Helmets

[Shadows]

I was tucking the lower half of the mountain with a Race Crew buddy. He was way ahead of me. I noticed some people down but I kept going. He had booted a child in the head. The child was a girl down on the backside of a knoll. He didn't see her till it was too late. The impact knocked him out. When he came to, he was alone in a clinic, he walked out of his room to see the medics pronouncing the little girl dead. NO HELMET!

 

lawsuit?

 

my helmet probably isnt the best looking in the world. but they say its pretty safe, which is all that matters really. i got a marker omega series. feels like a pillow on my head.

 

 

i might wear my skate helmet this season with a beanie under it...anybody got opinions on that? good/bad/safe?

[Sno Mountain Skier]

i might wear my skate helmet this season with a beanie under it...anybody got opinions on that? good/bad/safe?

More of a style thing, then saftey.

[meggles]

i might wear my skate helmet this season with a beanie under it...anybody got opinions on that? good/bad/safe?

 

ew dont do that

 

 

and ive got an orange giro fuse haha i love it. its super comfy. and lightweight. actually i dont even notice it

 

but ive whacked my head on a rail before and im soo glad i was wearing a helmet

 

dont take the chance!! wear one!! its like wearing a seat belt.

[bigdaddyk]

the long your thinking of is the one where the hard plastic comes over the ears right??

 

 

 

Correct

[zaldon]

my friend landed on my head, it at least saved me alot of stiches, probably alot more other problems, thank God

how?

[zaldon]

well that sounds fun

[Wolverine21]

no helmet, but TK headwear saves lives. the hats are super padded so sean will be good if he falls. worked good for me last year

[toast21602]

tell me how good that hat works when you hit a tree. thanks.

[zaldon]

tell me how good that hat works when you hit a tree. thanks.

this website happens to have their very own tree hitting expert shadows

[Shadows]

i knew someone was gonna say something

trees suck

actually, no, tress are awesome, little kids who dont know how to fuckin ski suck

[zaldon]

well you would know

[Shadows]

nevermind, i dont want to get into this again.

Edited July 28, 2006 by Shadows

[zaldon]

in the sense that i hit a tree. luckily (extremely) i didnt hit my head

well know we can all sleep at ease tonight because if you dont where a helmet their is an extreme chance you wont hit a tree with your head

[Shadows]

well know we can all sleep at ease tonight because if you dont where a helmet their is an extreme chance you wont hit a tree with your head

 

to be fair, your head only makes up like 20% of your body.

[zaldon]

well to be realy fair you only use 1/3 of your brain

[Shadows]

then its settled...

you dont need a helmet because your head is small compared to the rest of your body, so you have a greater chance of hittim something besides your head. and you only use 1/3 of it, so its not very usefull...you use 100% of you fingers/arms/legs everyday.

[toast21602]

there is a good chance that is the most rediculous argument i have ever heard.

 

lets think about it.... go ahead. ski without a helmet. hit a tree, please. and then lose all motor functions because of brain damage. then, i would like you to tell me how important the other "80%" of your body is. oh wait, you wont be able to.

 

protect whats important. you can live without a leg. hell, you can ski without a leg.

Edited July 28, 2006 by toast21602

[Shadows]

(sarcasm)

[Shadows]

when my friend crashed his car its cause a tree jumped out into the middle of the road

 

http://boonedocks.net/pa/pa.php?p:339:15

 

ever see fantasia?

Edited July 28, 2006 by Shadows

[Sno Mountain Skier]

tell me how good that hat works when you hit a tree. thanks.

As Wolverine said TK headwear does save lifes. Our friend Chris tucked white lightning 2 seasons ago, and was going about 45 mph and had to swerve to miss a kid at the bottom of Boomer, and he crashed into a tree. Only thing wrong was a torn back muscle. Now i know this is rare, but it could happen.

[zaldon]

sounds to me like he should have swerved the other way

[bigdaddyk]

I finally got a helmet...got a Giro G10.

[snorovr]

Nice. The G10s are gonna be popular this year. Definitely a sick helmet.

 

I picked up a Smith Holt and some of their Fuse goggles. They're offering pretty smokin deals right now if you buy one of their helmets and goggles.

[Dan-]

I've been debating on getting a helmet or not. Still haven't decided though.

[method9455]

I have a full and a short, full is the kind of older style you will see still with Beori. Realize that gives you more coverage for safety. The short is more comfortable because it is lighter and there is less pressure on the side of your head. I use the full which has closeable air vents when I'm in Quebec and its fucking cold as hell and it is great to keep your ears warm. Plus I'm going faster because I'm doing steeper stuff and glade skiing up there, so extra protection is good.

