of the time (on/off road) - yes.
The other 0.1% of the time, when I go for a gentle spin around the park on cycle paths - no.

Greetz

S.

[Pyro]

Helmet: Always*

Also always wear full-finger gloves, after one too many "It's hard to brake without fingertips isn't it?" moments after crashing.


*Only minor exception is the tiny stuff-checking rides around the turning circle in our cul-de-sac while fettling things.

[cycleofaddiction]

When i'm bikepacking,when there's a lot of climbing involved and it's really hot i will hang my helmet on my bar roll and when me & the missus go for a Xmas day road ride we ride without a helmet !

[ScotRoutes]

TBH, helmets are so comfy, well ventilated and light these days that there's little reason not to wear one.

The chances of one actually "saving your life" or "preventing permanent brain damage" are, however, so low as to be almost negligible.

So - go with what you feel.

[benp1]

Local ride around park with dog - no

Some quick, local errands sometimes no

Everything else, which is mostly, yes

[psling]

Mostly yes when I'm on the bike. If I'm just hillwalking then I don't bother (well, you didn't specify )

[HaYWiRe]

Mountain biking and road cycling is a definite yes, I'm both clumsy on decents and have been hit by idiot drivers more than once, so I never leave without, intact I feel odd or naked without one


For touring, I always have one, but there are times I dont wear it;
If its a long hike a,bike then I take it off to vent, wipe the salt from inside it and hang it off my bars

Also if I'm riding gentle flat paths I sometimes just strap it to the back. Like coastal beach boardwalks, smooth open cycle networks, anything gentle where you plod along taking in the views

But regardless, I NEVER leave the house with the bike and not take one, to the point where riding without it feels very odd

[Pete-G]

Always, apart from short road tests at work flicking up and down gears. Only time it comes off during normal riding will be long off road climbs in hot weather. I've had too many incidents where I've been left wondering "what if I hadn't been wearing that" to risk it.
It's quite refreshing to see that pretty much everyone here seems to agree on this, I've seen this topic descend into pointless arguments in most corners of the bike related internet..

[ctznsmith]

pretty much everyone here seems to agree on this, I've seen this topic descend into pointless arguments.

Agree the argument is pointless.

I don't wear one on the road and have crashed a fair bit without a helmet on. Not dead yet.

Off road I do normally wear one because there are more sharp pointy things around to bang your head on. However I did ride some fairly rough gravel roads whilst on tour without a helmet on and didn't even think about it at the time.

I'm curious as to why Ton asked?

[fatbikephil]

Thats a no brainer isn't it (sorry)

I'm continually smacking my head of things so yes for me. In fact I should wear one around the house...

[feepole]

I have a gigantic head, on top of a skinny body, so I always look daft with my super sized helmet on. Yet these dates I wear it at all times, except occasionally on a sweaty uphill. Only had one spill where I reckon it may have saved me from proper damage..... But I reckon that's 'nuff already!

[Bearbonesnorm]

I've had plenty of 'incidents' with motorbikes over the years, which I'm fairly sure would have left me in a much worse condition had I not had a decent helmet on, so wearing one on a push iron seems quite natural .... whether a cycle helmet offers any real protection will always be open to debate but I figure it can't do any harm.

I think the industry has done a great job in (a) making helmets people don't mind wearing and are even considered desirable on occasion and (b) making the wearing of a helmet 'normal', so you stand out* without one ... however, I hate to think that they'd ever be made compulsory, peoples right to decide for themselves shouldn't be taken away.


*in a bad way.

[ton]

the reason i asked, i always wear a helmet when mountainbiking...always have. but for touring ( for 30 years) i have never bothered. i find them annoying, hot, sweaty and irritating. i have never worn one on the road either.
but i have been having thoughts about buying and trying one. got a weeks offroad touring coming up in wales. we wont be rushing or racing about, but still in 2 minds wether to try one.

i was just curious as to what others did whilst touring/pootling.

[benp1]

There's a cool innovation that looks like a scarf but is an airbag that deploys around your head - like what the neck and chest/back braces they have for motorbikes and horse riding

Good idea, don't know how well it works though

[Yorlin]

the reason i asked, i always wear a helmet when mountainbiking...always have. but for touring ( for 30 years) i have never bothered. i find them annoying, hot, sweaty and irritating. i have never worn one on the road either.
but i have been having thoughts about buying and trying one. got a weeks offroad touring coming up in wales. we wont be rushing or racing about, but still in 2 minds wether to try one.

i was just curious as to what others did whilst touring/pootling.

