Helmets and cycles

I actually came off my bike this week. My head hit the road and my helmet is really dented. I was so lucky - I’m bruised all over my right side, but it was my head that went down with a bang. I have a lump on the side of my head and had a headache but my helmet took the brunt of the impact. Yes if I had been hit by a car it may not have done anything, but I’m an experienced cyclist in a freak accident and proof they work.

I wear a helmet, so i agree with you, my contention is that it should be down to the individual, not mandated, which i believe in Australia, resulted in far less people cycling, so the law was withdrawn, it also can, much like seat belts, encourage risk taking.

The testing for helmets is not rigorous either, yes they may well help in low speed impacts not involving a vehicle but the real danger to cyclists comes from vehicles, the most common impact is a driver simply running over a cyclist from behind.... which is why a hi intensity rear light is a far more important safety feature & not wear dark clothing, which seems to be the fashion atm.

E bike, mountain biking, fast road cycling, learners, they are at higher risk and should wear helmets IME.

Normal pace cycling especially on cycle paths (like the Netherlands) I don’t think a cyclist is at any more risk of falling off and hitting their head than a pedestrian tripping over.

Everyday cycling on U.K. roads is a grey area as there are so many bad drivers and dangerous junctions. I still think adults should make their own choice. Non powered bikes aren’t a deadly risk, they are free, healthy and sustainable transport. People are put off by overstated risks.

Also, drivers will tend to pass closer to a cyclist wearing a helmet than one without (was a proper study etc, you can probably Google it if you want to 😀🚴)

a common misconception.
there is actually some evidence which suggests that wearing a helmet could in some cases contribute towards rotational spinal injuries. and also evidence that when someone is wearing a helmet, they are more likely to let their head hit the floor.
However in any incident involving a heavy vehicle (like a bus) vs a cyclist, the main cause of death is far more likely to be crushing/ internal bleeding than a head injury.

WhenDD was 4, she hit a dodgy paving stone on her bike and was catapulted over the handlebars. Her head missed a garden wall by an inch. I honestly thought she was going to slam into it and was extremely grateful she had a helmet on!

@Alexandra2001well they both suffered severe head injuries, so the 40mm could well have made a difference. It might not have done, but it certainly won’t have done any harm. Neither of them were travelling at the speeds a pro cyclist achieves I’m guessing that also has an impact on severity of injury. But I work on the basis they don’t cause any additional harm and if they’re improving all the time then why not wear one.

A cycle helmet is around 40mm thick, which means you are 40mm closer to an object you might collide with, without the helmet, you might have hit the object...

Just because a helmet is shattered, it doesn't mean "it saved my life" they are basically made of packing grade polystyrene, newer MIPS helmets are supposed to be better.

In pro cycling, helmet wear hasn't reduced head injuries at all and they crash alot.

However, i wear one because the aerodynamics are so good that the air flow through it cools the head better than without one, the safety aspect? nope.

Well I’m pretty sure one friend and one family member would both be dead, if they hadn’t been wearing a helmet, so I know which side of the fence I’m on! As it is one of them has a permanent vision issue after the collision.

Skiing really fast down a mountain doesn't seem very safe to me, and yet i'd never start a thread about it.

Cycle helmets are only rated safe up to 14 mph - as someone has pointed out, the Dutch don't wear them (and think we're nuts). You're more likely to get a serious head injury in your kitchen. I wear one on club rides, as they insist (rules), but not usually on solo rides.
Have fallen off 4 times in a lifetime of cycling, and never hit my head 👍🙂

In case the cyclist should cause an accident? That's not normally how it works.

If you cycle on a road or quickly then you need a helmet. I only trundle along on empty pavements so I don't wear one.

My teen does as he cycles on the road and with mates.

We've always been 50/50 about helmets. However, DH came off his bike a few years ago, going downhill he hit a patch of dust and back wheel flipped out, and his helmet definitely saved him from a very nasty head injury.

Since then he's always worn one, but I agree with many of the comments here about the downsides, and don't get upset about other people not wearing them.

