 Poster: A snowHead
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All to their own, but for me, its no helmet.... Don't see why people preach on this subject so much! Its your own personnel preference. Next 
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| MikeM wrote: |
@rob@rar. Interesting viewpoint and not one I would disagree with. I've been looking around the web since my last post and it appears there is as mixed response with studies. Some state that serious head injuries have gone up in the last decade whilst minor injuries have gone down. Some state that although helmets prevent serious injury their use increases the probability of risk taking thus the overall rate doesn't change or indeed has gone up!. One thing they all seem to agree on (as far as I've read) is that use of helmets in children (under 16) has resulted in a lower rate of injury. So, I'm none the wiser in spite of "doing science" and l'll bow out of this debate and just stick to a personal preference, allowing others to do the same  |
Which is about the same as the evidence on cycle helmets. About the only clear conclusion is that they reduce injuries for children.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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| nelly0168 wrote: |
e.g. If I am Mountain Biking, I wear a helmet - why? I might fall off and bounce my head off rocks, depending on the route.
However I commute to work every day and this scenario is highly unlikely to happen - so I wear a cap (lets be honest, if a truck takes me out, a centimeter of foam aint saving me !)
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I used to do the same, helmet for MTB, not on the road. Until a rabbit decided to run across the road in front of me. A couple of inches difference and I'd have been over the handlebars. Still however a matter of personal choice IMO, not for compulsion or even for preaching.
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| valleyboy wrote: |
so, wore a helmet for the first time in ages last week, it was so hot I was sweating buckets and just had to take it off
Anyone know of any helmets that provide good ventilation / air circulation that will help prevent sweating |
Rip the lining out and wear a wooly hat inside the helmet instead. The linings in helmets are usually synthetic and imo make helmets more sweaty.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| Gerry wrote: |
| Pruman wrote: |
| martinm wrote: |
| No thanks. |
+1
Somebody else's accident isn't reason to change behaviour. |
You'll have your own 'road to Damascus' moment at some point. |
Absolutely possibly correct. But we're mostly all grown ups here and can decide for ourselves. Seat belts and air bags are almost the default analogy but the real safety devices in a car are things like ABS, ASC, radar cruise control, lane recognition and the driver him/herself etc - things designed to avoid the accident in the first place. Seat belts and air bags just minimise the carnage. If the OP fell over 20m from home, presumably going slowly and on an easy run, then it's not a helmet that's going to save him in the future, its better technique/fitness/awareness etc. He's asking others to please wear a helmet because HE fell over in what sounds like a hapless manner.
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@valleyboy,
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Anyone know of any helmets that provide good ventilation / air circulation that will help prevent sweating
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Depends how much you want to pay. The Giro 9 is a favourite of some on here, but last year's Aldi lid had plenty of ventilation.
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@GaryCantley, if your helmet took a hard knock on a rock you should replace it.
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| Gerry wrote: |
| Pruman wrote: |
| martinm wrote: |
| No thanks. |
+1
Somebody else's accident isn't reason to change behaviour. |
You'll have your own 'road to Damascus' moment at some point. |
and of course, deep joy for providing all the mums on here with the opportunity to say" I Told you so!"
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| dogwatch wrote: |
| MikeM wrote: |
| @rob@rar. Interesting viewpoint and not one I would disagree with. I've been looking around the web since my last post and it appears there is as mixed response with studies. Some state that serious head injuries have gone up in the last decade whilst minor injuries have gone down. Some state that although helmets prevent serious injury their use increases the probability of risk taking thus the overall rate doesn't change or indeed has gone up!. One thing they all seem to agree on (as far as I've read) is that use of helmets in children (under 16) has resulted in a lower rate of injury. So, I'm none the wiser in spite of "doing science" and l'll bow out of this debate and just stick to a personal preference, allowing others to do the same |
Which is about the same as the evidence on cycle helmets. About the only clear conclusion is that they reduce injuries for children. |
I wear a helmet when skiing and cycling, not because I feel safer but to set a good example to the young people around me. We all know children learn by example and as the grown ups around here we should be the ones to set that example.
