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Please wear a helmet

18K views 92 replies 53 participants last post by  Shieldmaiden15 
#1 ·
Was trying something, rotated way too far, caught back edge at high speed. Slammed back of my head and did this to my helmet.
 

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#18 ·
Once again..... Wrath speaks words of wisdom.

I served in the head medical group during the war in Baghdad. Most people are surprised to hear that mucho and if I recall correctly most of the PTSD cases were the result of or at least highly contributed to by concussive events and not just seeing/experiencing bad things. Physical trauma can bring about bad things that are not manifested through physical symptoms. Particularly when talking about one's melon.

In spring conditions...when I am surfing 200 inches of slush....yea, I may not wear a helmet then. Sometimes not a deep pow day either. Probably should though. Someday I'll smack a rock and will end up wandering around the parking lot; dazed and saying "the snow is soft, I don't need a helmet" over and over :)
 
#16 ·
Holy Crap!! That could have been your skull dude. That would have been a TBI for sure without a helmet. Wow that is scary!!!

At work, occasionally work with head injured folks...fix'n the old bean is NOT like fix'n bones. Really tragic results can in an instance change a person's life. And a cost of a helmet is peanuts compared to even a little trip to the ER.
Totally agree. I don't know why but I get very freaked out when I see videos of brain injured people. Scares the crap out of me.

I wear one because trees are hard and people are idiots.............
Yup, I don't wear a helmet because of my skill or lack there of, it is because of all the out of control skier noobs. They could take me out at the knees from behind and scrabble my brains.


I'm kinda libertarian so I would never want to force people to wear a helmet, or have resorts require them. It should always be riders choice. Heck on a hot day I might take mine off for example. But I also strongly encourage everyone to wear a helmet, people don't come back from TBI or major concussions very easily.
 
#17 ·
Head safety issues aside, helmets are just great technology. Opening and closing vents with a switch? Check. Vents to channel air to keep your goggles from fogging? Check. Built in integration for CHIPS or other music players that don't prevent you from hearing the rest of the mountain? Check. Look cool? Check!

One thing I want to add is that with helmets, harder is not always better. Just like how cars are designed to crumple around people while still leaving the interior in tact, a good helmet will absorb most of a blow... but if it's too strong, sometimes it will just pass that blow on to your head. Protection from high impact is great, but make sure your helmet has some "soft" padding in there that will make the lesser falls more bearable. A hard helmet might save your life at 50 mph but give you a concussion at 15mph. A GOOD helmet will have hard impact AND soft impact protection. Gotta prevent those micro concussions too, they add up and turn into CTE and serious mental problems later on!
 
#20 ·
Did very similar last season on a bs nose roll. Didn't spin far enough, and next thing I remember was laying in the snow staring at the sky. Thankfully I had my helmet on. Ended up slightly concussed from it, but could only imagine what would have happened without it. Have had one on ever since!
 
#21 ·
Here's my helmet, or what was left of it:



Here's me in the clinic at Snowbird, after the meatwagon ride down Chip's Run:



This fucked me up pretty good (full story: All I got in Utah was this Closed Head Injury), although they released me on the spot and I was back out riding mountain bikes like a week or two later (in hindsight, I probably shouldn't have done that). Doctor at home checked me out as well and didn't have any serious damage, loss of motor skills or anything like that, but it was a fairly significant concussion if I'm being honest about it. I noticed some changes mostly things like I had a hard time concentrating/focusing on things, like my head was foggy for weeks, maybe months afterwards.

And since we're being honest, I still don't *always* wear a helmet. I mostly do, but I don't always.
 
#27 ·
Damn that's gnarly. Glad you're still walking.

Dude last year completely split his helmet in half. Dude was walking around and he was totally out of it. Literally... 2 pieces.

My helmets have saved me a few times over the year. I smoked a tree 2 or 3 years ago and dented my lid. Last year slammed pretty hard. Knocked the fit system out and the vents stopped working. So.... new lid this year. Pretty sure I'll be running Giro Contact/Giro Range Combo.

Quality lid is important. Don't buy cheap crap... but if you have to... cheap is better than none.

I road one day last year without my lid and it felt weird as hell. I've been wearing them for over 10 years now.
 
#31 ·
always wear a helmet

seriously always wear one. This would have been a lot worse without one. This video is me getting air off the knuckles. I sent that one too deep

 
#34 ·
I never understand why anyone would not wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle. I even have people tell me once they are in the state where a helmet is not required, they pullover and take it off. I am like are you kidding me. That's like saying if it's not illegal to have unprotect sex, you should not wear a condom when having sex with some stranger.
My safety shouldn't be determined by what's legal what's not.
 
#36 ·
I have decades of excuses why I never really wore one. It was not for my lack of trying more like my lack of funds. All the ones I ever bought fit and felt like crap and ended up never being used. I finally shelled out $300 and got a Smith Vantage, fits my big weird head nice. In fact I find it more comfortable and maneuverable than my toque somehow, maybe because it holds my face mask in place way better; with my toque after a certain number of head turns causes the toque/facemask combo to shift and cold spots can appear. Still think i look like a tool, but least no one can recognize me once the goggs are on.

Thats my advice for the people who can't find a good fitting helmet, start at the top of the line and work your way down instead of looking at the best price or whats on sale. I have been looking for a Vantage to go on sale for like 3 years and they rarely do.
 
#39 ·
My Giro helmet is 7 years old now. Got a few scuff marks on it from relatively minor slams & noggin bonks. Nuthing like what you guys have been describing. No dents or deformities. but it has definitely hit the hardpack a time or two hard enough to ring my bell.


So,.... At what point do you guys consider a helmet in need of replacement? Either from age or the accumulative effects of minor impacts?


....At what point do you guys consider a helmet in need of replacement? Either from age or the accumulative effects of minor impacts?


>:)
 
#40 ·
....At what point do you guys consider a helmet in need of replacement? Either from age or the accumulative effects of minor impacts?


>:)
5 years max. The foam hardens as it gets old and no longer offers the protection it's supposed to.

Ok so maybe I am a fool for following manufacturers' directions. Surely, they just want to make their $$$ off me. Still, I don't go over 5.

EDIT: 3 if next year's model comes in PURRRPLE!
 
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