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Helmets in cycle races
I realise this is a controversial subject, I would like you to take my
word that I'm not trying to troll. I have a question that has been bugging me for a while and I haven't found an answer. Here goes... Why do professional cyclists always wear helmets during races (specifically the Tour de France) Personally, after spending a lot of time researching the subject, I wear a helmet when riding mainly off-road (due to the increased risk of low speed injury and penetrative head injury (hitting head on sharp object). However, on the road I don;t think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet |
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#2
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Helmets in cycle races
On Fri, 18 Jun 2010 22:11:27 -0700 (PDT), Philip Ryder
wrote: I realise this is a controversial subject, I would like you to take my word that I'm not trying to troll. I have a question that has been bugging me for a while and I haven't found an answer. Here goes... Why do professional cyclists always wear helmets during races (specifically the Tour de France) Personally, after spending a lot of time researching the subject, I wear a helmet when riding mainly off-road (due to the increased risk of low speed injury and penetrative head injury (hitting head on sharp object). However, on the road I don;t think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet They have to wear a helmet, except in limited circumstances, unless they want to be disqualified. The rules are a little complicated, but if I recall correctly, if a stage ends at the summit of a hill, riders are permitted to discard their helmet at the base of the hill. If I am wrong, I am sure someone will post a correction. |
#3
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Helmets in cycle races
Philip Ryder wrote:
Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet Because in their case, if they do fall off, the helmet is likely to save them if they hit a kerb head first. A rider died 5 or 6 years ago after doing such a thing, so rather than being voluntary, helmet wearing was made compulsory, except, I think, for mountain top finishes, where their speed is slower, and riders complained about the excess heat when wearing them at 10mph with a very low chance of an injury. Racing is one of the times when a helmet can make a difference in a crash, as generally only the cyclist is involved, and the helmet is enough to save a bad head injury. Alan. -- To reply by e-mail, change the ' + ' to 'plus'. |
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Helmets in cycle races
Philip Ryder wrote:
Why do professional cyclists always wear helmets during races (specifically the Tour de France) Very simply, the rules require them to. Personally, after spending a lot of time researching the subject, I wear a helmet when riding mainly off-road (due to the increased risk of low speed injury and penetrative head injury (hitting head on sharp object). However, on the road I don;t think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. Informed choice. Very good idea! Pete. -- Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/ |
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Helmets in cycle races
On Fri, 18 Jun 2010, Philip Ryder wrote:
I realise this is a controversial subject, I would like you to take my word that I'm not trying to troll. I have a question that has been bugging me for a while and I haven't found an answer. Here goes... Why do professional cyclists always wear helmets during races (specifically the Tour de France) Because the governing body mandates it. The riders protest about it loudly, and whenever they have the opportunity, discard the helmets (they used to be allowed to do so at sprints and finishes, I think, and always did so). Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet Because they are not permitted to race without. The sponsors like them. -- |\ /| no .sig |o o| |/ \| |
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Helmets in cycle races
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#7
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Helmets in cycle races
On Jun 19, 10:09*am, Rob Morley wrote:
On Sat, 19 Jun 2010 07:43:50 +0100 (A.Lee) wrote: Racing is one of the times when a helmet can make a difference in a crash, as generally only the cyclist is involved, and the helmet is enough to save a bad head injury. But helmets are typically only rated to work up to 12mph, and racing cyclists can top 50mph - do you really think a bit of plastic brain packaging makes much difference? It is not the speed that matters, it's the height of the fall and the suddenness of the stop. Even motorcycle helmets are only tested to 7 m/ s (16mph), but you regularly see motorcycle racers spectacularly coming off their bikes at well over 100 mph and limping away virtually unscathed. The important thing is to cushion the head and the brain from the initial impact, which expanded polystyrene (EPS) does very well. EPS is used both in cycle helmets and the liners of motorcycle helmets. In fact the EPS does most of the work in the m/c helmets, with the outer shell only being there to prevent intrusions from sharp objects and to resist abrasion as the fallen motorcyclist slides at high speed along the tarmac. Derek C |
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Helmets in cycle races
On Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:33:33 +0100, JNugent wrote:
Tom Crispin wrote: On Fri, 18 Jun 2010 22:11:27 -0700 (PDT), Philip Ryder wrote: Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet They have to wear a helmet, except in limited circumstances, unless they want to be disqualified. The rules are a little complicated, but if I recall correctly, if a stage ends at the summit of a hill, riders are permitted to discard their helmet at the base of the hill. That doesn't really answer the question, though, does it? If there are allegedly no advantages compared to the alleged disadvantages, why do the organisers take the line they take? Sponsors like them. Do you think every rule in every sporting endeavour is there becaue teh participants want it? Surely, if teh participants wanted it, it wouldn't need to be a rule. There are no advantages to teh participant in all sorts of rules. -- |\ /| no .sig |o o| |/ \| |
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Helmets in cycle races
On Jun 19, 10:40*am, Ian Smith wrote:
On Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:33:33 +0100, JNugent wrote: *Tom Crispin wrote: On Fri, 18 Jun 2010 22:11:27 -0700 (PDT), Philip Ryder wrote: Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet They have to wear a helmet, except in limited circumstances, unless they want to be disqualified. The rules are a little complicated, but if I recall correctly, if a stage ends at the summit of a hill, riders are permitted to discard their helmet at the base of the hill. *That doesn't really answer the question, though, does it? *If there are allegedly no advantages compared to the alleged *disadvantages, why do the organisers take the line they take? Sponsors like them. Do you think every rule in every sporting endeavour is there becaue teh participants want it? *Surely, if teh participants wanted it, it wouldn't need to be a rule. There are no advantages to teh participant in all sorts of rules. -- * |\ /| * * *no .sig * |o o| * |/ \|- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - |
#10
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Helmets in cycle races
Ian Smith wrote:
On Sat, 19 Jun 2010 10:33:33 +0100, JNugent wrote: Tom Crispin wrote: On Fri, 18 Jun 2010 22:11:27 -0700 (PDT), Philip Ryder wrote: Whny, during the Tour de France where weight is so important, why does every rider wear a helmet They have to wear a helmet, except in limited circumstances, unless they want to be disqualified. The rules are a little complicated, but if I recall correctly, if a stage ends at the summit of a hill, riders are permitted to discard their helmet at the base of the hill. That doesn't really answer the question, though, does it? If there are allegedly no advantages compared to the alleged disadvantages, why do the organisers take the line they take? Sponsors like them. Do they insist on them? And if they do, do we know why? And if they don't insist on them, why are they mandatory? Do you think every rule in every sporting endeavour is there becaue teh participants want it? No. Surely, if teh participants wanted it, it wouldn't need to be a rule. Absolutely. That's why I didn't ask a question about what the participants want. There are no advantages to teh participant in all sorts of rules. I was asking about this one, not others. |
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