2005
Wednesday,
January 12
Dear
VTwin Mama,
My helmet hurts on long sunny rides. I have a Shoei RF900. It fits snugly
but next size up is way too big. If the sun is shining, after a while my
forehead really hurts. The next day it feels bruised. It's not
helmet itch, it's pressure. Helpful comments from friends include...
you're not wearing it in the right position... try wearing a helmet
liner... you're one of those people whose head is the shape that
won't fit in a Shoei... try an Arai. Any other advice would be
welcome. Thanks. – Sarah
Dear
Sarah,
Well, after much searching on the Internet for helpful hints on the
correct fit of a helmet, the best I could come up with is to agree with
your friends who said that your head shape just isn't right for the Shoei.
Specifically, sites noted that if a helmet creates uneven pressure
(meaning an uncomfortable pressure at one point) , it's not right for your
head, and when trying them on, wear one around the shop for five minutes
and you'll know. It was also noted to "try on a number of different
makes as each have their own particular idiosyncrasies - just like the
shape of your head." I think you need to go helmet shopping! –
Mama
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Monday,
May 9
Dear
VTwin Mama,
What do I do for helmet hair? I’m
sure you’all have discussed this… but I’m new to this site. I
have shoulder length THIN hair. I do the braid thing (which works
great for my longer hair, BUT MY BANGS – OH LORDY! Any suggestions
for the front area of the hair? My old helmet would accommodate a
head band that I wore between my bangs and my skin (I use them for hiking
to keep my ears warm) – that would keep my bangs fluffy and nice after
removing the helmet. My new helmet will not accommodate a head band
– HELP!!!!!
– Paula
Dear
Paula,
Ah, the spring riding season must be upon us again! Yes, hair smush
has been discussed on and off and previous letters can be found on my Riding
Gear: Helmets pages. I believe the prevailing thought on your specific
"flat bang" smush is to carry a little misting bottle of water
(you don't want to soak it, just add a little moisture) that can be
spritzed on the bangs and re-fluffed with a little round brush that should
dry quickly in the sun. I'm thinking because your hair is thin, you might
want to add a little bit of the non-aerosol hairspray in the water mix for
some extra oomph. You could try this out at home by just letting your
bangs dry flat and then trying the spritz bottle technique. – Mama
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Thursday,
June 2
Dear
VTwin Mama and all Mamas out there,
I had a friend of mine who always looked beautiful on her bike. After she
took her helmet off, her hair was up in a French braid and she looked
stunning. I have medium length layered hair and was wondering in any of
you women know what I can do with my hair to help it look good. I'm tired
of looking like a guy with a do-rag on my head or just plain flat hair.
Any suggestions? – Angela
Dear
Angela,
Ahhhh, hair smush! You'll find all previous postings on the subject
on my Helmet Pages,
so it's worth scrolling through those because I can't remember everything
said! However, the highlights are this: shave your head (ok, not
realistic, but very short hair is!), get over it (also not realistic
because who wants to look like they have road kill at the top), grow hair
to one layer so you can more easily pull it back, braid, etc., carry a
spritzer bottle of water with a little hair spray in and quickly re-fluff,
pull your hair back into a ponytail and add a little matching hair piece
(I've seen it and it's a cute idea, check my Women's
Gear page for the Beauty Trend site which offers these), or live with
what's happening now. Sigh. I do the do-rag because I have a favorite
scarf (no, it doesn't have motorcycles or skulls all over it) that I love!
I may have to look for a new one to match my new bike colors! –
Mama
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Tuesday,
June 21
Dear
VTwin Mama,
My husband just bought a cycle and I have REALLY long hair. I don't wear a
helmet, yet (no helmet law). Anyway, my hair gets SO hopelessly tangled. I
have tied it in a bun, ponytail, braid, and just a knot on the back of my
head. Nothing helps. Besides getting a helmet, which would be my last
resort, what could I do? – All Knotted Up
Dear
All Knotted Up,
I'd add a stylish scarf! Just like many women wear when driving
their convertibles with the top down. It needs to be big so you can fold
it in half on the diagonal, then over the top, crisscross under the chin
and tie twice behind. Very Grace Kelly! Of course, your hair needs to be
done in a way so that its totally "enveloped" in the scarf! Or,
you could try those little colorful scrunchies for hair and put one in
every two inches down your ponytail or braid. I see lots of guys do this
with their long hair! –
Mama
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Wednesday,
June 22
For All Knotted Up who
is battling long hair that tangles easily:
I have long hair too, a little below my waist. I've seen
lots of responses to this question on other sites, usually "live with
it." But some of us would like to look the same when we get off the
bike as when we get on.
