Half-wearing a helmet
Wear or not wear. There is no half-wear.
When it comes to wearing a helmet, I think it’s a personal choice. Even in Australia, where the law states that it’s compulsory for cyclists to wear a helmet when riding on the road, I respect each adult individual’s right to choose whether to comply or not.
However, I do get mildly irritated by fence-sitters—or should I say, handlebar-danglers—those who ride with a helmet slung over their handlebars like the can’t quite make up their mind. Or in the mistaken belief that being in possession of a helmet will exempt them from a fine, should the proud upholders of the right choose to enforce the law.
You can’t half-wear a helmet. Make a choice and have the strength of character to stick by it. Oh, sure I can see reasons why someone might carry a helmet to wear at times of perceived danger, but to then doff the helmet when that particular danger has passed just seems silly. Regardless of pace or place, if your bike is in motion there is some level of risk (true, often vanishingly small) that your head will suffer the sort of impact injury that a helmet is intended to prevent. And it’s not like modern helmets are especially heavy, hot, or uncomfortable so if a rider is carrying one, they might as well be wearing it.
The best and easiest place to carry a helmet on a bike is, oddly enough, on top of your head not swinging wildly around on the handlebars.
End rant. As you were.
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- Compensating for the safety of a helmet?
- Posted by Treadly and Me at 06:34 am
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I’ve also noted, and wondered about, this behaviour. Perhaps it is a statement about the usefulness of a helmet, eg, a helmet makes a lousy fashion accessory for a human being but it looks damn sexy on my bike?
I always reckon they think that if they have a crash they’re going to whip the helmet on on the way down. Mind you, with reflexes like that they probably wouldn’t crash in the first place.
There are of course several who wear a helmet but are too cool to do it up. Perhaps they’re also going to use their lightning fast reflexes to fasten the buckle in a crash.
I’d forgotten about that variation. I think those folks lack an understanding of the basic physics of falling over: sudden deceleration makes loose things fly off, and falling over makes for a sudden change of angle during which loose things slide off.
In safety terms it’s kind of like driving a car with the seat belt wrapped around you but not plugged in to the buckle. Equally as useless is my example, which is equivalent to not pulling the seatbelt across at all.
I’ve often thought about the comically stupid case that Surly Dave outlines—and the tragically stupid case where someone suffered head trauma that could have been avoided by wearing the gear they were carrying.
As for helmet as fashion accessory, I for one reckon it looks better on your head than on your bike. But then, there’s no room on my handlebars for another accessory!
Actually, most of the helmet danglers think they’ll suddenly put it on their head if they see a police car — not that the police in Australia ever bother to enforce the law anyway, but that’s the “logic” behind it. Personally, I’m not bothered. If someone wants to spend $60 on a helmet and not use it, it’s their money and their head.
Maybe I have watched far too many episodes of CSI, but the helmet in the photo looks as if a big chunk fell off it just that morning. The cut is fresh and bright white, whereas the rest of the styrofoam looks like it is from mid 80s to early 90s. I would say the guy (m/f) is just hanging it off his handlebars because it is now useless, but should the cops pull him over he needs to admit this half-helmet as evidence to back up his story.
What I find worse than fence sitters though, is people with the absolute tinniest of tiny and weakest-ass “lights”. Which makes me wonder, after reading this blog entry, what would be the profile of the most irritating rider? A young male rider, on a trackbike with no brakes, with a pissweak pinhead sized single LED light attached somewhere low on the rear stay, and his helmet casually swinging of the handlebar?
Trade you the pissweak light for the halogen-bright led on the helmet coming the other way? I swear I’m going punch the next one into the lake at Darling.
Interesting hypothesis D.I. Hielke, but I actually saw this guy and his two mates riding: this was the only helmet between the three of them and it wasn’t being worn. Personally, I think it’s being kept because it makes its owner look like a cool risk-taker.
I’ll admit that having this mildly amusing photo prompted me to write on a topic to which I otherwise rarely give further thought.
I really find the helmet on the handlebars look amusing more than irritating—but I’ll agree that ninja cyclists are more of a worry, especially where they leap out from the shadows and endanger me!