A bicycle helmet might protect your head. But it doesn't make you safer.
This isn’t news to cyclists. We live the reality that no matter how perfectly we comport themselves, no matter how well we mitigate the risks of cycling, the biggest threat we face by far is one we have zero control over, the risk moving automotive vehicles present. No one wants to crash into a stationary 5,000lbs vehicl
Bike Helmet Laws are Stupid
excellent, one of those “should be required reading” columns
Helmets are especially useful for the small lower cycling speed mistakes all cyclists make and end up falling with your head maybe hitting the ground. Fairly useless when a car hits you square at 35mph and hurls you through the air and you die of internal injuries. I have not seen any studies on survival rates of higher speed collisions with cars. I’ve known and heard of many people that lost their lives due to collisions with cars over the decades. I elect to wear a helmet at all times and have dented a couple in lower speed falls over the years. I believe there is good to wearing one and encouraging the public to wear them also. Proper deference to cars and trucks and using all available roadway, ie. sidewalks, bike trails, side roads ect., is essential to staying alive longer while riding your bicycle.