I've always wondered when I see other women on bikes
letting their hair fly in the wind, Do They Have a Secret or are
they about to learn a painful lesson? If you just braid, you know your
hair still gets blown around.
Anyway, what I've finally done is I broke down and
bought the Hair Glove, the long one. The Hair Glove weighs down your hair
with not too much added weight on your head. I wore it with my hair
loose the first few times and guess what, I only had to untangle the last 6
inches. So now I braid all the way down, looks good. I wear a helmet, so
as for the top of your head, get a nice fitting dew rag, the new
skull caps or scarf like Mama said, for on the bike.
And if there are any of those wonder women (wonder how
they do it) whose long hair is as comb-able after a ride as when they get
on, please help those in need, we would be grateful. –
Jennifer (note from Mama: yes, I have seen the hair gloves and they look
good! I too have seen women with ultra long hair that never seems to move
an inch behind their backs as they ride . . . next time you see one,
simply introduce yourself and ask! They might be someone who was in the
same pickle until they asked and learned the secret! )
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Tuesday,
June 28
More
for
All Knotted Up who is battling long hair that tangles easily:
I have baby fine hair and had the same issues . . . and
the same questions. But I found a great product: In
the Wind. I have been using it for a year now and have had no
problems. It will remind you of baby oil, you only need a small amount,
and it has saved me from a lot of pulling and tearing. Try it, I am sure
you will agree that this is the best thing out there in the market so far!
Ride safe! – Ghost in Central Florida (note from Mama:
thanks for sharing this solution!)
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Tuesday,
July 19
Dear
VTwin Mama,
My 1 year old HJC full face flip up helmet went kaput on me yesterday. I
went to flip up the jaw part and it wouldn't go up. Only the visor part
lifts up now. Is there any way to repair this or do I have to get a new
helmet? At $275 you would think it would last longer than 1 year. –
Dorathy Biddinger
Dear
Dorathy,
Why not start by visiting HJC's
customer support page on their site?!?!? Here they have basic info,
FAQs, and if needed, contact emails and phone number. I'm sure they'll be
happy to figure out what's happened with your helmet part. –
Mama
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Tuesday,
October 4
Dear
VTwin Mama,
I live in Arizona and we don't have a helmet law. Very few folks I ride
with wear helmets. I feel like I would like to wear one, BUT, I don't want
to wear the big, bulky ones. I have one from when I lived in Oregon. I
found a half helmet that fits well (I have a small head), but it is not
DOT approved. In your opinion, would it be better than nothing? By the
way, I have an adorable Ridley Speedster that looks like a miniature Fat
Boy. I love it! 570cc's, fully automatic and only 3/4 size of a normal
size bike. – Tiny Rider in AZ
Dear Tiny
Rider,
We've heard lots of good things about the Ridley
auto tranny bikes . . . thanks for sharing!
Yes,
any helmet is better than none, but that's only because it could
potentially handle some minor problems, like bugs tangling in your hair,
birds pooping directly on your head, or a direct bump to the head at a
dead stop because the bike decides to take a nap at that moment. You're
catching my drift now, right?!
I
once saw a site page that described in gory detail what happens to the
brain when it impacts something at any speed. Unfortunately, I cannot find
it again, but will describe as best as possible: the brain floats around
in our skull (more or less) and when going from any speed to a dead stop
(impact accident) the brain slams into the side of the skull. Without any
kind of cushion, other than the skull, it's free to keep sloshing about,
absorbing that speed internally until finally it comes to rest. It's
exactly like Shaken Baby Syndrome. The damage is immediate.
Tested
and approved helmets are designed to take the brunt of that impact energy.
Remember basic physics, where kinetic energy, the energy of motion, once
created, will continue until something slows it down to a stop? The helmet
materials absorb and distribute this energy throughout the helmet and
helps slow and stop the energy of motion much more quickly, giving you a
better chance of surviving with your brain intact.
