In Memoriam: Unsafe Headgear
I appreciate my helmet. I treat it with respect. I never leave for a ride without it. I replace it after a crash or even after helplessly watching it bound down the stairwell like some kind of deformed styrofoam slinky-dink after allowing it to slip from my grasp. (This activity also typically involves some assertions questioning what it does in its spare time, its origins of birth, and things of that nature.) Community member @chaz also recently suggested that, in accordance with motorcycle tradition, we ceremoniously cut the strap on the helmet and hang it in the VVorkshop in deference to the purpose it served us.
Suffice to say, I’m grateful for the advances technology offers us when it comes to protective headgear, because staying alive is in alignment with my strategy. But progress is the slayer of ritual and tradition, and I can’t help but look back longingly to the days when helmets were rarely worn and if they were, they consisted of thin strips of leather that, assuming it stayed on, would do little more than keep your cranium from coming apart after cracking it to bits on a cobblestone or some such object.
The hairnet was the coolest cranial accouterment ever designed, with the insulated cycling cap that fit over it being a close second. The cycling cap on its own was, of course, also a class piece of kit to be worn forwards, sideways, or backwards – made cooler only by perching a set of cycling-specific shades on top of it. A helmetless head saw hair slicked back by the wind as a byproduct of the V as riders raised their arms in triumph over the finish line. The bare noggin on the high mountain passes was a beacon of Purified Awesome, allowing us to see in all their glory the suffering faces of the riders as they moved sur la plaque over the summit.
Take a moment, fellow Velominati, to honor the Useless Headgear of our past.
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/Headgear/”]
I saw some nasty falls from people who were not wearing helmets. Better safe than sorry, because ‘sorry’ probably equals: ‘it doesn’t matter, anymore’…
SUPER piece, Fronk, and a timely one as well as I was setting my own roller record yesterday (2:01:09 for those of you inetersted :) and was watching the ’94 P-R on dvd and was just thinking how amazingly cool and old school they all looked, except for the few US dorks in the early Giro helmets, in their hairnets or just cycling caps.
Esp when Duclos-Lassalle threw his cycling cap to a fan while in the “trenches of Arenberg”.
Great stuff.
That being said, I never throw a leg over the top tube, and never will, without a hemet on.
Awesome lead photo! Love the jersey, really like the very think hoops near his wrists, and the precipitation coming down adds to the shot. Nice.
It is kind of crazy how something that was once the norm can seem so out of place now. Freely flowing hair & just caps. Helmets now seem as much a part of the peloton now as the bikes and the racers themselves. Hard to picture a race without them. I also can’t imagine anyone playing ice hockey without a helmet on, but I do remember the days when some didn’t wear them. The game has definitely gotten faster since the 80s, but still…skating in an enclosed space with strong, fast dudes and a heavy puck? Insane.
I’ve gone from inexpensive helmets to nicer and nicer ones. Now anything but a super-light, very nice one feels like a boulder strapped to my head.
And, is it just me or are the people riding bikes and not wearing helmets, plus wearing ear phones, always the ones who seem to need their sense of sound & a protective lid the most?
2nd position rider in photo 12 has some funny handlebars- is that (display of total ignorance here) Lemond? those handlebars (knee bashers, courtesy of scott!) I don’t think lasted very long. but some cool campy brakes to be sure.
Il Pirate: Best. Headgear. Evar.
@Buck Rogers
Sick.
I got on the rollers 3x this week (2x to sufferfest vids) and feel so much better than I usually do at this point in the week.
Is that Indurain shifting partir la plaque?
@snoov
And is that a Swatch he’s wearing?
@Ron
As my dad says, if you’re not wearing a helmet, you don’t need one.
@gaswepass
Yup, that’s Lemond in the 1990 tour, riding Scott drop-in bars and eating a pain sandwich being offered by Erik Breukink.
@Nate
No, it’s a TAG Heuer.
@gaswepass
Dude, that’s Greg LeMan and those are the Scott Drop-Ins. I loved those things. I had a pair and you’ve never ridden a flexier set of handlebars in your life. Just a few guys rolled with them, and I was one of ’em.
