Motorcycle Helmet Survey

[saylorspond]

7 am March 12, 2009 commuting to work I was hit head on at about 11 o'clock between the front tire and left cylinder (R1100R). I was going about 35 mph, the car (Camry) that hit me, turning left into a "do not enter between the hours of 7 - 9 am" street was probably going around the same speed. Both my bike and the Camry were totalled.

I was thrown 20-30 feet and woke up on my back with a witness (MD) holding my head still. One of the first people on the scene later told me when she arrived I was rolling around on the ground trying to take my helmet off. Revit jacket and pants were cut off by the EMTs, Shoei RF1000 helmet was scraped up badly on the visor and had a nice indentation on back lower left. CT scan revealed a hematoma on the left rear of the brain, but I never had a headache or any other symptom of a concussion.

I would certainly be dead if I had not worn the helmet. I now own a Shoei X-eleven, which I find even more comfortable and ventilated than the RF1000.

[ken e]

~1974 - old JC Whitney fiberglass full face - Dented gas tank on dad's Yamaha 360 RT2 when it fell on my head when trail riding. I was ok, helmet was very flexable. Bought a new Bell Star full face.
2005 - Shoie RF900 full face - Over cooked a left hander at 65mph, went wide, hit guard rail. EMT had removed helmet when awoke. Never saw it, Insurance guy took the helmet and gave me a check for a new one ( and an Aerostitch Roadcrafter! ). Said it had a few deep scratches. Replaced with Shoei RF1000.
All family members have/wear a full face helmet.

[stkmkt1]

I would post, but I have not had an accident. Been riding since 1966. Alway have worn a helmet. Currently have a Nolan 103. It is noisy though. But I always wear either good ear plugs or noise-reducing earbuds.

Of course, now that I have posted, I'll have a crash

[sibud]

High sided at about 35 MPH (don't ask, rookie mistake by a re-entry rider) wearing a Nolan 102. Head bounced pretty good upon impact. No visible external damage to the helmet. Bought another one after the accident.

Wife said she couldn't tell if there was any brain damage or not (of course, how could she? ).

[Rudyjo]

Maybe it takes a little bit of brain damage to want to ride a motorcycle.

[sibud]

Maybe it takes a little bit of brain damage to want to ride a motorcycle.

Hey, I resemble that remark.

[brownie]

Right AFTER sunset...when my modulating headlight went steady....I had a kid on a rice rocket come RIGHT at me......on MY side of a double yellow, secondary road...I could tell it was a motorcycle early on, but NEVER thought he was on my side of the road...

As he got REAL close I realized what was happening, flicked a little (not enough) to the left...crossing the double yellow..onto his legal side of the road. I was able to get my speed down from about 50 to 15.......he clipped the right side of my beloved "Igor" at about 60-70......

The side glance popped the bike on its left side...I slid about 25 feet.....no real LOC...could see the bike sliding on road for about 100'.

Helmet: a 4 year old Shoei X-9....minor scrapes on left side.....his insurance (Progressive) paid for ALL damage to the RS AND bought me a new X-11 Shoei!!!

Thinking about this now.....I never felt that threatened because I could tell it was a motorcyle turning on to the road.......certainly he wouldn't proceed on my side of the road......NOT!!!! Alcohol & some smoke clouded his judgement....yes the Honda was totaled...he had serious injuries...my ATGATT had minor scapes...was at work 20' later, and in the air flying to a crash scene in 30'!!!

Moral: if the sight picture doesn't look right at first....it ain't gonna get better later

[Bullett]

No on-road crashes so far.

I hit my head on a telephone pole when I was a kid doing timed laps (on a Honda 50) with my brother. No helmet. I got a lump on my head. My Dad came out and made me ride one more lap before I could go in the house. He also bought me a helmet after that.

A couple of mountain bike crashes on slickrock bicycle trail, but didn't hit my head. I was wearing a Bell helmet.

A year an a half ago I unintentionally went airborne after riding over a pretty big rock on my little 250 dualsport. I didn't stick the landing and flew off the bike. I landed on my left knee and then the left side of my head. I was wearing a Troy Lee Designs dirt helmet that is DOT and Snell approved. There were a couple of pits in the shell of the helmet. It was replaced.

[SKYDOG]

I have two helmets a middle line Scorpion my first ,fits good wind noise average, visability v.g. tends to fog when rainey good price good product. I bought an Arai Profile on sale great fit on my cheeks, wind noise average,if you like a tight fit you can change the pads every year if you ride alot, for about $40 there are some v.g. helmets out there with both rating`s and very low priced check, how your head can move and for comfort!

[MOTOR31]

I have been down more than once and only one of those instances did the helmet take any real damage. It was only some moderate scratches but I replaced it anyhow.

