Why is it that people in Italy do not wear a helmet when riding their bicycles? I witnessed many children on the back of their parents bike w/out a helmet. I nearly fell over when I saw that.

My BF purchased me a bicycle however he failed to buy the helmet that should go with it. When I asked about it his response was "we don't wear helmets when riding our bicycles". I told him "I don't want to be spoon fed before my time". I must say however the motorist appear to respect the cyclist in Italy. But I was still scared as hell riding the bike w/out a helmet.

How does everyone else feel about this? Is it not cool to wear a helmet?

Italian bike shops sell helmets. If your boyfriend didn't buy it for you, you can go to the store and buy one.

Up here maybe 50% of riders wear helmets. I don't think it's the cool factor, many riders are simply uneducated.

It really has nothing to do with cars respecting bikes. If you hit a patch of gravel, etc and go down at speed, you could easily end up with Traumatic Brain Injury. Not an intelligent choice.

I am pretty sure there is a law requiring children to wear helmets on bicycles, just as there is one for skiing.

Here it seems close to all the young kids wear them and anyone doing serious riding, people just crusing to the store don't.

Here about 99.99% of people riding city bikes do not wear helmets.

Of the road bikers I'd say it's about 50-50. Now that the pros have to wear helmets I thought more Italians than that would. It's risky business riding without one.

quote:

Originally posted by stelviorider:
Here about 99.99% of people riding city bikes do not wear helmets.

Of the road bikers I'd say it's about 50-50. Now that the pros have to wear helmets I thought more Italians than that would. It's risky business riding without one.

I can never forget that a friend a relatively young doctor, died many years ago after falling off his bike in a downhill run - no helmet.

Funny you mention that because Sunday we had "Brindisi in Bicicletta". Out of the hundreds of riders I saw maybe five or six helmets.
It's like stelviorider wrote down here too. Almost no kid (or anyone else) where's a helmet in town. On the hand I would say most of the serious road riders out on the country lanes have them, but then again they're probably tourists.


Jeffo

Yeah, usually on a pedalata people kind of mosey along, maybe 5-10 miles per hour. Not many wear helmets then.

No-one wears helmets around the city here, but then I never did in the UK until it became law. I would out in the countryside but around town, especially in Florence where there are bike paths and you can't go too fast anyway I'm not sure it is that necessary. If my kid was cycling around the outskirts I would insist.

However he came off his bike on a gravel path here in the garden at speed - practising for when he does get out somewhere interesting - and a helmet wouldn't have helped with the gravel in his chin, it might even have made it worse. Not that I think they are a bad idea, just why can't they look cooler?!

My seven-year-old cousin was killed while riding her bicycle in our suburban neighborhood (25 MPH speed zone) without a helmet. A helmet may have saved her life - we will never know. Believe me, I'd rather have my cousin alive, cool or not. Spending Christmases at the cemetery is much less 'cool' (should 'cool' even be a factor when we are talking about a child's safety?) than around the tree. It's one thing when adults around here ride without a helmet (ca**i vostri, I say) but it's shocking to see a mother in rush-hour traffic on her bike near the tangenziale with an infant on the front and a bigger kid on the back - none of them wearing helmets. It seems insane that mothers so worried about things, such covering the kids up from the cold and catching drafts, etc., would put their children at risk like that.
Michelle

I'm with you all with this one.

I confess my schizofrenia on this. I mean, when I do MTBK I always wear my helmet (even if I don't like it, as I don't like wearing the helmet while I ride my Vespa - nothing more delicious than riding an old Vespa in the wind barehead--but of course I wear the d..helmet)but when I use my old Bianchi to go to the edicola for the Sunday newspaper, I couldn't care less about covering my head with more than a basball hat for the sun.

This is not good, but it's as it is in most parts of Italy. While there is a great semi-professional biking culture in Italy, and most people I see wear helmets, while citybiking none would use helmets, me included. I know I'm risking my life the same way I'd risk it if I used my MTBK or my Vespa without helmets, but that's what I do.

