svelocity:I was hoping more people would comment on how (in the slow-mo) we can clearly see his head/helmet slam the concrete then slide for a few feet...or how without a helmet he would have been seriously injured...or how about the randomness of the event i.e., how we can't control what happens to us when we bike and preparation is the key.

Oh well let's not talk about helmets and lets keep talking about how controlling the traffic would have saved the day.

Yes, I looked at the slow-mo and the hemet did it's job. You can see him bounce off the street and then slide along it.

In the mountain bike world, there is no debate anymore. You just don't see serious mountain bikers riding without a helmet. This is because mountain bikers are expecting to fall, and they know if they fall, there is a chance they will hit their heads, and they know that if they hit their heads, they will fare better with a helmet on. This includes heavily tatoo'd rebels, etc. The downhillers wear full face helmets and body armor. But everyone wears at least a helmet. I know a helmet won't save my life in a worst-case or even a bad-case scenario. But I wear one almost all the time. If it's not practical for some reason (e.g. I run to pick up my daughter's bike from where she locked it and ride it home for a mile), then I ride without it--but I ride like a granny. I have personally had two (self-diagnosed) concussions from hitting my head while not wearing a helmet: one (bad) from skateboarding when I was 14, the other (moderate) from snowboarding 4 or 5 years ago (and I wanted a helmet--there wasn't one available at the rental place at that time). It's just no fun. A couple years ago I fell while riding 5 mph, while wearing a helmet. I was trying to throw a piece of trash away in a trash can while riding by without stopping, and somehow I got crossed up. It was an awkward fall and I ended up rolling down on my back and slamming the back of my helmeted head onto the concrete. My body was slightly bruised but my head was fine. No headache even. The crash was similar in form to my snowboard fall--rolling onto my back and then slamming the back of my head. But the snowboard fall left me with dizziness and headaches for a couple of days. I have three other personal anecdotes. Many years ago there was one guy in the group I rode with who just wouldn't wear a helmet. He didn't like them. One day he was riding around in circles while waiting for his friends to get their equipment together after changing a flat. He fell off going maybe 3 mph and hit his head. He ended up being airlifted to a trauma unit and almost died. He ended up ok, but always rode with a helmet after that. The second incident was about two years ago. I came across a downed cyclist who had lost control going downhill at about 20 mph. He was probably in his late 50s or early 60s--was riding a hybrid. He had been wearing a helmet and shattered it when his head hit the ground. He was not all with it mentally-he was able to describe the accident, but he kept asking our names, repeating himself, etc. The ambulance came within a few minutes and took him away. His injuries were serious enough--probably a broken collarbone, the concussion, etc. But from the nature of the fall, the broken helmet, etc. I have little doubt that this guy would have either died or had permanent brain damage if he hadn't been wearing a helmet. The third incident wasn't actually an incident. A long time ago, I happened to see JFK Jr. riding mountain bikes up in the Santa Monica mountains. He was with another guy (body guard?), they clearly had rented bikes and were just tooling around when they decided to ride up into the hills. No helmets. Also clearly neophyte cyclists without much in the way of off-road skills. Yet JFK Jr. hiked his bike up a single track trail and was planning to try going down a little steep section of single track just above the staging area. Nothing happened--he backed off when he realized he couldn't ride it, and I went on my way, while they went on theirs. A few years later they guy was dead, having killed himself and his wife while flying off the coast of Massachusetts.

I understand that personal anecdotes don't prove anything. And I strongly believe that riding style matters more than wearing a helmet for overall safety. But I have seen enough to convince me. And the downside of wearing a helmet is pretty much zero, in my book. I have a "clean" helmet that I wear when I'm going short distances and don't want to get scummed up by my helmet. And I have "serious" helmets that I wear when I'm going on more serious rides (the kind that requires a shower at the end). That's it. The helmet is just part of riding the bike. I am taking a risk by riding my bike when I could just as easily drive for transport, or go to the gym for exercise. But the helmet is an easy risk management tool. People like JFK Jr. think differently, which is their right. But they also end up killing themselves and their families more frequently, because they are more cavalier about taking risks. I say if you don't wear a helmet, do it for your own reasons: you don't want to get as sweaty, you enjoy the wind in your hair, you care more about image than comfort. But please don't argue that not wearing a helmet is safer, or that the increase in risk is negligible.