I could never understand how Greg let someone wrap his bars the way they did, with the cable coming out of the left side before the tape was done being wrapped.
Great photos too I might add. I’ve had a bad crash with no helmet, OTB face first and front teeth completely removed. The dentist said they were pretty strong (came out in one piece) and pushed them back in with no anaesthetic and covered them and the ones to the side with loads of temporary glue. My mum had called him and he told her he’d meet us at his surgery and see what he could do to save them. My body rejected them after a couple of years and he whipped them out again. Only a full face helmet would have helped though I reckon but I wouldn’t go out training without one now.
Aside: Evidently in days gone by if rich person lost a tooth they’d sometimes replace by taking it from the mouth of a slave or servant.
@snoov
Damn straight, he is.
@wiscot
Actually, that looks like Luz Ardiden, near the base. They’ve just caught Cappuccino and are hitting the steeps. You can see Lejarreta in the back there. In a moment, he’ll move to their right and attack. LeMond goes with and effectively wins the Tour.
@frank
@frank
Bzz. Wrong. I take it back. That’s not Lajarreta. But I think its still the very base of the climb. By the time the above video hits, Breukink has already been shelled.
And, it was Para who attacked, not Lajarreta.
@snoov
Dude.
@frank
And it was Indurain who won the stage, with LeMond in second.
@Oli
Absolutely. He sucked Lemond’s wheel the WHOLE F’king way and then dropped him within the last 500 meters. Suppose it was not a big deal as LeMan really wanted the time, not necessarily the stage, but such poor form, in my humble opinion (but then again, was never much of a Big Mig fan anyways).
@eightzero
And you know what? No one could wear that head gear but Il Pirata and pull it off. Man was beautiful on the bike (a mess off of it, but beautiful on it).
@Nate
Yeah, I’m just about to start my third roller ride this week as well. I’ve been stuck taking care of the kiddos while the VMH has been Christmas shopping so I do not get to leave and ride, but am okay to ride the rollers for an hour plus while they do homework, etc. I’ll take what I can get!!!
@Oli, @Buck Rogers
Exactly – in one a wheel-sucking masterclass.
@frank
Wasn’t the amazing Bruyneel in the break that day as well?
@frank
How did one not bash their knees on those? Of course compact frames didn’t exist then AFAIK.
@gaswepass
I have a pair in my garage. The drop in part was forward of the top of the bar, so unless you had them severely rotated forwards (bringing the bottom of the bar towards the rider) they wouldn’t be in the way of your knees.
I really admired Indurain…he was someone for me to admire as a young American suffering from the departure of LeMond from the front of the TdF. His ability to climb extremly well for a giant man, and then blow the field away in the TTs was impressive. He truly was dominant in a few of those Tours- rarely could anyone hold a candle to him in the ITTs. Plus he had that cool stat of 28 bpm heart rate.
@Ron
@frank
Yea, I second that about the killer lead photo. Maurizio looking super-bad in the sleet and hoops, who could ask for more.
All those years riding with no helmet and now it feels taboo to ever ride without, it’s weird. I did rock the headband like Eric Vanderaerden.
The days of old are behind us. As classic and inspirational as they are; we have moved forward for the better on some levels. May I be bold enough to suggest a Rule #88? Wear Your Helmet.. with the explanation as a direct quote from the father of @Ron? ‘as my dad says.. if you’re not wearing a helmet, you don’t need one.
F’n hilarious!
Common sense and words of wisdom from a father..
@snoov
seems like only a full face helmet would’ve helped save your teeth. My feelings regarding ghosts and helmets are similar. I don’t necessarily believe in either of them but I sure as hell don’t want to be proven wrong. By believe I mean I don’t think riding without one is the russian roulette of bicycling some make it out to be.
I always wear a helmet just a habit I’ve had since mtb’ing.
