New Helmet

If that title grabbed you, you really need to find something more interesting to do. Before I start on that subject though, I think its interesting that, according to Google Analytics, I had a visitor from Casoria, Italy, evidently part of the Naples metro area. That adds to the USA, Finland, Yemen, Australia and New Zealand since I started playing with Analytics. I'm easily entertained.

This weekend I shopped for a new helmet, since the one I've been wearing is about 8 years old, smelly, and probably not as effective as it should be. I've been wearing bike helmets ever since they became generally available, probably over 30 years ago. In that time I've only landed on the helmet once. I was on my daily commute in Portland and running a bit late. Along my route, there was a small dog that would spot me and run down off his porch, barking and trying to catch me. because it was a slight downhill, I always had enough speed that he never quite got to me. One morning, he got smart and hid behind a trailer parked on the street. Seeing me coming, he jumped out of his hiding spot crouched down and started barking. Being late, I was pushing pretty hard and doing about 25 mph. Dog and I locked eyes and panic. Dog can't figure out which way to go, spins around darts abck and forth looking for a place to hide. I can't figure out which way to swerve because dog hasn't made up his mind. Time's up. My front wheel hits him and I go over the bars, landing helmet first and tumbling about 3 times before I stop. The wheel is taco'd, my neck hurts, I'm scraped up, but my brains are only slightly scrambled, thanks to Mountain Safety Research (MSR). I got up, straightened the wheel as much as possible, and wobbled on in to work. Never saw the dog again. I think I made out better than he did.

The old MSR helmet was a lexan hard shell, basically a mountaineering helmet modified for cycling. The lexan held up pretty well and never developed any cracks, so I wore it for a long time.

So there I am, looking for a new helmet. Now, I don't really like to admit it, but my skull is large enough to have its own gravitational pull. I tried on several "Large" and "Universal" size helmets and found out that those sizes refer to large and universal pinheads, not the manly skull that I sport. I did find a Bell Influx that fits my noggin and is actually comfortable. The silly thing is, this helmet has "GPS," which aparently has nothing to do with global position systems. It refers to a little knob on the back that tightens a strap and firmly positions the helmet on my globe. Another thing that I like is the placement of pads inside the helmet. When I ride, I sweat like nobody else. The sweat runs down my forehead and drips on my glasses (coke bottles, really). Its one of those annoying things that I've put up with for years. This new helmet seems to direct the flow down my nose and misses the lenses. You might think that sweat dripping down your nose ain't such a great thing, but not having to stop and wipe sweat off my glasses with a damp tail of my shirt, then see the world through smears is a major improvement. I'd rather wipe my nose any day.