The one significant crash I had did not cause any damage at all other than small paint scratches from when I turned my head while laying on pavement. It was the department issued 3/4 shell helmet.

I have seen multiple motorcycle collisions in my career. As a result of that experience I wear a full face flip up style. There are two reasons for that. I want the chin and face protection. I also want a helmet that the EMS folks can remove without having to really tug on or move my head significantly so as to minimize any further injury.

[arsprod]

For those who have been in a motorcycle accident, what helmet were you
wearing and how well did it perform. After the accident, did you buy another
of the same make and model or did you purchase a different model and why?

Don't know if you're still collecting stories, but I did an endo through the windshield of my Guzzi (after hitting a drainage swale) two summers ago. I landed on my head and left shoulder. I was wearing an HJC AC12. I broke three ribs and my shoulder was sore, but no concussion, no head damage (that I can tell!?). I would have replaced the AC12 in a heartbeat, but HJC didn't make them anymore. I bought an FS15 (which isn't nearly as comfortable).

Aaron

[mneblett]

Two impacts since 1977:

1980 -- Fresh out of college, made a classic inexperienced rider mistake. 1980 Yamaha 850 triple, running at a brisk clip on a moderately twisty stretch, and violated a cardinal rule: entered a turn I was not familiar with too hot. I applied brake to scrub off speed, and I didn't have the experience to expect/counter the bike's *strong* tendency to stand up and run straight off into the ditch at probably ~35 mph.

Interesting memories still with me include tumbling backwards down the length of the ditch like a rolling wheel for 2-3 revolutions, and looking to the side and watching a full dress XS850G with Windjammer SS and bags tumbling end-over-end about 4 feet to my side in near-perfect synchronous motion, at least until a large rock face decided to arrest my forward momentum in a moderately dramatic fashion while the bike continued on its merry spinning/flipping way.

Gear: Even back then I was beginning to "get it" about ATGATT: good jacket, boots, gloves, only jeans, and an Arai full face. The Arai had numerous hits and abrasions, but by far the most interesting/instructive was the asphalt-induced array of deep gouges and scratches across the entire front of the helmet and windshield. I'm ugly enough in my natural state -- an open face would have been, um, not a pretty picture.

The rest of the gear performed perfectly. A walk-away with only a bit of soreness in the ribs (my tumbling halted when my back impacted flat against a flat surface -- a lucky hit that spread the impact force over a wide area). Lesson learned: Always buy/install spine protector in jacket -- got lucky once, won't count on just being lucky again.

Second impact in 2006: No challenge to helmet/protective gear. Tourist in DC made a sudden *leap* sideways from the #1 lane across four lanes of traffic to make a side street, causing mass panic/slamming of brakes. Of course, this happens at the instant I'm doing a head check in the other direction before making a lane change. Head comes back around just in time to slam on the LT's brakes as the front wheel is ~2 feet from an Explorer's bumper. Snapped both fork castings; bend the Telelever. Bike stopped upright, no involvement of Nolan or one-piece Roadcrafter.

(The ironic part in all this? After the stop -- after all the excitement is over -- I start to get ready to put the sidestand down, placing my left foot on the ground to support the bikes weight -- and *then* my left ACL decides its a good a time as any to let go! Did my own Arty Johnson at zero speed right there in the middle of Constitution Ave. In hindsight, it was probably a good thing the ACL snapped -- I was so pissed at the A#$@#! that did that *STUNNINGLY* stupid maneuver, I *know* that I would have been successful in chasing that scumbag down on foot )

Current helmet: Schuberth Concept 3, after retiring a Concept 1. Hoping no testing events are scheduled for me.

[mistercindy]

Glad to see this thread revived.

[froggy]

Trying to remember the details since I just got back into riding(now with protective gear).
OK about 27 years ago was rounding one of my favorate curves when I noticed mud tracks on the road in front of me (some jeep must have been off roading were there was no road),got it down to 35 before bike left me on my own.People on a bench nearby said they saw me fly up with tucked rotation,bounce once and then slide to stop.I was wearing shorts,a tank top and 3/4 Aria helmet.Helmet had top nearly sanded down to padding,and slight scuffing on my palms.Got up ,got on bike, and fans helped me push start bike(kick starter torn off).No broken bones,and felt great.
Forward to that night at Colts game...stood up to cheer team on....OUCH!!!!

[The_Veg]

Just over two weeks ago (Aug. 8) I had a crash (see thread in Just Ridin' for details). I was wearing a Scorpion EXO 700 that had been purchased just three months earlier. The helmet did contact something, as it has an abraded paintless spot near the right temple, but I'm not sure what it touched as I fell to the left and all the tumbling was over in the blink of an eye. No head or spinal injuries, as confirmed by all the X-rays and CT's they did at the ER.