Lance and Helmets
 

Howcome he doesn't always wear a helmet? Sometimes you see him riding with one, other times he just has that Postal hat on. What gives?

The UCI rules state that during a race the rider must wear a UCI approved helmet unless the finish is a mountain top finish. That's why you'll see these guys dump their lids as soon as they get to the last climb of the day.

I like that rule because of the injuries/deaths it prevents, but I also hate it. I like seeing riders without helmets. They look a lot more "old school" with just their cycling caps on.

G'day,

I'm with you, devil. We may still have Andrei Kivilev if this rule had of been introduced sooner,

cheers,

Hitchy

Yeah. Did you all hear how Tyler Hamilton landed on his head in that crash at the end of Stage 6? Trashed his helmet, he said.

There is a marker on the side of the road that tells the racers it's now OK to remove your helmet....often a team will place a soigneur at that point to collect the lids as they are dumped.

So why take the helmet off in the last climb? cant they still fall and hit their head at the top?

Because climbing a 20km col at race pace in France in July is unbearbly hot. Wearing a giant styrofoam cup on your head would be torture.
Plus if there is no descent down the other side, max speed would be 30-35 kmh....and only for short bursts as riders attack.

20-25kmh would be the norm.

You're right. It's a reason.

Like ed073 said - it's not just because of the heat - it's because the route itself is severely limiting the riders' speeds.

It was a concession that the UCI made for the riders when when the helmet rule was implemented.

That's all.

These guys are good enough that the odds of killing themselves from a head injury at a wreck sustained at 10mph is negligible. Heck, just about anyone can fall off a bike and have enough time to react to not hit their head. Since there are no cars on the course other than team cars and the peoloton is usually WAY spread out, it's not a partcularly dangrous environment if you're on the last climb of the day. Personally, I'm OK with it. If I could ride on those conditions, I'd check my helmet too. There's a difference between being safe and being paranoid. The latter is what causes some people to wear knee and elbow pads when they ride their bike around the neighborhood... :)

Are you being serious? That's a joke, right?

I have to agree. I was once knocked off my motorcycle while stopped at a traffic light. I fell directly sideways and had no time to twist, turn or do anything to mitigate the angle of my fall. My shoulder hit first and then my head followed with a whipping action. I cracked my helmet clean through and it wasn't a cheap one - a $200 Shoei. If I hadn't been wearing the bash hat, I think I'd be a vegetable today.

If I wanted to get all religious about it, I'd also say that the Tour has a responsibility to those watching and those who get into the sport because of seeing it to make the riders wear helmets all the time.

Oh, jebus...the safety nazis are all set to begin inveighing. Try this-mind your own damn business! Let the *professional* riders and team managers perform their own risk assesment.

Then they can race in private. Away from cameras and advertising that has untold influence. I suppose you don't mind when someone blows second-hand smoke in your face - afterall, they've performed their own risk assessment.

these guys all train without helmets. they are clearly aware of the risks, and choose not to wear a lid. whether it's because they're "old school" or claim the helmet is uncomfortable, it's ok with me. i'm a huge hockey fan, and a player. i wear a full face shield, because one fake tooth is enough. the guys in the nhl, however, don't. some don't even wear a visor. they do it for a living, they get concessions thrown their way.

besides, F1 cars don't have airbags.

Hey I always loose my lid on the long climbs. If you going up Angeles Crest (backside Big Tajunga) in summer it can be over 100 degrees with zero air flow. It's freakn' hot and when sitting and climbing for over an hour I'll take the risk without my helmet. Now the helmet goes right back on as soon I start the decent, I may be dumb but I aint stupid!

HAHAHA, interesting way to word that! Made me laugh. :)

I agree.

I always felt it was up to the rider to choose to wear or not to wear, but I also did not think that the helmet added any to the heat with today's designs


But then I am not riding up those mountains at they speeds they are.

I just found this on a web site, I do not know how true or false it may be

http://www.bhsi.org/cooling.htm
"One manufacturer who tested a number of helmets in a wind tunnel at 18 mph against a bare metal headform in the same tunnel concluded that virtually any helmet provided better cooling than a bare head."

I agree completely. I suppose, however, that busybodies will be busybodies.
Kudos on the F1 reference btw.

They don't add to the heat as much as the pads absorb so much sweat that it just runs down into your eyes. This is why I always loose mine on hot days during long climbs.