Helmets

bobtbuilder

I have just seen on the Evans Ride It website, that helmet wearing is compulsory on their events and non-wearers will not be permitted to ride.

Is this the case at other sportives as well?

I don't wear a helmet (please don't turn this in to another Pros / Cons thread - there are enough of those already), and am therefore unable to ride the Evans sportives, but I'm keen to bag a few other sportives next year.

Cheers.

dennisn

bobtbuilder wrote:

I have just seen on the Evans Ride It website, that helmet wearing is compulsory on their events and non-wearers will not be permitted to ride.

Is this the case at other sportives as well?

I don't wear a helmet (please don't turn this in to another Pros / Cons thread - there are enough of those already), and am therefore unable to ride the Evans sportives, but I'm keen to bag a few other sportives next year.

Cheers.

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

bobtbuilder

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

Thanks Dennis - and you've created (another) post which doesn't answer a question. Would it have killed you to either (a) provide an answer, or (b) not posted?

dennisn

bobtbuilder wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

Thanks Dennis - and you've created (another) post which doesn't answer a question. Would it have killed you to either (a) provide an answer, or (b) not posted?

Suit yourself. Ride / don't ride for whatever reasons. I was just saying that riding is better than not riding and letting whether you must wear a helmet or not dictate your riding
schedule is, well......... I won't go on.

freehub

You don't wear a helmet, well, for that event, why not wear a helmet? It's not like you're allergic to them? are you? Or are you just being a rebel?

amaferanga

I don't normally wear a helmet, but I do for sportives. I think both that I've done so far (Cumberland Challenge and Bealach Mor) insisted on helmets.

Seems ludicrous to me to miss out on a sportive because you don't want to wear a helmet.

Infamous

tbh, on a Evans ride it sportive, filled with novice riders; many of which have never ridden in a group before. You'd be an idiot not to want to wear a helmet.

I don't wear a helmet, unless I'm riding with others, in which case it's a no brainer (and I'm talking about experienced cyclists, not strangers on a sportive).

bobtbuilder

I would rather ride with my mates, or on my own than wear a helmet.

Just hoped that there were some sportives out there which didn't require a helmet.

You don't wear a helmet, well, for that event, why not wear a helmet? It's not like you're allergic to them? are you? Or are you just being a rebel?

I just don't like them Will. No wider manifesto!

Also, I no longer own one, so that would make it a fairly expensive sportive!!!

freehub

bobtbuilder wrote:

I would rather ride with my mates, or on my own than wear a helmet.

Just hoped that there were some sportives out there which didn't require a helmet.

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

bobtbuilder

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

I just don't like them Will. No wider manifesto!

Also, I no longer own one, so that would make it a fairly expensive sportive!!!

freehub

Why not? It grinds my gears when I see people deciding not to like something for no reason or some silly reason, and then missing out on things due to the silly decision.

bobtbuilder

Sorry Will I was hopeful this wouldn't cause any outrage.

I find them uncomfortable and they spoil my ride experience.

I have no desire to ever race, so that won't be a problem. I just wanted to add some sportives into my calendar to give me some targets for 2010. If that's not possible, I'll just have to set my own routes / distances as my 2010 goals.

dennisn

freehub wrote:

Why not? It grinds my gears when I see people deciding not to like something for no reason or some silly reason, and then missing out on things due to the silly decision.

Well put. Helmet - it's a nonissue.

bigmat

I think its an insurance thing - sportives tend to organise insurance for the event, insurers probably specify that riders should wear helmets so thems the rules. What's the big deal though? You could pick one up for less than the entry cost of the average sportive.

TommyEss

MatHammond wrote:

I think its an insurance thing - sportives tend to organise insurance for the event, insurers probably specify that riders should wear helmets so thems the rules. What's the big deal though? You could pick one up for less than the entry cost of the average sportive.

Beat me to it Mat - I'm not sure there are many out there nowadays that don't specify this - which is a shame if it's putting people off (he says pressing hard on the lid to keep the worms in)

To play devil's advocate - if you're not going to find many/any sportives that will allow you to ride without a helmet, but do intend on riding a number of sportives over the coming years, then could not the expense of a helmet reserved just for your sportive rides be justified?

sampras38

bobtbuilder wrote:

Sorry Will I was hopeful this wouldn't cause any outrage.

I find them uncomfortable and they spoil my ride experience.

I have no desire to ever race, so that won't be a problem. I just wanted to add some sportives into my calendar to give me some targets for 2010. If that's not possible, I'll just have to set my own routes / distances as my 2010 goals.

A friend of mine was nearly killed because he swerved to miss a car on a lone ride and he wore a helmet. He had some pretty nasty injuries and was told at the hospital that the helmet probably saved his life.

So don't be a tool and wear the helmet, or spend your life Sportiveless...;-)

and they're sooo much more fun than riding alone.

rake

im thinking of getting a helmet for my head. do they slow you down, them slots must catch a lot of wind. i want to protect my head but cant help thinking when helmets werent the norm i used to ride everywhere,before i had a car and never broke my head in half.

Art Vandelay

Possible solution:


Only 0.99p with one day's bidding left on ebay.

sampras38

Art Vandelay wrote:

Possible solution:


Only 0.99p with one day's bidding left on ebay.

