A PSA From Gordon Ramsay

[Matthew Williams]

Also: “I Love Helmets!”

[John Hawrylak, Woodstown NJ]

Thanks for posting this.  Gordo is dead right on helmets.   He spoke from the heart.

John Hawrylak

Woodstown NJ

[Brian Turner]

Yikes. Good PSA. I hesitate to get too impassioned in a helmet discussion, but this group seems like the kind of place where, by and large, helmet wearing while riding is celebrated - despite the historically indifferent attitude that flows from Walnut Creek HQ. I quite enjoy wearing my helmets, although I admit to going sans helmet on rare occasions if I am riding a lightly trafficked rail trail devoid of any and all motor vehicles or congested urban areas. These little reminders are always good to drive home the fact that so many things are beyond our control, as much as we'd like to think otherwise.

Brian

Lexington KY

[aeroperf]

Purple potato indeed!

https://www.theguardian.com/food/article/2024/jun/16/gordon-ramsay-lucky-to-be-here-after-us-bike-crash

[Andrew Turner]

$0.02: If I get hit, I want my appearance to reflect that I ride to be safe and seen, not that I was being reckless or at the wrong place at the wrong time. The optics unfortunately matter despite the psychology backing up riding helmetless. All those who invented/coinvented the mountain bike and have a mustache get the green light though IMO.  

[Nick A.]

I had a TBA as a result of a bike crash a number of years ago, and was wearing a helmet. Had I not been, I'd be dead. So, I wear a helmet every time.

[Nick A.]

*TBI sorry all

[Mathias Steiner]

The logic here is sound. Wear a helmet all the time.

The issue is that the same logic applies to wearing a helmet while driving. Most head injuries occur in car accidents. And then there's the home, slip & falls etc. A biking buddy of mine slipped on ice and hit his head, had to go to the hospital for a few days. No he wasn't wearing a helmet. Wasn't cycling either. So what am I supposed to do, put on a helmet when I get up in the morning?

I mix and match, and always wear it on group rides, which were the only occasions I've crashed over the years.
To make matters more complicated, I seem to get more respect from, ah, rural traffic when I'm wearing a ball cap. Strictly anecdotal, of course.

cheers -m

[Max S]

Very nicely put, Mathias. I can relate my experiences with riding on city streets, mountain biking, gravel riding, racing in crits, crashing in various ways, etc., but it's all borderline article-of-faith stuff, anyway. While I used to wear a helmet on rides religiously between ages 15 and 30, at some point I started to get massive headaches after just a half hour of doing so. I've tried many different shapes and brands, some costing upward of $250, same thing. So, for the past 15+ years, I've taken to riding mainly dirt roads and stopped wearing a helmet. My speed and position haven't changed. I've noticed two main things:  1) I don't get headaches from riding, and 2) more drivers give me greater courtesy / respect than before. 

- Max "living on the edge" in A2 

[tio ryan]

Here's my helmet origin story, if anybody cares:

I got doored in July of 2011 (so I was told, no memory of the crash) and spent 2 nights in the hospital. While recovering at home, I realized my taste was altered and I no longer had any sense of smell. I saw a neurologist, got a MRI, and was told this condition is called "anosmia" and there was no treatment for it. However, it was possible my sense of smell could someday return on its own. You might think that experience would've scared me straight and I'd be a helmet-no-matter-what type of rider, but alas. I did purchase my "dream" helmet after that crash, a Catlike Compact, but I mostly wore it on my commutes to and from work. I never wore a helmet when I was riding around for fun or going somewhere other than the office — and I ride around nyc on a daily basis. 

12 years later (still without a sense of smell) I had an eerily similar situation where I was riding my bike and regained consciousness in the back of an ambulance, confused what led me there. Once again, I was without a helmet. I hit my head pretty good this time too, requiring stitches in my forehead, as well as a fractured rib (ouch). I unfortunately did not regain my sense of smell, but I felt lucky to survive another TBI. Since then, I've purchased a few different helmets and I don't ride my bike without one on my head, plus quality lights & reflective gear at night. 

