Finally! Finished building my 60MPH Ebike!

[billvon]

When the law changed here I can personally attest to the fact that my brain felt safer with the protection of a helmet, and my average speeds went up until I made a conscious effort to avoid it, but even now knowing the effect in the rare event that I end up lidless I feel more exposed and make extra effort in terms of being careful.

Sounds like the ideal approach, then, is to wear a helmet - but ride as if you don't have one on.

 

[wturber]

When the law changed here I can personally attest to the fact that my brain felt safer with the protection of a helmet, and my average speeds went up until I made a conscious effort to avoid it, but even now knowing the effect in the rare event that I end up lidless I feel more exposed and make extra effort in terms of being careful.

Sounds like the ideal approach, then, is to wear a helmet - but ride as if you don't have one on.

We are contrast creatures. Anything we do regularly tends to get normalized. We see this all over the place in human behavior. Super-cool stuff becomes ordinary. It's why rich folks aren't any happier on average than those with average incomes. Differences are what we tend to really notice. I strongly suspect it is why not wearing a helmet when you're used to wearing one puts you on mental alert. Sameness blends into the background and creates complacency. If you want that level of alertness when you're wearing the helmet, you'll have to do something consciously to create that alert level.

And complacency is likely to creep in when you usually don't wear a helmet as well. Whatever is normal will tend to lead a person toward complacency. Being complacent with a helmet on is probably safer than being complacent without one.

But for the relatively infrequent rider, there might be something else at work. Putting on the helmet might make the rider feel extra safe (remember, just riding is a bit out of the ordinary in this situation) and therefore more likely to take more risks than they otherwise would have without a "safety" helmet. I think that's one of the possible dangers of mandating the wearing of bicycle helmets. But you'd have to study it to be sure.

https://www.nytimes.com/1985/06/18/science/science-watch-seat-belts-and-pedestrians.html

I think good safety mostly requires establishing good habits and then sticking with them.

 

[trophix]

Besides a good helmet,

1) Good Gloves

2) Kevlar lined Jeans ( buy at any motorcycle shop or online )

3) Icon (or any other brand ) of Chest and Spine protector ( Also Down Hill Bicycle Versions that are sold at bike shops that have down hill bikes and /or are located in Mountain areas )

4) Good footwear that will protect your ankles .

Good Luck, I am in Favor for high speed bicycles ... since I ( and everyone else ) can breath easier when behind one compared to any Gas/Petrol vehicle .
Electric Motorcycles are out of the Budget for many / most people , so keep up the work on higher speed bicycles .

When riding at higher than pro cyclist speeds ... keep out of bike lanes/ paths, etc. Ride it on the street like every other motor vehicle and learn the proper hand signals for the cars and all other motor vehicles to show them which way you are turning , and when coming to a stop ( These hand signals are / should be in every states motorcycle handbook the one you study for getting your motorcycle license )

Hey Everyone,

Have a look at the speed of this BEAST! Very scary DO NOT try without wearing motorcycle gear! Video
Recorded with a 360 camera.

Check it out here... https://youtu.be/dook0MCH8vg

You do not need to drill holes or add any fluid to the motor.

I actually got all that but it’s too hot out here to be wearing all that lol. But thanks for looking out. Also, I’m usually riding when there’s no one around.

 

[trophix]

When the law changed here I can personally attest to the fact that my brain felt safer with the protection of a helmet, and my average speeds went up until I made a conscious effort to avoid it, but even now knowing the effect in the rare event that I end up lidless I feel more exposed and make extra effort in terms of being careful.

Sounds like the ideal approach, then, is to wear a helmet - but ride as if you don't have one on.

It’s funny when people without first realizing how fast the bike goes they look at you wearing a Helmet they think you retarded cuz your riding a bicycle with a motorcycle helmet. Than when you hit the throttle they are like....

Hahaha :lol:

 

[wturber]

I actually got all that but it’s too hot out here to be wearing all that lol. But thanks for looking out. Also, I’m usually riding when there’s no one around.

In Tempe, I'm pretty sure there's always someone around. And in the first video yer yellin' at a car for being in the bike lane. I find that a little bit ironic. :^)

Here's a nice little video on e-bike safety since that's been a pretty major branch in this discussion.

[youtube]v_--H6GiHJ0[/youtube]

 

[RunForTheHills]

One argument I have read for not requiring helmets is that it encourages more people to ride bikes. Some people will just get in the car rather than put on a helmet and mess their hair up on their way to work or a social engagement. The theory is that if more people ride bikes, cars drivers will be more alert to their presence making cycling safer. That appears to be true in countries like Norway where there are a lot of cyclists.

 

[wturber]

One argument I have read for not requiring helmets is that it encourages more people to ride bikes. Some people will just get in the car rather than put on a helmet and mess their hair up on their way to work or a social engagement. The theory is that if more people ride bikes, cars drivers will be more alert to their presence making cycling safer. That appears to be true in countries like Norway where there are a lot of cyclists.

I don't think it encourages riding as such. What happens is that requiring helmets discourages riding. That seems to be the trend when such laws are passed and enforced and ridership is then measured. I suppose the distinction between the two ways of looking at it is subtle or maybe even non-existent. But an associated decline in ridership is documented in some places. So this is a real thing not just speculation.

 

[billvon]

One argument I have read for not requiring helmets is that it encourages more people to ride bikes. Some people will just get in the car rather than put on a helmet and mess their hair up on their way to work or a social engagement.

Wouldn't the wind mess up their hair, too? (Or am I thinking of the wrong kind of hair?)

 

[RunForTheHills]

One argument I have read for not requiring helmets is that it encourages more people to ride bikes. Some people will just get in the car rather than put on a helmet and mess their hair up on their way to work or a social engagement.

Wouldn't the wind mess up their hair, too? (Or am I thinking of the wrong kind of hair?)

There probably isn't much wind when you are riding 5-10 mph. Most bicycle trips in countries like Norway and Sweden where they use bikes for transportation more than recreation are less than a mile or two and are done on heavy single speed cruiser type bicycles.

 

[RunForTheHills]

I don't think it encourages riding as such. What happens is that requiring helmets discourages riding. That seems to be the trend when such laws are passed and enforced and ridership is then measured. I suppose the distinction between the two ways of looking at it is subtle or maybe even non-existent. But an associated decline in ridership is documented in some places. So this is a real thing not just speculation.

Yes, but the argument is that cycling is safer if there are more cyclists on the road. So the idea is to increase the number of cyclists by not creating impediments to people who might otherwise use a bike.