I agree when it comes to normal urban biking - lose the helmet

[pecosdave]

Helmets:

I'll wear one when I'm doing off road stupid stuff, racing, or there happens to be a law that forces me to do so. Otherwise I don't, and experts agree.

Might want to make the kiddies wear them.

Comments

[real_skeptic]

I think the key there is "mature bicycling system". I suppose if you have a safe network of bicycle paths, and you don't share the road with cars, then it's true enough, for adults.

But here in Israel there are not many bicycle paths inside cities. The most advanced is Tel-Aviv (naturally), but many of the bicycle paths are disconnected and require riding some of the way on the road. Moreover, I've seen motorcycle riders illegally take bicycle paths. Under such conditions, I think helmets are really a must.

Another thing that bothers me in that article is that all the social reasons (people will not buy helmets so they won't ride and become fat) are not based in actual research but on the opinion of the expert. Perhaps there has been research, but it isn't mentioned.

Delving deep enough into the links you get to the following article

Biker deaths rising in New-York

Which brings us back to my first paragraph.