# Helmet Watch



## Markymark (18 Jul 2016)

My London commute is 10 miles each way mostly through quieter back routes, London Fields, Victoria Park Olympic park. Lovely route.

I've noticed in the last year or so the number of helmet-wearers has dropped. It used to be easily 90%, now I'd say it's more like 60%. 

I don't ride the superhighway routes so not sure what they're like but there's a definite shift on my routes. I wonder if it's new cyclists that have joined in or if all the cycling infrastructure is making a less aggressive and more European style commute.


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## Racing roadkill (18 Jul 2016)

Markymark said:


> My London commute is 10 miles each way mostly through quieter back routes, London Fields, Victoria Park Olympic park. Lovely route.
> 
> I've noticed in the last year or so the number of helmet-wearers has dropped. It used to be easily 90%, now I'd say it's more like 60%.
> 
> I don't ride the superhighway routes so not sure what they're like but there's a definite shift on my routes. I wonder if it's new cyclists that have joined in or if all the cycling infrastructure is making a less aggressive and more European style commute.


A bit of both I'd say. It's nice to finally have some decent ( ish ) infrastructure, which allows people to feel safe enough to not have to wear a lid all the time.


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## Markymark (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> So a "lid" will protect you in fast-moving traffic will it? Must be some new research findings no one's heard about.


I think the point was how it made people feel


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## Catweasel (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> Exactly! Some of us have been saying this all along - it's a matter of empty, semi-religious, faith.




I googled...I read...I had links...I thought..

Wait...this is one of those topics isn't it...

Fleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! It's an internet argument!


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## Rohloff_Brompton_Rider (18 Jul 2016)

Catweasel said:


> I googled...I read...I had links...I thought..
> 
> Wait...this is one of those topics isn't it...
> 
> Fleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! It's an internet argument!


Nope it's worse.....its a helmet debate in disguise!!!!!


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## Roadrider48 (18 Jul 2016)

Rohloff_Brompton_Rider said:


> Nope it's worse.....its a helmet debate in disguise!!!!!


Should you be out on the streets of our great city looking at helmets? 
EDIT: sorry Rohloff. Was supposed to be a general comment directed @Markymark 
Can't work out why I replied to you. Apologies!


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## Rohloff_Brompton_Rider (18 Jul 2016)

Roadrider48 said:


> Should you be out on the streets of our great city looking at helmets?


Don't get it.


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## Roadrider48 (18 Jul 2016)

Rohloff_Brompton_Rider said:


> Don't get it.


Mistake, sorry. I did edit?


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## Markymark (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> It is a taboo subject on this forum @Catweasel. There's a special thread for it, to which this thread will be consigned very soon .


The OP was about the number of helmets you see people wearing. This won't get moved if people kindly keep on topic.


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## mjr (18 Jul 2016)

Markymark said:


> I've noticed in the last year or so the number of helmet-wearers has dropped. It used to be easily 90%, now I'd say it's more like 60%.
> 
> I don't ride the superhighway routes so not sure what they're like but there's a definite shift on my routes. I wonder if it's new cyclists that have joined in or if all the cycling infrastructure is making a less aggressive and more European style commute.


My commute is about 4 miles of roadside cycle tracks then a last mile away from roads almost until to a 20mph zone, or I can replace a short section with small 30mph streets through an Edwardianish housing estate and back on cycle tracks through a park. They've always been rarer than average here, but last year included the first time in I don't remember how long that I saw 0% cycle helmets (and about the usual number of people cycling).

I don't think it's infrastructure here directly. The only new infrastructure here has been minor, such as parking, a couple of Toucan/Puffin crossings and signposting a few streets as contraflow cycling and/or "access only" (which minicabs continue to abuse), although it's always been fairly good if you know where to look. If anything, it's actually more difficult than usual to cycle here at the moment, with a half-mile of NCR1 diverted onto housing estate roads in the usual slapdash manner.

