Help me win a helmet debate!

[Mintbread]

That is insanity.
We don't get much lower than about 10 C so riding all year round is never a problem. I couldn't stand having to put the bike away for months at a time.

Is this in the wrong thread?

[Sev]

In another month a warm day will be -10 C. By late Jan early Feb warm is -25...

That's why I always laugh at anyone south of the 49th who says it's cold.

[ZooTech]

I don't really mind the temps, it's having to wear all the cr@p that bothers me. Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you I walk around outside all winter and never wear a coat, even in sub-freezing temps. But once on the bike, a couple of layers, some winter gloves, and a full-face becomes necessary and I really don't get a whole lot of pleasure riding around with that much cr@p on.

[cb360]

I don't really mind the temps, it's having to wear all the cr@p that bothers me. Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you I walk around outside all winter and never wear a coat, even in sub-freezing temps. But once on the bike, a couple of layers, some winter gloves, and a full-face becomes necessary and I really don't get a whole lot of pleasure rising around with that much cr@p on.

Wow. I'm just the opposite. It gets a little sweaty at stop lights in the summertime but it's fine when I'm moving. I actually enjoy being bundled up in the winter. Sometimes I even wear a scarf. I'd say the gear bugs me least of all in the wintertime.

[flynrider]

Back in the olden days, when I had no choice, I used to have to get around on the bike in sub-zero temps, snow and freezing rain. I wore this huge snowmobile suit that made me feel like the Michelin Man. It worked great to keep the weather out, and an added side benefit was the extra padding. Sooner or later, if you ride in that kind of weather, you're going to find a patch of ice where you didn't expect it. Whenever I did, the giant snowmobile suit greatly lessened the impact. By the time I retired it, it had several feet of duct tape covering accidental abrasions.

[Ninja Geoff]

I saw a girl go down in my MSF course @ 20MPH...she was fine except her body and head hit the ground...a little scrape on the elbow but the knock was hard enough to unclip the visor from her helmet. No doubt she would have had a good concussion without her helmet.

When's the last time you fell four feet and slammed your head into the ground? Now add the weight of a helmet to the equation. That'll drag your head to the pavement every time. If all she had was a little scrape otherwise then I imagine the helmet was the cause of the head impact, so all it did was protect her from an incident it actually caused.

Actually, i was knocked flat on my back and my head smacked the ground fairly hard despite my best efforts to keep it up. Hit hard enough to faze me for a little bit before i could get up.

I've also fallen four feet at speed and landed face first. READ: My face hit the ground first. But, the fullface i was wearing took the hit and i was fine. No concussion or anything.

PS - I know i already posted in this with an example, but this has happened since that post. Just thought I'd bring it up.

[CM400ERider]

When I was little my riding buddy also 8 ran his 70 into a tree his helmet split in two from the impact he got a headache. helmets now days are a lot better but I prefer to ride with out one just love the wind in my hair i guess but I will say in a major impact the helmet may possibly save your head but I try to use my head to keep away from the major impacts if I am going out on the Super slab or major highways I usually wear a skid lid but Im a road less traveled rider and love to see everything that is going on around me and a full face helmet does obstruct your view.

[Venarius]

Not too much different than my Vega:

No wonder you hate FF helmets so much.

I have this exact helmet, It was my third FF I bought
My first, a $550 Arai helped me through a crash, and was bar none the best helmet I've owned, soo comfy and wind noise wasn't a problem, neither was ventilation

My next helmet was a $330 Shoei
Good helmet, little more windnoise than my arai, not quite as comfy, but I'll sacrifice that for $200 bucks cheaper

And my last FF I bought was yours, the Vega, even the same color scheme. By far a shitty helmet. I paid around $130 for it. Its not comfy, the padding is too hard. The wind noise is horrible (compared to other FF, still worlds better than my Half helmet) and the ventilation sucks A$$. Not only that, but I have noticed a degraded peripheral vision in the Vega as compared to the other FF.

I know we'd like to think otherwise, but you get what you pay for. If you get one of the cheapest FF helmets (which was the reason I bought it, mostly for passengers), you are not going to be extrememly pleased with it.

But, now after my little FF rant, would like to say that despite owning 3 FF helmets, and having one save me (in my opinion) from a lot of damage in a high speed low side crash, I still prefer to wear my half helmet most of the time when I ride.

Obviously I know it leaves me open for more injury/risk if I crash again.
Obviously a FF helmet would be safer.

But you know what, obviously driving a car is safer than my bike, and obviously staying at home is safer than driving the car.

I chose to take my risks because I want to. I think its pointless to squable over the helmt issue. If your so worried in the first place, you shouldn't be on a bike. Driving with a helmet feels MUCH different than riding without. I LOVE the way it feels without a helmet, but couldn't wrap my mind around the fact that I had absolutely no protection...which led me to get a Half helmet. I think I get the best of both worlds.

And yes I know (from MSF) that 38% of damage to helmets from crashes occur in the lower face/chin area. KNowing this I still chose my Half Helmet. Its all a game of risk, and no one's risk will be exactly the same as mine.

[ZooTech]

I have a Bieffe FF in addition to the Vega, and it's the same thing. I also rode quads for fifteen years or so and have worn FF's from HJC and others, and have always despised wearing helmets of any kind. It might help to mention that I have fibromyalgia, which more than likely contributes to my disdain for riding gear.

[Wizzard]

I just hate helmets period !