-tio "life without a sense of smell is pretty bleak" ryan

[Edwin W]

The current advice (from doctors and public health types) seems to be binary: always wear a helmet when biking, never wear a helmet when walking or driving. That seems to be missing some nuance!

I would tweak it to say: consider a helmet when skiing fast, biking on single track, or biking very fast in a tight pack with friends. But then what about walking and driving (when most American TBIs happen)? Never? Not even in the most dangerous conditions: night time, snowy, icy or wet roads? Walking on ice or snow? No, it is quite safe, though when bad things happen, it is bad.

Edwin

[Ted Durant]

I was a "wear a helmet when riding with others, but not when riding alone" guy until 10/30/22. Solo riding I didn't much worry about hitting the ground, but riding with others is much more likely to make that happen in my experience. And then I got taken to the ground by a hawk flying into my front wheel. I went down fast and hard and the momentum brought the side of my head onto the pavement with a convincing thwack. I was riding with my usual riding buddy and had, kind of at the last second, grabbed my helmet for that ride. It was that helmet's last ride, as it gave itself up to reduce the damage to my brain. It left its mark, though ... I still have a scar on my cheek where the helmet buckle tore the skin. Fair trade, I say. As my friend who was a bank CFO and is a cyclist said, "Huh, that wasn't on my risk inventory." Mine either, but now it is.

FWIW.

Ted Durant

Milwaukee WI USA

[Patrick Moore]

This is a reasonable attitude toward helmet use. Apparently Dutch cyclists don't use them by and large -- from what I've read, using a helmet would be considered odd by most Dutch cyclists -- yet have among the lowest rate of cycling head injuries in the world (if someone can recall the study more clearly and give a link or the particulars, I'd be grateful). And of course there is always Jobst Brandt.

I too have read that statistically walking is more dangerous to your head than cycling.

Max S said of riding sans helmet "2) more drivers give me greater courtesy / respect than before." Do others have this experience? Does anyone know why this might be so? I haven't used a helmet for close to 25 years and I can't say that I've noticed a difference in driver behavior. But I ride very carefully which includes the (I think) right amount of self-assertion.

[Brian Turner]

I feel like the healthiest way to approach the helmet discussion - always - is to simply discuss the various reasons why or why not folks personally decide to use them. It's always better than asking "should you, or shouldn't you?", and definitely better than discussing whether or not they should be mandated or compulsory (something I personally would be staunchly opposed to, even though I usually wear a helmet). Further, I find the question of "why don't we wear them while driving, or walking outside" a false equivalency, and really adds nothing to the conversation but a certain undertone of scorn or mockery.

Like many things in life that tend to be controversial, your own personal attitude is usually dictated by whether or not you've been adversely affected by it. I never wore a helmet until one night in 2007 when my wife was struck by a hit-and-run driver as we were pedaling home... not even half a mile from our house. I was maybe 50 ft in front of her when she was struck. She was wearing her helmet, I was not. The impact folded her back wheel, ejected her from her bike, and caused her head to hit the curb, also breaking her ankle in the process. Her head was fine, but her helmet was split right up the back, as it did its job. First thing the cops asked us when they arrived on the scene was, "why were you guys riding bikes at night"? I wanted to punch him in the mouth for victim-blaming. We had lights, and were riding well within our rights to the road. That whole experience shook me, and still haunts my wife every time she hops on a bike.

I used to only wear my helmet when riding in traffic or in groups, but with the proliferation of e-bikes and the number of lycra-clad time trialers using shared use paths for training, or catching KOMs, I definitely grab the helmet more and more these days... probably 98% of the time.

Plus, my wife gently reminds me every time I walk out the door to go hop on the bike.

Brian

Lexington, KY

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[Donzaemon]

I haven't read any studies on cycling injuries in the Netherlands, but I'm going to assume the low injury rate is due to a number of factors, including high quality bike infrastructure, traffic calming measures, and general positive attitude towards sharing spaces between the different modes of transport, particularly bike/ped. In contrast, most of the US is hostile to cyclists and pedestrians so if you're a cyclist, it's in your best interests to mitigate risks. 