For the type of cycling the DCs and I do, a helmet is more likely to be of benefit than a hinderence. For cyclists on busier, higher speed roads a helmet won't necessarily be so helpful against higher impact injuries and is limited to head impacts.

My DCs have grown up with a culture of wearing one and I'd rather they see one as normal and evaluate when not to wear one, than to be anti wearing one. I don't think it's proportionate to see them as compulsory though.

Cars have got safety features designed in such as crumple zones, seat belts and air bags. The biggest mitigation is being an observant driver.

When walking/ running, the best mitigation is picking safe pedestrian routes, places with good visibility/ lighting. Picking visible clothing and torches might help- this applies to cycling too. It's not a total solution, but gives idiots less excuse to collide with you!

Nothing is totally safe and no one measure will avoid all risk.

I also have insurance via my membership of Cycling UK.

But I think the danger of me hitting anyone is far outweighed by the danger of a car driver hitting me.

If we are going to campaign for something, I want idiot drivers to stop parking on pavements (and in the cycle paths that do exist).

Those of you who think people need to wear helmets should visit the Netherlands. Very few of them do. And before you say "well they have separated infrastructure" - (I see a pp already has) they do, but have you seen the way they ride? And they have mad Deliveroo e-bike riders too. And (small) motorbikes on the cycle paths.

I do agree with helmets for mountain biking in case you collide with a tree, but if a car squashes me, a helmet won't save me.

The only time I have hit my head, I slipped over on some ice. So maybe all pedstrians should wear them when it's slippery.

Also, 90% of cyclists don't wear them on their heads properly.

If you drive, take care, and you won't hit a cyclist and they won't need a helmet.

I wear one but only to stop people moaning at me. Not because it will save me if an idiot driver knocks me off my bike,

I do think cyclists should make sure they are visible though - so hi-vis once the clocks go back. But that also applies to pedestrians.

I wear one and will insist my children wear helmet when cycling or scootering. I also have cycling insurance. I know in Holland barely anyone who commutes wears helmet, but they are often using cycle lanes separated from car traffic and in general there is no hostility towards cyclist comparable to the UK. Once they change to road cycling they do wear helmets quite often.

I agree with you, I think if you are on public land you should wear a helmet, I also think adults (possibly younger) riding on public roads should have 3rd party insurance in case you cause an accident (could be via house insurance perhaps.)

I've never worn a helmet and never will. My kids don't wear helmets and never will.

If you want to wear them feel free... everyone is allowed to make their own choice.

I grew up not wearing one - not sure they even existed in my youth. As soon as I had DCs, I never went out on a bike without one and I managed to persuade DH to wear one as soon as DC were old enough to ride a bike too, to set a good example.
I would never dream of riding without one now. We always ask for them when hiring bikes abroad, seemingly to the amusement of the bike hire companies. But they do have them available!

I feel like with these kind of questions people never change their mind. Some people are very much in a place where once they classify something as a danger they’ll do everything possible to minimise it (very reasonable position) so they will be very fixed on wearing a helmet. Others will look more at risk and think I’m fine with taking a normal level of risk with all my activities so might be of opinion helmet at skate park or mountain biking when risk of the type of fall where I’d hit my head is increased but not day to day riding where risk is similar to jogging/walking/car travel (also reasonable position). Neither is right/wrong. Both seem very acceptable/normal viewpoints.

To me, it's about the potential for a helmet to better protect your skull in the event of some types of cycling accident.

Having seen the state of my boss's helmet after he was involved in a cycling accident, I would never not wear one again. That would have been his skull otherwise. No, it won't save your life in every scenario but it will in some, or certainly prevent a more serious head injury. I have no idea why people are willing to risk that when they could reduce it by wearing a helmet.

I think I remember seeing a stat once, that if all drivers wore helmets when on the motorways, it would save 1,000s more lives than if all cyclists wore helmets.

I wonder how many lives could be saved if you had to wear a helmet to go downstairs?

My son tells me off for not wearing one. I'm glad he's smarter than me.

This sounds crazy, but I'd rather wear gloves than a helmet. I mostly cycle off-road. The most common injury from falling off a bike is gravel in the hands.