I don't usually wear a bike helmet. Does that make me an idiot?

[ichitan]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rhzH6mEpIps

[ReapThaWhirlwind]

Helmets are great protection. You'll certainly be glad you have one if the time comes.

Most bails or collisions are certain to smack your head. It can leave you paralyzed.

I don't wear one either, and probably never will.

I find it can be a thing of habit. If you never did, you're less inclined to start. But if you happen to start, then it becomes normal to wear one all the time.

[jeffg]

I only wear a helmet when riding with someone. Most rides are solo, thus I rarely use a helmet. I see a lot of folks riding without helmets so I suppose there are a lot of us idiots out there, but we are happy, free, and willing to be independent at the risk of social scorn.

[ichitan]

(10-18-2022, 06:24 PM)jeffg Wrote:  I only wear a helmet when riding with someone. Most rides are solo, thus I rarely use a helmet. I see a lot of folks riding without helmets so I suppose there are a lot of us idiots out there, but we are happy, free, and willing to be independent at the risk of social scorn.

In some places, the law says you must wear a helmet. In other places, there is no requirement to wear a helmet. Some countries in Europe, for example, don't require people to wear a helmet, as it discourages people from cycling. They believe, the benefits of more people getting fit on bicycles, far outweighs the harm of the very rare accidents, where people have head injuries.

I just started a new topic. Has anyone ever been charged by the police for traffic violations on a bicycle?

https://forums.bikeride.com/thread-8145.html

I think it is a waste of police resources, when they go after cyclists not wearing helmets, while they don't have time to deal with some real crimes.

[SPINMAN]

The only time I don't wear a helmet is on my Spin bike. It's a simple form of protection, low cost, not restricting or constricting, and a possible life saver. Or at least may prevent a TBI. If you ride with cars, wear a helmet. Jeff, you wear a helmet when you ride with someone but don't wear one when you ride alone. I can't figure that logic. Are you immune from injury when you ride alone? When I ride and see someone without a helmet I call out "get a helmet!" I don't care if it's not the law, wear a helmet. In Florida you don't have to wear a helmet for motorcyclists but the majority do. I don't understand those who don't. Oh, yeah, the freedom thing! Being alive is being free.

[jeffg]

(10-28-2022, 01:54 PM)SPINMAN Wrote:  The only time I don't wear a helmet is on my Spin bike. It's a simple form of protection, low cost, not restricting or constricting, and a possible life saver. Or at least may prevent a TBI. If you ride with cars, wear a helmet. Jeff, you wear a helmet when you ride with someone but don't wear one when you ride alone. I can't figure that logic. Are you immune from injury when you ride alone? When I ride and see someone without a helmet I call out "get a helmet!" I don't care if it's not the law, wear a helmet. In Florida you don't have to wear a helmet for motorcyclists but the majority do. I don't understand those who don't. Oh, yeah, the freedom thing! Being alive is being free.

When riding alone I don't need to concern myself with the position of another rider, all I have to do is concentrate on the road before me and the traffic around me when it is present. Bike riding is not as dangerous as the peddlers of helmets and the press makes it out to be. I have had run ins with a motor vehicle twice. First time I was rear ended by a car doing 40mph. My head never touched anything. The second time was a pickup truck that side-swiped me. The truck ended up in the ditch doing 45-50mph, and I stayed on the road without incident. Head never touched anything.

For some crazy reason I don't find a helmet comforting or necessary. The freedom comes from being able to make my own decisions on what works for me. A billion people around the world ride a bike every single day and most do not wear a helmet, yet there are few major head injuries related to falls from bicycles amongst those billion people. My decision is to not wear a helmet, and I will never tell you as I pass by to "take your helmet off" because it is none of my business what you wear on your head. I know, I must be crazy.

[Old Fat Guy]

(10-17-2022, 05:56 PM)ReapThaWhirlwind Wrote:  Helmets are great protection. You'll certainly be glad you have one if the time comes.

Most bails or collisions are certain to smack your head. It can leave you paralyzed.

I don't wear one either, and probably never will.

I find it can be a thing of habit. If you never did, you're less inclined to start. But if you happen to start, then it becomes normal to wear one all the time.

---

Does it make you an idiot? I’m sitting here with a collar bone broke in 3 places and abrasions really bad abrasions on left side of body. Helmet is gouged deep. That could have been my head. Concrete at 20 mph is meaner than my last ex wife.

