grt@hocda.UUCP (G.TOMASEVICH) (05/11/84)
I have a question others may have. The USCF does not allow mirrors on helmets, so if I got one, I would have to detatch it for every race. Can they stand up to that? They look rather flimsy. George Tomasevich, ihnp4!hocda!grt
bill@utastro.UUCP (William H. Jefferys) (05/11/84)
Bike Nashbar sells a very nice helmet mirror (cheap, too) that has
two clips and easily attaches & detaches. Nicest mirror I ever
owned. Sturdy. Sorry, I don't have the address but you can look
an any recent copy of Bicycling for their ad.
--
Bill Jefferys 8-%
Astronomy Dept, University of Texas, Austin TX 78712 (USnail)
{ihnp4,kpno,ctvax}!ut-sally!utastro!bill (uucp)
utastro!bill@ut-ngp (ARPANET)scot@dartvax.UUCP (Scot Drysdale) (05/12/84)
<>
I have one of the early Bell bike helmets to which I added a mirror. I once
had the kind that clipped onto my glasses on the end of a rigid wire. It was
a pain to put on and to take off for short trips. Also, the owner of a bike
shop asked me to visualize what would happen if I fell face first and the rigid
wire with the clip on the end popped off. I decided that if it started next to
my eye .... I bought a mirror (I don't remember the brand) on the end of a
flexible copper wire that I bent into a sort of double s-shape and slipped
between the styrofoam and the shell of my helmet. It stays put, but would be
easy to remove if I needed to remove it. It is especially valuable for
commuting. By turning my head slightly I can see everything behind me. I
don't bike without it.
As for horror stories about helmets, I was convinced by literature that said
that some huge percentage (90%?) of all fatal bike accidents involve head
injuries. Personally I have had two serious accidents - I was run off of a
country road onto a gravel shoulder and spun out, and I hit a California-style
lane divider reflector with similar results. The second was my fault, but the
first would have been hard to avoid. In both cases I ended up sliding on hip,
forearm, and side of helmet. Considering the amount of clothing and skin taken
off of my hip and elbow, I was glad to have my head protected. The styrofoam
was not crushed, so I probably would not have have been killed or brain-damaged,
but I was very glad to be wearing it. (I probably should replace it, even
though there was no visible damage except a few scratches.)
Scot Drysdale (scot@dartmouth,
{decvax, cornell, linus}!dartvax!scot)