helmets gone bad

On Jun 30, 3:32*pm, Tim McNamara wrote:
In article ,
*"Mike Jacoubowsky" wrote:

If you don't believe in helmets, why would you care and/or wear it in
the first place?

A few years ago the top of my head was sore after a ride and I realized
that I had gotten my first sunburn up there, my hair no longer being
full enough. *So now I wear a hat when riding to keep my head from
sunburn (still too much hair for sunscreen), but on hot days a cycling
cap feels hotter than riding bare headed. *I have found that a helmet
keeps my head from burning and is cooler than a cycling cap, having some
ventilation while riding.

So I guess I have found an injury for which helmets are useful
prevention after all... at least if you're a middle aged git who is
slowly losing your hair. *My buddy Tim, much balder than I, is a helmet
wearer and he would develop this odd pattern of tanning on his scalp
from the vents in his helmet. *Very humorous to watch people look at his
head and try to figure out what the deal was.

--
That'll put marzipan in your pie plate, Bingo.

Your friend should wear a 70's era hairnet. That would make the
striping even more distinct. Probably start a fad amongst the fixie
kids, sort of like a Maori warrior's tattoos. (Only you could be rid
of them when it was time to get a job).

sa

semi-ambivalent wrote:
On Jun 29, 4:37 pm, "Bill Sornson" wrote:
yirgster wrote:
Is there any reason to replace a helmet after X number of years if
it hasn't been subjected to crashes or the like.

Replace? No. Augment? Personal choice. (I use 4 regularly, and own 7
or
8. Others mostly mtb models.)

After that I half expected a sig like

Bill "Really big wallet" Sornson



More like "incorrigible packrat".

On Thu, 1 Jul 2010 10:37:16 -0700 (PDT), Frank Krygowski
wrote:

Hmm. It's hard to believe anything looking like the current line of
helmets would still be "whatever style is fashionable"!

Agreed. It's a fair assumption that the human head isn't going to
experience any short term evolutionary changes. The basic ingredients
of a helmet will probably retain their basic shape, especially if the
design is ossified in place by standards organizations. However, the
cosmetic aspects of helmet design is only limited by the imagination.
If you need a brain boost, some of these might be a good start:
http://www.yankodesign.com/search/helmet
I like this one:
http://www.yankodesign.com/2009/01/26/omg-its-like-mad-max-circa-2009/

Maybe additional air bags at critical areas (knees, elbows,
shoulders). *This will require some major research.

Pshaw! That was done years ago! See
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/airbag-helmet.html

Nice. I saw that when it appeared in some bicycling magazine perhaps
15 years ago. I think I clipped the article and have it buried
somewhere.

Despite the satire, the idea still has merit. Instead of expending
energy compressing or abrading EPS, the energy is spent compressing
air. This allows a larger distance before impact, and a better
potential for redirection or dispersion the impact energy. I'm not
suggesting an inflatable version of the original Skid Lid. Rather CO2
powered expanding helmet with electronic activation. (I'll conjure a
suitable acronym later).

Once the electronics are in place, other features such as an LCD
transmission display for a rear view camera, proximity alarm, LADAR
threat detection, gyro stabilization, anti-skid electric braking,
automatic transmission (optimize gear selection), physiological
monitoring, impact recorder, and a Peltier junction beer cooler, can
easily be added. *More reasearch, again.

I hope that before research is expended on such fantasies, that
_someone_ will notice that cycling is not, and never has been, a
significant risk for serious head injuries.

Certainly. The only problem is that the market is full of products
intended to solve non-existent problems. Without a corresponding
education and propaganda program, the consumer will continue to
believe that helmets are worthwhile, as reinforced by standards
organizations and manufacturer research. While you may be correct,
there are easier battles to fight, such as balancing the budget.

Maybe an inflatable air bag safety vest would avoid the education
problem. It would probably take a few years to demonstrate that it's
only marginally useful. Meanwhile, the manufacturers will sell
millions. Paranoia is big business.

Yeah, I know - I'm an incurable optimist.

That's the problem. There's a placebo for everyone.

- Frank Krygowski
--
# Jeff Liebermann 150 Felker St #D Santa Cruz CA 95060
# 831-336-2558
# http://802.11junk.com
# http://www.LearnByDestroying.com AE6KS

On Jul 1, 8:11 am, landotter wrote:
On Jun 30, 9:01 pm, AMuzi wrote:



Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:
"yirgster" wrote in message
...
Is there any reason to replace a helmet after X number of years if it
hasn't been subjected to crashes or the like.

From the Bell website faq: Bell has a general recommendation of
replacing a helmet every three (3) years.

Is this marketing advice or does it have some reality behind it? For
example, does the 'styrofoam' become brittle and less shock absorbent
after a number of years.

My helmet is about 10 years old and, other than supplementing various
business coffers, I would like to know if there's a reason to replace
it. It's a Bell.

Please, no helmet wars posts. Thx.

Expanded polystyrene, the stuff beer coolers and helmets are mostly made
of, is relatively inert. That's not the part of the helmet likely to
suffer over time. It's the straps and buckles which can go bad,
particularly the straps, which can fray and ever break after a while. We
see quite a number of older helmets come in the door; in most cases,
people have no idea how old they are. We'll look them up in the computer
and find that their "4 year old" helmet was actually purchased 10-12
years ago. Seriously.

If a helmet looks like it's in good shape (no dents, check for cracks in
the liner, no fraying of the straps and/or appearance of the buckles
looking like they've had too much sun and become brittle), there's no
need to replace it in three years, nor probably even five. But helmets
don't live a charmed life and tend to spend more of their time
protecting nothing at all as they fall to the ground or get crunched
under stuff in a car etc.

If you believe in helmets, it makes sense to make sure it looks like
it's in great shape. If you don't believe in helmets, why would you care
and/or wear it in the first place?

What, no Bell Biker and SkidLid guys visit your place?

Whatever happened to the Vetta bloc??

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi..._lamps_jeh.jpg

That's what I am using today, (Not the only one, either.) Good
helmet.

On Jun 30, 4:24*pm, " wrote:

Wonder what kind of helmets we'll be wearing (assuming) in 50 years? I
meant "they", of course g.
--D-y-

Implants?