Anybody seen this Biologic Pango folding helmet locally? I'd like to try one if it fits. Their website indicated that it is not available in the US but can be ordered online.

Since San Diego is moving towards a Bike Sharing program the question du jour is: Should these programs require helmets?

Here's a discussion on NPR's radio program Here and Now.
http://hereandnow.wbur.org/2012/10/02/lose-bike-helmets

Rather poor straw man argument here, since PFDs are mandatory while boating in most jurisdictions.

I feel like many of these discussions fail to distinguish between population level risks and individual risk. Perhaps at the population level, there is a benefit to not requiring helmets, but at the individual level, if you have the bug and ride all the time, you are probably reducing your personal risk by wearing a helmet. When it comes to my decision making, I'm not making population level assessments because the fact is that I am already riding and not sitting on my couch.

Most helmetless pions ride at 8 miles and hour, the speed of a recreational jogger

BWAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!

Try 47 MPH on this stretch. Or 40 MPH on this stretch. I have no idea how fast I was going here, but the brake pads smelled funny at the bottom. Or, hey, I ride 18 MPH on flat level on a Brompton for commuting.

Don't make all lidless riders into the same old tired meme of drunken OB beach cruisers. I'm sure Sigurd would be ashamed to go 8 MPH UPHILL. Hans has probably seen higher speeds getting home from Balboa heading down Laurel. I'm glad your helmet saved you, but risk, speed, and helmets are independent variables. If we're just being anecdotal here, then I'd say the slowest people are those WITH helmets, based upon what I see in Monterey. All the tourists renting bikes are rolling along slowly, taking in the sights (not that there's anything wrong with that), and all of them are wearing helmets. The fastest are the CSU MB and Hartnell College crowd that ride single-speed (with backpacks) and no helmets. Only the Naval Postgraduate School Bicycle Club can outpace them locally, and they run peloton-style.

Geoff:

Most helmetless pions ride at 8 miles and hour, the speed of a recreational jogger

I'm sure Sigurd would be ashamed to go 8 MPH UPHILL.

I will limit my commentary to saying that I climb Nautilus (between Fay and Scenic), a pretty decent hill (1.4 miles, 6.1%), at 10.6mph.

:)

HippyOnaBike:

Sigurd: I climb Nautilus (between Fay and Scenic), a pretty decent hill (1.4 miles, 6.1%), at 10.6mph.

:)

Every. Single. Day!

Although mostly true, the fact is also that you ride in circles around me up that hill, Hippy!

I appreciate synthetic's enthusiasm for wearing helmets and I don't think synthetic meant to insult anyone on this board.

I will agree with Cecil with the "engage and persuade" part of his post. Flinging insults doesn't get you very far in an argument as most people get hung up on the insult and don't listen to the message.

synthetic:Please take into consideration my opinion on helmets being safe are my PERSONAL opinion and not reflective of any organization.


Research has shown that those with helmets ride a bit more aggressive since they believe they have a safety net.... yes you will push yourself faster ; this may skew data on the accident rate survival factor. I like to hit speeds of 24-32mph on flats (dont care about downhill speeds- it becomes a skill instead of a workout) - I can vouch a helmet has protected me from more serious injury on many instances. All sanctioned races require a helmet... so why not get used to it?

Courage For Your Head

There's no way I would descend as fast as I do sans hemet. And that's not good.

I do replace my helmet every 5-8 years. You can usually tell when the styrofoam starts getting brittle to the touch. The whole idea of the helmet is to convert impact energy into crumbling structure thus protecting the head. Styrofoam ages and looses that ability over time. Sucks to shell out for a new one when the old one still looks fine but I'd rather be able to depend on it.

