Why Do I See So Many Cyclist Without Helmets?

[rudi-h]

let people be...

 

i don't always wear a helmet, cause sometimes on a sunday afternoon cruise i feel like the wind in my hair.  Then i don't take risks, ride quiet roads and i leave my enduro pants home.

 

if i ride to train, race or practice tricks then i'd go all the way up to full face depending on what's on the menu.

 

may common sense and freedom of choice prevail (ps common sense seems to be that thing that isn't quite as common as we think)

[Patchelicious]

let people be...

 

i don't always wear a helmet, cause sometimes on a sunday afternoon cruise i feel like the wind in my hair.  Then i don't take risks, ride quiet roads and i leave my enduro pants home.

 

if i ride to train, race or practice tricks then i'd go all the way up to full face depending on what's on the menu.

 

may common sense and freedom of choice prevail (ps common sense seems to be that thing that isn't quite as common as we think)

Right now the discussion is not about interfering with people.

 

It is directly about if helmets are beneficial or not.

 

Telling people to ride with helmets is a completely separate discussion.

[coppi]

Andrew_Smith, since you started this simple thread please declare it closed.

Too many "clever" people over analyzing a simple topic........just wear your helmets and get on with it for f... sackes

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[andydude]

There's been some interesting research on risk taking and protective measueres. Don't have the research now, but should be easy to find on google.

 

For example, in the NFL they have found people taking more risks with the helmet, because they feel safer. Go take a look at helmet to helmet "tackles" on YouTube and then go look at the movie/doc Concussion with Will Smith.

 

Interesting area of research and study.

 

In terms of myself, when training I always wear a helmet. Common sense for me. But I understand all my common sense is my opinion so I don't hate on somebody not wearing one.

 

But also, this morning I rode with an old bomber to the beach. About 5km. And without a helmet.

 

So I guess I'm an enigma

[Uni]

Does wearing a helmet really put people off cycling? Has anyone ever gone "argh I don't feel like all the effort of putting on a helmet, let's rather not ride today"? 

 

It is a schlep getting dressed for cycling yes. But the helmet is just one of 6 items, and once it's on you forget about it.

 

Personally the idea seems silly to me that it would be deterrent to riding a bike, however over the holidays while at Dullstroom, my BIL was very excited about taking my bike and going pedaling around the farm where we were staying. But as soon as I insisted he wear a helmet, he would say never mind, I'll go later, and thus not go. Eventually I just left him. This was on jeep track at slow pace. I did notice on bits where we were riding over rocks or along a cliff face, he didn't argue about a helmet though. On the first day I did ride without a helmet as we only had the one, and my BIL was insistent he wanted to go ride right now - I was in my sandals too, as the rest of the riding stuff was only coming through later - it did feel rather odd, much like driving without your seatbelt, you notice when it's not on - rather than the converse.

 

There's s kid in our complex, probably about 12 must have got a new bike for Christmas, he's riding around the complex parking without a helmet. No doubt if he falls, having a helmet might hurt less, but that's his parent's call.

[andreas17777]

I'm selling a helmet if anyone needs one

 

https://www.bikehub.co.za/classifieds/227015-helmets/

[eddy]

I'm selling a helmet

I'm also selling one, but mine is a better deal as it is a proven lifesaver ????

[Andrew_Smith]

Andrew_Smith, since you started this simple thread please declare it closed.

Too many "clever" people over analyzing a simple topic........just wear your helmets and get on with it for f... sackes

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

Haha, I just thought about it in my head... Uhm, not sure how to close it though? I know from my other forum (Carbonite) there is a dedicated button for it.

['Dale]

Haha, I just thought about it in my head... Uhm, not sure how to close it though? I know from my other forum (Carbonite) there is a dedicated button for it.

Only the Hub Police can close this puppy down ????????????????????????

[IceCreamMan]

Does wearing a helmet really put people off cycling? Has anyone ever gone "argh I don't feel like all the effort of putting on a helmet, let's rather not ride today"?

 

It is a schlep getting dressed for cycling yes. But the helmet is just one of 6 items, and once it's on you forget about it.

Humans are complex beings so it's not only the shlep of putting on a helmet that puts them off but also the fact that by asking them to wear a helmet you are in fact indicating that cycling is a dangerous pastime an they are not prepared to take that risk.

 

I suspect far more ppl die an suffer from head injuries in car accidents (per km travelled, that is in relation) than cycling yet because you are surrounded by metal an air bags etc you assume you are safe. The human perception of risk needs much more research.

[IceCreamMan]

So lets look at this.

 

1: Could cycling with a helmet increase my risk of having an accident?

2: Is there a benefit of wearing a helmet in the event of a crash?

3: If wearing a helmet does increase the accident rate, does this increased accident rate outweigh the benefits of wearing a helmet?

 

I ran two little silly polls to get an indication.

 

In total there were 159 respondents. At the time of writing.

