Post crash helmet replacement - POC Octal and Radarlocks

thegreatdivide

Out on Saturday with a mate. The roads had mostly been cleared of the wintry stuff but when we crested a hill we were confronted by a long section covered in slush and ice apart from melted tyre tracks. We stuck to these and descended gingerly but a classic footballer’s wives white Range Rover came roaring up behind us and sat within feet of my back wheel. We stuck to our tracks but the driver (yip – a textbook wannabe WAG) bullied herself past me splitting the two of us up. I immediately lost the ability to read the road ahead, hit a thick melting ice patch followed by the deck. The result was a heavily dented and split Specialized Prevail*, a twisted neck and a nasty selection of bruises (big ups arnica!) but remarkably the bike was fine and so was the Rapha (thanks the stars! ;-)). Unfortunately I didn’t have time to get her plate and my mate was oblivious to the accident – he was too preoccupied with sticking to his line and replying to the volley of insults being hurled at him from behind – she eventually squeezed past him and he realised I was nowhere to be seen. Too late.

Anyway……the Prevail was bought second hand so I can’t do the 50% crash replacement (it was purchased to replace the Prevail that split like and egg when I face planted in the spring) but I do have some Wiggle vouchers and was thinking of trying out a POC Octal for a change (done the Kask thing – not for me). Does anyone wear a POC and Oakley Radarlocks and if so are the tales of them not being compatible true? I don’t want to have to wear those Elvis shades!




*Stick that up your helmet debate – three spills over the years and three cracked helmets ;-)

northpole

Yep - can't believe how/ why people choose not to wear a helmet as default position. You're now making me think that I should perhaps consider sticking my garmin virbe on the bars rather than leave in the drawer at home in the event that I should come across a nutter like that.

Pretty useless post by me as I can't help with the POC query! I still find the Giro Aeon very comfortable, if a bit mushroomy in profile.

thegreatdivide

Ironically my mate is a cameraman (he helped film the forthcoming David Millar doc) and he’s hooked on his GoPro. Unfortunately it wasn’t on his bike that day and neither was mine :-(

I don’t want this to turn this into a helmet debate but fuxk knows what state I would have been in had I not had my lid on and my neck feels like a giant has tried to pull my head off. But let’s not go there eh ;-)

I bet I end up with Prevail #3...

cougie

POC - a lot of money for a helmet that meets the safety standards of helmets a lot cheaper ? Personally I'd not buy a helmet that I'd not tried on before. Fit and comfort is foremost.

Too nasty round here at the weekend to even attempt cycling - yet I still saw a couple of people risking it.

thegreatdivide

cougie wrote:

POC - a lot of money for a helmet that meets the safety standards of helmets a lot cheaper ? Personally I'd not buy a helmet that I'd not tried on before. Fit and comfort is foremost.

Too nasty round here at the weekend to even attempt cycling - yet I still saw a couple of people risking it.

POC dealer in Edinburgh (Ronde) so I've tried the medium and know it fits, but I didn't have the Oakleys with me so can't be sure. The Wiggle voucher means less impact on the wallet.

I've cycled through many a winter on and off road and I'd like to think that I know what I'm doing and what the risks are - I've never crashed during the dark days. This incident was cause by someone who was too impatient and had no common sense.

darkhairedlord

Your stiff neck might be caused by wearing the helmet. If you had no helmet on it your head may have decelerated before contact. Your reflexes would be trying to prevent head contact, not helmet+head contact. Lucky you were not wearing flouro as well or your injuries would be even worse.

cougie

Aah I see - you crashed because a car overtook you and you couldn't see the road far enough ahead to navigate the ice ?

Sounds like it was a lottery staying up at best then - at some point a car will overtake you.

thegreatdivide

darkhairedlord wrote:

Your stiff neck might be caused by wearing the helmet. If you had no helmet on it your head may have decelerated before contact. Your reflexes would be trying to prevent head contact, not helmet+head contact. Lucky you were not wearing flouro as well or your injuries would be even worse.

I don’t even want to think about the consequences :shock:

thegreatdivide

POC?
Oakleys?
Anyone?
Bueller?

ugo.santalucia

The Octal looks a-mazing... not sure is any better than a 29 quid Giro indicator, but if looks matter...

thegreatdivide

ugo.santalucia wrote:

The Octal looks a-mazing... not sure is any better than a 29 quid Giro indicator, but if looks matter...

I'm not denying that ;-) But I'm a tart. I'm comfortable with this :-)

bendertherobot

ugo.santalucia wrote:

The Octal looks a-mazing... not sure is any better than a 29 quid Giro indicator, but if looks matter...

