Are Helmets Completely Worthless as a Safety Device for a Bike Commuter?

Dear RBT Bike Experts:

The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

J.

On Feb 20, 6:37 pm, "Jay" wrote:
Dear RBT Bike Experts:

The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

J.

Go right ahead. The gene pool is probably better-off without you.

"Curt Wiederhoeft" wrote in message
...
On Feb 20, 6:37 pm, "Jay" wrote:
Dear RBT Bike Experts:

The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach
steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the
coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

J.

Go right ahead. The gene pool is probably better-off without you.

....still waiting for some semblance of an intelligent reply...

Or do you think, a quick reply equates to a smart reply?

Please try again...and, I suggest...PAUSE before pressing SEND.

TIA - J.

In article ,
"Jay" wrote:

Dear RBT Bike Experts:

The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

J.

Real world report on the safety and efficacy of helmets?

Well, my helmet, now in tattered bits hangin on the wall bears the
smears incurred sliding down the asphalt. The styrofoam liner, following
the lead of the hard-shell outer, is bust in three or four (depending on
how you count them) separate pieces.

My left eyebrow covers the 12 or 13 stitches. The shorter, exposed,
6-stitch bit is accompanied by the scar tissue generated by the friction
between road surface and my exposed body parts.

All this while 'just riding along.' Then previously undiagnosed medical
conditions decided to reveal themselves, resulting in a total, and
(almost) catastrophic loss of control.

And, just last night, I had to pick my bike from my LBS after service.
Without my helmet I feel worse than naked, I feel exposed.

Go ahead, ride without a helmet, but I'll savour the fact that in my
experience the helmet did exactly what it is intended to do; absorbing
energy otherwise absorbed by my flesh and bone.

And I never buy 'fashion accessory' helmets.

And then there are the motorcycle helmets...

In article
,
Curt Wiederhoeft wrote:

On Feb 20, 6:37 pm, "Jay" wrote:
Dear RBT Bike Experts:

The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

Go right ahead. The gene pool is probably better-off without you.

We need a more active approach to eradicating the
"free-thinkers" who simply will not conform to good
sense. A lasting solution. They are not dying fast
enough. Waiting for them to be picked off one by one in
traffic is not working.

--
Michael Press

"Michael Press" wrote in message
...

We need a more active approach to eradicating the
"free-thinkers" who simply will not conform to good
sense. A lasting solution. They are not dying fast
enough. Waiting for them to be picked off one by one in
traffic is not working.

--
Michael Press

I am not a careful, law-abiding rider. I run red lights because I know, I
will NEVER get pulled over by a Chicago cop. I look both ways, several
times. I never endanger anyone. But I obviously know, if I am in a wreck, it
will be my fault. That is why I am 2x cautious, when I am breaking a traffic
law.

It seems, most Chicago bike riders ride just like I do. Especially when one
gets close to downtown. And not just bike messengers.

J.

On Feb 20, 8:21 pm, "Jay" wrote:
"Michael Press" wrote in message

...

We need a more active approach to eradicating the
"free-thinkers" who simply will not conform to good
sense. A lasting solution. They are not dying fast
enough. Waiting for them to be picked off one by one in
traffic is not working.

--
Michael Press

I am not a careful, law-abiding rider. I run red lights because I know, I
will NEVER get pulled over by a Chicago cop. I look both ways, several
times. I never endanger anyone. But I obviously know, if I am in a wreck, it
will be my fault. That is why I am 2x cautious, when I am breaking a traffic
law.

It seems, most Chicago bike riders ride just like I do. Especially when one
gets close to downtown. And not just bike messengers.

That's par for the course for Chicago riders--I even knew cops that
rode, and the basic rules we stay alive, but get there fast and
legally enough. So that means wrong way riding is a no no, but rolling
a light when you can get away with it is acceptable. I certainly don't
ride like that in Nashville.

Helmets are nice for girls that don't like scars. They're great
laceration preventers, for sure. I prefer looking like a pugilist.

Helmets are nice for girls that don't like scars. They're great
laceration preventers, for sure. I prefer looking like a pugilist.

For some reason, Stephan Robidas's face came to my mind just now. Maybe you
look like him--no structure to his nose at all.
http://dallasstarscare.com/Default.a...08&EntryID=183

On Wed, 20 Feb 2008 18:37:09 -0600, "Jay" wrote:
The only reason I would even consider wearing a helmet...is to attach steer
horns, such as these:

http://store.hornandleather.com/hl16br.html

Come on guys...I have been in plenty of wrecks. My head has NEVER been
injured. Wrists, hips, knees, hands, etc, YES. But not my head - not even
close. I suggest, helmets for low speed bike commuters ( 15 mph), are
simply a fashion statement. And for bragging rights to ladies at the coffee
shop (...I can afford to blow $100 on this useless accoutrement - and I
don't even care!)

Well, since a helmet is required to reduce the acceleration in an
impact of 15 mph to below the injury threshold, one might reasonably
conclude low speed riders are the only one who might benefit from
wearing a helmet.

I wear one for SWMBO, and because I'm required to wear one to ride a
bike near work.

Pat

Email address works as is.

On Feb 20, 9:00 pm, "Pat" wrote:
Helmets are nice for girls that don't like scars. They're great
laceration preventers, for sure. I prefer looking like a pugilist.

For some reason, Stephan Robidas's face came to my mind just now. Maybe you
look like him--no structure to his nose at all.http://dallasstarscare.com/Default.a...08&EntryID=183


Heh, I'm more like a less ginger Adam Savage from mythbusters with a
good number of fine facial scars on the forehead, lip, and chin.
Helmet would probably have prevented half of them--but life's too
short. When Scott from the LBS and I stopped by the skate park on the
way home the other night--I pointed out to him--if I was doing
backflips in a swimming pool with a metal edge, I'd wear a helmet,
knee protectors, wrist guards, cup, and tailbone protector. It's all
about risk and statistics in the end. My personal tipping point is
riding single track. If I got another mtb, I'd get a lid, as the
chance of falling are far greater, and the types of crashes different
from what you get in the city.