Why is riding without a helmet considered 'cool'?

linus_deboss

linus_deboss

Active member
Have you ever thought about it? How did it ever come to this point that we think it's 'cool' or 'stylish' to ride without a helmet?

(Not to mention that e.g. fisher hats look stupid anyways, but that's a personal opinion, so don't bash on this in the overall argument with not wearing one for coolness)

Of course, if you've got an uncomfy helmet or helmet+goggles don't work good together it must be more comfortable without a helmet...

But think about it, if you only could wear your backplate like a backpack, would u rather not wear it because it's cool?

It's just my opinion, but I think it's really stupid that riding without a helmet gives you a superior feeling, goggles under skate helmet looks dope, if you want you can add a cap under it or a hood over it, it still looks dope...

I think it would be a good thing if mountains just made helmets mandatory, and also for all the pros who ride without a helmet; you guys are heroes to the youngsters out there! they want to be like you, if you don't wear a helmet one day they'll stop wearing theirs too, it's sort of a vicious circle...

As for me, I probably would have been to hospital several times already if I didn't always wear one

watcha guys think?
 
Dude, have you ever jibbed around with a beanie and goggles (glasses for easter)? It feels sooooo dam good compared to helmet...

I think the problem isn't people not wearing helmets, it's people not wearing helmets when they should: when i'm going through the kicker line, i wear one, when i doing pow, i wear one (and tbh beanie doesn't go well in pow, might loose it if you fall too) if i'm learning anything new which implies me falling, i wear one.

To the pros that don't, I don't think it's all down to unconsciousness, and wanting to be cool. People in Stept: probably, but most of ns agrees on the fact that when you're shooting something like mutiny, you ought to wear a fucking helmet. But take Candide: even after his massive big bertha crash, he doesn't were one most of the time. But in the skiing he does, his only risks with not wearing a helmet are to stumble onto a hidden rock (a bit like schummarer, yep dunno how to spell it) or crash on a cliff, where a helmet wouldn't really help anyway.

Kids gotta understand that pros like Candide are on such a different level, they know the mountain so well that a helmet doesn't really make a difference. I do think that some pros doing urban or even park should wear one or at least say that other less experienced skiers always should, cos how many times have I seen someone have a concussion, and yh most of the time it's nothing, but it's always nothing until the day it's something...

So end of the line, people who don't were helmets just to look cool are idiots, and I feel good that i'm having that much of a better time skiing than them, cos frankly, I don't give a fuck what a few gapers and 2 snowboarders think of me. Wear a helmet when you know it might save you the season or your life, don't wear it if you feel a beanie is more comfy (which i do) when you're just jilling around the mountain.

Back protectors are for fucking losers tho, I mean who dafuq wears that, so uncool dude....

 
^back protectors are a must have on he ice coast or Midwest. I was out for awhile washing out on ice to my back.
 
Totally agreed. Its all in context. I mean look at skateboarding, literally no street skaters wear helmets, but the vert/mega ramp guys do, for obvious reasons. When your going off axis in a jump line, or having the risk of coming up short on a jump, or dropping cliffs, the risk of head injuries is huge. But lapping rail lines in the park, or doing tricks on jumps that you're completely comfortable doing? I see no need for it. I guess it all comes down to what you're comfortable doing. I'm sure the Stept guys know pretty well how to avoid hitting their head when falling.
 
This x a million, plus helmets are cooooomfy and you can put stickers on them, what's not to love while protectin your noggin?? Never ridden without one, never will
 
Are you kidding me? This is the dumbest thing I've read on newschoolers in a LONG time. One little mistake and you've slammed your head into a rail, tree, or rock and suffered a permanent brain injury. Pros aren't immune to crashing.
 