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| nelly0168 wrote: |
| japes1275 wrote: |
| What they should do is make them compulsory then at least all these discussions will fade away. I ride motorcycles and one thing that never gets discussed on the forums is whether or not helmets are a good thing or not - we have no choice! |
Hardly the same thing !! It is the law that you wear a motorcycle helmet while on a public highway (not on private land, you can do what you want), because of the risks involved with interacting with other vehicles moving at high speed and because motorcycle crash injuries are regularly catastrophic.
I would put skiing in a similar vein to cycling - both have a number of different disciplines, some of which the user may deem require a helmet.
e.g. If I am Mountain Biking, I wear a helmet - why? I might fall off and bounce my head off rocks, depending on the route.
However I commute to work every day and this scenario is highly unlikely to happen - so I wear a cap (lets be honest, if a truck takes me out, a centimeter of foam aint saving me !)
I cant see how compulsion is a good thing in either cycling or skiing (n.b. as can be seen from the above, I am not "anti helmet", just anti compulsion).
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The ski-helmet debate (in terms of "effect") is very simple and almost wholly dependent on speed.
At 1mph, roughly 0% of helmet riders in head-crashes will die.
At 30mph, roughly 50-90% will die.
At 100mph, roughly 100% will die.
Something (very roughly) like this:
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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| tarrantd wrote: |
| dogwatch wrote: |
| MikeM wrote: |
| @rob@rar. Interesting viewpoint and not one I would disagree with. I've been looking around the web since my last post and it appears there is as mixed response with studies. Some state that serious head injuries have gone up in the last decade whilst minor injuries have gone down. Some state that although helmets prevent serious injury their use increases the probability of risk taking thus the overall rate doesn't change or indeed has gone up!. One thing they all seem to agree on (as far as I've read) is that use of helmets in children (under 16) has resulted in a lower rate of injury. So, I'm none the wiser in spite of "doing science" and l'll bow out of this debate and just stick to a personal preference, allowing others to do the same |
Which is about the same as the evidence on cycle helmets. About the only clear conclusion is that they reduce injuries for children. |
I wear a helmet when skiing and cycling, not because I feel safer but to set a good example to the young people around me. We all know children learn by example and as the grown ups around here we should be the ones to set that example. |
lol! Anyone that knows teenagers , knows that the best way to get them to wear a helmet is NOT to wear one !
A ski helmet would have to have cycle helmet levels of ventilation and weight to be of interest to me
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Imagine the suntan pattern on a bald head from a cycle helmet! Panda eyes and leopard head!
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| valleyboy wrote: |
so, wore a helmet for the first time in ages last week, it was so hot I was sweating buckets and just had to take it off
Anyone know of any helmets that provide good ventilation / air circulation that will help prevent sweating |
I have a White Rock helmet for skiing which is quite comfortable but is as you say quite warm, I live in Scotland so this isn't normally an issue. It's also fairly heavy and as I do lots of touring this is not ideal. I've mainly gotten around this by not bothering with a helmet when touring but I think your more likely to headbang a rock off piste than on. I now have a climbing helmet a "Petzl Meteor 3" it's rated for climbing, cycling and watersports so I can't see why it shouldn't do for skiing. It's very light and cool, you still look a tool in it though.
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You know it makes sense.
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The debate will never end and I expect the threads will pop up now and again. A few months back was the anniversary of seat belts for drivers of cars and Radio 5 had clips of people being interviewed at the time the change became law, with the usual set of people against the change. Today hardly any driver in the UK would not wear a seat belt, and most of us will wear one as a passenger as well. I know there is a legal point here but most comply.
I started wearing a helmet in 2004 because I dont like woolly hats and a helmet was more comfortable.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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It's less dangerous to be crashed into by a woolly hat than a helmet. So absolutely a matter for personal choice. But if I ski sith someone who would expect me to look after them if they got concussed or worse I might try to persuade them.