There might be a slight effect from London's infrastructure, with King's Cross being only 110 minutes away (so people do commute) and being portrayed in the media. I think the biggest difference has probably been an upsurge in city bikes, with the Pendleton Somerby, Pashley and Bobbin making them fashionable again and some imitators also in local shops - not quite sure what the young gentlemen are riding as my Dutchie remains unusual and they can't all be Pashleys. Maybe I should pay more attention in the cycle parks to the non-vintage stuff.


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## Markymark (18 Jul 2016)

User said:


> I think it might be some form of object specific blindness?


Perhaps. Maybe I shouldn't have offered reasons. It is really about observing the ratio of those wearing which on my commute is dropping.


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## Racing roadkill (18 Jul 2016)

If more people are willing to get out on a bike, and the only way they will, is by not wearing a lid, then so be it.


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## h1udd (18 Jul 2016)

The trend, as more people cycle will move from the hobbiests to the urban chick

If you look at places like Amsterdam, the majority of cyclists wear work clothes, no helmet and are happy to not know their power output or strava times .... Cycling here is still in the hands of the cycle-snobs as it were, so a lot of unnecessary Lycra, helmets, aero socks, shaved legs, gps mega power cadence heart monitors


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## mjr (18 Jul 2016)

h1udd said:


> aero socks


 Things I didn't know I didn't know... http://www.aerotechdesigns.com/compression-socks.html


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## KneesUp (18 Jul 2016)

I thought this was going to be a thread about some sort of impractical form of timekeeping.


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## Profpointy (18 Jul 2016)

mjray said:


> Things I didn't know I didn't know... http://www.aerotechdesigns.com/compression-socks.html



Mmm, "compression socks" - would that just be the same as socks that are too small?
That said, I seem to have more "compression trousers" than I used to


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## Venod (18 Jul 2016)

h1udd said:


> Cycling here is still in the hands of the cycle-snobs as it were, so a lot of unnecessary Lycra, helmets, aero socks, shaved legs, gps mega power cadence heart monitors



What a load of shite


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## ayceejay (18 Jul 2016)

Won't you have to take it off to tell the time?


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## Phaeton (18 Jul 2016)

It's the weather


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## ufkacbln (18 Jul 2016)




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## Tin Pot (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> So a "lid" will protect you in fast-moving traffic will it? Must be some new research findings no one's heard about.



Four posts into the thread, well done for holding back


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## Tin Pot (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> It only took three posts for someone to mention "safety". Well done them.



Maybe the thread could simply be a series of posts of photos of commuter cyclists with/without helmets.

Who could be upset by that?


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## Markymark (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> It only took three posts for someone to mention "safety". Well done them.


Actual the post mentioned 'feeling safe' which is a very likely cause of people not wearing helmets. Whether it's true or not is a different matter.


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## ianrauk (18 Jul 2016)

Tin Pot said:


> Maybe the thread could simply be a series of posts of photos of commuter cyclists with/without helmets.
> 
> Who could be upset by that?


Me. I hate helmets.


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## Catweasel (18 Jul 2016)

Is it weird that I won't ride my motorbike without a helmet but I won't ride my bicycle with one?


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## Drago (18 Jul 2016)

Ive gone right off helmets since mine left me for someone else.


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## SavageHoutkop (18 Jul 2016)

In my experience, the amount you see depends on the time of day (people using bikes as utility transport rather than 'commuting' are less likely to wear them).


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## subaqua (18 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> So a "lid" will protect you in fast-moving traffic will it? Must be some new research findings no one's heard about.


Wouldn't have stopped my shoulder injury, or the wrists on 28 April . Come to think of it wearing a helmet in 2010 didn't stop my knee getting hurt when falling off in the snow . 

I stopped wearing one as it made me sweaty and hotter


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## fossyant (18 Jul 2016)

I need spinal protection, not a helmet.


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## classic33 (18 Jul 2016)

SavageHoutkop said:


> In my experience, the amount you see depends on the time of day (people using bikes as utility transport rather than 'commuting' are less likely to wear them).


