Helmet Advice

This seems to be a largely US ng but I couldn't find a UK equivalent so here
goes:

Just got back on a bike after a few years. Never previously worn a helmet
but having three kids changed my perspective. Anyway in my price range - up
to GBP30 or so - there are a couple of alternatives on offer at the local
store Specialized Chamonix and Met MaxTrack II (I'm sure I could order
another if there is a standout model). One of the reasons I'm asking is that
five years ago 'Which', a consumer magazine in the UK, did a survey of bike
helmets and a majority were not suitable for their intended purpose, ie they
did not adequately protect your head. So what would you recommend as a
suitable helmet for someone commuting 4 or 5 miles a day to work and back on
city roads?

cheers

dd

DD,

I won't open the discussion of whether helmets are effective or not. There
are times when they may possibly be (just like there are times when the
small bible in the shirt pocket can stop a bullet), and there are times when
they certainly are not (probably those situations where adults are most
likely to experience).

That said, certified helmets are all essentially the same. If you must have
one, select one (if you can find it) that conforms to whatever standards
organization tests helmets in Europe. Helmets that lack labels from a
standards organization are useless (or worse). In the US, for example, most
helmets, possibly all that are certified, are ANSI certified. The last time
I looked at helmets, I could not find any that conformed to the more
stringent Snell standard. It would seem that once helmets were mandated in
most states, there was no longer any benefit in marketing a such a helmet.
Yet another example of style over substance.

Rick

"DDEckerslyke" wrote in message
...
This seems to be a largely US ng but I couldn't find a UK equivalent so
here
goes:

Just got back on a bike after a few years. Never previously worn a helmet
but having three kids changed my perspective. Anyway in my price range -
up
to GBP30 or so - there are a couple of alternatives on offer at the local
store Specialized Chamonix and Met MaxTrack II (I'm sure I could order
another if there is a standout model). One of the reasons I'm asking is
that
five years ago 'Which', a consumer magazine in the UK, did a survey of
bike
helmets and a majority were not suitable for their intended purpose, ie
they
did not adequately protect your head. So what would you recommend as a
suitable helmet for someone commuting 4 or 5 miles a day to work and back
on
city roads?

cheers

dd

DDEckerslyke wrote:
This seems to be a largely US ng but I couldn't find a UK equivalent so here
goes:

Just got back on a bike after a few years. Never previously worn a helmet
but having three kids changed my perspective. Anyway in my price range - up
to GBP30 or so - there are a couple of alternatives on offer at the local
store Specialized Chamonix and Met MaxTrack II (I'm sure I could order
another if there is a standout model). One of the reasons I'm asking is that
five years ago 'Which', a consumer magazine in the UK, did a survey of bike
helmets and a majority were not suitable for their intended purpose, ie they
did not adequately protect your head. So what would you recommend as a
suitable helmet for someone commuting 4 or 5 miles a day to work and back on
city roads?

cheers

dd

Make sure it's certified and fits your head. If there is more than one
helmet that meets those standards, go for the one with the best
ventillation.

--
--
Lynn Wallace http://www.xmission.com/~lawall
"I'm not proud. We really haven't done everything we could to protect
our customers. Our products just aren't engineered for security."
--Microsoft VP in charge of Windows OS Development, Brian Valentine.

Well, all helmets meet the same standards, and I don't think those
standards have changed since the "Which" article was written.

The Which article noted a tendency for helmets that meet the European
std not to meet the American standard, and vice versa, but some did meet
both.

The best rule is NOT to get a "good one". What makes a helmet "good" is
usually being lighter and cooler than a cheap helmet. This is achieved
by using as little styrofoam as possible, so an expensive helmet is
probably even less protective than a cheap helmet, even though both meet
the same stds.

There is some question about whether it really is necessary to replace a
helmet every x years as some people recommend. In practice the
styrofoam is unlikely to degrade from UV radiation. However, one
current theory about why helmets are so ineffective in practice is that
they are not kept tightly enough in position. It might be, so the
theory goes, that putting on and taking off a helmet over and over again
gradually compresses the material inside, thus making the helmet loose.

The same theory emphasizes that the chin strap MUST be kept tight. If
you can open your mouth to talk, the strap is probably too loose.

Adding a helmet to your head makes it larger and heavier than normal,
thus upsetting your reflexes that move your head out of the way of
impacts. Thus you will hit your head more with a helmet than you would
without. This doesn't matter though, because of that very helmet. Don't
assume, though, that in the impacts you are now having the helmet is
saving your life.

Jeremy Parker