Well.. helmets are (or at least can be) be hot/sweaty/irritating - but if you are riding off road there is a real non-zero risk of bonking your head off a rock, so yeah most off roaders wear em.

For on the road... well any eejit could drive up the back of you, in london or altnaharra.

By off road touring you mean? I once wiped out near the summer isles due to a bad cleat screw and flopped onto some nice soft grass, but right by me was a heap of stones.

[Joshvegas]

I wear a helmet almost always.

But if I forget to put it in the car or something I will ride without. I jist think of it as a good habit rather than a necessity

[paramart]

never used to wear one till i got chased by a dog, looked back to see where it was, then hit a low barrier broke my thumb but managed to roll realized it could have been serious my wife insisted i got one, a couple of yrs later i headbutted a tree the helmet cracked and was really dented my head was sore but intact, since then several offs and another broke helmet,
always wear it when on the road as i feel more vulnerable and i tend to ride the quiet lanes where traffic still goes to fast for the conditions
can,t understand when adults make their little children wear one but don,t themselves then take them off roading like they feel nothing will happen to themselves if it did what do the kids do then, also as previously stated sets a good example to the children

[whitestone]

I'm under no illusion about the protection that helmets provide, they'll reduce impact injury to the head and at lower speeds/energies they'll prevent injury altogether. I managed to head butt a rather large boulder when out in the Alps the other week, I was going at about 5kmh at the time, without a helmet I'd have had a few cuts and bruises, if I'd been going significantly faster then even with the helmet I would have likely still got concussion and probably some neck/spine injuries.

Earlier in that holiday we were in the Loire valley and we were probably the only cyclists wearing helmets even on the tarmac cycle path. Somehow in this country (the UK) the narrative seems to have become "helmets make you safe" and by extension if you don't wear a helmet then you are being reckless though as Chris Boardman points out: wearing a helmet isn't even in the top ten improvements for cycling safety. I'm just as likely to suffer a head injury when walking down the street if I tripped or fell but don't wear one for that.

So back to Ton's question: yes I wear a helmet but it's out of choice. If I lived in a town then I wouldn't wear one for general nipping to the shops type riding.

[Single Speed George]

"helmets make you safe" and by extension if you don't wear a helmet then you are being reckless though as Chris Boardman points out: wearing a helmet isn't even in the top ten improvements for cycling safety. I'm just as likely to suffer a head injury when walking down the street if I tripped or fell but don't wear one for that.

yes there are other things that can be done but in city riding if you did come off and get head injury and you wernt wearing one i think you would regret it ... as for not waring one when walking vs biking , ell biking in a city or town is quite allot more dangerous than walking down a pavement apart from anything you are going fster when biking you have further to fall , less control when you do fall and tend to be in harms way a bit more ... so not really a comparison between walking

i have allso had some big crashes in the alps down hill biking and my full face saved my life at least once over the years, when i didn't make it across the river gap at chattel .... broke the helmet in half but only sustained mild concussion and whiplash due to the enerjy absorption of the helmt so know that they are quite effective at high speeds aswell as low speeds

been dooing quit allot of work on helmets at work ( i design climbing equipment ) so not bike helmets but even so we have done lots of drop tests reacently and you would be amazed how efective helmets are at reducing impacts so i would say that they do work and are worth having.

but as i said before that's my opinion and i don't real care if someone else isnt wearing a helmet as long as they are ok feeling stupid if something does go wrong it wont be me feeling like that ...however i do sometimes pop to the shop without one down some quiet cyce path occasionally so not always perfect but always mountain biking, road biking CX or commuting

[ton]

gents, lets not turn this into a stw type argument.
I have read the reply's and taken all onboard.

new catlike very well vented helmet on it's way to me.

cheers

[HaYWiRe]

Its impossible to prevent all injuries, but a cranial impact is going to leave you alot worse off than hitting your knee or elbow, or are are being reckless not wearing protection there too? You can't bubble wrap the outdoors but you can choose to minimize the more serious and damaging injuries

Along this line I'm a firm believer in spinal protection, and wish the industry would pioneer it more, full motocross armour is clearly overkill and uncomfortable, but simple spine protection used by jockeys and race bikes should come to cycling, after all a spinal injury is up there with head injuries, if not more important


And everytime I dont wear gloves...every single time, I cut my hand...thats just sods luck