Just as likely for either, provided I'm on two wheels for both.


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## Drago (18 Jul 2016)

To be honest, in over 4 decades of cycling I've injured my love plums more than my head, so in terms of actual usefulness an armoured cod piece would be better than a helmet.


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## glenn forger (18 Jul 2016)

Pain was agonising, didn't make a fuss. Not a scratch on the helmet, I left it at home.


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## slowmotion (18 Jul 2016)

Breaking a long-standing habit, I didn't wear one on my commute today. I just couldn't face having a sweaty head. Miraculously, I managed to complete the eleven miles without a life-threatening injury.


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## ianrauk (18 Jul 2016)

slowmotion said:


> Breaking a long-standing habit, I didn't wear one on my commute today. I just couldn't face having a sweaty head. Miraculously, I managed to complete the eleven miles without a life-threatening injury.


You sure?


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## slowmotion (18 Jul 2016)

ianrauk said:


> You sure?


 Good point. I guess my brain function might best be judged by others.


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## Pete Owens (18 Jul 2016)

I wonder if its a bit of a London commuter thing with the helmets.

On my commute (50% quiet roads 50% rural A road) I see very few helmets or indeed any other specialist gear. Same goes for utility shopping trips and the like. On the other hand if I head out into the Cheshire country lanes at the weekend pretty much everyone is fully kitted out with plastics hats and lycra though the bikes seem to lack basic practical stuff such as mudguards or panier racks.


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## Nigel-YZ1 (18 Jul 2016)

slowmotion said:


> Good point. I guess my brain function might best be judged by others.



There's plenty on here willing to do that for anyone


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## slowmotion (18 Jul 2016)

User said:


> True but for, @slowmotion, I am sure the boat would be pushed quite a long way out.


 I'm touched.


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## mjr (19 Jul 2016)

User13710 said:


> Not at all. Motorcycle helmets have been well researched.


I saw quite a few motorcyclists on lovely gleaming chrome beasts pop-popping up to the coast today (second-best way to skip the long queues onto and up the coast road IMO). Sat right back, open-face helmets, big glasses and cloths across their face. The plastic-looking roaring superbikers are mostly leathers and closed visors. Do any of the motorbikers here know if there's a measurable divide in KSIs between the motorbike types or helmet types? I'd expect the sat-back chopper and tourer types maybe to be more cautious but I don't know.



fossyant said:


> I need spinal protection, not a helmet.


A BFG for the motorists you have there may be more useful... 



slowmotion said:


> I'm touched.


Ah, so the brain function isn't there today?


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## si_c (22 Jul 2016)

mjray said:


> I saw quite a few motorcyclists on lovely gleaming chrome beasts pop-popping up to the coast today (second-best way to skip the long queues onto and up the coast road IMO). Sat right back, open-face helmets, big glasses and cloths across their face. The plastic-looking roaring superbikers are mostly leathers and closed visors. Do any of the motorbikers here know if there's a measurable divide in KSIs between the motorbike types or helmet types? I'd expect the sat-back chopper and tourer types maybe to be more cautious but I don't know.



http://www.motorbiketimes.com/featu...as-much-protection-as-no-helmet-$21383483.htm


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## mjr (22 Jul 2016)

si_c said:


> http://www.motorbiketimes.com/featu...as-much-protection-as-no-helmet-$21383483.htm


Reply posted at https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-cyclechat-helmet-debate-thread.187059/post-4378112 because on reflection I think it's off-topic here. I'd still be interested in data about motorcycle types, but that's probably best over there too.


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## Tin Pot (22 Jul 2016)

mjray said:


> Reply posted at https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/the-cyclechat-helmet-debate-thread.187059/post-4378112 because on reflection I think it's off-topic here. I'd still be interested in data about motorcycle types, but that's probably best over there too.


Evidence is abhorred in "that" thread, no point putting it there.


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## Drago (22 Jul 2016)

And then selectively ignoring it when it doesn't suit you.


