Why do cyclists who commute don't wear a full face helmet?

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I use to ride xc mountain biking alot and the only helmet I have is a Giro Remedy. I now ride my bike to work which is a 4 mile commute. I have been wearing the full face helmet.I just feel safer wearing it riding on the streets. I think that riding on the streets is just as dangerous as riding down a mountain trail. Actually a face plant on pavement probably will hurt more than if it happened on a trail.

Do you guys think it's necessary for me to wear a full face or should I just buy a regular helmet like the Giro Hex?
IMO bicycle half helmets do not make you look cool. To me it actually does the opposite. (uncool)

Answer
Most cycling injuries are quite low speed. Generally there's enough time to avoid face impact. However, not always. My wife managed to get her cheekbone smashed in, but the repair wasn't too bad. Low speed makes for clean breaks.

But this is indeed a good question. Many cyclists still don't wear helmets. One aspect may be that cyclists didn't wear and didn't have helmets available for most of cycling history. Even racers at high speed didn't wear them until fairly recently.

I just wear a nice normal high quality cycling helmet. I can hear, turn my head easily, and avoid neck fatique. But I'm not expecting a tremendous about of protection.

Mountain Biking; what's it like?

Crikey a W

Is it comparable to skiing? Do you get hurt a lot? Are there different forms?


I've never been very good at biking, but mountain biking always seemed like a cool summer sport to me

Answer
There's a lot of different forms... Slopestyle, Dirt Jump, Cross Country, All Mountain, Freeride, Downhill, Enduro Downhill...

In a lot of ways it is like skiing but it's also very different. I'd say the similarities are mostly in the way it makes you feel... Like a 6AM powder run before anyone else has even touched the slopes... just you and the mountain, the cool mountain air blowing past your face, the sound of the snow crunching under your skiis, interupted only when you get air... It's really just a great feeling.

As for injuries... it's like any other sport. You can ride your whole life and not take any major injuries but that probably means you arent really taking any chances. It all really depends on the rider... I mean, mountain bikes dont just eject you for you no reason but, if you try to go beyond your abilities, there are definate penalties to be had. The penalty for failure, like in any sport, is based strictly upon what you're trying to do... If you ride XC, you may be looking at some skinned knees and cut up elbows and such but, as long as you have good protective gear like helmet and gloves, nothing major... If you're determined to clear the 60 foot road gap at Bootleg Canyon, well I think you can see the penalty for failure jumps up dramatically.

Now, all that said... My last three injuries worth mentioning are two broken ribs SNOWBOARDING when I caught an edge on a rail... a torn lateral meniscus while INSTALLING A SERVER AT WORK... and a dislocated right index finger from blowing a 10' drop way too slow and nosing it right into the dirt... it's been a rough '09, lol. Of the three, you would think the mountain biking SOUNDS the most dangerous but the finger was easily the lesser of those three injuries. However, a wise man once said...

"Danger abounds everywhere we are, the blind pursuit of safety in life serves only to infringe upon our enjoyment of it."

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Title Post: Why do cyclists who commute don't wear a full face helmet?
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