I dont wear a helmet 90% of the time. To me I find my self much more self aware of my surroundings, terrain quality, other parties (cars, pedestrians, cyclists).
The only time I go for the helmet is if I'm riding on highway with cars going upwards of 100km/hr. Which is rare considering i spend most of my time in the city, paths or on closed roads.
People always try to convince me to wear one, but funny thing is they are always the one falling off their bike, hitting obstacles, or hurting them self. I have never had a an accident or a near miss.
I understand why a public policy can never advocate no helmets, but for me I find my risk profile drastically changes with wearing a helmet for the worse.
Same theory applies to when I snowboard, ie when I'm just riding I do not wear, however if I'm going into a terrain park to do jumps, rails, ect... I wear one.
I do not see how wearing a helmet would make someone less aware of their surroundings?
As far as snowboard/skiing it blows my mind that anyone would prefer anything but a helmet, even if you are not concerned about the safety benefits they are so much warmer then a toque/hat, your goggles generally fit/stay in place better.
Dunno I suppose its possible that putting on a helmet would drastically change how you ride but to me its like putting on a baseball hat or brushing my teeth. just part of the everyday.
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I do not see how wearing a helmet would make someone less aware of their surroundings?
As far as snowboard/skiing it blows my mind that anyone would prefer anything but a helmet, even if you are not concerned about the safety benefits they are so much warmer then a toque/hat, your goggles generally fit/stay in place better.
Dunno I suppose its possible that putting on a helmet would drastically change how you ride but to me its like putting on a baseball hat or brushing my teeth. just part of the everyday.
The fear of death is one hell of a motivator to maintain a state of alertness. Helmets by their nature and design reduce this.
I do not see how wearing a helmet would make someone less aware of their surroundings?
There's evidence to suggest - and this is also demonstrable through the trend at ski resorts, where helmets were basically nonexistent 20 years ago and now everyone wears them - that wearing a helmet creates a false sense of security and increases peoples' propensity for risk taking. On the other side, other people around you - notably drivers - alter their perception of a helmeted rider in ways that also make them less careful. So while you're far likely less injured in an accident when you're wearing a helmet, there's an argument out there that you are more likely to get in that accident in the first place with one on.
I'm not saying that argument's valid. I almost always bike with a helmet on.
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The fear of death is one hell of a motivator to maintain a state of alertness. Helmets by their nature and design reduce this.
I guess I'd have to try both to get a full understanding/feeling of this. But then again I look both ways before crossing a quiet residential street as it is. I will stick with my helmet.
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There's evidence to suggest - and this is also demonstrable through the trend at ski resorts, where helmets were basically nonexistent 20 years ago and now everyone wears them - that wearing a helmet creates a false sense of security and increases peoples' propensity for risk taking. On the other side, other people around you - notably drivers - alter their perception of a helmeted rider in ways that also make them less careful. So while you're far likely less injured in an accident when you're wearing a helmet, there's an argument out there that you are more likely to get in that accident in the first place with one on.
I'm not saying that argument's valid. I almost always bike with a helmet on.
I wear a women's wig over my helmet, tricks them every time!
I guess I'd have to try both to get a full understanding/feeling of this. But then again I look both ways before crossing a quiet residential street as it is. I will stick with my helmet.
Fair enough. It also requires you to have confidence what your abilities are and where your limitations begin.
I've heard the argument about being more aware of your surroundings when not wearing a helmet but it doesn't make sense to me. Perhaps they're not wearing a properly fitted helmet?
If you have a properly fitted helmet, it doesn't impede your eyes or ears at all. It doesn't move around on your head when you turn. You have full range of motion in every direction.
I've only ever not worn a helmet by accident. It's not inconvenient to throw it on and I'm too old to care about helmet hair.
I've heard the argument about being more aware of your surroundings when not wearing a helmet but it doesn't make sense to me. Perhaps they're not wearing a properly fitted helmet?
If you have a properly fitted helmet, it doesn't impede your ears or ears at all. It doesn't move around on your head when you turn. You have full range of motion in every direction.
I've only ever not worn a helmet by accident. It's not inconvenient to throw it on and I'm too old to care about helmet hair.
Its not about restricted visibility due to the helmet. Its about the sense of security that it provides (which if it didnt provide, why would you get one) that allows the mind to be more complacent when it comes to surrounding stimuli. Thats what Corsi mentioned in a person's risk appetite
I think if cyclists, joggers, skiers, drivers, etc. wouldn't wear headphones, they'd be much more aware of their surroundings. From the person not being able to hear the cyclist on a trail ringing his bell, to the jogger not able to hear the cars, it's mind boggling how many people wear them and just zone out completely.