If I ever have children, though, I would think twice before even riding with them on bikes or on the Vespa, let alone leaving them without helmets, even when going to the newspapersstand on my Bianchi.

Chia

quote:

Originally posted by mschoen:
(should 'cool' even be a factor when we are talking about a child's safety?)

No, it shouldn't, but when your kid is 12, like mine is, you enforce what you can. He might go out the house in it, but over here, where no-one sets the example, adults included, is he going to keep it on? Probably not. He is only allowed on paths here and in the enclosed car parks, not the busy roads, but soon I won't have much say in where he goes.

In the UK it is the law and "most" kids wear them, but even there I noticed a trend away from them. The schools are encouraging kids to cycle to school for health and environment but I saw very few wearing helmets. This is on busy trunk roads. My son wasn't allowed near them without a helmet and a companion, normally his dad, also in a helmet.

You don't get a helmet when you hire bikes, though and I don't suppose it occurs to many people to bring a helmet or have a helmet if they are hiring on spec. This won't help.

interesting that wearing a helmet is now compulsory in the UK. When i lived there 2000-3 it was not, and i had numerous discussions with people about it.

SOme doctors I spoke to summed it up like this; wearing a helmet is recommended, obviously, for head protection etc. However, in other countries, when a law has been enforced, the rate of people cycling has gone down (maybe due to it being uncool, uncomfortable,extra expense, a hassle or whatever). In the UK, more people die from cardiovascular problems etc than head injuries from cycling accidents. So therefore we don't want to discourage people from cycling by forcing them to wear a helmet.

Anyway, i have and always will wear a helmet, i feel naked on my bike without one. Yes it is true people are respectful of cyclists here, but only WHEN THEY SEE THEM! The dangerous way people drive here, turning out of driveway/ small street without looking, stopping to chat to friends in the middle of the street, random u-turns for no reason etc i would NEVER chance not wearing one. I'm definitely in the minority of cyclists wearing a helmet here in Sicily.

Incidentally in the 3 years i;ve been here i have seen a huge improvement in the number of scooter riders wearing helmets, which is fantastic.

quote:

Originally posted by jhelm:
I am pretty sure there is a law requiring children to wear helmets on bicycles, just as there is one for skiing.

You are pretty wrong (unfortunately). Several different organizations have been requesting that such a law is proposed, but so far nobody ever did. Helmets are only worn when cycling for sport or in a few areas that are particularly sensitive to the issue.

quote:

Originally posted by professoressavanessa:
interesting that wearing a helmet is now compulsory in the UK. When i lived there 2000-3 it was not, and i had numerous discussions with people about it.

I checked it out. Not sure now! It IS part of the Highway Code - rule 45 Clothing - in the rules for cyclists. But does that make it compulsory? I think it does. I just remember a massive campaign to get people to wear helmets and my son had one with his first bike when he was 4, which is 8 years ago. It's that that made me check!

Alyson, Interesting points you made! i am not sure about the law, i never personally checked it out before (since i always wore a helmet, fluorescent clothing, lights all over the show etc so surely complying with whatever rules there were!), just talking to others I heard it wasn't compulsory. I just found this now from a google search from the CTC website:
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One case in point is the existing Highway Code rule which simply says "you should wear a cycle helmet which conforms to current regulations" (old rule 45 / new rule 56). Regardless of your views on the pros and cons of helmet-wearing per se, one only has to remember how this rule affected 9-year old cyclist Darren Coombs and his family. Not only did a driver leave Darren with permanent brain damage; but they his parents then had to face the claim that they themselves were guilty of “contributory negligence” for allowing him to ride unaccompanied and without a helmet. Nobody should have to suffer the anguish which they, several other cyclists and their families, and (in one recent tragic case) a bereaved widow had to go though, simply because of that one word "should" in the Highway Code. CTC is calling for this to be replaced by "Consider wearing a cycle helmet"; we believe this would be a far more reasonable and less prejudicial alternative. (View CTC's position on helmets, or visit http://www.cyclehelmets.org/, the website of the Bicycle Helmet Research Foundation, for a full discussion of the helmet issue).
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From this i take it to mean 'should' is only recommended. If it was compulsory surely they would word it you must, by law, compulsory etc somewhere in there. There would also be some sort of 'or else' clause in their too?