A friend had a knee very badly smashed by an out of control fat 9 year old in a potty crouch. If he'd not been wearing a helmet the subsequent efforts of a top Austrian knee surgeon might have been more successful. 
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Poster: A snowHead
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I wear a helmet these days but wouldn't dream of others suggesting wear one. Mainly to film my awesomeness on a chinese go-pro thingy.
My first Aldi one did melt though when put too near the open fire at the Deux Lacs coffee establishment.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| GaryCantley wrote: |
Hi all,
Up until this trip, I wouldn't wear a helmet. A wooly hat suited me just fine.
However, Santa arrived early and brought a helmet.
I've been wearing it all week and I'm glad I did.
This afternoon, within 20metres of finishing my final run, I bounced the back of my head off a rock.
Had I not been wearing a helmet, I wouldn't be typing this warning to you all at this time and maybe never.
PLEASE wear a helmet. |
i hope you bought a new helmet after 'bouncing your head off a rock'. Micro fractures compromise the overall integrity of the helmet, so best buy a new one each time you crash/ are crashed in to, or otherwise have your helmet bashed.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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@danmar94, thanks, interesting link. Slightly unpleasant images if you like tree skiing...
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Look liked it proves the case for wearing a cricket box as much as a helmet. Wonder how many 'g' the crash test dummy's gonads experienced?
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@emwmarine, yes, hit a tree like that and the collapsed lungs and cardiac arrest will get you. Helmet irrelevant. (note - I'm not a qualified tree surgeon)
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Various risks in skiing sometimes worry me. Head butting a tree is not very much one of them.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
The ski-helmet debate (in terms of "effect") is very simple and almost wholly dependent on speed.
At 1mph, roughly 0% of helmet riders in head-crashes will die.
At 30mph, roughly 50-90% will die.
At 100mph, roughly 100% will die.
Something (very roughly) like this:
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Absolute tosh. At 15mph directly into an immovable object like a tree, most would die whether wearing a helmet or not. Plus, its not a case of live or die, it's a case of live like a vegetable or die. Neither is very appealing. As most people ski at 25-30 mph its more important to be talking about not hitting the tree, not what headwear you have, although I'd accept that for glancing blows it's better to be protected than not.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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A friend (during a WC downhill) went straight into a tree at ~70 mph...
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Head butting a tree/ pole/ person after an inadvertent catching of an edge is why I wear a helmet.
Personal choice - we're all adults. Your call.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@rob@rar, unpleasant for you, perhaps. I very much doubt I ever reach 30k in the trees myself, though!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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| danmar94 wrote: |
Who here would do this without a helmet? The addition of snow and ice makes it safer?
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Doesn't look like they're going that fast so not very steep. I wouldn't ski it cos it's too narrow and I ain't that good! I would cycle down it without a helmet though - and on a road bike!
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You know it makes sense.
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I think comparing skiing and cycling is not always appropriate. From the minimum I've read on the two, cyclists commonly risk falling off onto hard asphalt and banging their head, causing brain damage etc. As hinted above, if you're going to get crushed under 8 wheels, a helmet helps nothing.
Skiing, IIRC from commentary after the Natasha Richardson incident, it is more about crashing into another skier and two skulls collide. When you fall down, the snow is (usually) softer than asphalt so there is not so much need there, as opposed to cyclists. Again, if you're going to slam into a tree trunk, the main injury is to the body as much as/more than the head, and death will be from internal bleeding or multiple organ failure.
One can then launch into an "inequality of arms/race" discussion about if some are wearing helmets, it is better for all to do so.
But I'm new here and prepared to be educated
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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My helmet (not the one I'm now using obviously) has saved my life once already......................
