Bicycle Helmet?!

[Indy Magnoli]

I have a problem that you guys may be able to help me out with... Here in New Zealand they have a law that you must where a bicycle helmet when riding. Now, I'd like to get a set of bikes for my family and I to take leisurely rides with, but there is no way that I'm going to be wearing a hot-pink junk of plastic with a styrofoam liner. Is there any sort of vintage piece of headgear that would match my clothes and still appease the Na Zi-land police?

I was tempted to make a foam liner for my Fed Delx or even try to stretch my eight-panel wool over a modern helmet.

HELP!

Kind regards,
Magnoli

 

[Indy Magnoli]

I just couldn't do it:

Kind regards,
Magnoli

 

[Bogie1943]

lol Nice pic, well I have two idea you can find a WWII era paratrooper practice jump helmet, leather item. Or you can find a WWII british helmet and dress up as a air warden who rode bikes around the English country side watching the skies for Nazi bombers, what do ya think?

 

[SHARPETOYS]

How about a jockey helmet with a cool cover?

http://www.fourwinds.net/engcloth/helmtcat.html

 

[Bogie1943]

That is indeed a good idea, I have seen a ton of those in antique shops all over the US.

 

[Indy Magnoli]

I've thought about the riding helmet before; they are fairly common down here because of the British influence. I looked at that site... look at these sizes:

S/M (6 1/2 - 7 1/8)
L/XL (7 1/2 - 7 5/8)

Would you believe I wear a 7 1/4?

I think I'll stay away from the covers with the pretty bows though...

Kind regards,
Indy

 

[Wild Root]

Well, those are all very good ideas for head wear but, I like this one my self!LOL

What do you guys think?

 

[CoffeeDude]

Originally posted by Indy Magnoli
I just couldn't do it:

Kind regards,
Magnoli

Look at that bike seat! I think a pink helmet would be the least of your worries!

 

[Wild Root]

LOL Yeah, really. LOL

 

[Retro Grouch]

Having had the unpleasant experience of using a bike helmet for it's intended purpose, I would say get a REAL bike helmet.

There are colors besides pink. Yellow, orange, lavendar...

Below are some good sources for lids. Bell used to have a return policy. If you wrecked and smacked the helmet they would replace it. Other companies might also have the same policy.

Performance Bikes
REI

They aren't very stylish but neither is a cracked mellon.

I do like Wild Root's idea. LOL

 

[Indy Magnoli]

Thought I'd resurrect this old thread to see if anyone has any ideas on this. I really can't bring myself to wearing one of these ridiculous hunks of plastic. I even thought of hand making an eight panel cap to go over the top... I'm getting desperate! :eusa_doh: I also thought putting some expandable foam inside one of my fedoras so when a cop pulls me over (yes, they do that here) I can just take off my hat and show him it is road safe.

Kind regards,
Magnoli

 

[Indy Magnoli]

Just found this:

Leather Bicycle Helmet

Not quite old enough for my taste, but getting there...

Kind regards,
Indy

 

[scotrace]

I think Lance Armstrong said "You can accomplish a lot on a bike if you don't care how it looks."

Maybe a time trial helmet?

I'd just get a real, modern, safe helmet. A helmet is what separates the real men from the organ donors.

 

[Salv]

Just found this:

Leather Bicycle Helmet

Not quite old enough for my taste, but getting there...

Kind regards,
Indy

That's as close as you're going to get though...

 

[Vladimir Berkov]

http://www.pasttimesports.biz/football.html

http://www.toddscostumes.com/store/rocketeer_props/the_rocketeer_props.htm

 

[vonwotan]

Just my two cents - I would contact my local equestrian supply shop, or look around for a bowler with the webbing used for dressage - they still make some top hats this way as well. In addition to being hard, the webbing or large adjustable leather sweat band helps cushion your fall. Many have a chin strap to keep the hat in place.

 

[Riposte3]

Having had the unpleasant experience of using a bike helmet for it's intended purpose, I would say get a REAL bike helmet.

There are colors besides pink. Yellow, orange, lavendar...

Below are some good sources for lids. Bell used to have a return policy. If you wrecked and smacked the helmet they would replace it. Other companies might also have the same policy.

Performance Bikes
REI

They aren't very stylish but neither is a cracked mellon.

I do like Wild Root's idea. LOL

Having scraped people off the street who weren't wearing a helmet, I'd have to agree. Style is one thing, but not ending up a drooling vegetable after that patch of gravel you didn't see is even more important. It's surprising how little force an impact requires to cause a severe brain bleed. I've had many patients who decided to get checked at the hospital "just to be safe" and ended up being flown to the Neurotrauma center because of a cerebral hemorrhage that showed up on the CT scan.

And make no mistake, no matter how careful you are - If you ride long enough, you WILL eventually get in an accident!

-Jake
(10 years EMS experience)

 

[Tomasso]

A helmet is what separates the real men from the head trauma patients.

It's odd that in this day and age much of the TDF is ridden sans helmet.

 

[Lonn]

classic style

Hi,
Indy, when I started reading the first post I started to think, I wonder if Indy Magnoli has anything that could help this guy. Then I noticed it was you asking!
Come on! Design something cool for all of us. An open face Rocketeer or a John Steed Bowler. I never get on a bike without a helmet. I don't even stradle the bar. I put on my helmet and gloves, then I get on. The damage I have done to elbows and knees and shirts and shoulders I can live with. I've replaced helmets. I still have an aging brain.
I always pick the "toughest" looking I can find and it seems they have been getting more and more stupid looking every year. I want a Rocketeer helmet. Or totally Buck Rogers.

 

[Feng_Li]

What about a motorcycle helmet? The gloss black Stahlhelm-style ones don't look too bad...