So,
suck it up and get an approved helmet if you're going to wear one. I am a
staunch supporter of the right to choose, but it's always helpful to have
the facts to make an informed decision. –
Mama
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Friday,
October 7
For
Penney who shared her continuing adventure in riding:
Too funny! Those ‘funny things on their heads’
– took me a minute to realize you meant our do-rags! One of the
little tidbits of information that my motorcycle safety instructor passed
on (and verified by a leading helmet manufacturer) – natural hair and
skin oils break down the padding in your helmet! So do the chemicals
found in hair spray, gel, styling spritz, etc. With this natural
process wearing down the padding, he recommended changing your helmet
every two years or whenever it got dropped or damaged in anyway.
– Amy in Washington (note from Mama: thanks for
the helmet tip!)
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Monday,
November 7
More
for
Lisa who is looking for fake fur tails to attach to chaps or jeans:
Ladies, the fake ear and tail sets can be obtained from Aerostich
and the big, bushy raccoon tail type is usually available through your
local leather clothing shop. Just a plug for Aerostich: if you don't mind
being the class clown, the helmet ears are worth their weight in golden
good-will. Everybody waves at you if you're wearing them, even the cops.
It's so much nicer than being run off the road because they didn't see
you. – Kyri (note from Mama: Ok, these are made
for your helmet and mount with suction cups . . . you can get cat, dog,
bunny, pig and tiger sets here!)
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Thursday,
December 29
Dear
VTwin Mama,
Hello, I am 52 years old. I starting riding,
if you will allow, my brothers Moped at the age of 5. No helmet. (No
helmet law in IL at that time.) I graduated from a 90cc to a 175cc to a
250cc to a 650cc and now the 800
Kawasaki
Drifter that I have now. I started in
IL
and have gone through 6 additional states with
Southern Texas
(no helmet law) being the current. Having never worn a helmet it was
hard to ride with one. My first was a three quarter. It was ok
since it was the law in the state that I lived at the time. I tried
a full face and like a lot of you it was very confining; claustrophobic
and hindered my vision. Here in
Southern Texas
it is also very hot. (Now my daughter, who currently rides lives
north of
Detroit
and rides my 650 V-Star that I passed on to her wouldn’t wear anything
but a full face. She says just the opposite of me.)
Even though there is no helmet law here in TX, I am now
using a half helmet. It is much lighter, cooler, I can see and can
hear traffic if I need to. (Oh, that is another thing about the ones that
cover the ears; part of my riding a motorcycle is listening for other
traffic to be safe.)
Also my husband of 30 years had never ridden without a
helmet until during a vacation that we took we took a motorcycle tour
witch took us to a state for about 30 minutes that didn’t have the
helmet law. I encouraged him to ride without the helmet for that
short time just to get the “real” feel of being on a bike. He
loved it. He also uses the half helmet.
Why use a novelty helmet or beanie if you are going to
wear one at all? It doesn’t do anything for protection. It just
accommodates the law… Yes, they may be a laugh or pretty etc., but
with no protection. Half helmets can be purchased DOT or higher approved.
I have never had an accident on my bike. (yes I have
lost balance while at a stand still when my husband yelled something to me
and startled me). I have been in car accidents and I have been hit
by a car as a pedestrian. (My dad was killed by a car that hit
him when he went back to his car, which was parked on the side of a busy
road, to get something from the car. He was thrown 35 feet and was
not recognizable even by the coroner ((who was our neighbor))!!!!
So I guess what I am saying is. It is your choice.
Wear the helmet that is most comfortable for you. Watch out for potholes
and objects in the road. Watch out for other vehicles and listen for them
too. Ride safe.
I do have one more thing to say. Being here in
Southern Texas
I have neglected to wear a jacket and sometimes even leave the long pants
at home. It gets really hot here. I know this is the wrong
thing to do. I know this because in PA our oldest daughter and I
actually saw my husband (her Dad) get hit by a car. The car hit his
rear tire of his bike. To make a long story short; his leather
jacket and leather wallet in his pants pocket saved his skin. Both
were scratched which would have been his rear-end (hip) and his arm if had
not been wearing them. He did get road rash on his ankle bone as he
did not have on boots that covered the ankles; only his loafers with pant
socks.
Have fun and be safe. – Donna
Dear
Donna,
How wonderful of you to write in with an expanded view of your (and
your husbands) riding experience with helmets and full-cover cloths! There
are as many opinions on helmets and layers of cloths as there are choices
on the actual gear and the bottom line IMHO is that we are adults and
hopefully have enough brains to assess the risk (to our own satisfaction)
and choose accordingly (for better or worse). That's just part of being a
rider. –
Mama
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Helmets 2001