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Poster: A snowHead
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A cycle helmet won't help if you fall under a bus but is a big advantage if you hit your head on tarmac. One friend, without a helmet, had a minor fall onto tarmac. Alert witness insisted on calling ambulance and alert triage nurse in A&E recognized deterioration which required helicopter to long neurosurgery session and 3 months intensive rehab. She fell off bike onto road. With a helmet she might well have been fine.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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| Pruman wrote: |
Absolute tosh. At 15mph directly into an immovable object like a tree, most would die whether wearing a helmet or not. Plus, its not a case of live or die, it's a case of live like a vegetable or die. Neither is very appealing. As most people ski at 25-30 mph its more important to be talking about not hitting the tree, not what headwear you have, although I'd accept that for glancing blows it's better to be protected than not. |
Less than 10% of ski collisions for head injuries hit a tree 
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I remember in the 80s when freestyling BMx was massive in the UK. Nobody wore helmets until, at a top meet, somebody headplanted on a jump and after that it was no longer cool not to wear a helmet.
I think, lik every activity you have to assess the risk against the reward. I didn't ski with a helmet for years but now I generally do. I think that in certain conditions or skiing certain lines, you'd be daft not to.
I do object to people arguing that helmets make little difference. There are many many skiers who are alive today, who would not have been had they not been wearing a helmet. There are also many who are dead who would be alive if they'd been wearing one. analyise the risk and take your choice. But don't kid yourself that not wearing a helmet doesn't make you significantly safer.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Whitegold wrote: |
| Pruman wrote: |
Absolute tosh. At 15mph directly into an immovable object like a tree, most would die whether wearing a helmet or not. Plus, its not a case of live or die, it's a case of live like a vegetable or die. Neither is very appealing. As most people ski at 25-30 mph its more important to be talking about not hitting the tree, not what headwear you have, although I'd accept that for glancing blows it's better to be protected than not. |
Less than 10% of ski collisions for head injuries hit a tree |
In a "head on" collision, presumably against another head, pylon, rock face, building, car (I actually once witnessed a skier hitting a moving car), piste basher etc, it doesn't make too much difference what hard surface it is. If you bump heads with someone in the home at 0 mph it hurts like hell and you can be left dazed. Multiply that up to 15mph and you'll know nothing about it and we all ski faster than that.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I've worn my K2 ski helmet in all sorts of conditions, not sweated buckets at all.
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I've never had a sweaty head either @Hells Bells, but I pull out the lining and wear a beanie to avoid punter gap
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@GaryCantley, Thanks for sharing your experience yesterday, it obviously upset you up a lot and you have felt compelled to share it with us in the hope that some of us may learn from it. If just one skier/boarder wears a helmet as a result and save themselves a nasty whack on the head.... thankyou.
You haven't claimed to be any kind of expert, "I've skied bla bla bla weeks" and therefore I know better than anyone else, unlike one or two others. I cannot see why anyone would want to dissuade anyone from taking what most people consider to be a reasonable safety measure. If someone decides not to wear a helmet for cycling or snowsports that's just fine with me. As long as they are a competent adult.
One thought: I ski and cycle with a lot of medics all of whom deal with head injured patients on a regular basis, I cannot think of a single one who doesn't now wear a helmet.
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| Rareperk wrote: |
One thought: I ski and cycle with a lot of medics all of whom deal with head injured patients on a regular basis, I cannot think of a single one who doesn't now wear a helmet. |
Do they wear one in the car and walking to the shops as well ? Plenty of head injuries in those activities 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I wear a helmet after seeing it save a kids life in our group, he crashed into an adult both doing around 5mph after setting off and hitting each other. The medic said without it he would have fractured his skull but because of it he had a minor concussion and a cracked lid, his dad was happy it did its job and bought him a new one the same day. Accidents happen and its personal preference I think wearing one you lose a bit of peripheral vision but once used to them I prefer them. I change mine every 3 years habitually as its industry practice with safety lids etc as the sun can weaken the plastics with heavy use. Mine also carries my GoPro and goggles and when in a restaurant it stores my gloves and neck warmer it's like a Swiss Army knife for skiing
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@Rareperk, Once spent a week in Chamonix with a bunch of senior doctors. To a man they needed more than just head protection, a danger to themselves and to others which they all found incredibly funny. Some of them also thought they could ignore the instructions of the guide, ie one at a time does not mean all at once and other such gems. They aren't high on the list of skiing's thinkers.
@martinm, yes.
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