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## hatler (23 Jul 2016)

Put the evidence here and we can analyse it. I have yet to see any evidence which unequivocally states that helmets provide real-world benefits beyond saving your bonce getting a few scrapes.


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## mjr (23 Jul 2016)

hatler said:


> Put the evidence here and we can analyse it. I have yet to see any evidence which unequivocally states that helmets provide real-world benefits beyond saving your bonce getting a few scrapes.


In short: that isn't it either but suggests full face moto helmets are better than open face for one type of injury in one Brazilian hospital.


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## snorri (23 Jul 2016)

When touring in mainland Europe through some less interesting areas I occasionally did helmet surveys.This consisted of scoring helmet wearers against non helmet wearers. I stopped counting when the total number counted reached 100, by which time I had usually cycled into an area with more interesting things to look at.


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## srw (23 Jul 2016)

For the first time in ages I've been riding during the week this week. Anecdotally, there seem to be not quite as many riders out during the week as during the weekend, and fewer of the people who are out are wearing either lycra or helmets. Most of the people I saw were recreational riders, not commuters. I did notice something I think I've noticed before - that people who are using a bike to get to other sports (carrying raquets or sports bags) tend not to wear helmets.


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## RichK (29 Jul 2016)

Just spent a few days in Barcelona. Saw a reasonable number of people cycling purely for transport. Helmet count: 0


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## Tin Pot (29 Jul 2016)

I'm on a fast train out of Waterloo, as I look now I can see a dozen people without helmets (or seat belts!)


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## Racing roadkill (8 Aug 2016)

I saw a big cyclist on cyclist crash yesterday, it made me think of all the helmet debate threads I've ever had the misfortune of having seen, all rolled into one. One of the crash-ees was wearing a lid. The guy that crashed into him, wasn't wearing a lid. The lid wearer was giving CPR to the non lid wearer.


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## snorri (9 Aug 2016)

Racing roadkill said:


> I saw a big cyclist on cyclist crash yesterday, it made me think of all the helmet debate threads I've ever had the misfortune of having seen, all rolled into one. One of the crash-ees was wearing a lid. The guy that crashed into him, wasn't wearing a lid. The lid wearer was giving CPR to the non lid wearer.


I think people are crazy to invite injury by cycling in close formation at high speed, but I would still stop to assist assist an injured one even although I don't have a helmet. What was your point?


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## Racing roadkill (9 Aug 2016)

snorri said:


> I think people are crazy to invite injury by cycling in close formation at high speed, but I would still stop to assist assist an injured one even although I don't have a helmet. What was your point?


My point was that in one incident, every point I've ever heard on these types of debates was summed up.


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## snorri (9 Aug 2016)

Racing roadkill said:


> My point was that in one incident, every point I've ever heard on these types of debates was summed up.


OK.


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## srw (9 Aug 2016)

Racing roadkill said:


> I saw a big cyclist on cyclist crash yesterday, it made me think of all the helmet debate threads I've ever had the misfortune of having seen, all rolled into one. One of the crash-ees was wearing a lid. The guy that crashed into him, wasn't wearing a lid. The lid wearer was giving CPR to the non lid wearer.


Sounds rather like the crasher had a heart attack. How is a helmet supposed to prevent one of them?


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## Drago (9 Aug 2016)

This thread is teetering on the brink...


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## Markymark (9 Aug 2016)

ANYWAY....

In Barcelona and a fair few here are wearing helmets. Much less than London but I feel the ratio in London is changing.


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## si_c (9 Aug 2016)

Drago said:


> This thread is teetering on the brink...


Pretty sure it tipped over the edge s couple of posts back.