-Don

[George Schick]

FWIW concerning this discussion, Grant posted a lengthy article in his December, '23 Blahg issue.  His points revolved more around the way modern helmets are constructed, using styrofoam-like material that won't compress during an impact, than it did wearing vs. not wearing one.  At one time or another I've owned each of the helmets from the past that he highlights - Skid Lid, Kucharik "hair net," etc.  Whether you are pro or con helmet wearing while cycling, it's a worthwhile read.  He covers various tests used to measure the integrity of each helmet, how it does or doesn't do what it is supposed to do (or at least "hyped" to do), modifications made to existing models, and other things.

[John Hawrylak, Woodstown NJ]

George Schick wrote:  " Grant posted a lengthy article in his December, '23 Blahg issue.  His points revolved more around the way modern helmets are constructed, using styrofoam-like material that won't compress during an impact,.......it's a worthwhile read.  He covers various tests used to measure the integrity of each helmet......:"

George, with all due respect,  this thread contains 2 to 3 instances of folks reporting the helmet did it's job, not including Gordo's crash..  And there are no instances where folks complained the helmet did not do it's job, despite what Paterson claims is incorrectly testing. 

I read his Blahg when it came out & I was disturbed about his POV.  I think it shows his false logic about wearing a helmet,   It  is worthwhile only because it is a POV of an influential person.   

Grant could be wrong, 

John Hawrylak

Woodstown, NJ   

[Matthew Williams]

No one has ever said:

“I had a bad bike wreck, thankfully I wasn’t wearing a helmet!"

[Edwin W]

Gene Hackman had a bike wreck at age 81 and survived with minimal injuries and could have said "thank god I wasn't wearing a helmet."

https://www.cnn.com/2012/01/13/showbiz/hackman-accident/index.html

Now, I am not saying he had no injuries because he was not wearing a helmet, but if he HAD been wearing a helmet, everyone would have said it saved his life!

Edwin

[George Schick]

Good points, John.  But when I read one of Grant's blagh posts I often see a point/counterpoint narrative of what he feels "may" be a correct view vs. what the general biking industry tries to hawk as "the only correct view."  I neither agree nor disagree with most of his posts.  And, yes, there are crash survivors who probably only lived (or at least survived in a less than functionally cognitive state).  Personally, I came across a group of cyclists on an organized ride who were gathered around a young lady who had apparently been riding in a group and was either inadvertently or purposely been run off the road and into a mailbox post...and not an average mailbox post, but a railroad tie that people in rural areas often set in the ground to prevent mischievous adolescents from whacking them down for a "prank".  Her helmet lay on the ground split completely split in half and she was unconscious. I learned later that she died from a severe concussion.  Would a helmet with different design than the compacted foam have saved her life? Maybe not. There are different kinds of accidents with different kinds of injuries and outcomes.  But I'll stand by Grant's remarks if they are read carefully.  He's not saying that they don't completely prevent serious injuries, he's saying that they're not constructed in a way that "could" prevent more serious injuries because that can get by with the current designs.  

[Max S]

I've ridden in city races, city traffic, trails, rural roads, down the CA coast, in groups and solo.... I've crashed a few times. Great anecdotes, horror stories, etc. We've all got them. I'm also an engineer with significant experience in mechanics and materials. I've supervised projects investigating / improving properties of sports helmets. My opinion, based on my riding and engineering experience, is that styrofoam cycling helmets sold today can mitigate certain kinds of injuries. But also there are some crash modalities where current helmet designs worsen the injuries. I've seen very little evidence to convince me of claims like "see the crack in this helmet – it saved my life" being scientifically valid. 

If you read the fine print on helmet manufacturers' websites, you'll see them being extremely cagey about their testing protocols, guarantees of any kind, etc. There are standardized testing protocols they have to follow, but carefully examining in detail the testing protocols and what they require of the materials and construction suggest to me two main things:  1) the test protocol is not representative of the vast majority of crash modalities that I am likely to encounter, and 2) the styrofoam material is about one to two orders of magnitude stiffer than it should be to properly cushion the skull upon impact. There *are* better materials, and they're being applied in football helmets, for example. But their applicability to cycling is much more limited on account of greater weight, duration of activity, and sustained high level of aerobic load. 

