Cycling UK Forum

Sory to raise the dreaded issue but can anybody tell me where to find clear, factuallly based evidence on the effect of helmets to help me decide whether or not to wear mine.
In particular on just whether or not my head will come much better or worse if it DOES hit the ground.
At present I feel rather averse to it as it's not comfortable but do value safety.

P.s. I bashed my head on a shelf today while studying but don't wear a helmet for that.

It is hard to beat http://www.cyclehelmets.org/ . Its a site providing links to helmet research, helmet skeptic views and providing critiques of the literature. It is peer reviewed and has several eminent (and well published) contributors.

Andy, I'll second the suggestion to look through www.cyclehelmets.org

It's been quite notable on the uk.rec.cycling usenet group that a number of professional scientists well used to critical analysis of research have been directed there to review information for themselves and have generally come out changing their mind from helmets being "no brainers" to not really changing your overall safety to any tangible degree.

uk.rec.cycling is available either through the Usenet news service or through a Web interface at http://www.cyclingforums.com/f195-uk.rec.cycling.html (though a proper newsreader is a much better way of reading it) and at least one member of the group behind cyclehelmets.org is a regular there. Intelligent questions about helmets will be fairly comprehensively answered, but stupid ones (i.e., "why don't you all wear helmets? you must be mad!") tend to start flame wars...

The CTC have provided fairly good information in the past in response to letter-writing campaigns against compulsion, I do wish they'd make a point of getting similar onto the main web site in a prominent place so people don't continue to assume their mere existence means they are clearly a "no brainer". Having had a catalogue from EBC yesterday suggesting that they are indeed a "no brainer", it would probably be of benefit if the CTC joined up with the ACT and disseminated the info to the places that sell the things so information would be more directly available to helmet buying public.

I've asked elsewhere in the forum if such information can get into cycle training materials, but no "official" CTC response to that here, so I'll have to get the word processor cranked up, I suppose...

Pete.

My strategy is to remove the helmet when going uphill as I start to overheat. Then put it back on for the downhill stretch as I'm getting old and need the false psychological value of the helmet to increase my recklessness.

I have never touched a helmet;.they shout pound notes at me. What are they made of?

Thanks for the advice. I've looked on the first site a bit. I don't take a helmet off for only part of the ride as there's nowhere to put it. I have undone the strap instead, or occassionally just left it at home as I'm getting very tempted to do as a matter of course.
I too would be very grateful if information on helmets was more widely available. By the way gar, they're expanded polystyrene. I guess higher quality stuff than they pack stereos in but I wouldn't put money on it. Mine was £30 and an optimist may say that it resembles light and comfortable, on a good day.

Andy

I hang my helmet over the hood of my left brake lever. Stays there quite nicely, unfortunately I have to stop to put it back on.

Zeb

You can usually raise your hat when you meet a lady; can you do that with a cycle helmet?

Half the fun of cycling is the fairer gender; if I can't raise my hat, it's no good.

Gar,

Why not wear a fetching bowler on top of a helmet then you can raise it to your hearts content?

Would it keep my head cool and dry?
If so that is very good idea indeed.

The bowler would be enough as the cause of accidents is mainly motorists saying "Ooh! Look he hasn't got a helmet on!" and then crashing in to them and taking less care.

If I have got a hat on, they find it difficult to say I am not wearing a helmet; how can they know I'm not a friend of Sean Connery? It might be a reinforced bowler.

If you know any supplier of a reinforced bowler
to use as a cycling helmet..... I'm a buyer!

What about one of those hats incorporating a blade in the brim like Odjob had in Goldfinger? Throw it like a frizbie at the idiot who tries to run you down and slice the nearside mirror off their car.

I've actully been thinking of going up to tottenham court road to ferret out a Lazer gun of low voltage
as a preference to thse stupid dazers. It would solve a lot of cycling problems re dogs and cars!
Hell to Marbles..... Lazer power!