Let's chat about helmets..

No helmet - No bueno.

Now that Trump is prez, I feel I can shame people not wearing helmets without the PC police changing the subject.
 
I was at the Lake Nochamixon trails last summer (very similar in terrain to 6 Mile). Packing up and getting ready to leave when I see a family of four (man, woman, and two children aged 10 -11 yrs old) riding into the trailhead. None of the four had helmets (!?!?!). Must be something about PA.
 
Mildly Wild said:
I was at the Lake Nochamixon trails last summer (very similar in terrain to 6 Mile). Packing up and getting ready to leave when I see a family of four (man, woman, and two children aged 10 -11 yrs old) riding into the trailhead. None of the four had helmets (!?!?!). Must be something about PA.
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I moved to PA in June and my 9 year old son made friends 3 other 9 year olds in the neighborhood. Two of the kids I have never seen with a helmet on any wheeled device and one i see every once and awhile. I always make my son wear his helmet.

However, when skating around the neighborhood, I don't wear a helmet but make my son wear one. DO WHAT I SAY NOT WHAT I DO.
 
we had neighbors who were from Brazil and their son (Pete) was good friends with my kids. They would ride bikes together and every time I reminded the kids to put their helmets on, Pete would refuse and tell me it's an American thing... Being that he was 7, 8.. at the time, I figured his parents influenced that one and I didn't push the issue and I would cringe every time that kid wiped out. My kids would occasionally pitch fits cause they didn't want to stop having fun to go and get their helmet and used the "Pete isn't wearing one" to try to convince me to let them slide... I did explain to my kids that some parents, especially from different cultures don't always do the same thing we do. Pete and his family moved out a couple years ago and moved to Switzerland... I wonder if they wear helmets there?

Funny thing... I grew up not wearing helmets... In fact, I spent many hours on dirtbikes without helmets. I'd go out to the garage, pick a basket case of a bike to get running, once I got it running, I didn't know how long it would stay running so I would jump on the bike and go ripping through the woods in whatever condition it was in and whatever I was wearing at the time. AND most bikes we had were three wheelers and didn't have breaks because the levers broke off, the pads were shot or whatever... Just the way it was.
 
@jdog
sell me on a lazer oasiz MIPS with the optional winter cap! and it has gopro mounts. who knew this existed?!?! built in winter and a mount for my light.
orange please, size large :D
 
1speed said:
Around 1999, a cyclist in Green Lane Park here in SE PA decided to go riding on the ultra-techy orange trail without a helmet. He crashed, fractured his skull and then lay there and died because he was all alone. After that, bikes were banned from Green Lane for the next decade plus. I'm not sure why there was ultimately a change of heart, but the fact remains that bikes were effectively banned for all of the 00's (some folks still rode there from what I understand, but myself and any of my riding buddies avoided it until a few years ago when we found out about the re-opening.)

I'm not personally aware of others, but you don't need to actually have another case to see the logic in the argument - a land manager has to make choices regarding risk tolerances. Given the relatively small operating budgets of many parks and trail systems, it's a pretty easy decision for many of them to exclude bicycles from those systems simply to avoid the possibility of a crash resulting in litigation. If they can't enforce an ironclad waiver (or guarantee that every user will see and sign that waiver) then even in limited liability venues, the potential loss due to litigation could destroy their budgets. If some f*cking knucklehead wants to ride a technical trail without the sense to protect his head given the very real possibility of a crash, that knucklehead presents a level of risk that any land manager would consider intolerable. And since they can't selectively ban individuals unless they pay to have a sentry posted at every possible access point, it's much more cost effective to simply ban everyone.

The simple fact is, a rider without a helmet presents a higher perceived risk for a negative press event and/or litigation for a land manager than one with a helmet. (The argument that a rider with a helmet will have a false sense of invincibility and will take more chances is nonsense on its face - personal risk tolerance is a psychological component of an individual personality, it isn't created by specific opportunities. If you've always been cautious about your safety, for example, you don't change your personality because someone gave you a helmet.) And as long as that higher perceived risk exists, helmetless riders can only increase the likelihood of a park or trail system being closed to riders.
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I get the logic about risk mitigation, and see that access could be at risk, especially in cases where private land owners allow passage. Perhaps if someone won't listen to the "protect your noggin" logic, then maybe the "don't risk our access" logic could be worth a shot. If neither of those work...your officially talking to a wall.

Personally, I've had my helmet hit rocks/branches/etc. hard enough, and frequently enough, to keep reminding me that I am making the right decision to wear a helmet.
 
I think when approaching somebody not wearing a helmet, it more important how you say it and not what you say. I did once run into an older person in the woods without a helmet, when questioned, they said it was their head ya ya ya.