Now, I'm not trying to say that wearing helmets is stupid, or that not wearing helmets is just as safe or safer than wearing one. Part of what I'm saying is that we get more of what I would call "safety theater" – much like "security theater" we've all experienced in airports – than actual safety. And the margins on the product are good enough as is! And it is against this backdrop that the thing irritating me the most about the helmet conversation is the collective admonishment that many (most?) cyclists – and celebrities like Gordon Ramsey – bring to the issue. It only worsen the victim-blaming that still plagues our culture. And, as many have already pointed out, it is the culture and customs that are the biggest risk factors. 

- Max "stop staring at your smartphone and pay attention" in A2

[John Rinker]

What I find most illuminating and encouraging about this discussion is that it is such a wonderful example of civil discourse. On a topic that can be quite polarizing because of each individual's experiences and emotional investment, it is remarkable to see the conversation progress along reasonable, respectful lines of inquiry and anecdote. Bravo to the members of this forum! If only our society at large could be so...Rivish!

On a side note, Edwin I did check out the Gene Hackman article and was immediately dismayed by the headline: "Gene Hackman struck by car while riding a bike." In fact, he was struck by the careless driver of said car (unless the vehicle in question was an autonomous vehicle). Blaming the accident on the car shifts responsibility from where it actually rests: the driver. Careful drivers don't strike cyclists or pedestrians, and careful people don't have accidents. At least, not when they're being careful.

Cheers, John

[Ted Fay]

Notes from personal experience. Your experience and views may be different.

Lived for 3 years in the southern Netherlands, and it's wonderful place to cycle both for transit and for exercise. When cycling for transportation (shopping, going out to dinner, etc.), yes, it is common to see people without helmets. Dedicated lanes, slower traffic overall (read - speed cameras work), and again dedicated bike lanes made car/bicycle less worrisome. Plus the cycling is low speed, figure 10-12 mph. 

However, when taking out the road bike for exercise, helmets were common. Nice lanes even outside of the major areas. Loved the path-side garbage nets, set up to have the cyclists toss their banana peels, etc. as they rode by. 

Back here in the US, I was on a dedicated path. No cars. Ran over a stick (apparently, as I remember nothing), which caught in my spokes, and I scorpioned. Fractured skull, and a  range of other fun things. If I was not wearing a  helmet, I'm not typing this today. Even with one, the long term impact of traumatic brain injury (TBI) is not small. 

Back on the bike, and using one of the top rated helmets from VA Tech (https://helmet.beam.vt.edu/bicycle-helmet-ratings.html). 

One can choose not to wear one. 

I'll be wearing mine. 

T

[Eric Floden]

I spent a number of years in the motorcycle safety world and saw enough to convince  me a helmet is a great idea for many activities. (Escpecially motorcycling.)

But I want to add that this article on survivorship bias is a good one to consider:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivorship_bias

 

[Max S]

I would definitely prefer to have fewer injuries, lower risk of death, and definitely to protect against "closed-head injury." Read about it here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Closed-head_injury  

I'll quote from the Wikipedia article: 

"Helmets can be used to decrease closed-head injuries acquired during athletic activities, and are considered necessary for sports such as American "tackle" football, where frequent head impacts are a normal part of the game. However, recent studies have questioned the effectiveness of even American football helmets, where the assumed protection of helmets promotes far more head impacts, a behavior known as risk compensation. The net result seems to have been an increase, not decrease, in injuries.^[20] The similar sports of Australian-rules football and rugby are always played helmetless, and see far fewer traumatic brain injuries. (See Australian rules football injuries.)

Bicycle helmets are perhaps the most promoted variety of helmet, based on the assumption that cycling without a helmet is a dangerous activity, with a large risk of serious brain injury. However, available data clearly shows that to be false. Cycling (with approximately 700 American fatalities per year from all medical causes) is a very minor source of fatal traumatic brain injury, whose American total is approximately 52,000 per year.^[21] Similarly, bicycling causes only 3% of America's non-fatal traumatic brain injury.