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## Brandane (9 Aug 2016)

Disappointingly I have to report that on my recent day trip to Arran, there must have been about 30 cyclists on the ferry. I think I was the only one NOT wearing a helmet . How many others were wearing a helmet just because they feel they need to conform to the current fashion though? Sometimes even I feel slightly pressurised (mainly by the misguided attitudes of some other cyclists), but fortunately I am a stubborn git.
Having said that, I am attending a proper, organised cycling event at the end of the month and I will be wearing a pointless piece of plastic on my head as it is required as a condition of entry. Which really hacks me off, but what can you do other than boycott these events, which I enjoy (helmets apart)?


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## glasgowcyclist (9 Aug 2016)

I'm noticing a definite shift on my commute, with the number of normally clothed cyclists increasing to the point of almost matching those wearing PPE. Still a way to go but it looks like more and more are treating cycling as it should be: ordinary.

GC


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## Lonestar (9 Aug 2016)

Brandane said:


> How many others were wearing a helmet just because they feel they need to conform to the current fashion though?



I wear a helmet because I feel comfortable in wearing one and not really any other particular reason...a bit like most of the time I go out I wear a baseball cap.In fact the self righteous attitude on this forum makes me feel I want to wear the lid even more.

As it's well known as not a law to wear one I can dump it when I feel like.So it's not really conforming as there is nothing to conform to.Although your point was more pointed to fashion.I don't think I really follow fashion trends.


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## ianrauk (9 Aug 2016)

Lonestar said:


> .In fact the self righteous attitude on this forum makes me feel I want to wear the lid even more.



I feel the same by not wearing one.


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## ianrauk (9 Aug 2016)

Saturdays Cinque Ports ride.
8 riders. 3 Helmeted.

That's a good percentage I think.


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## Brandane (9 Aug 2016)

Lonestar said:


> In fact the self righteous attitude on this forum makes me feel I want to wear the lid even more.



Have moved my reply to the appropriate thread as this one is in danger of being locked/moved!


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## Lonestar (9 Aug 2016)

Brandane said:


> Reply moved to the appropriate thread as this one is in danger of being locked/moved!



ooops sorry.


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## mjr (9 Aug 2016)

Brandane said:


> Having said that, I am attending a proper, organised cycling event at the end of the month and I will be wearing a pointless piece of plastic on my head as it is required as a condition of entry. Which really hacks me off, but what can you do other than boycott these events, which I enjoy (helmets apart)?


Protest by stopping a few yards before the finish line, in sight of the finish marshals, and make a big show of taking it off to cross the line? Then if they disqualify you, you've done most of the ride anyway and can have the argument about the pointlessness of helmets and how most of those event organisers do almost nothing effective to improve rider safety.

ObTopic: does anyone else feel that the helmet usage % temporarily increases after one of those events has been in the area? Might not be so noticeable in a big city. I wonder if it's people unconsciously imitating the "expert" example or simply that a load of people will have bought potties to take part in the event and then think they might as well use them.


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## Lonestar (9 Aug 2016)

User said:


> Self righteous?



I'm out.I'm derailing the thread and I don't want this thread moved/locked because I posted a comment inappropriate to the thread.

Cheers.


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## smutchin (9 Aug 2016)

mjray said:


> Protest by stopping a few yards before the finish line, in sight of the finish marshals, and make a big show of taking it off to cross the line? Then if they disqualify you, you've done most of the ride anyway and can have the argument about the pointlessness of helmets and how most of those event organisers do almost nothing effective to improve rider safety.



In putting together the latest edition of Arrivée, I noted that very few of the submitted pictures showed people riding without helmets. I find this interesting because audax is commonly regarded as one of the last bastions of resistance against the normalisation of helmet wearing (it is, of course, one of the few types of cycling event from the sportier end of the spectrum where helmet wearing remains optional - time trials being the other significant example). This is hardly a scientific analysis though, and I suspect that on the longer events that attract the more hardcore element of the audax community, you might see a lower proportion of helmeted heads than on the shorter events that attract bigger numbers. But I'm just guessing.

