But many European health experts have taken a very different view: Yes, there are studies that show that if you fall off a bicycle at a certain speed and hit your head, a helmet can reduce your risk of serious head injury. But such falls off bikes are rare — exceedingly so in mature urban cycling systems.
Color me disappointed that the author didn't have the guts to make the usual claim of "No head injuries in Europe!!!"
Good article. I violated the rule of not reading the comments section, but so far they're pretty mixed on the issue, and this is my favorite one:
I bike everywhere in ny and never owned a helmet. Perfect strangers feel compelled to yell at me "where's your helmet." -- often w cigarette in hand. An obese, sedentary colleague once told me i was " crazy" to ride without one. I tapped him on his ample belly, and said,"you are right, the only thing crazier than riding a bike with no helmet, is not riding a bike at all." He kept quiet after that.
You can review research papers that back up the claims in the article here.
Any under/over for pages in this thread? I say 5 plus or minus 2 by the end of tomorrow.:)
In related news, cities encourage driving by making seat belts optional.
The lack of respect from motorist to cyclist along with the poor infrastructure on the streets, is a huge factor on this.
The City of Chicago and it's cycle kiosk rental partners also suggest you should ride without a helmet. I haven't seen one kiosk yet that has helmets available, nor suggestions where one would acquire a helmet if they wanted one.
I couldn't believe it when I saw old Tour De France pics and realized they implemented helmet rules only recently. That prob didn't go over very well with the racers.....
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