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I don't see myself has having any more of a sense of security because I have a helmet on.
I think of my cycling risk like this:
- if I am riding in traffic, I risk making a mistake and causing myself to crash, or I make a mistake and a car hits me, or the driver makes a mistake and hits me. I think getting hit by a car would most likely result in broken bones in my arms legs
- if I am riding on the trail, my risk of crashing is mostly due to me making a mistake
I would also say I wear a helmet to minimize my risk of having an accident that would change me forever versus dealing with a broken leg or something that will mostly likely heal in a couple of months.
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I don't see myself has having any more of a sense of security because I have a helmet on.
Guaranteed I do. Skiing moreso, because I just plain suck on a bike, helmet or no helmet.
Skiing I've taken much larger drops or tried dumber stuff with my helmet than not. I don't wear one for most backcountry days and I notice I'm substantially more cautious.
Everyone might not take more risks with a helmet (or think they don't), and I definitely don't recommend not wearing a helmet because it's 'safer', but it's definitely a valid point.
Question. Me and my buddy want to do a super early ride on Saturday and the hours that Fish Creek are "open" are 8am-10pm but we would want to be done before 8am, Anyone done this before? I'm guessing it should not be a giant issue and wouldn't be the first to do it....
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Yeah, I don't think you'll have a problem. Anyone commuting to work from the south rides through the park, and I would image most do it well before 8am.
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Question. Me and my buddy want to do a super early ride on Saturday and the hours that Fish Creek are "open" are 8am-10pm but we would want to be done before 8am, Anyone done this before? I'm guessing it should not be a giant issue and wouldn't be the first to do it....
You won't have any problems. I've been in there at 5am. Sometimes the road gates are closed so cars can't get in but bikes can go around easily.
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I knew a girl who was rollerblading with her dad, who fell backwards with no helmet, and died right there beside her.
Sure, that is maybe a one in a million, but my helmet really doesn't bother me at all, so why not put it on for every ride?
Brain injuries are pretty nasty, so anything that I deem reasonable that helps me avoid them, I'm all for.
Lots of motorists and passengers in cars are killed or suffer brain damage from auto collisions. And yet nobody wears helmets when they're in cars. Pedestrians suffer a higher rate of head trauma than motorists. Nobody wears a helmet while walking. Virtually no cyclists in the Netherlands wear helmets. Their rates of head injuries for from cycling collisions are no higher than North America.
Behaviour around wearing helmets is largely determined by social norms, not empirical risk assessment. I wear a helmet when I ride in some environments, and not in others. The argument 'why not just put it on' is unpersuasive, as I do find helmets uncomfortable and a hassle. Everyone does, otherwise they'd keep their helmets on when they walked and drove in order to be safe.
The most recent B.C. Traffic Accident Reports (2005 to 2007) indicate that, on average each year, there were 31 children (up to age 19) who had head injuries when cycling, 60 when walking, and 703 when in a car, SUV, van or truck. Unfortunately, this data only include crashes with motor vehicles, so it does miss some cycling and walking injuries.
Deaths are often considered a better comparison measure, since they almost always involve crashes with motor vehicles, are reliably recorded, and are the most devastating type of injury. So how do deaths compare between modes? British Columbia Motor Vehicle Branch data for the same years indicate there were 10 deaths a year on average (all age groups) when cycling, 70 when walking, and 300 when driving.
Thus, bicycling had the lowest “burden” of deaths and head injuries of the three transportation modes. The numbers of deaths and head injuries indicate that all modes of transportation deserve public health attention.
The burden of death and injury reported above does not tell us whether one mode of transportation is safer or riskier than another. For example, more trips are taken by car and more distance travelled. So when deciding what mode of transportation to use, it is important to consider the death rate, not just the raw numbers.
A recent analysis compared the fatality rate by mode of travel in B.C. There were 14 deaths per 100 million trips for bicycling, 15 for walking and 10 for driving – remarkably similar. Per 100 million kilometres travelled, there were three deaths for bicycling, seven for walking and one for driving. Using distance rather than trips shows that cyclists and pedestrians are more vulnerable road users.
Are these risks high? One way to think about this is the number of trips for one death to happen: one car occupant dies every 10 million trips and one pedestrian or cyclist dies every seven million trips.
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