What the h3ll is this guy yakking about now?!

Well let me tell you.

It’s all about helmets and ever since I got into the sport of mountain biking and high speed scooting, helmets have played a role, a serious role. Will they protect me? I’d like to think so, at least my noggin. Is it a 100% percent guarantee that I will walk away safe, not really but my chances are greater than say someone without a noggin cage.

Let’s face it, no one ever wants to think about “what if” scenarios on the motorcycle but if it ever happened then the primary protective piece of safety gear that anyone should have is the helmet. We’ll be tackling the wonderful world of motorcycle helmets, we could tackle the word helmet in general but I ride a motorcycle so there, take that (chop chop).

I have a few motorcycle helmets and they all serve one purpose, to make me look cool. Not really, I look like a decorated mushroom when I have it on but I can dream! No the helmet is there to protect and I think that if you are going to be wearing one for an extended period of time then you should go out and get one that is comfortable and fits you well. Yes Dorothy, that helmet looks really nice and matches your glittering shoes but looks aren’t everything, there are some people that would argue that. So let’s start researching the whole helmet thing.

Here we go!

One thing that most people look at first is the type of helmet. Some people like the half helmet, ¾ helmet, open face helmet, dirt bike helmet, modular helmet and the full face helmet. There are a few hybrid types where they combined two and even more of the styles mentioned, funky eh? My preference has always been with the full face variety and I admit, I have looked at a hybrid type for 2010, mmmm….hybrid. But for the most part it’s always been a full face style for me. I do admit that I have an open face helmet but I rarely wear it now.

Something that first time buyers should do is to physically try the helmet, sounds silly but I know of some people who have bought helmets on-line just to find out that it isn’t comfy, it’s too large or too small and then whine whine whine. Helmets are not built the same even within the same brand. Let me explain. Everyone has a different head shape and that shape will let you know whether the helmet fits and sits well. If the helmet feels uncomfortable or you are unsure of the fit then chances are it’s not for you. I can rant on about the padding and shell sizes and other technical jargon but there are websites like webbikeworld.com that explain that in greater detail. I may start wandering on the topic and next thing you know I’m talking about pink elephants dancing in the jungles of Borneo. See, there you go.

There are many technical things that one can get confused about but in the end I find that the fit should be priority, not the color or design. Nothing sucks more than riding and your helmet starts giving you pressure point pains, I’m not going to mention any brands b/c any one of them can do that.
Okay, so we’ve gone out and checked out a few brands and some fit well and some don’t. Those that don’t fit we won’t bother with and those that do fit we mark it down and do a bit of juggling with the price and the design and color and blah blah blah. Why do we get so involved in this fashion thing, the agony!
The way I have made decisions in the past was based on my budget. I think that if you have X amount to spend then really emphasize that to yourself. If your maximum is 300$ including tax then don’t go and start looking at the 600$ models, you can get overwhelmed at some helmet prices nowadays. So if that 240$ flashy starbrite helmet is good for you then great, walk away with the new helmet in hand and get ready for people to say “why did they choose the strabrite helmet?”. Just kidding, who cares what people think, you like it and that’s all that matters. I’ve had helmets that cost 100$ and one that costs $850, is the expensive one worth it, umm…it’s a limited edition, hello?! What kind of question is that? That’s really up to me to decide but I will tell you this, it’s very comfortable to me and it fits me well, snug as a rug, fits like a glove and Bob’s your uncle.

A good thing to know is your head size. Some brands will display their helmet size in either inches or centimetres and some will even refer to hat size so it can get a little confusing. I’m a 22 3/8” (57cm) or 7 1/8” hat size. Going by these numbers is safer than saying small or medium, note that one brand’s small is another brand’s medium and vice-versa. I have a helmet that is labeled small and yet my head fits into medium on other brands and it can even get more complicated depending on your head shape, oh the agony! I’ve also found that with some brands I can go either way, small or medium, that’s called in between sizing and technically I should go with the larger of the two.
So how do you measure your head? As one website had put it:
“To measure your correct helmet size, measure the circumference of your head, like a headband, one inch above the eyebrows, above the ears. Match inch measurement to chart. If between sizes, choose the next larger size. Helmet should be snug but not overly tight.”
Here’s a nice example from helmetoutletusa.com. I’ve never shopped from helmetoutletusa.com but they have a good example of the sizing chart that I was talking about.

So I went on and yakked about sizes, cost and fit but forgot to mention weight.
Weight is a major factor to some and it should be b/c it is part of the comfort equation. Most helmets on the market will weighh in ~3 to 4 lbs. There is a nice comparison of helmets and their weights at webbikeworld. The weights are based on large to XL sizes, small and medium sizes would be lesser in weight. In all honesty, I could never tell the difference when it was just a handful of grams. Weight makes the difference and for some it is their first priority. I saw a man and his wife in a moto-shop and they were looking to buy some new helmets and weight for them was major issue b/c they do some serious touring and I can see where the weight will play a factor. Sure enough the sales clerk started showing them some serious carbon fiber from BMW (BMW SportIntegral Carbon Fiber Helmet) and all I could think of was cha-ching! That’s serious bucks. For some it’s worth it to get that light weight but if you’re buying with a budget then know that the helmet you get will be ~3 to 4 lbs. My heaviest helmet is ~3.4 lbs, my lightest is ~3 lbs.
There are other things to consider too, like safety standards. Some manufacturers follow only one standard and others follow more. So depending on where you live in the world there is a standard to follow. Here in Canada they go with the DOT and Snell while in Europe they followy the ECE standard. Do these safety standards make a difference, I like to think that it does. These standards are there to literally protect you the consumer and to let manufacturers know that their product is up to par or exceeding standards. I like that, exceeding safety standards.

So is that it, size, fit, cost, weight and saftety? There is one more thing and some people would say it’s a bunch of bologna but I believe it so it so I’ll post it and that is the life of the helmet. Most helmets have a lifespan of 5 years. Reasons for this is simple, it starts to degrade meaning the materials start to get brittle. If anything were to happen then the helmet may not be able to protect the rider as well as it should. Now some people I know have helmets that are 10+ yrs and they argue that their helmet is fine, they can’t feel the difference. Well that’s great but that doesn’t mean that the  helmet is 100% safe. There is a difference and you can do enough research on the inter-web to back it up.

Well there you have it, a little bit about helmets. As I mentioned, you can take a look at other websites and see the technical side and really research it if you want to but in the end if the helmet fits and is comfortable and is up to safety norms then you should be good to go. Webbikeworld.com is  a great resource and they have a good review of helmets and if you live in Canada and would like to know where to buy some helmets on-line then go and checkout gpbikes.com or baysideperformance.ca, they have a good selection of helmets on-line but remember to buy what fits you.

Happy motoring, ride safe and avoid the potholes.