They are protective, look good, comfy and warm so I don't see a point to not wear one, especially, but in the end it is really up to each and everyone themselves I guess, more people will wear one over the years but this debate will never really go away
 
If you don't want to wear one then do me a favor go watch the video about Danny Tourmine (sic?) and then watch the hi5 foundations B.A.S.I.C. Helmet video. They go to show you a helmet ain't all about you it's also about others and they make you realize even the simple things you do can go wrong. Now quit trying to be something your not. Man up (or women up) and wear a helmet.

#helmetsarecool
 
I personally wear a helmet ALL the time but people that don't obviously are confident in their skiing, im not judging, if i was a good ass skier that rarely crashed I wouldn't wear a helmet either
 
It shows confidence.but if i see a gaper eating shit without a helmet I just automatically think he's retarded.

I always wear a helmet in the park unless I forget it.

for urbans though I don't know. I guess it's ca;use I grew up watching people not wearing one, but I can never seem to convince myself to wear one. the shot looks less cool.
 
kids see pros without helmets and immediately want to do the same. I mean think about it... People watch videos and attempt to emulate the style, tricks, clothes, music shown in their edits. It's the same with basketball, football, mostly every sport, just on a different level. Monkey see monkey do. I see more than half the kids out there wearing helmets when I'm riding, so I don't really think it's a huge problem. But for those that don't, why take the risk? Especially if you're gonna be lapping the park all day.
 
All the people saying do it for those around you are right, but it's also a personal choice to wear one or not, if you do cool, if not, that's cool too
 
I wear a helmet becusse I don't want to get concussed if I eat shit on a feature. When those warm spring days come I'll leave the helmet at home and let my mane flow in the wind
 
Well, then you're just really, really young.

I'm 30. NO ONE wore a helmet skiing until when.....6-7 years ago or something? I wear a helmet, but this superior attitude towards people who don't wear helmets is fucking dumb.

Guess what! you're helmet is good for ONE impact under 20 mph. Yes, that's reality. So, all you kids saying shit like, "My helmet has saved my ass so many times!!", jesus christ, at least know how the equipment works. If you tip over on a flat groomer going slow, your helmet will minimize that impact. If you're skiing extreme terrain, skiing the park, etc., your helmet just is not at all designed to withstand those types of impacts. Not to mention, that helmets are designed to help prevent skull fractures and scalp avulsions, they do nothing to fight the real issue in deceleration head injuries—your fucking brain bouncing off one side of your skull, then hitting the other side when it rebounds. So, until they figure out how to bubble wrap the inside of people's skulls, catastrophic head injuries are going to occur whether people are wearing helmets or not.

It would be idiotic for anyone to try and argue that helmets are totally pointless, and that they provide zero protection. But, there's a lot of people who have no clue what the limitations of a ski helmet really are and walk around thinking they're good to go.

P.S. if you wear crash pads and a back protector you're a pussy.
 
i always put on a helmet when skiing park.

i ski park so often, i get used to wearing them

then on a powder day, i find myself wearing a helmet

and I look around, and almost everyone is wearing a helmet even though almost none of them ski park or throw down hard

so then I feel dumb, and make a point to not wear a helmet next time out

snowboarders need helmets, people who ski park, trees, cliffs could use one too.

but that's only a part of the population. why does EVERYBODY need a fucking helmet? i couldn't hit my head skiing a groomer if i tried barring any switch skiing
 
iPad wont let me quote - helmet good for one impact under 20mph.... Just ignore the MIPS technology and other advancements. ... Also just because that's the way we have always done it (May not be quite as old as you but I think I have been a member here longer) doesn't make it smart. Now I do agree there needs to be some improvements in helmet technology and to a certain extent the current standards are holding them back. But I also say age has taught me you better protect what you can.. And if you haven't gained that insight by 30 I feel sorry for you. But please do me a favor and look at the hi5 foundation video.. Talks about some of the new technology and where it is going.
 
Personally I like to eat food with a fork not through a straw so im not taking any chances.

Don't ever feel pressured to not wear a helemt though, thats just stupid.
 
I guess you missed the part where I said I wear a helmet and that it is impossible to argue that they don't help. At least a bit.