Still, bicycle-helmet promotion campaigns are common, and many U.S jurisdictions have enacted mandatory bicycle-helmet laws for children. A few such jurisdictions, a few Canadian provinces, plus Australia and New Zealand mandate bicycle helmets even for adults. A bicycle-helmet educational campaign directed toward children claimed an increase in helmet use from 5.5% to 40.2% leading to a claimed decrease in bicycle-related head injuries by nearly 67%.^[22] However, other sources have shown that bicycle-helmet promotion reduces cycling, often with no per-cyclist reduction in traumatic brain injury.^[23][24]

Estimates of bicycle-helmet use by American adults vary. One study found that only 25-30% of American adults wear helmets while riding bicycles,^[25] despite decades of promotion and despite sport cyclists' adoption of helmets as part of their uniform." 

... so, it seems to me that these pro-helmet admonishments are based on selective reading of statistics, with a dollop of confirmation bias that helmets "work." But we can also look at the statistics and acknowledge that, statistically speaking, the idea of increasing bicycle safety via helmet use isn't actually working. At the end of the day, I reckon folks will choose to do the thing that gives them a greater sense of agency (like buying a big SUV to feel safer on the road, despite ostensibly higher risk of rollover and greater risk to others), but whether it actually makes things better may well be "in the noise." 

[David Ross]

I grew up riding motorcycles and I think it’s the reason I always wear a helmet on my bicycle. I feel naked without one. I remember being in college in the 90s and I was the only person on campus who wore a helmet. 

On Tue, Jun 18, 2024 at 10:03 PM Eric Floden <eric....@gmail.com> wrote:

I spent a number of years in the motorcycle safety world and saw enough to convince  me a helmet is a great idea for many activities. (Escpecially motorcycling.)

But I want to add that this article on survivorship bias is a good one to consider:   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survivorship_bias

 

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[ascpgh]

It boils down to the potential for a sudden stop, primarily your head and something of greater mass. Inertia is the culprit even if you have a hard head your brain is floating inside it tethered only to your spinal cord. 

I guess in tort law it is standard not to expect a person to be responsible for the infinite possible acts of others but to demonstrate the choices of a reasonably prudent person. 

Those two things exist. I was struck from my bike by the side mirror of a passing truck without a helmet the spring of tenth grade. I didn't remember things or people for days. An MRI, three nights in the hospital, finally recognizing my dad and a neurosurgeon when talking about how to address my subdural hematoma. The back left of my head felt like an overripe banana was under the flesh. I didn't know what a craniotomy was but am happy my dad chose letting all the blood reabsorb on its own, even though it meant a debilitating headache and bedrest for most of three months. Learning to walk again after the deconditioning and weight loss was bad. 

Riding my new Rambouillet cross country years later I suffered a rear tire slash going 40mph downhill. Before I could get stopped I had some steering to do which I was unable to do any longer and went over in a high side. The road was freshly chip topped tar using what they had around which was very hard, granite-like. I hit it with the back left of my head and nearly top of my shoulder. My helmet broke and slid, my shoulder (then several other points) hit and stuck like velcro to the sharp shards of the road surface taking out scoops of flesh each time until I slowed to a slide. I was a bloody mess, my helmet was but for one piece of lining pad in two pieces and my left shoulder not quite right.

My cohorts on this adventure had lead more gentle lives to this point and hadn't been around many in-person injuries or blood. My shoulder was separated (collar bone no longer connected to the projection of the shoulder blade...ligament broken) and I needed to get going. No cars passed us in the previous hours, no cell phone coverage and dark clouds across the western half of the sky. Our overnight was 43 miles away so I got up and rode there. The others, in shock from their experience of my injuries, did ultimately follow.

Getting away with your head and contents functioning permits better stories to tell later. I emailed Grant about my ride after being all torn up and bloody, my jersey hem pullled into a sling and my orange Rambouillet rideable with one hand. These seemed liike options and observations resulting from being reasonable and prudent about wearing a helmet. Being thusly rewarded I continue to choose the paradigm I followed after having experienced my brain being bashed about inside my young skull and the resulting bruising that caused. It surely saved me this time and was just on my head for an 80 mile ride out and back on the GAP Monday and Tuesday.

