RickH wrote:Replying on a more serious note...
It must be hard to get good photos of an event like this with riders not wearing helmets. Clare and I did the 50 mile route, both helmetless. There were over 200 people riding &, despite helmets not being compulsory, I don't recall seeing anyone else riding without one. The same for the Two Mills Early Season 50 in April, featured in the previous edition of Cycle, we didn't see any others riding without. When I did the Wild Wales, solo, last August I saw a couple of other helmetless riders but that was all. These are all part of Cycling UK's Challenge series so come under their helmets not required remit.
If you organise "helmets not compulsory" events but your punters insist on wearing them, what are organisers expected to do?
If you are photographing an event do you wait at a nice location for hours, possibly many hours, on the off chance that someone is riding without a helmet? If you manage to get photos of any helmetless riders are they going to be suitable for a cover photo?
Members' group rides too. We occasionally go out with various permutations of Chester CTC. There's only one guy I can recall who isn't a wearer. We're the only ones ever helmetless when we're out with the Fab Ladies!
Banning helmets from organised rides would be a start, safer for everyone and more photo opportunities to put on the magazine front page & inside articles.