It's doubly interesting in light of the OP's observation that helmet wearing appears to be decreasing proportionally among utility cyclists. My conclusion from this would be that cycling itself is becoming a normal, everyday form of transport for which people don't feel they need special equipment, which would be excellent news, regardless of what you may think about helmets. Sportives and audaxes are different because they are cycling as an end in itself, and for many people taking part in these events, a helmet is likely to be regarded simply as part of the uniform - you wear a helmet for much the same reason you wear lycra and shave your legs, ie it's part of the look. If any consideration is given to the safety angle, it's likely to be cursory at best.



> ObTopic: does anyone else feel that the helmet usage % temporarily increases after one of those events has been in the area?



I can't say I've observed this phenomenon but then we don't get many big cycling events down my way.


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## Racing roadkill (9 Aug 2016)

User said:


> Is there a common denominator..?


Yes, I spend a lot more time riding my bike, than _trying _to make troll posts on forums.


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## Racing roadkill (9 Aug 2016)

But back on topic. I've seen a lot of folk who I know were more biased towards longer distance / road riding, and exposing themselves to the added risks involved in such riding, have had enough of it, and only 'leisure / utility' ride now. A lot of them no longer think that the risks they are now exposed to, warrant wearing a lid.


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## Racing roadkill (9 Aug 2016)

mjray said:


> Protest by stopping a few yards before the finish line, in sight of the finish marshals, and make a big show of taking it off to cross the line?


And purposely expose yourself to the riskiest / most likely place to end up in a heap, and thus add weight to the organisers arguements?
That's a genius idea. Yes, everybody do this, I implore you to do this.


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## Brandane (9 Aug 2016)

User said:


> That is the problem with those non-racing sportives, the sprint finishes.



Yep, it's a 50 mile fun ride. Or at least it _will_ be a fun ride for me - cake stops interrupted by cycling. No doubt the RR's of this world will see it otherwise and are welcome to knock themselves out.


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## mjr (9 Aug 2016)

smutchin said:


> In putting together the latest edition of Arrivée, I noted that very few of the submitted pictures showed people riding without helmets. I find this interesting because audax is commonly regarded as one of the last bastions of resistance against the normalisation of helmet wearing (it is, of course, one of the few types of cycling event from the sportier end of the spectrum where helmet wearing remains optional - time trials being the other significant example). This is hardly a scientific analysis though, and I suspect that on the longer events that attract the more hardcore element of the audax community, you might see a lower proportion of helmeted heads than on the shorter events that attract bigger numbers. But I'm just guessing.


That's an interesting guess. I would have guessed self-censorship by the photographers because of the increasing number of publications which prefer to print photographs showing only or mostly helmetted riders. If you look at press coverage, even cycling press, it's easy to forget that helmet users are in the minority.


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## mjr (9 Aug 2016)

User said:


> That is the problem with those non-racing sportives, the sprint finishes.


Actually, there's something in RR's words: at Ride London, the announcers were encouraging people to cross the finish line no-handed, which I suspect does make crashes more likely (especially with those speed bump timing mats at RL?). That's the only sportive I've seen/heard that, though - more often, any announcer is concentrating on getting/keeping the crowd applauding the finishers.


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## smutchin (9 Aug 2016)

mjray said:


> I would have guessed self-censorship by the photographers because of the increasing number of publications which prefer to print photographs showing only or mostly helmetted riders.



I received pics of the start of one event that showed only one bare head in the entire field. Photographers can only shoot what's in front of them.


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## Spinney (9 Aug 2016)

*Mod note*: as some of you have realised, this thread is wandering very, very close to a helmet debate, and hence to being locked or merged with the main thread. I've removed a few posts from this page that were discussing head injuries, although I haven't gone back pages to remove others. 

If you want to continue discussing _how many people wear helmets_, please try a little harder to avoid discussing whether or not they do any good!


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## srw (9 Aug 2016)

Spinney said:


> *Mod note*: as some of you have realised, this thread is wandering very, very close to a helmet debate, and hence to being locked or merged with the main thread. I've removed a few posts from this page that were discussing head injuries, although I haven't gone back pages to remove others.
> 
> If you want to continue discussing _how many people wear helmets_, please try a little harder to avoid discussing whether or not they do any good!


