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Why buy an expensive helmet?

04.01.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

Flipping through the Nashbar catalog the other day, I was struck by the variety of bicycle helmets out there. Not only are there a lot of them, but some are really pricey.

Back in the early ‘90s, when we lived in Rochester, Minnesota, my wife Pat and I decided to do some bike rides on the paved bicycle trails in the area. (These were converted from abandoned rail lines. They were mostly flat, and covered between 12-25 miles, so a round trip could amount to some decent mileage.) The helmets sold then were Styrofoam, with a fabric cover. I always thought they looked pretty good.

rhodegear.jpg
Rhode Gear styrofoam helmets from a 1990s advertising poster.
We both had the one with the blue cover.

When Pat took up biking again last year, she dug out the old helmet. But now, Styrofoam was passé. A biking friend told her she had to get a new, plastic, streamlined helmet—or they couldn’t be seen together any longer. So she did. Paid about $35 for a Bell Solar. She liked the streamlined styling, and the nifty dial-in fit system.

solarwhite.jpg
The Bell Solar.

Not to be outdone, I figured I’d get rid of my Styrofoam lid, too. But being the tightwad I am, I headed not to the LBS, but to a local discount sporting goods store. They had several different kinds. I saw that some were by Bell, so I got the Adrenaline model, for about $18.

belladrenaline.jpg
The Bell Adrenaline helmet.

It didn’t have the dial-in fit system, but I was satisfied with the adjustable fitting strap in the back. And way more vent holes than the old helmet had (but not as many as Pat’s). Plus, it came with a snap-on visor. I immediately took the visor off, because I’d read somewhere that they look dorky. Then, I saw a picture of myself in the helmet. Now who’s a dork? The visor went back on the same day. (I once heard a bicycle helmet described as a birth control device. Yeah, I can see it.)

rayinhelmet.jpg
Less dorky if I put on the visor?

Both of us are happy with these low-end helmets. Both meet Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standards, so they should be able to protect us in a crash. Given that, and the decent fit, why pay $100, $150, even over $200 for a bike helmet? You’re supposed to replace them in five years anyway.

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Categories // Accessories, Equipment

Bandanas or sweat bands?

03.25.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 15 Comments

When I first started biking last summer, one of the big irritations was the sweat that kept dripping off my brow and into my eyes. Then I rode with an experienced biker friend, who tied a bandana around his head as a sweatband. I tried one on my very next ride, and I was hooked.

The bandana was easy, quick, and available. I had a good half-dozen tucked away in a drawer. Most are the old-fashioned red ones with the black and white pattern. One is similar, but purple. One was issued by a local building supply chain, and has logos of all the brands they carry. The newest one was pilfered from my dog, who wore it at Christmas a couple of years ago. Its pattern is red chili peppers.

bandana.jpg

Emily the beagle and her (now my) chili pepper bandana.

I was hooked because the bandana worked. No sweat in my eyes. None even on the brow. Loved it. There’s only one problem: because they’re rather thin cotton, they absorb moisture quickly. At the end of an hour’s ride, my bandana is saturated. Not a big deal, because the ride is over. But after an hour and a half, or two hours, it’s dripping again. I suppose I could pull it off at a rest stop and wring it out — and I have. But that got me wondering: Is there a better solution?

The local bike shops have several alternatives. One is a full skull cover, that you tie behind your head. It has a sweat band sewn into the bottom hem. If you wear it, you look like a pirate, until you put your helmet on over it. Or, there’s just a plain headband that’s got some elastic for stretchiness. These things run from $10-$17, altho there do seem to be some you can get for as little as $5. Should I stick with the bandana, or try something new? Or do you have a different idea?

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Categories // Accessories

Bum cream

03.22.2008 by Ray Niekamp // 8 Comments

The question arises periodically, on Bike Forums, in my club’s Yahoo! group, and just in chats among fellow bikers: Do you use chamois cream?

This is goo you rub into the chamois of your riding shorts or tights. The chamois (SHAM-ee) is the pad that cushions your tender bits against the rub of the saddle. It used to be leather, but is now made of synthetic fabric, but still retains the old name. Some people like to smear a liberal dose of the cream directly on themselves, as well.

The big names are Assos cream and Chamois Butt’r. We’ve had a couple of jars of Assos cream, and like it. There are drawbacks to the Assos product, though. One is that it uses menthol. Once you come into contact with it, your bottom will tingle for awhile until your attention turns to the road. The other is price. It’s $17 a jar! You go through it pretty fast. I stopped buying it for that reason.

Chamois Butt’r comes in a sort of squeeze tube. It’s not mentholated. Price runs about $14-15. This is what we’re using now, but we’re still experimenting. So far, I’m happy with this product.

Performance Bike has its own name brand of chamois cream, as does its corporate cousin, Nashbar. The Performance cream goes for $8.99, Nashbar’s $7.99. Then there’s Body Glide, Queen Helene’s Cocoa butter, and even Vaseline.

creams.jpg

We’ve got some of the Performance stuff, which seems a bit thinner than the Chamois Butt’r. Seems to work fine, though. Haven’t tried the rest yet.

Is chamois cream really necessary? I used to diligently apply it before every ride — even short 6-8 mile jaunts in the morning before work. I’ve come to believe it’s not needed on those short rides. Now, I won’t use it unless I know I’ll be out for more than an hour. I’m aware of plenty of riders who don’t use it at all.

Some sensible advice I’ve seen recently is to pay attention to the fit of your saddle, the fit of your shorts, the quality of your chamois — and maybe on long rides to hit the restroom of a convenience store along the way and wash yourself off. Then, you might not need to mess with creams at all.

Thoughts, anyone?

 

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Categories // Accessories

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