I think we forget how lucky we are. Early helmets (the first generation after hairnets) really sucked. Hot, uncomfortable, poor-fitting and f-ugly. Our choices today are enormous and for a very reasonable price one can get a top-of-the-line bucket that is stylish, well-vented and built to high standards.
Back in 84, after a bad collision with a car door in a TT (concussion and 6 stitches – could have been WAY worse) I started wearing a helmet in races (a low-profile plastic bucket which I think it was actually a track helmet). I didn’t wear it training despite the fact that 90% of rides were training. If I’d had an accident it might, might, have helped stop my brains splash all over the road. I was young and dumb. Now I wouldn’t ride to the mailbox without my helmet.
Love #6. I reckon that’s Joop Zoetemelk in the stripes and would the PDM man be Steven Rooks?
Research suggests this is T-A 1986 as Zoetmelk won in ’85 but if that’s the case I wonder why they are wearing hairnets — I associate those with racing in Belgium.
Transitioning from a Brancali hairnet to a Bell V1-pro for USCF in 86 SUCKED! A helmet you could stick in a jersey pocket pre or post race vs. Half a hollowed out bowling ball. the Giro Prolight made helmets palatable. The specialized sub 6 was pretty bad ass. But nothing has replaced the go to, broken in just so, cap used as a training ride essential.
I can’t stand to see helmetless parents riding with their helmeted kids… Inconsistent much?
I’m a firm believer in helmets for motorcycling and skiing too; in addition to obvious safety improvement I find both activities way more comfortable enjoyable when my melon is encased in EPS. On the bike however it’s a necessary discomfort; I’ve seen serious injuries even with helmets that would’ve been catastrophic without them. Bucket up, boys and girls!
@sgt
Our neighbor does this. Drives me nuts.
I had a hairnet helmet back in the day when I wanted to look like Danny Clark. I crashed wearing it once and my head split open, staining the inside with blood. It was a white one with coloured “sausages” and the staining was graphic. I used to show it to any of the kids who turned up to our races with one of them so that they knew how useless they were.
Oh God, helmets – the bike forum equivalent of Godwin’s law.
I’m genuinely sorry this has come up, so I’m just going to not come here for the next few days otherwise I will be tempted to argue with all the ‘believers’.
Suffice to say I do not wear a helmet.
There is little or no actual evidence of their benefit as a matter of statistics.
Check the actual standard your helmet is tested to and see if it matches your riding. And the faster you ride the less effect – that’s physics.
There is evidence of their harm in preventing cycling, which has greater effect on overall safety.
They portray cycling as a dangerous activity and allow it to be marginalised.
You wear them if you like. I’m not stopping you and I’m not commenting on your choice or what it says about you.
But I really genuinely object to portraying people like me who make a different choice, especially one they have given some thought to, as stupid, ignorant and reckless.
Whoever suggested making a Rule… the day that happens is the day I stop being a Velominati.
See you in a few days.
@ChrisO
I agree with the sentiment. let those who ride decide. When I ride bike #1 I wear one. When I commute on my 80’s Shogun I wear a cycling cap to hold my hair down.
you know, ChrisO is right, science has not replicated this point, nor could it. Really, think for a moment and tell me how many people will sign up for that one, or how can you go retrospectively and quantatively assign values to these things…you just can’t.
so it will always be the dissention. i have ridden without for years, now i ride with, preferring the bell sweep and envy the new volts.
but alas, my last bad wreck left me spinning circles like the proverbial smashed cat in the highway after an 18wheeler hit it, that was me after a bad spill with a shep dog, split my bell sweep in 5 directions from my posterior occipit, lacerated my scalp at the same place to the skull. Had it not been for my helmet, i am convinced my brainstem woulda spilled out also…so kudos IMHO to the helmet. I ride yet again
and…in tribute, here is my idol
ps: who needs a rear derailleur anyway….
@RedRanger
This is not the forum for this discussion…but…
I’d be OK with that so long as those who decide not to protect themselves were not part of my insurance pool. But we don’t do that.
And I would be a widower if it wasn’t for the Bell Helmet Company. The assertion that there is no statistical proof is bullshit. I’m 1 for one on the deal.