Any chance you could move, rather than just delete some of the posts? The conversation was getting interesting.


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## Spinney (9 Aug 2016)

srw said:


> Any chance you could move, rather than just delete some of the posts? The conversation was getting interesting.


To where - the main helmet debate?
I think the system interlinks merged posts according to when they were posted, so it may not make much sense if I do that.
If the others whose posts were deleted agree, I could quote them all in one new post in there, which might make more sense.
They were @Racing roadkill, @mjray, @Cunobelin and @doog. Easiest way might be for one of you to start a conversation including the others to let me know, rather than cluttering up this thread further.


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## ianrauk (14 Aug 2016)

9 riders for the Cycle Chat Sunday London ride.
1 helmet only.


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## Markymark (14 Aug 2016)

I'm now further south in the Costa del Dosh and huge number of roadies and every single one is wearing a helmet. Very few utility cyclists but it's probably 50:50


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## Pat "5mph" (14 Aug 2016)

Only me and another no helmet on yesterday's social ride along the canal, 13 riders in total.
When it got warmer and I took my beanie off, somebody asked me if I forgot my helmet at the last stop


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## ufkacbln (15 Aug 2016)

ianrauk said:


> 9 riders for the Cycle Chat Sunday London ride.
> 1 helmet only.





@Fab Foodie shares his hip flask on rides

Did you follow his selfless example and share the helmet


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## mjr (24 Aug 2016)

Picture in https://www.cyclechat.net/posts/4431709 makes London CS7 look like a helmet-user majority at peak


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## Markymark (24 Aug 2016)

mjr said:


> Picture in https://www.cyclechat.net/posts/4431709 makes London CS7 look like a helmet-user majority at peak


Think there's a marked difference between trunk CS routes and quieter back roads.


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## srw (24 Aug 2016)

Anecdotally yesterday the Embankment was a right old mixture. It got more helmetty as the lycra-clad serious cyclists stopped working and started training.


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## Drago (24 Aug 2016)

Well, they like to think they're serious.


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## ianrauk (28 Aug 2016)

Today's ride.
3 cyclists, no plastic.


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## welsh dragon (28 Aug 2016)

There are very few local cyclists here. Most are tourists, and mtb cyclists. I'd say 80% wear helmets.


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## ianrauk (3 Sep 2016)

Today's Cycle Chat ride.
20 Cyclists
6 Plastic Hats


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## ianrauk (3 Sep 2016)

User said:


> And how many deaths?




Now, now Ade.. it's not the thread.
But seeing at how many cycling caps were saving lives today.......


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## .stu (10 Sep 2016)

I am a utility cyclist but I do wear lycra as I tend to get sweaty or rained on so need to get changed on arrival regardless. If I'm going to wear clothes specifically for cycling I may as well wear clothes designed specifically for cycling. I don't wear a helmet and am in the minority around here.

I do draw the line at team kit tho...


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## ufkacbln (11 Sep 2016)

.stu said:


> I am a utility cyclist but I do wear lycra as I tend to get sweaty or rained on so need to get changed on arrival regardless. If I'm going to wear clothes specifically for cycling I may as well wear clothes designed specifically for cycling. I don't wear a helmet and am in the minority around here.
> 
> I do draw the line at team kit tho...



Team kit is good for beginners

By buying last year's team strip you can get some quality gear for a fraction of the price you would pay for the normally branded version


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## mjr (11 Sep 2016)

Kudos to Matt Barbet riding off on ITV4's Tour of Britain London stage coverage without a hard hat


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## srw (19 Sep 2016)

More observations. 20-something riders on tour last week. About 50-50 with and without helmets.

Among the locals:

In the Netherlands, almost 0%. Bikes very very common.
In Belgium, about 5%. Bikes very very common.
In Germany, about 20%. Bikes quite common, at least in the towns.
In France, very few locals on bikes.
Back in London, traffic too busy to notice.