I was wearing an older helmet for awhile, and finally replaced it. Wouldn't you know on the next ride I crashed hard. So know I have another new helmet.
 
gtluke said:
@jdog
sell me on a lazer oasiz MIPS with the optional winter cap! and it has gopro mounts. who knew this existed?!?! built in winter and a mount for my light.
orange please, size large :D
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That helmet is disqualified because it's called a Lazer.
 
Have 2 Bell Super 2R helmets. One I hit a tree with and dented up and one I have now to replace the smashed up one. Great helmet!
 
stb222 said:
We are informed, most of use have cracked helmets and/or been knocked out. We know the consequences. We also know the issues with trail access, again, informed.

The general public is dumb, many probably think it is cool to get knocked out the same as they think it is cool to ride in the mud and trash the trails.

It is nice to try but in the end, if t isn't s trail access issue, let me crack their skullz
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Pretty much. I've cracked two helmets riding XC. I've retired 3 DH helmets from hits over the years.

For most XC riding these days, I have a neon yellow "enduro" helmet (forget the brand - I think it was from Halter's) that covers more of the back than my previous XC helmets. For DH, I have a very comfortable 100% helmet jdog ordered for me.

I have a small noggin, so finding a helmet that fits well is a task. I do like the ratcheting adjustment a lot of new helmets have these days. Allows for a nice, tight fit but you can loosen it up a bit if you want to wear something under it during cold weather - with the option of being able to readjust if you take the headwear off.
 
Mildly Wild said:
None of the four had helmets (!?!?!). Must be something about PA.
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I'm pretty sure there is an under-13 helmet law in PA, but I imagine it's hard to enforce it when MC riders can go without. Most of the kids I see riding around my neighborhood don't wear them. I'm sure the dad would say, "I never wore a helmet when I was their age..."

Of course, I am of the age when we never wore helmets either... it was only when I started mtn biking in the late 80's that I started wearing one - although I'm pretty sure my first few local rides were without. It just wasn't something I thought about. Even the first road touring I did during high school we didn't wear them. The sponsoring organization (American Youth Hostel) required us to have them, but they spent the entire trip strapped to our panniers (as were the ride leaders' helmets). Back in the 80's bike helmets were really hot and uncomfortable to wear.
 
In my opinion, more and more people are wearing helmets as more and more people are becoming protective of their health and life in general. Some may say that it is not comfortable, however, as for me, safety comes first. I always wear a helmet. I wear Gonex Wind Cross Road Helmet http://bestadviser.net/mountain-bikes/top-mountain-bikes-helmets-and-clothing-review/
It is really comfortable as the straps are long enough to adjust easily. It has holes in it for the air to flow well, especially works well while biking in summer on long distances. Wearing a helmet while riding a bike is like wearing a seatbelt while driving. A helmet can reduce head injury risk. Of course, it would be better not to get into car and bike accidents, however, it is better to make sure that you will survive if you get into one. A lot of bicyclists are killed every day, thus, if you do not wish to face a fatal ending it is better to get yourself protected. I think the two most important factor of reducing fatalities are being cautious and wearing a helmet.
 
some people move to states where they don't need to wear a helmet on moto....main reason to move, so there ya go -

there is a kids helmet law here - but there is some weird caveat to it
that has to do with car access. cause yeah, we never went down the giant dirt hill and didn't hit our brakes, into the trail with the sharp turn in front of the boulder........remember when <fill in> broke his arm there,
lucky it wasn't worse.

posse
 
I got my bell rung at a skills park last week. My head hit the ground before I even realized I was in trouble. Glad to have my helmet on.

I saw others without helmets. I said something to them but it made no difference.
 
Don't know when the child helmet laws began, but we also never wore helmets as kids. It wasn't until my brother crashed on Johnson Drive one summer that I bought a cheapo Nashbar helmet. Luckily he was wearing a helmet when he hit the pavement, though he was knocked out and had to be carted to the emergency room.

I don't see an issue reminding someone to wear a helmet, not because of park protection, but I truly feel an ignorant rider needs to be reminded for their own protection. I usually tell some bs story about someone recently who didn't and a made up consequence.
 
I saw a rider without a helmet at Mercer today. For a millisecond I thought about lecturing a grown ass man but decide to let a grown ass man do what he wants.
 
qclabrat said:
Don't know when the child helmet laws began, but we also never wore helmets as kids.
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It had to be around '93, because it was shortly before I turned 14 which meant that I needed to wear a helmet. We never wore helmets, but we were mostly just riding around the neighborhood. I remember my mom making us wear helmets because of the law (even after we turned 14), and I would ride around with the helmet on but without the strap clipped, so it would be totally useless in a crash. Good thing I knew everything back then and didn't crack my skull open.
 
Despite being able to ride a bike without a helmet I take it off the "bicycle accessory" list and move it to the "bicycle component" list.


Bundle it together when selling new bikes.
 
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