Class...;-)

nasahapley

BtB, the only sportive I know that you don't have to wear a lid for is the Cumbrian Christmas Cracker, but since that's next month (and is full), that's not much use. I'm sure there are others but they'll be few and far between, and tbh from the point of view of an organiser I can understand why; most people wear them anyway so you may as well make them mandatory - they'll lose hardly any entries as a result. I don't always wear a helmet but bought one largely because I want to do a few sportives; I do enjoy riding a little bit less in a lid but for me that's easily outweighed by the fun of a sportive. Totally up to you, I don't understand why some others are getting so het up about it tbh.

hopper1

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

freehub

hopper1 wrote:

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

I did read it, perfectly.... :roll: Just because someone does not want an opinion does not mean they won't get any I'm afraid, and with a subject like this it was waranted. kay?

Esoteric80

So I was in the same situation as you this year... turns out I didn't have a choice and so dug out the 1997 Specialized helmet and wore it.

I decided that I wanted to ride the event more than I objected to wearing a helmet, turned up on the day thinking that if I could ride without great if not I'll wear it.

My advice would be to get hold of a helmet to wear. Give yourself the option. F*%k what you think you look like or any other reason for not wearing it, turn up on the day and see what you want to do:

Ride or not ride.
I bet you ride.
And LOVE it.

hopper1

freehub wrote:

hopper1 wrote:

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

I did read it, perfectly.... :roll: Just because someone does not want an opinion does not mean they won't get any I'm afraid, and with a subject like this it was waranted. kay?

Sure you're not a burd!? :shock:
If you are, you should up your HRT ... :twisted: ...
Whatever....

bobtbuilder

freehub wrote:

hopper1 wrote:

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

I did read it, perfectly.... :roll: Just because someone does not want an opinion does not mean they won't get any I'm afraid, and with a subject like this it was waranted. kay?

No - it's not really warranted. I specifically asked for this not to degenerate into a "why don't you wear a helmet" discussion.

A simple "Yes" or "No" or your experiences at sportives would have been better. :roll:

TheStone

I would think Audax is your best bet as I don't think they have the same insurance issues.

There won't be many sportives without this rule in the future. If it's good enough for the
pros.....

Have you tried some of the newer helmets? They've got a lot better, you hardly notice you're
wearing one till you hit the deck. I've smashed 3 ..... but I'm rubbish.

antfly

bobtbuilder wrote:

freehub wrote:

hopper1 wrote:

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

I did read it, perfectly.... :roll: Just because someone does not want an opinion does not mean they won't get any I'm afraid, and with a subject like this it was waranted. kay?

No - it's not really warranted. I specifically asked for this not to degenerate into a "why don't you wear a helmet" discussion.

A simple "Yes" or "No" or your experiences at sportives would have been better. :roll:

Yes!

redddraggon

freehub wrote:

Why not? It grinds my gears when I see people deciding not to like something for no reason or some silly reason, and then missing out on things due to the silly decision.

Why don't you wear your helmet when commuting, but do the rest of the time? That seems really silly to me.

freehub

bobtbuilder wrote:

freehub wrote:

hopper1 wrote:

Unfortunately, most events I know of require a helmet. I believe it's mainly down to pressure from insurers, but that's by the by...
So, you'll have to rethink your strategy, or keep looking for the odd event that doesn't alienate you.
:idea: There's nothing stopping you from doing the Evans Ride (or any sportive) without registering, as long as you don't utilise their refreshment stops

dennisn wrote:

Seems like wearing / not wearing a helmet is a pretty strange reason for not doing a ride or race that you want to. How hard can it be to wear one? You put it on your head and ride. After the ride you take it off. FWIW no one gives a d*mn what your reasons are for wearing / not wearing one and no one really cares if you do or don't. The whole thing is a non issue to me. You've created a problem that doesn't exist. Sorry, but that's the way it is.

freehub wrote:

How old are you? Do you think you'll look stupid? At the moment you're just being childish imo.

Honestly, you don't like them for no apparent reason, does not make sense, you'll have to stick to doing rides, you might not be able to do many sportives and don't think about racing too.

Guys, read the OP first... Opinions were not required... FWIFW! :roll:

I did read it, perfectly.... :roll: Just because someone does not want an opinion does not mean they won't get any I'm afraid, and with a subject like this it was waranted. kay?

No - it's not really warranted. I specifically asked for this not to degenerate into a "why don't you wear a helmet" discussion.

A simple "Yes" or "No" or your experiences at sportives would have been better. :roll:

You should have simply not posted the post then.

redddraggon wrote:

freehub wrote:

Why not? It grinds my gears when I see people deciding not to like something for no reason or some silly reason, and then missing out on things due to the silly decision.

Why don't you wear your helmet when commuting, but do the rest of the time? That seems really silly to me.

Cause I don't like getting my hear soaked and having to carry a helmet aorund all day, those things are not issues on a bike ride. Just like when getting wet on a bike ride, it does not matter compared to when commuting where it does matter. Of course it's silly not wearing a helment, if I fall off I'll be much worse off if I hit my head.

Infamous

I suspect you did hit your head, at some point.

APIII

You could probably do some reliability rides early next year. I don't think the ones I've done have specified helemts as compulsory. Other than that though, it's going to be few and far between if you insist on not wearing one.