This is not the place for this discussion.
@Souleur
Look at the massive drop on those classic bend bars. He could fit his whole head in there!
@ChrisO
Opinions best kept to the other boards you allude to. I’d happily bin this whole article if one more comment along these lines appears.
@sgt
When I started Alpine Skiing again, I was like, “Helmets? Really? Fucktards.” And then I used one and I rang my bell HARD right away and was happy I had it. Everyone I know had the same experience.
I always ski with a helmet now. Skiing without one feels just as weird as cycling without one.
@jimmy
Ah, the Sub-6. Everyone credits Giro for the first good helmet, but bullocks to that. The Sub-6 was the first time anyone looked truly badass in a helmet.
Here’s Pharmy in his Sub-6, when he (and Specialized) were still cool.
@ChrisO
I totally appreciate your sentiment, and quite frankly, I’m not sure you’re wrong. Rest assured, such a Rule would never grace these pages. A Rule about how to cut the strap and hang the destroyed helmet in the shop after it saves your life? I could see that. But not one about wearing one. For starters, it would put every Great Cyclist ever in the violations list. Second, it is, as you say, a personal choice. Quite frankly, I’m sure you Look Fantastic without your helmet, and that’s 3/4 of what we’re talking about. And I’m looking forward to seeing you in April without a helmet.
I wear one – always – but its my choice. As with all my opinions, I feel its the right choice – otherwise I wouldn’t make it. But I for one will never judge anyone for making a different choice. I might make fun of them, though. That’s certainly not beneath me. And mocking. That’s another specialty. But not judging.
I began riding before the helmet was available. all the guys racing that i lived around and with were racing in the leather hair nets. I thought they were super neat looking and remember thinking about how special they were. My first helmet was odd but saved my head in my first criterium when the gal behind me hooked her wheel or i hooked mine, ( can’t remember but I was leading ) but we both went down hard. that helmet broke because of that fall. didn’t race for a long time but rode like crazy without a helmet for mucho years. skied without the helmet, rode without because helmets were not really available then. I salute the leather hair net.
@Nate
Strong work, Nate.
And more good stuff from ChrisO and @frank.
I love this place – anywhere else this gets brought up turns nasty but here… It’s all about Looking Fantastic. Kudos.
I however, am still wearing the helmet I got with my cycle-to-work scheme bike (I can’t count the number of rule violations but I’m working on whittling them down one-by-one) whilst embezzling enough cash to buy a suitable replacement. The thing is enormous – it actually might put me in more danger of an accident – it protrudes so far out from the side of my head, it might get clipped by a passing bus.
@ChrisO
@frank
I agree with both sentiments. Having worked ER for 12 years and now in surgery for 10 I’ve seen (anecdotal, not scientific) many people who have had lives saved/ better outcomes from wearing a lid. Myself included (numerous crashes racing, been hit by 3 different cars).
That said, I almost always wear a helmet. The venting keeps you cooler in the summer than no lid at all. But once in awhile, I do love going out for a spin sans lid. It’s liberating.
@gaswepass
I had a set of those Boone Lennon designed wonders. Super cool, and if you’re sprinting in the drops, you won’t hit your knees on them. It was always a bit off-putting when you were in the drop “extensions” hammering away and they flexed big time.
When I was in 5th grade I was invited over to Scott Harless’ house to ride BMX on his track with natural half-pipe. He was one of the 8th graders who rode bikes with a couple other 8th graders doing some really cool tricks for the day (1981). They were doing table-tops, 360’s, 720’s, all kinds of cool shit and were ring Redline Proline 2’s. Cool bikes. Any way, when I told my mom where I was going (Scott Harless’ track) she made me take one of these:
Man was I pissed, but moreover, caught in the moral dilemma of my young life. Do I ignore mom and risk being not allowed to go or do I wear the helmet and risk the ridicule of Scott and the Redline kids? I wore the helmet and ditched it in some bushes along the way. My mom drove by later and saw me, sans helmet, riding Scott’s track. I was grounded from my bike for two weeks.