well to be honest whats the point in even discussing it it wont never happen you wont ever have the choice not in this country and i just think after having my head run over by a sierra estate anyone even to contemplate it is just a moron.stats say most accidents happen within a mile of home so that(oh am only going the corner shop)will be lethal,gravel rash from wearing shorts and no jacket and no face left from skidding on it down the road.there are to many blind idiot car drivers to even contemplate it for a second.and personally i think open face lids should be banned ive had several mates had their faces ground away from wearing them!!!!!!! sorry but we get enough bad press as it is and to me it is safety first unless you got a deathwish!!!!                                                                                                                                                                              

Sandi's point is valid about age.   When my brother was 18 he learnt to ride and not that concerned about safety cos the "it won't happen to me" and "I'll look like a prat" attitude.  Luckily for him our mum decided he wasn't wearing the second hand, 20 years old helmet given to him and insisted he wore the helmet she bought him the best you could get at the time.   That helmet saved his life after a drunk (4x over the limit) school coach driver pulled out in front of him on the morning school run (didn't see the white van either).   I was only 16 at the time and it stuck with me.   If I had learnt to ride then I would have worn a helmet gladly even if there had been a choice not too.     But that is what experience brings...and that happens at any age.
                                                                                                                                                                             

 i dont think age has anything to do with it.if they have the right info and are not cocky little twats what dont listen they do the right thing.my blokes son is 16yrs old and rides a ts50 everywhere.he never gets on his bike without his armoured kevlar jacket and trousers,decent helmet,very good gloves and very good boots.its all about the attitude some kids just think they are the best thing since the world was created and they are invincible.and to be fair some adults are too but you give them the right info if they have any sense they listen if not well what happens is down to them.as before toooo many twat car drivers on the road to take unnessesary  risks.                                                                                                                                                                              

Please people this is meant to be about your personal choice not the rights or wrongs of wearing a lid. As I said given the choice my answer is no I won't wear one. If in the opinion of some people on here that makes me a fool then so be it but I strongly believe that all adults of sound mind should have the right to take whatever risks they like as long as there is no potential of them doing physical harm to another.

Well said Gloom 

When pottering around the country lanes of Derbyshire, on the outfit, I would love to be able to swap the helmet for a fifties style headscarf (I also want to ride side saddle!) ... and one for Claude, naturally.

But then I am totally bonkers!



                                                                                                                                                                             

it is a matter of personal choice, personally I probably would in 99% of circumstances, but it is about PERSONAL CHOICE.   Having said that personal choice has been eroded in this country by successions of governments/eurocrats who believe they know best....that and the increasing use of litigation over things which you should be taking responsibility for, but instead you look for someone to blame instead....no wonder we are all treated like 5 year olds.   i'm of the opinion however that things frequently go full circle....so maybe we shouldnt say it'll NEVER happen.                                                                                                                                                                             

I would love to say no to wearing a helmet but the weather can be so unpredictable i'd prefer helmet hair to soaking wet hair.  An open helmet as opposed to full helmet would be a compromise me thinks :D
                                                                                                                                                                             

sorry girls i'm a bit late posting but i'v been at a show, i did say early on that i think we all should wear helmets but that i would like to have the option not to as well, incidentally i also wear one when i'm Skiing from choice just wish i could get my daughter to wear one when she ski's

  Ditto what Gloom said.   I also agree with Debs in that it's a bit daft not to wear one, considering the damage that can be done, HOWEVER, I strongly disagree that open face helmets should be banned. I don't see the point in personal insults either, everyone should have a choice. It does no harm to others if individuals don't wear a helmet.   PML @ 8's comment aobut Claude wearing a head scarf, I'd love a photo of that, aww bless                                                                                                                                                                                 

Let's re-phrase it slightly. Of those who would opt not to wear a helmet given the choice, be it a local jaunt or long ride, how many have or would want to be a member of the emergency services scraping bits of brain off the road?   I've had many an argument with people who say a helmet should be their choice, but not one of them has seen the results of an accident without a helmet or would state that they would cope with seeing the effects of that accident.   For me, helmet every time. I've seen a head with most of it missing and I suspect one other mod on here can probably say the same thing.   Choice is ok to a point but think of those who have to pick up the pieces.                                                                                                                                                                             

  In MHO those in the emergency services should already be aware of the horrendous injuries they may witness, in their every day working life, it's their choice to do that job; and not their job to criticise, or preach to, those who choose not to wear head protection.                                                                                                                                                                             

Well said, Sandi 

I will get Claude to pose and post a photo of it, he's a natural!

x                                                                                                                                                                             

  I totally agree Sandi   Those who work for the emergency services know (or should know) the perils of the job   It is a matter of personal choice and no amount of "lecturing", by professionals, will convince me otherwise   While we are about the subject    Should drivers of open top sports cars be made to wear helmets too   Being strapped into a ton of flying metal with no headgear   Is a recipe for disaster if the vehicle turns over     And I cant wait to see a pic of Claude with scarf a "doggles" Emma                                                                                                                                                                               

    Emz, you better keep the topic to what it is or the thread bouncers will get ya                                                                                                                                                                              

totallyu agree with Sandi, EM etc....i also resent those "professionals" who think they have a right to preach.....you can impart your experience and give us the information to make an informed decision based on OUR own sense of responsibility!   but if you followed that preaching thru to its natural conclusion you would have us all stay at home wrapped in bubble wrap in case some "accident" befalls us that someone else has to clean up.   Freedom comes with responsibility and also risk.   im not gonna say owt else on this subject coz i can see where its going.                                                                                                                                                                              

For what it's worth....  Given the choice I'd wear one 90% of the time. Whatever you do, there's risk.   ---  Ride as though you're naked.   Don't drop your guard just 'cos you're wearing this or that.
And I've scraped all sorts off the road.    And it's that experience that has helped to keep me riding safe.  (For 40 years)

                                                                                                                                                                             

I hope people dont think that just because you dont have an helmet on you will bust you skull open in an accident, it's not so i have fallen of a number of times in the past without an helmet on and did no damage to my head but there again just because you do have an helmet on don't think you can't damage you head because you can

  My tuppence - worth   Protective clothing may only lessen the severity of ones injuries, it does not mean one won't get injured at all.   Don't let protective clothing / helmets lull you into a false sense of protection.                                                                                                                                                                                 

errrrrrrr i think i just said that                                                                                                                                                                             

I am not old enough to have ever had the choice but I think I would always wear one