Notes: There was not a NO IT MADE NO DIFFERENCE TO MY INJURY option, as this would create false positives e.g.: Crashing without a helmet and breaking your ankle/wrist/clavicle etc has no effect on the discussion of head injuries. However for the sake of argument there was also no exclusion of accidents from accidents rates increase based on injury type. i.e.: If you crashed because of wearing a helmet and broke your ankle, it would reflect in the increased accident rate. Giving increased accident rates a slight bias.

 

1: Could cycling with a helmet increase my risk of having an accident?

3 respondents or 1.8% said that wearing a helmet changed their behaviour in such a way that it caused them to crash. 159 said it made no difference.

 

Thats a possible accident increase rate of 1.8%, directly due to wearing helmets.

 

2: Is there a benefit of wearing a helmet in the event of accident?

87% of respondents said they had personally experienced the benefit of wearing a helmet. 68% of people said that it actually prevented a head injury not just reducing the injury. So there seems to be merit in wearing a helmet in the event of an accident. Consider that the remaining respondents have yet to actually crash.

 

3: If wearing a helmet does increase the accident rate, does this increased accident rate outweigh the benefits of wearing a helmet?

 

Based on the info above?

 

Personally, I would rather crash 101.8 times with the added benefit of wearing helmet than crashing 100 times without one.

 

Even with all the mistakes that I would have made, the results indicate a discrepancy between accident rate increase and benefit of wearing a helmet too vast to label "inconclusive".

I concede. The weight an level of scientific practices utilized indicate 2 things:

 

1. You do not understand how humans perceive an analyse risk.

2. I will be contacting the various researchers in the field to tell them to stop. No point. The results you found contradict their findings so they should stop wasting their time.

 

As far as I can gather there are only 3 countries in the world that have blanket mandatory helmet laws. NZ, Oz an ZA. A number of countries have repealed laws or chosen not to implement laws as their effectiveness for entire population is not proven. Geofosis showed here that where helmets are compulsory in oz the level of brain injury is less severe than in Netherlands where helmets are not required. Thus if read in isolation helmets are good. However, the incidence of accidents an injuries to other parts of the body are far higher per km travelled in oz than in the Netherlands. Far far higher in the case of accidents. Additionally after the implantation of helmet laws there was no reduction in the number or extent of injuries. Weird that.

 

I think it's important to remember your market too. The hub is probably very close to 100 percent if not 100% made up of "sport" cyclists. Sport cyclists generally take risks an push the envelope. They should probably wear a helmet even though wearing a helmet probably increases their risk of injury as proven by research (well until yours that is). The majority of cyclists worldwide are not sport cyclists but commuters.

 

To answer your questions.

 

Yes, I wear a helmet. Do I place any faith in it. No I do not. It's a flimsy piece of plastic with styrofoam inner that costs a fortune. (Maybe this is the mindset that prevents accidents) It barely covers my pate an leaves my handsome face an teeth exposed.

 

Why? Cos it's the law of course. Helmets were available before the introduction of the law did everyone wear them before they became mandatory?

 

Does Strava cause accidents an how many would admit to having had an accident because of Strava?

 

So as mentioned in numerous posts previously an not only in post 55. Can helmets reduce head injuries or reduce the severity of a head injury. The answer is yes.

 

Can helmets be the cause of accidents? Yes. Enough research done on this. No need to elaborate.

 

Can helmets indirectly result in a greater incidence of non head injuries? Well the stats posted by Geofisis indicates that it could well do so.

 

Do helmets result in less people cycling? Yes. Proven in oz, Israel, Mexico an others.

 

Does this inactivity result in more deaths? Yes. Inactive ppl die.

 

Does the fact that there is less cyclists result in a higher incidence of car related cyclist accidents? Yes, research indicates there is safety in numbers.

 

Are helmets an mandatory helmet laws beneficial for entire populations? The answer is that the jury is out on this. Taking all factors into consideration a number of countries have either repealed mandatory helmet laws or chosen not to implement them. If the answer was cut an dried as many think it is surely the introduction of laws would be a foregone conclusion? Britain a nanny state if ever there was one has chosen not to.

 

In closing, place no faith in yr helmet. This mindset will be far more effective in keeping you injury free than a helmet will.

 

Have a great Sunday. Pity it's raining I was hoping to ride.

[IceCreamMan]

Haha, I just thought about it in my head... Uhm, not sure how to close it though? I know from my other forum (Carbonite) there is a dedicated button for it.

Robust discussion should never be the cause of locking a thread.

[carbon29er]

Robust discussion should never be the cause of locking a thread.

Of course not. But discretion is the better part of valour. Or when the horse is dead you can stop beating it.

[IceCreamMan]

Of course not. But discretion is the better part of valour. Or when the horse is dead you can stop beating it.

Indeed yes.

[IceCreamMan]

Of course not. But discretion is the better part of valour. Or when the horse is dead you can stop beating it.

Indeed yes.

[The expat cyclist]

Of course not. But discretion is the better part of valour. Or when the horse is dead you can stop beating it.

Unless the horse is wearing a helmet...