So yes if you ride a bike without a good helmet and daytime strobe lights you be an idiot.

[GirishH]

I completely agree with both @SPINMAN and @Old Fat Guy. For me, helmets are a no-brainer—or maybe a yes-brainer.

Wearing one doesn’t make me an idiot, bald, or slower. It just gives me more confidence to ride down mountains and trails than I otherwise would have.

And no, my helmet didn’t make me poor either—I actually found it for free in Cambridge, MA..:-)

https://youtu.be/cxaLT-2POkw?feature=shared

Here in the Himalayas, the helmet offered great "peace of mind" as I rode through landslide sections after another. Oh yes. Mine's not a cycling helmet but it's a snowboarding helmet. So, it offers even more protection from rock falls..

[rydabent]

As I have posted many times, one of the best reasons to wear a helmet is because if you are involved in any kind of an accident involving a car, and you decide to sue, in court this is what happens. No matter what the situation, the car drivers lawyer will try to make you partly at fault if you are not wearing a helmet. And if you are riding a bent or a trike the same goes if you are not flying a flag.

Not wearing a helmet seem rather silly to me. After I put it on for a ride, I totally forget I am wearing one. Why not be a little safer, and as I said above deflect any lawyers comment before it even gets started.

[[email protected]]

(09-25-2025, 10:50 AM)rydabent Wrote:  As I have posted many times, one of the best reasons to wear a helmet is because if you are involved in any kind of an accident involving a car, and you decide to sue, in court this is what happens. No matter what the situation, the car drivers lawyer will try to make you partly at fault if you are not wearing a helmet. And if you are riding a bent or a trike the same goes if you are not flying a flag.

Not wearing a helmet seem rather silly to me. After I put it on for a ride, I totally forget I am wearing one. Why not be a little safer, and as I said above deflect any lawyers comment before it even gets started.

As noted, a helmet cannot hurt. It is also important to note that a helmet is of limited value as the velocity of impact increases. Why is that important? Don't think that a helmet will save you and take stupid risks. Helmet standards are tested to the equivalent of a 14mph impact. (Anvil test). For single-impact helmets the functional value of the helmet is to absorb impact to slow your brain before it hits the inside of your skull. That is what causes TBI. That little bit of crush in the foam at lower energy of impact can make the difference between TBI and no TBI. At speeds significantly more than 14mph ... your mileage may (probably will) vary. Lots of variables go into the impact that occurs if you have a head-strike - angle of impact, scrubbed speed from actions prior to head strike, etc. A thin plastic cover and an inch or so of foam may well save you some loss of scalp but it won't stop skull penetration if you contact something with penetrating design (stick, metal rod, etc.). Preserving legal options is probably your greatest advantage if you ride streets with vehicles.

[Flowrider]

Yup, wear a helmet. Safety is an obvious one, but what can possibly be gained by NOT WEARING ONE? What are the distinct positives?

[JJMarsh]

(10-17-2022, 05:56 PM)ReapThaWhirlwind Wrote:  Helmets are great protection. You'll certainly be glad you have one if the time comes.

Most bails or collisions are certain to smack your head. It can leave you paralyzed.

I don't wear one either, and probably never will.

I find it can be a thing of habit. If you never did, you're less inclined to start. But if you happen to start, then it becomes normal to wear one all the time.

That's a very honest take. While I understand the habit factor, the risk of a life-changing head injury is simply too high for me to go without one. It only takes one unexpected fall. Hopefully you'll reconsider someday.

[rydabent]

(09-26-2025, 01:42 AM)Flowrider Wrote:  Yup, wear a helmet. Safety is an obvious one, but what can possibly be gained by NOT WEARING ONE? What are the distinct positives?

That is a fantastic point. Yes----------------what are the positives about not wearing a helmet???

[Sidewinder]

Funny thing, when I was riding skateboards & BMX bikes in the '70s, only kooks wore safety gear... now I won't ride without it in the skatepark, as that mean ol' concrete hasn't gotten any softer over the decades, lol. I wear knee & elbow pads, wrist guards, and a lightweight bicycle helmet with plenty of vents for cooling, and that safety gear doesn't slow me down any... I don't wear safety gear while pedaling around town, but there isn't much traffic here and I usually ride on the sidewalk anyway, lol. In the nearby mountains & high desert, I wear a D.O.T.-approved helmet for dirt biking, as I like to haul @$$ down trails on my big ol' thumper, but that's another story.