Andy Cheatham

Pittsburgh

[J S]

As I am getting older I find my balance is not as good as it used to be. At 72 I had not worn a helmet in many years. 3 1/2 weeks ago I took a bad spill, tire hitting a raised curve on a bike trail, one I use to get to quiet street to ride. My reflexes are not as good as they used to be. I landed on my left side, bruised forehead, skin tissue damage on my left side at shoulder and ribs. I took 2 short rides this week,  with a helmet, I don’t like them but but my balancing seems to be a bit off, maybe a mixte would be better now. I’ve been sleeping in my recliner as it has been the most comfortable place. I will wear a helmet now as age may dictate better protection. I also think tha wider bars I use now offer less control as I had 3 near balance issues yesterday at very slow speeds. 

[George Schick]

@jrstern - have you ever been examined for inner ear problems?  Might be a worthwhile thing to do.

[J S]

No but I think it is a good idea, thank you. 

[Pam Bikes]

A helmet is never a bad idea.  The pavement is hard whether you're in your driveway alone or w/a a group.  Most bike crashes are solo falls.  Helmets can help.   More upside than downside to wearing a helmet.  I'd rather plan my next ride than waste time deciding whether to wear a helmet and when.  I just wear it all the time.

[Roberta]

Ted, thank you for the VA Tech article and ratings testing helmets. I’m glad you were able to type the info. 

Pam, like you, always wear mine, although a few times I’ve forgotten to put it on for my 2 mile ride to work. If I realize within a few blocks, I’ll go home to retrieve it. The only fall I’ve had in recent years was solo at slow speed and was glad my helmet met the ground directly with a light thump, and not my head.

 Still, everyone needs to make that decision for himself. 

What is the thought of when to replace-5 years, 10 years, marketing ploy?  My newest helmet is about 5 years old. 

Roberta

[Ted Durant]

On Wednesday, June 19, 2024 at 11:33:04 PM UTC-5 Pam Bikes wrote:

Most bike crashes are solo falls. 

Do you have a source of statistics to back up that claim?

My experience over 50 years is 3 falls caused by being hit by a car (+1 hit by car where I didn't fall), 3 by tangling with another cyclist, 2 by a dog running into my front wheel, and 1 by a hawk flying into my front wheel. My "solo falls" are twice going down on ice and once going down on a dirt road mountain descent hairpin turn. I was wearing a helmet on all of those occasions except one of the dog incidents. On the hawk incident the helmet likely spared me some damage, and on the one dog incident a helmet likely would have spared me the concussion and cuts. All the others, including all three of the car incidents, two of which involved flipping over the hoods of the cars, the helmet didn't come into play.

Ted Durant

Milwaukee, WI USA

[Matthew Williams]

Since we’re posting helmet origin stories:

1977: I was riding with my dad and my uncle—they were on ten-speeds, I was trying to keep up on my Sting-Ray. I took a turn too fast and went to the ER for a dozen stitches in the back of my head. Note the bloodstained Hang Ten shirt and the lack of a helmet.

2022: I misjudged a curb cut and went down hard. I banged up my knee, shoulder, hand, and chin...but my head was fine. Thanks, Nutcase!

I love helmets.

[Doug Van Cleve]

Now THIS is good stuff ;^)

I always wear a helmet, I've replaced 2 due to impact with the ground.  Did either save me?  Who knows, but I'd rather have some questional styrofoam between my cranium and the ground than not.  Grant's writing is interesting, and I certainly don't think helmets are magic or anything and it may well be that we're being sold a false bill of goods as to how much good they do.  I personally don't think anybody wearing a helmet rides more aggressively or foolishly because of it, and is there ANY data that suggests it's worse to wear a potentially marginal head protector than to not wear anything up there?  That said, it drives me nuts when cyclists are hit and or killed and "were they wearing a helmet" is the first question.  I tell me wife, if you're pulverized by a car it probably doesn't matter...