And this too (from another website):

The British Medical Association examined the evidence and recommended in 2004 that the UK adopt a mandatory helmet law for both children and adults. Their study is available on the BMA Web site. They had previously recognized the benefits of helmet use but had feared that a helmet law might reduce cycling.
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Where i come from helmets are compulsory (have been for at least 20+ years) and you are issued an on the spot fine for not wearing one. The fine is the same as the cost of the most basic helmet. Motorists (often not that tolerant of cyclists) would always yell at people not wearing them too. Things like 'bloody idiot' if i recall rightly.....

Also if doing any cycle races/ triathlons, you had to get your helmet checked in as well as your bike, and obviously any bike rental places included the helmet along with hire bikes. I knew someone who was a professional cyclist and she used to love going to europe to cycle, because she said hardly anyone (and therefore also she) didn't wear a helmet, which she liked since it didn't leave the 'unsightly' white strip in a tanned face look. How vain can you get...?

A timely news item:
Cyclist OK after truck runs over head

quote:

Originally posted by Bill 2:
A timely news item:
Cyclist OK after truck runs over head

I got goosebumps after reading that!
What a lucky, lucky, lucky and SMART man, for wearing his helmet!

quote:

Originally posted by Alice Twain:

quote:

Originally posted by jhelm:
I am pretty sure there is a law requiring children to wear helmets on bicycles, just as there is one for skiing.

You are pretty wrong (unfortunately). Several different organizations have been requesting that such a law is proposed, but so far nobody ever did. Helmets are only worn when cycling for sport or in a few areas that are particularly sensitive to the issue.

When I grew up my mom would force me to wear a helmet. No cool kids wore helmets, and I didn't want to wear it either - god knows that they already thought I was geeky enough, even without that gigantic pink styrofoam helmet on my head. As a result, I would wear it until mom couldn't see me anymore, and then I'd take it off.

A few years ago we got a law stating that all children up to age 15 has to wear bicycle helmets. Believe it or not, but that - along with cooler looking helmets on the market - has actually made quite a difference. Today 90% of the children do wear helmets, and those who don't are the odd ones.

Among adults, the picture hasn't changed much though. I have to admit that I don't have a helmet... but then again I never ride a bicycle either.

When I went to purchase a helmet the guy in the bike shop looked at me very strangely. He did tell me that its very rare that they sell bike helmets. I left the bike shop without helmet because they did not fit right.

I think if it became law and there were hefty fines, people's attitudes would change. You don't need to well educated to know that your brain is useless when its crushed.

I would try a different bike shop. Millions of helmets are sold annually- maybe that bike shop needs to work on their sales technique (like not discouraging a potential purchaser, stocking a range of sizes, etc).

quote:

You don't need to well educated to know that your brain is useless when its crushed.

Many people live in a state of denial- for example they continue smoking after viewing evidence that it will cause them a horrible, premature death. Is it any wonder they think nothing could possibly hurt them if they are in a bike accident?

quote:

You are pretty wrong (unfortunately).

Wrong again, darn. It's odd they would make a law about wearing them when skiing but not on bikes. They have organized bike rides here once in a while and I believe every kid had a helmet. Maybe just a requirement to join the ride.

At least in Belluno there is not problem finding one to buy.

In Australia they made bike helmets compulsory for everyone about 10 years ago. The way I see it - it's no different from motorbike helmets. I used to ride in Sydney traffic which is pretty bad (although not as bad as Rome) and there are very few bike lanes.

Everyone wears helmets now. They're not daggy anymore.

quote:

Originally posted by jhelm:
They have organized bike rides here once in a while and I believe every kid had a helmet.

Helmets are complusory for rides and sport events, not for everyday biking.