Lesson learned NEVER ride without your helmet !

[MontyVeda]

...

In other words *if* you are in an accident, the correlation of helmet to injury suggests that the outcome is better if you have a bit of foam between your skull and the thing your head is hitting.

but only *if* you're riding a bike... any other time, you just take your chances, like the rest of us

 

[fossyant]

Well yes, great: the problem is that lots of helmet people try to force everyone else to join in. They setup rides and clubs for this purpose. Or they impose workplace rules.

Surely you can see why this winds people up? I promise you, its not people disagreeing with me on the internet that is the problem! 😄

You'll probably find many organised rides are forced into the position of requiring helmets by the insurance. The MTB club I ride with says no helmet no ride, but that's due to the insurance for the ride leader for example - we're a bit stuck. Sportives are the same. We're unfortunately in a world where folk will sue an organiser for the riders own stupidity. I know of one case where a rider crashed by going too fast over a cattle grid, and took legal action against the ride organiser.

If you want to race, you've had to wear a lid of some sort for as long as I can remember.

 

[fossyant]

There was a time, not long ago, when a 'group' of organised rides would only let you ride if you had CTC/Cycling UK insurance, and not British Cycling Insurance. That's changed now, but silly rules are sometimes enforced by insurance cover.

 

[Oldhippy]

I grew up in a world where you built your own go karts and bikes, sat in my dad's Dormobile with the sliding door open and no seat belts travelled thousands of miles by bicycle in all environments and it has never occurred to me to wear day glo or a helmet once. The world now is all about being risk averse in everything and some company providing a 'solution' to keep you safe. Not for me.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

You'll probably find many organised rides are forced into the position of requiring helmets by the insurance.

Well that’s often the claimed reason. But rarely the case if actual insurance policies are provided for examination.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

If you want to race, you've had to wear a lid of some sort for as long as I can remember.

In the Tour de France it’s only since 2003 and only full time since 2005. Before that helmets were optional. Hard as it is to remember any racing before 2003.

 

[Profpointy]

Many on here still won’t use a lid, some won’t have the Covid vaccine. It’s all down to personal choice.
Heal well.

Yebbutt a covid vaccine considerably reduces your risk of being seriously ill from covide, but evidence suggests cycle helmets make little difference on average - which I interpret as they do as much harm as they do good, since they clearly help on occasion. Overall the harm seems to balance out the good, else we'd see a net benefit. It is disingenuous to use vaccination as an argument

 

[fossyant]

In the Tour de France it’s only since 2003 and only full time since 2005. Before that helmets were optional. Hard as it is to remember any racing before 2003.

UK racing, amateur

 

[matticus]

There was a time, not long ago, when a 'group' of organised rides would only let you ride if you had CTC/Cycling UK insurance, and not British Cycling Insurance. That's changed now, but silly rules are sometimes enforced by insurance cover.

Neither of those national bodies require helmets on groups rides. [I was given responsiblity for our club's group ride insurance, so looked into this in a bit of detail. A few years back now, but not much has changed ... ]

I don't understand what strange process results in groups taking out insurance with other bodies, as I could not name one off the top of my head. I don't doubt they exist, but how are all these clubs finding them? CUK even do a simple scheme to cover large events, so there should be no problem with a charidee ride or sportive.

I suspect the truth is mostly this:

Well that’s often the claimed reason. But rarely the case if actual insurance policies are provided for examination.

 

[matticus]

UK racing, amateur

But of course Time Trialling* has never required it. And that accounts for most miles raced in the UK.

*Except Scotland, I believe?

 

[Milzy]

Yebbutt a covid vaccine considerably reduces your risk of being seriously ill from covide, but evidence suggests cycle helmets make little difference on average - which I interpret as they do as much harm as they do good, since they clearly help on occasion. Overall the harm seems to balance out the good, else we'd see a net benefit. It is disingenuous to use vaccination as an argument

Well I never!! You don’t know the long term effects of the vaccination yet. Good debate though.

 

[Profpointy]

So explain how they determine that any particular head injury would have been worsened or lessened by the presence or absence of a helmet. It's not a scientific study.

That is not really the question. The important question is whether wearing a helmet reduces your chance of being injured on average which is fundamentally different. For example it is quite obvious (surely?) that you are between 50% and 100% more likely to hit your head if wearing a helmet. Whether the benefit of reduced injuries from the protection the helmet confers make up for the considerably increased chance of banging your head in the first place is highly debatable. From the stats I've seen these things look like they balance out

 

[Profpointy]

lg

Exactly.

Full face for nose and chin protection.

I think one group of medics / dentists were pushing for full face helmets for that very reason.
Presumably they'd never ridden a bike themselves. Whilst a normal bike helmet is no real hardship, whatever the pros and cons, a full face one would be very unpleasant to wear. I do choose a full face helmet for riding my motorbike, and it is unpleasant when town riding in hot weather, and I'm merely sat there rather than working hard pedling

 

[Profpointy]

When I hear people argue against the compulsory use of cycling helmets I’m reminded of the arguments used by smoking lobbyists a few years ago. But each to his own.

Yebbutt smoking is proven to be bad for you. Every attempt to "prove" cycle helmets are beneficial don't seem to support it, so campaigners resort to bad statistics, personal attacks or out and out lying. It makes no sense to me; maybe the end justifies the means

 

[Profpointy]

Done something I vowed never to do - comment on a helmet debate! On reflection. Winjam, I think it’s more comparable to the debate over the compulsory wearing of seatbelts I remember from the ‘70’s.

Again same comment - seatbelts are beneficial