My point in bringing up my age was that a lot of young people don't understand and can't relate to a time/culture where NO ONE wore a helmet. And, it isn't long ago. Helmet usage has exploded, and yet, people are just skiing faster, going bigger, taking more chances and the net result has been no reduction in catastrophic injuries. While there's clearly a myriad of reasons why those stats look the way they do, it still can't be dismissed.

There's some kind of relationship (not claiming it's as simple or straightforward as cause-->effect) between wearing a helmet and a person's willingness to accept higher and higher levels of risk. Anecdotally, we see it in these threads constantly: "Oh, I always wear a helmet when I'm trying a new trick, but not if I'm cruising". There's been similar studies done when looking at avalanche deaths and the proliferation of beacons and rescue equipment. They expected to see a marked decrease in deaths, yet they haven't and it isn't a terrible argument to suggest that people are willingly putting themselves in increasingly riskier situations because of a sense of increased security.

I saw that video. i also saw how they were testing the thing still. As far as I know, there isn't any technology currently available to the general public that can prevent your brain from being damaged by impacting your skull—again, almost definitely the most traumatic aspect of a head injury.

Whether or not some helmet exists that is better at higher speeds, that isn't what people are wearing who are doing incredibly dangerous things on skis. My whole point is that there is this culture emerging that thinks they're damn near invincible because they have a helmet on, and that simultaneously mocks and scoffs at people that choose not to wear a helmet, and I don't like it. I've never in my life (in person) heard someone clown someone for wearing a helmet. On the other hand, I've heard countless people talk shit on someone not wearing one.

The reality is, unless you're wearing a Seth style full-face helmet, you're only marginally safer than someone wearing sunglasses and no hat. That's just the reality. You can get all angry and aggro with me if what I've said has somehow shaken your foundation for some unknown reason, but it is what it is.

I wear a helmet because when i duck a tree branch, I don't want to get my cap peeled. I wear a helmet because it's a bit warmer. I wear a helmet because I told my mom and dad that I would and because they sleep a little bit better knowing that I do. I wear a helmet because dumb little mistakes happen and it's a barrier.

I don't wear a helmet because I think that if I collide with a tree arcing a gs turn on a 38 degree slope that I'll be good to go. I don't wear a helmet because I think that if I underrotate a backie and land directly on my head that I'll be good to go.

I protect what I can.....when I can. When I can't, I don't delude myself into thinking that I can and then act as if. Lastly, I am 30, I've learned a lot about life, the world, and other people (just enough about those things to know that I don't know shit) have done an obnoxious amount of dumb shit in my life, have used up 9 or so lives, etc. etc. But, hey....I'll take whatever pity/sympathy/condescension you're offering!

 
This. Root of the problem. People think that it looks bad when theyre shooting, so the kids watching edits and movies see the people without helmets and think helmets are uncool
 
@casual think we agree pretty much. Only difference is I have heard a lot of people get ripped (in person) for wearing a helmet yet very few say anything about not wearing one. In my opinion a greater effort needs to be put forth in increasing the cap advising of helmets to meet the current needs. As for people who take greater risks because of it.. That's a mental thing that they need to realize and control because at that point it does no good.. But if you always where it at least it has a shot at protecting you.
 
Me and my "gang" of skiier buddy's all didn't wear helmets, my friend told us he was gonna backflip the big jump at bigsky. So we go to the landing and wait, to see him catch his tips and heads ice into the knuckle, he says he's fine so we ride on the lift. Then he tells us can't see, at all. He said Everythinh was silvery shiny. We took him to ski patrol and he had a terrible concussion. He would've been fine if he was wearing a helmet. Me and my friends all went out and got helmets literally that night.
 
its cool to be all pro safety and all, helmets are widely misused and totally misunderstood, look up all that shit about MIPS and smiths new shit, most helmets are made too basically look cool, there's no garuntee a helmet will save your life or really eliminate risk of concussion, if you crack a helmet you'll know.
 
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