Put the bottle down and walk away slowly.............................

bsharp77

After seeing the Synthe at the weekend, I'm tempted to try the Giro Foray - based on the same technology at a much more reasonable price. Anything must be better than the Bell mushroom I've been putting up with!

Flâneur

Give POC an email, you'll be surprised at how helpful and honest they can be. Had a similar query regarding some Oakley goggles and a ski helmet, they said they would match and they did.

With POC you are paying a premium but you are spending on a company who spends masses of money on R and D.

Snow and Rock I think are stocking them if you have one local enough to go try

Stolen from a review. Not sure if this is about having them worn on the helmet or when wearing the sunglasses. I believe it relates to the gap between your ears and helmet but shrug

"A minor niggle is the lack of compatibility with various brans of glasses, including my Oakley Radarlocks and Uvex Sportstyles. Because of the thickness and lower coverage of the helmet sides, there just isn't the space for the arms of the glasses to fit in. It's a blemish on an otherwise really well thought out helmet."

thegreatdivide

sa0u823e wrote:

Give POC an email, you'll be surprised at how helpful and honest they can be. Had a similar query regarding some Oakley goggles and a ski helmet, they said they would match and they did.

With POC you are paying a premium but you are spending on a company who spends masses of money on R and D.

Snow and Rock I think are stocking them if you have one local enough to go try

Stolen from a review. Not sure if this is about having them worn on the helmet or when wearing the sunglasses. I believe it relates to the gap between your ears and helmet but shrug

"A minor niggle is the lack of compatibility with various brans of glasses, including my Oakley Radarlocks and Uvex Sportstyles. Because of the thickness and lower coverage of the helmet sides, there just isn't the space for the arms of the glasses to fit in. It's a blemish on an otherwise really well thought out helmet."

Yeah that's what kicked off my concern. I've seen a few reviews like that, but at the same time several Garmin riders had Oakleys Radarlocks on last season. It's a lovely helmet in the flesh and the fit is just as good as my (ex) Prevail. I might have to pop back to Ronde with my specs and live with the guilt of buying one from Wiggle...

type:epyt

If you're gonna f-about your lbs (and mine), have some sense not to name it!

thegreatdivide

type:epyt wrote:

If you're gonna f-about your lbs (and mine), have some sense not to name it!

Not my LBS and they've had enough money out of me already!

ilm_zero7

best price i can see for it is here: http://www.winstanleysbikes.co.uk/produ ... wwod-AMA0w

on-yer-bike

I have an Octal best fit of any helmet Ive tried and very light but the Radars did clash with the helmet behind the ears. But then so did POC shades. I have Adidas Evil Eye that are better but still a bit of interference. I think it depends how low the helmet comes on your head and the position of your ears in relation to your eyes as I know for a mate there is no problem. I wonder why all the pros that wear them dont have issues. Im going to check out the Synth and if that fits may sell the POC, reluctantly. I did ask POC about this issue and they told me that helmet wasnt really suitable for me after telling me to adjust the cradle which of course made no difference.

thegreatdivide

on-yer-bike wrote:

I have an Octal best fit of any helmet Ive tried and very light but the Radars did clash with the helmet behind the ears. But then so did POC shades. I have Adidas Evil Eye that are better but still a bit of interference. I think it depends how low the helmet comes on your head and the position of your ears in relation to your eyes as I know for a mate there is no problem. I wonder why all the pros that wear them dont have issues. Im going to check out the Synth and if that fits may sell the POC, reluctantly. I did ask POC about this issue and they told me that helmet wasnt really suitable for me after telling me to adjust the cradle which of course made no difference.

Finally! A quality answer :-) Thanks on-yer-bike. I've also got EE Half Rims but I'd want a helmet that could take both types.

I was looking at the Synthe too but Wiggle don't have stock in the good colours yet.

on-yer-bike

thegreatdivide wrote:

on-yer-bike wrote:

I have an Octal best fit of any helmet Ive tried and very light but the Radars did clash with the helmet behind the ears. But then so did POC shades. I have Adidas Evil Eye that are better but still a bit of interference. I think it depends how low the helmet comes on your head and the position of your ears in relation to your eyes as I know for a mate there is no problem. I wonder why all the pros that wear them dont have issues. Im going to check out the Synth and if that fits may sell the POC, reluctantly. I did ask POC about this issue and they told me that helmet wasnt really suitable for me after telling me to adjust the cradle which of course made no difference.

Finally! A quality answer :-) Thanks on-yer-bike. I've also got EE Half Rims but I'd want a helmet that could take both types.

I was looking at the Synthe too but Wiggle don't have stock in the good colours yet.

You may find the Octal is fine on you. If you are concerned about protection its in a league of its own.