All the above exclude the small minority of riders on drop-barred bikes designed for riding quickly, usually wearing club Lycra, where the proportion was about 80%.


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## doog (19 Sep 2016)

Netherlands last September ...15% wearing lids...weekend riders more so
Germany - 85% wearing lids...did the country from North to South and it appears part of the culture
France - done three tours and more wearing lids than not.


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## mjr (20 Sep 2016)

King's Lynn over the last two hours stop-start quaxing (about 9miles): 7 helmet wearers, comprising 4 that I'd say were tourists, a young man who rode up far too close behind me for how he was weaving(phone perhaps), one middle aged woman riding through a no entry and one older gentleman cycling along a footway instead of either the parallel carriageway or cycle track  - fortunately that's out of something over a hundred cyclists. (I lost count approaching a hundred. Busy today. Not Cambridge, but busy.)


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## Big Andy (20 Sep 2016)

Over the last 2 hours here in West Yorkshire, predominately along the Calder Valley and Spen Valley Greenways with a couple of road miles thrown in 57 wearing helmets, 14 not.

In general with only 1 or 2 exceptions those wearing sporty clothing, lycra, shorts t-shirts had helmets. Those in everyday clothing didn't. Those in helmets generally appeared to be cycling for exercise as a main purpose those without were either actually going somewhere but mainly just pootling along the greenway for something to do and get a bit of fresh air and enjoy a lovely day.

Fair play to all of them I say.


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## doginabag (20 Sep 2016)

London cyclist commuter here, I wear a helmet.


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## mjr (20 Sep 2016)

Big Andy said:


> In general with only 1 or 2 exceptions those wearing sporty clothing, lycra, shorts t-shirts had helmets. Those in everyday clothing didn't. Those in helmets generally appeared to be cycling for exercise as a main purpose those without were either actually going somewhere but mainly just pootling along the greenway for something to do and get a bit of fresh air and enjoy a lovely day.
> 
> Fair play to all of them I say.


Basically, I agree.

That reminds me: only one of the tourists wearing helmets was in obvious Lycra and I only noticed one non helmet Lycra user. A medieval town centre on a fairly busy market day isn't a clever place to cycle purely for exercise and it's easy to ride out towards Sandringham or the fens if you want to try going quick,so unsurprisingly almost all I saw were cycling primarily as an easy form of transport, as was I.


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## srw (20 Sep 2016)

Easy, and cheap. Which I believe in King's Lynn might be quite important. In this very prosperous part of Surrey it's noticeable that there's a growing cadre of riders on what this forum would dismiss as BSOs who (massive assumptions alert) appear to be using bikes because it's a cheap way to get around for someone who needs to get to a manual job or to the shops. They've worked out that there's no point in spending a few hundred pounds on a car plus the same again for insurance and 30p per mile plus parking when you can buy a bike for a hundred quid and mileage is free.


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## mjr (20 Sep 2016)

srw said:


> Easy, and cheap. Which I believe in King's Lynn might be quite important.


The cheap may be important to some (and I've seen a few wheels so buckled that they rubbed each seat stay in turn), but King's Lynn has massive inequality, so there's also parts with £million-plus houses. (In one of the nearby villages, there's a street nicknamed "millionaire's row" - and around the corner is one of the few remaining village bike traders.)

But easy is important to everyone. Jump onto a bike, bypass the snarled-up junctions, skip most of the traffic lights (red bikes at Toucans are give-ways), breeze along the riverside, weave through the old town streets (aided by the slowly increasing "except cycles" and so on), then park right next to the market, shop, put your shopping into the panniers or baskets and push off home again... and if you see a friend along the way, have a quick chat, or ride along side by side for a while. No petrol, no lycra, no helmet, no special gear - just the bike and what's on it. It is just a so much nicer and simpler way to travel than trying to manoeuver a large metal box through the old town gates and onto a quay or market place while so many others are... but I hope I'm preaching to the choir


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