 

The short one I use here because it has a lot of vents and the ears are open, and I don't think it ever gets cold down here unless its late at night so I like having a cooler helmet. Plus I ride park so the speakers in a short helmet are nice, and obviously a cooler helmet because you exert more energy and sweat more riding park.

 

Both will protect you from the primary impacts which are right above your eye line, and to the back of your head.

 

That brings me to why it is a really bad idea to wear a bike and/or skateboard helmet skiing (or improperly fit skiing helmet). Skateboard helmets generally aren't strong enough for snowboard falls. Bike helmets often are, but since they are so vented people usually put a hat under them. The hat lifts it too high up off your head, and then when you hit the ground the helmet rotates backwards and your forehead is exposed - basically doing nothing. Bike helmets have basically 0 protection for the back side of your head, unlike ski helmets which wrap down. Most skateboard helmets come down on the back as much as snowboard ones, but they again are usually worn over a hat. The people with seemingly tiny helmets compared to eveyrone else are wearing skateboard helmets with no hats under them. I've never tried that for comfort, warmth, or safety but I know its not recommended.

 

As for the face mask, there are a few ways of doing it. I usually go with a bandanna for park/warm days, even that is too hot sometimes. Then when it gets colder I go for the neck gator. There are some people who have the neck gator with an attached hood that goes under the helmet, sometimes it says helmet liner, sometimes it says neck gator, either way, that is the warmest. I personally like the softer ones like the black turtle fur style over the kind of plasticy neoprene ones. If you buy the kind that just goes around your neck it doesn't matter much, but if you are going with a helmet liner, try the helmet you are buying on with the liner.

 

Hair effects it too, i bought a helmet with a buzz cut, then grew my hair out past my ears and the helmet barely fit anymore.

 

As for fit, Burton has a pretty good fit guide on their website under the R.E.D. section. Measurements are a good ball park but they aren't solid at all in terms of sizing, and don't transfer between manufacturers. A XXL Boeri is about a L Red or Giro. Red and Giro are close but the differance between a M and a L is at a differant size for the two.

 

For sizing, once it is on your head you want it sitting tightly on your head. Tighter is better until it is too tight and then it sits high because it won't go around your head. My test is usually to shake your head really hard left right, and then up and down. Think like head banger style hardcore shaking here. If it moves a cm here or there, thats fine. But if it moves an inch, you need a smaller size. The left-right shake usually tells you if it fits or not, the helmet should go with you when your turn no matter how fast your head whips. Up-down usually isn't as easy to tell which is why i do it second.

 

Almost all helmets are equal in terms of quality of the shell that is protecting you. It is basically a matter of weight, foam quality, extras like audio or cell phone (who talks on their phone while skiing? I will kill anyone who does that), how many vents/style of vents etc. Make a budget, get the best fitting helmet that fits you in that budget, whatever features it has are great. Pick one with a muted color black or white are usually the best because you don't want to be buying a new helmet every time you change your jacket color.

 

and for my sake BRING YOUR GOGGLES WITH YOU WHEN YOU TRY ON THE HELMET.

 

no gaps between helmet and goggles please, thank you.

 

Second note as to why you should wear a helmet.

 

Two years ago, mountain creek first jump. Went off, caught an edge on the landing, fell, no big deal. I hadn't even stopped sliding when i stood back up again so the fall was benign and the helmet hadn't done anything for me during that fall. However, as I stood up, skier came over the jump. Hit the ground and his right ski released. His ski flew off and was spinning like a helicopter blade really fast and hit me square in the back of the head. Knocked me down and maybe out, I don't remember seeing the ski or hitting the ground although it happened really fast. Three people came over to see if i was ok and moved me off the run. I had a 1/8" deep dent in the back of my (full length/metal) helmet from the impact, and a few more deep scratches on top. I had a stiff neck but no injuries and I left the terrain park to avoid a concussion if I fell later that day and just cruised around but my day wasn't really effected. However, had I not had a helmet I truely believe my skull would have been broken open. That ski hit me hard enough to knock me flat out like someone hitting me in the back of the head with a bat, except with a sharp metal edge.

 

I've also had at least 3 hits to the head on handrails that dented the helmet.

 

Sidenote - some of the plastic helmets are one shot only, I.E. that shot would have been the end of the helmet. Metal helmets usually aren't one shot helmets. However, about 90% of helmets are one shot helmets now, including all the R.E.D. and Giro ones. This doesn't mean the helmet is going to dissintegrate and you'll have a bunch of pieces. It means that the strength of it is compromised in that area, so if you hit it again there it won't help as much. Metal just bends a tiny bit but is still just as strong. This is one of those things that not many people know and you get a huge amount of BS from manufacturs about, but check out the websites and you'll see in the fine print it says that.