Bad Lag

DudE!, it was a joke. See the smiley.

3 concussions? I don't race and I no longer "train". I just ride. I wonder whether participation in road racing and training or mountain biking affects the rate of accidents.

Nothing will stop that crazed truck driver from crashing into you. I've seen YouTube video of crazed drivers deliberately crashing into multiple bicycle riders on Mulholland Drive in SoCal.

mkeller234

Yes, the potential of the crazed drive scares me. Even so, dumb things happen. I got distracted once on a towpath trail, thought I saw a turtle. That ended with me going off a steep edge of the path and landing directly on my head (wearing a helmet). What really drove the helmet usage home for me was a local death that I was told about. The former race team trainer for the area thought a care was going to cut him off, so he hit his brakes hard and went over his bars. He landed on his head and died on the spot. He WAS wearing a helmet, so it's proof to me that we are still vulnerable.

I can't speak for everyone, but I'll gladly pay money to look like a goof if it protects my head. Life is too precious to gamble when it's not needed.

Chr0m0ly 

After days of slogging through reviews I just kinda went with this one. I decided to prioritize ventilation, and sizing.
Bell has a reputation for fitting long oval heads and I have about a 60cm (24”) noggin, so I went with a helmet that had three shell sizes for Sm Md and Lg. That means that instead of one universal fit you adjust with a dial in the back, this helmet comes in 3 sizes, with appropriate sizes molds for each hard shell.
The one size fits all (54-60cm) that you mostly see in sub $100.00 lids doesn’t come down close enough to my ears, and I’m crossing my fingers this’ll do the job.

Ever the bargain hunter the graph paper graphics version pictured is on sale in the size Lg, normally $85.00 it’s currently on Amazon for $55.00.

The styling is a little racier than I’d intended, but I think it’ll payoff in ventilation. And you know, I can’t see it if I’m wearing it!

https://www.amazon.com/Bell-Formula-.../dp/B075RTKM75



Bell Formula MiPs

The Golden Boy 

Last month when I fell off the bike- I didn't intend to fall- and just hearing the helmet hit the ground was a pretty sobering, sharp pitched "CRACK."

Sobering enough to realize my helmet needed to be replaced.

Chr0m0ly 

My wife was commuting in winter and hit a patch of black ice. No pedestrians or drivers involved. She went down hard and was ambulanced to the hospital with a concussion and a broken collar bone. That helmet save her life. She has plans for me, (some time soon we want kiddos) and so I wear a helmet.

I also ride a motorcycle, and that gear isn’t always super comfortable, but “if it’s too hot for leathers, it’s too hot to ride”. I want to do this stuff for as long as possible, so I wear the gear. I’ve crashed that motorcycle before, it can happen no matter how carefull you may be.

I’ve done some skate boarding back in the day, and thats why I wear leather palmed gloves when ride I now. Skinned hands HURT! LOL!

I like moving fast and carving turns. Skate, surf, and snow boards, pushbikes and motorbikes, if it carves, I want to play. These things add enough to my life that I accept the inherent risks involved, but I also minimize those risks as much as I possibly can.

canklecat

Great helmet for the money, with much better attention to detail than some comparably priced and more expensive helmets I've handled or worn. I got the Bell Formula MIPS in summer 2018 to replace the Bell Solar that was damaged when I was hit by a car earlier that year. It's comfortable and the MIPS feature seems to work as claimed -- I was struck on the top of the head by a railroad crossing arm that came down unusually quickly. The outer shell of the helmet deflected without even a mark or dent on the helmet, while the harness stayed put.

due ruote 

That list is very helpful, but any insight on the score numbers? The preface only mentions the star ratings. Are the scores meant to take into account the other non-safety factors?

uncle uncle

From the pdf included on the site, which defines the testing methodology... "STAR Ratings The STAR equation was originally developed to estimate the incidence of concussion that a college football player may experience while wearing a given helmet over the course of one season [18-19]. Common on-field impacts are simulated using laboratory testing, then resulting concussion risk for each impact is estimated and weighted based on the relative frequency that a player might experience that impact scenario during a season of play (termed “exposure”). Bicycle STAR follows a similar ideology wherein common cyclist head impact scenarios are simulated in the laboratory and resulting concussion risks are weighted based on the likelihood of a cyclist experiencing that impact."

I read this to mean that their "star" system only accounts for impact/concussion criteria, aka only safety factors are considered.

due ruote 

Yes, I only see a discussion of the STAR rating methodology. But note that the helmets are displayed by ascending score number, from 8.9 to 25.3. I am wondering how those scores were derived, and what I should make of them.

uncle uncle

Again from methodology pdf: "... The STAR value for each helmet model represents the number of concussions likely to occur out of those 47.4 impacts, which can be expressed as a percentage...". So I interpret that to mean, for example, that the first (best) helmet rated, the Fox Dropframe Pro (MIPS), one could expect that concussions would occur in 8.9% of the tested accident simulations, whereas the last (worst) helmet rated, the Berns Watts, one could expect that concussions would occur in 25.3% of the tested accident simulations. They go into how they have derived the ratings (basically lab tests simulating real world helmet impact data), but exactly how... I'd have to study it, real hard like, to truly understand it.

due ruote 

Ah, gotcha. I guess I wasn’t reading closely enough. Thanks.

Chr0m0ly 

My helmet arrived Sunday, super fast!
I really like it. It’s a noticable step up in finish quality than my old helmets.


The foam is covered around the rim, the padding directs sweat away from my eyes, and there are air channels molded in between the vents, so lots of air flow.
My only nit to pick is that it could be a little longed and narrower. It fits, and there isnt anymore red mark on my forehead when I take it off, so its minor, but it could fit a little closer on the sides.
That said it fits leaps and bounds better than my old lid, so I’m a very happy camper. I recomend it, and I’d buy this one again, if I had it to do over again.

ascherer 

Chr0m0ly Thanks for the follow up and pics. I ordered one, it was too good a deal to pass. Have to wait until next weekend for delivery.

Chr0m0ly 

You bet! I took it for its first warm weather ride yesterday. 70 degrees out and I could feel the air channels and ventilation working. It’s noticeably cooler than the $20 Schwinn lid I have. Afterwords I pulled out the front padding and gave it a rinse, and even the glued in Velcro strips are really well attached.
The difference between a $20 helmet and an 85.00 helmet are substantial!

ascherer 

Hopefully you'll never find out about the structural improvements in that price range!
Yesterday I rode from the UWS into Queens, Brooklyn, back uptown to the Bronx, then over to Randalls Island and back home to the UWS. I could have used extra ventilation, it felt warmer that my weather app showed. I have almost always bought white helmets assuming there's some degree of reflective effect to keep them cooler, so I'm interested to see how the black helmet feels. But I'm really glad to hear that this one is well-ventilated.

Bad Lag

Uws = ?

Chr0m0ly 

upper west side