Regards, Doug

[Doug Van Cleve]

Too funny, I'm bummed I didn't get further through this thread before responding:

"The 81-year-old, who was not wearing a helmet, was transported to Ryder Trauma Center in Miami with “serious” injuries, according to the highway patrol."

Doug

[Chris Halasz]

My criteria for a helmet include protection for my head (from sun and impact), comfort (is light, breathable, fit), promotes visibility (for others and does not reduce visibility for me), and looks OK (both wearing and what it does to the hair upon removal). I don't expect much of any of those criteria for a helmet. As for fit, I recommend folks try on many: I require a size L or XL from Bell and Specialized, but just barely comfortably fit into a size medium with a Smith helmet. 

I consider it a nice thing that cycling provides an expectation for wearing a helmet. Honestly, I consider wearing a helmet to drive (hey, how many people still wear N95s when driving alone?), and wonder if that trend would catch on. 

Funny thing about cyclists: We''ll spend an extra hundred dollars on tires that might or might not increase our speed by a mile an hour or so, and who knows how much to reduce the bike's weight to add another mile an hour of performance. Noting that a crash at 14mph, likely exceeding a bike helmet's safety limit, introduces 1/3 additional energy at impact vs. crashing at 12mph. And, oh, the nail-biting difference riding from twelve to fourteen miles an hour - takes your breath away. 

Of course, we really enjoy cycling for the exercise. But then spend hundreds of dollars more on tires and bike weight reduction to make the ride easier. 

Actually, we ride for the social benefits of being with a group of friends. And then spend hundreds of extra dollars on tires and bike weight reduction to drop those jerks on a sprint or climb. 

Seriously, I intentionally ride slower on the flats and descents, even tapping the brakes and sitting or standing upright to decrease speed, and go for it on the climbs. I love how my Clem is suited to me for that mindset. Somehow I hang on the climbs with the folks on their CF bikes. 

Not so seriously, I don't always wear a helmet. I in fact wear two around the house and in the shower. I just take one of the two off when I want to go for a ride. 

Cheers, 

Chris 

[Garth]

I've wanted to reply to this but have not the arrangement of words I find most fitting. Then I re-called this, https://realityandmind.wordpress.com/2018/04/18/freedom-to-choose-and-freedom-from-choice/ , and yes, that'll do just fine. This applies to "everything"/

I'll post it here as well :

"  Freedom to choose and freedom from choice

Only a confused mind could mistake choice for freedom.
Choice always implies that a sacrifice has to be made.
Choice is a duality in desire.
Two conflicting desires always imply the sacrifice of one in favour of the other.
Choice is the paradigm of sacrifice, cost, unfulfillment and incompleteness.
It is strange that in such a paradigm freedom could have any meaning at all when sacrifice is the rule.
.
If freedom has a meaning, it is freedom from choice, freedom from sacrifice, freedom from incompleteness and frustration.
Only the divided heart has to choose.
Only the broken heart has to keep on sacrificing a part of itself in order to save another.
As long as the broken heart accepts choice, it cannot heal and remains broken.
The freedom to choose is truly the obligation to sacrifice one’s heart.
But for a heart who only knows sacrifice, the only way to find a peace of mind is to turn an obligation into a freedom and a sacrifice into an opportunity for gain.
.
A choosing heart doesn’t know what freedom means because it replaced its obligation to sacrifice by its freedom to choose.
The whole frame of reference has been inverted in order to make the unacceptable acceptable.
The words have been turned upside down in order to conceal the reality of its slavery.
The certainty of loss is turned into an opportunity for gain.
The immediate loss is not perceived, only the potential gain is pursued.
Unless choice is seen for the obligation to sacrifice that it is, the individual remains in dreamland.
The heart remains in chains.
.
Undivided, not compelled to choose, the free heart is whole, all for itself, in love with itself.
It cannot gain anything simply because it is already whole.
When there is nothing to gain, nothing has been lost. "

All One Whole Beautiful Infinite Indivisible Being

Life Itself

: - )