Also replace after every crash. Fortunately I only had to do that once. But the inch deep, two inches across dent above my left temple made me very happy to pay for a new helmet.

For me a helmet is like the seat belt in the car. I get in, I click in, one motion. I put on my helmet, I get on my bike, I ride.

I actually always on the look out for discounts and clearance on helmets. So I've got 5 to choose from (3 Berns, Two Limar). At the last swap meet, we found two new stylish Bern helmets for Gena. For Nicholas I have several helmets: 2 Nut cases, 1 Bern, 1 Bell bucket helmet that is used for skate boarding and biking. You can never have too many helmets around.

The Helmet Dilemma

Great article.

I agree, that was a great article.

Here is something called the Hierarchy of Control

Hierarchy of hazard control is a system used in industry to minimize or eliminate exposure to hazards

At the bottom of PPE or Personal Protective Equipment (helmets, vests, other neon flashy clothing). Right above that behavioral change.

At the very top? Elimination. Cars are the problem when it comes to cycling safety - not helmets or a bunch of classes. Physical separation is going to get the safety numbers up and collisions down.

I honestly don't care if you use a helmet or not as it's your own decision, but the constant attempts to justify your non usage is hilarious.

My favorite so far was the "study" that suggested by not using helmets cars will give you more room on the road. An average of a whole three INCHES if I recall correctly! Now another article suggests the city of Boston should not promote/advertise the use of helmets because ridership MAY go down. If ridership goes down we all are less safe. Really? You have any data on that or is that "conventional wisdom"?

If you don't want to wear a helmet, fine... but stop with this nonsense.

Personally (based on anecdotes), I think the helmet issue is a wash. The data proves otherwise but we're not apparently interested in that. So be it. Anecdotally, I don't know whether it does or doesn't help and I did have my own head into pavement incident complete with subsequent ER visit to glue my head back in incident that happened sans helmet. I think this is considered a serious injury per statistical recording purposes. My own doctor said a helmet wouldn't have helped based on where I hit my head.

There is the issue of risk compensation to be considered (I think someone mentioned above). I don't ride fast and I don't take chances. I quit doing group rides for this reason. Your social pace is not mine and my pace is annoying to everyone but me. And no, I do not want lessons on improving my cadence.

The helmet debate is a distraction. It allows public policy makers and influential government bodies (like CDC) to make a shitty recommendations ignoring the larger problem (roads totally not designed for slow moving bicycles). Hence my posting of the Hierarchy of Control. The built environment is a top down problem and it needs to be solved via a top down solution. Helmets and then like are a bottom up solution.

I don't wear it for several reasons including solidarity for the very poor and the fact that I do find a lot of passing distance by drivers when I ride. I've ridden in a variety of countries in a variety of urban environments and my only helmet wearing came about after my then-boyfriend kept nagging me about it. I more or less quit riding for several years in a large part because I found the act of dressing up to ride a bike to be a massive pain. The nation of Australia has demonstrated a drastic mode share drop because of their mandatory helmet law. From an advocacy point of view, mandatory helmets laws are a very bad idea if the goal is to increase mode share. If the goal is to keep mode share to a select 1% then it is a very splendid goal to aspire to.

Here is what I would like. I have never (not one single time) brought up why anyone does or doesn't wear a helmet (unless prompted either here or via email and then asked to respond here). I frankly don't care. In fact I never noticed who did or didn't wear a helmet unless it was specifically pointed out. Yet, I have been constantly needled about what I do or do not wear on my head. I do not appreciate this because it is a very personal topic (what I wear) and no one else's. It's like asking me why I wear a Suzie's Farm baseball hat.

I'm not going to mention this issue again until someone specifically asks me, but that's my reason.

I have a hunch that those who oppose helmets also oppose the california mandatory motorcycle helmet law and front passenger seat belt law of an automobile. Yes, we are the only state to mandate helmets, but we are also the only state to allow the more risky maneuvering act of lane splitting.

