stylish bicycle helmet

[matadorpoeta]

so i'm considering entering the l.a. bike tour this year. the catch is that all riders must wear a helmet. i do not have one.

i've looked at a few websites and all the helmets seem to have the same design, which i find to be rather ugly.

any suggestions/recommendations?

 

[Dmax]

Stylish bicycle helmet is sort of an oximoron but from what the brands that I have seen I prefer Limar. It's less of a mushroom-head that you get with Giro or Bell. You may also wish to consider Louis Garneau.

 

[matadorpoeta]

thanks but i looked at their sites and those helmets look exactly like all the rest, to me.

 

[DNW]

I don't remember the one I used when I was mountain biking seriously. However, the important consideration is not whether you look stylist, it's all about the air flow. You want to keep your head cool. When you enter the race, it's all about the performance. Unless you're one of those who's in it to be seen, I'd find one that is well proven in race conditions. Look at mtbreview.com and roadbikereview.com for suggestions.

 

[matadorpoeta]

Originally Posted by DarkNWorn

I don't remember the one I used when I was mountain biking seriously. However, the important consideration is not whether you look stylist, it's all about the air flow. You want to keep your head cool. When you enter the race, it's all about the performance. Unless you're one of those who's in it to be seen, I'd find one that is well proven in race conditions. Look at mtbreview.com and roadbikereview.com for suggestions.
actually, the l.a. bike tour is just a ride. racing is not allowed. after discovering that it starts at 5:45am and that it runs through the ugliest part of the city (starts and ends at the coliseum) i've decided not to participate.
thanks for the help though.

 

[imageWIS]

Guess you will just have to wait for the Beverly Hills bike tour. All bike helmets are pretty ugly, except for maybe these: http://www.spiukusa.com/prod01-helme...nos/index.html

Jon.

 

[Renault78law]

I hope you're kidding. An aero timetrial helmet is an awful recommendation for something like the LA bike tour. He'd literally get ridiculed.

Modern bike helmets all look pretty much the same: ugly. I normally wouldn't recommend this, but since you don't wear a helmet anyway, I'll assume safety isn't a big concern. Here's what I'd wear, a vintage leather racing helmet:

There's a similar one on ebay right now:
http://cgi.ebay.com/SOFT-HELMET-trac...QQcmdZViewItem

 

[vanity]

I pondered this for a few minutes when I bought my first bike helmet. Then I decided I didn't really care how it looks.... One is bad, the other is awful. Bad costs $110 and awful costs $15. Both protect my head.

I spent the $15 and left a happy man.

 

[SUPER K]

besides, with the helmet, glasses, and a doo rag, no one will recognize you.

 

[vanity]

Originally Posted by Renault78law

I hope you're kidding. An aero timetrial helmet is an awful recommendation for something like the LA bike tour. He'd literally get ridiculed.

It'd be worth buying and wearing for the reactions alone. If some guy parades around in that thing and spandex shirt/shorts, then announces; "This is my first race. I've barely even biked before", how could you NOT want to be his friend? I'd be doubled over laughing and wondering if I've met possibly the funnest person ever.

 

[DNW]

The more expensive helmets are often ugly because they're designed to maximize a combination of airflow and structural rigidity, while minimizing weight. This contributes to a pleasurable ride overall while having the support, just in case. Helmet is one of the areas I wouldn't skimp on. I remember crashing hard a few times while mountain biking some years ago, and each time getting up and thinking every single penny was well spent. When your head is going to meet a rock or a tree at a good speed, you don't want a $15 helmet protecting it if you value what's inside. But then again, some people call riding on a park gravel road mountain biking...

 

[vanity]

I believe there are safety standards for helmets. So a $15 helmet must undergo the same abuse as a $100 helmet.

 

[imageWIS]

Originally Posted by Renault78law

I hope you're kidding. An aero timetrial helmet is an awful recommendation for something like the LA bike tour. He'd literally get ridiculed.

I didn't advocate he buy or you one, I merely mentioned in passing that to me, only TT aero helmets look good.

Jon.

 

[DNW]

Originally Posted by vanity

I believe there are safety standards for helmets. So a $15 helmet must undergo the same abuse as a $100 helmet.

Right. If minimum standards satisfy you, then go for the cheapest thing you can find. It probably won't matter when you're just riding around slowly on flat ground anyway.

 

[Aaron]

Originally Posted by DarkNWorn

Right. If minimum standards satisfy you, then go for the cheapest thing you can find. It probably won't matter when you're just riding around slowly on flat ground anyway.
All helmets have to comply to the same standards. I remember reading somewhere that the standards were specifically designed to ensure that $15 helmet would protect as well as $100 if fitted to the head properly. A full face design will obviously protect better than something designed for road racing but like most stuff in biking the more you spend it usually means the lighter the part and the more exotic the materials used.