I was anti motorcycle, and a 50 mile daily round trip to work via bike or commute via car (both in duration of 1+ hour) was getting on my nerves.. until I found out I could lane split, so I purchased a motorcycle - knocked my commute to 20 minutes. Here we have a trade off where in your infographic PPE allowed the Elimination of a rule.

I do believe there are studies that confirm the "safety in numbers" hypothesis.

Synth - Your facts are incorrect on motorcycle helmets and lane splitting. First, by no stretch is California the only state to mandate motorcycle helmets. In fact, it's easier to count the states that don't have a motorcycle helmet law (Illinois, Iowa, New Hampshire), while there's a split on universal versus age-specific laws. Second, lane splitting is not codified in California, as well as several other states. Only a few states expressly prohibit it (Colorado and Nebraska, namely). This is a gap in legal language, and there was no law or code section to eliminate. You can do it because nothing says you can't, and California is perhaps the only state that officially acknowledges this loophole. You can lane split on a bicycle or a SMART car under the same premise, since the type of vehicle is not mentioned. You CAN be cited for numerous other violations while lane splitting in California, though (reckless driving, failure to signal, unsafe passing, etc.) Lastly, there is no causal link between helmet law and lane splitting. There is no trade off between elimination of a rule and PPE, as you assert.

Here are some facts about bicycle and motorcycle helmet laws:

Laws requiring all motorcyclists to wear a helmet are in place in 19 states and the District of Columbia
Laws requiring only some motorcyclists to wear a helmet are in place in 28 states
There is no motorcycle helmet use law in 3 states (Illinois, Iowa, and New Hampshire)
Some bicyclists are required by law to wear a helmet in 21 states and the District of Columbia
There is no bicycle helmet use law in 29 states. No state has a universal bicycle helmet law. Only 21 states and the District of Columbia have statewide bicycle helmet laws, and they apply only to young riders (often riders younger than 16). Local ordinances in a few other states require bicycle helmets for some or all riders.

Ok I was speaking as in likely hood of death; some interesting facts while I was searching:

http://www.bikesbelong.org/resources/stats-and-research/statistics/safety-statistics/

Going on a tangent here but if I recall correctly, California does not allow motorcyclists to lane split.
You "share the lane". ;)

Lane sharing sounds so much more safe and prudent.... :-p
I never got a ticket for it either but then again I was never going too fast in relation to the traffic when doing it. I freak out when I see riders going twice as fast as the cars that are chugging along, changing lanes in the last split second without giving it a second thought (or a second look at the mirror).
I do miss riding the motos but I love riding my bike too. Yeah!

And back on topic, not that anyone should care, but I usually wear a helmet although every now and then I don't. :)

Sorry, Hippy. :o( Some people just like to be sanctimonious, I'm afraid (and many of them aren't that safe to ride around with, when it comes to that. Helmet or not). It sucks that he nagged at you even though you usually wear a helmet. One of my riding buddies doesn't wear hers 100% of the time... but she compensates by being exceedingly careful. Sometimes a bit too careful, mind you... It's almost dangerous being behind the lass on a long descent since she'll brake when she doesn't need to - and so when you don't expect her to. Luckily we don't usually ride together on routes with long descents, and so she is one of the safest riders I know. :o) Unfortunately for her, she gets heckled at a lot by people we pass on the streets... most of them pedestrians (tho a few cyclists have indulged in that, too). It's weird. I've seen many salmons blatantly riding against traffic or running right thru traffic lights and nobody said a word. Then my forty-something yrs old friend would roll along perfectly in her lane and obeying all the traffic signs and she draws endless grief over not having a helmet on her head.

Ever since I had a mean concussion from banging my head falling off the bike at walking speed because my hand slipped from the handlebar when I hit a speed bump back in 1993 I've always worn a helmet even for short neighborhood rides. There are times I wish I could throw the helmet off the side of the roads, tho (riding up Palomar in mid-September heat or Honey Springs in late-August were two occasions :oP). Totally understand why helmets aren't welcomed by some.