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I am skeptical. I want to see some side-by-side videos of this vs. a traditional helmet.The fact that this article didn't include any proof of the safety featur

by jbob2000 10y ago

I am skeptical. I want to see some side-by-side videos of this vs. a traditional helmet.The fact that this article didn't include any proof of the safety features tells me that this is a just a marketing ploy. > “I do all my exploring by bike but I don’t like riding in those cities without a helmet,” said the Pratt Institute graduate. So buy a fucking helmet and bring it with you.

maxerickson 10y ago
Yeah they have a FAQ: http://www.ecohelmet.com/copy-of-about-us http://www.ecohelmet.com/copy-of-about-us Before we can put it on the market EcoHelmet has to pass the tests necessary to be CPSC certified-- just like every other bike helmet. That should say "we pass the same safety standards as the bike helmets you are used to" before anyone gets too excited.
- jbob2000 10y ago
  SmartCars have to pass the same safety standards as Ford F150s. Which one would you feel safer in?
  - maxerickson 10y ago
    That's the wrong analogy. This is an electric tricycle that hasn't passed any crash testing that is going to save us from pollution.
JoeAltmaier 10y ago
Agreed. All design award winners are of the same class: something that looks like it would work, but probably doesn't. It takes real effort to design working things; their construction reflects the real constraints on the design. If folded paper could absorb impact, that's what a real helmet would have in it.
- vinay427 10y ago
  > If folded paper could absorb impact, that's what a real helmet would have in it. That's analogous to saying that if the polio vaccine could vaccinate users from polio, that's what would have been administered already. The whole point of this is that it's a potentially new innovation, which implies it is something the helmet industry hasn't yet developed.
  - JoeAltmaier 10y ago
    Only if you can possibly imagine that it never occurred to bike-helmet engineers to try folded paper.
    - ascorbic 10y ago
      It's possible for folded paper to be effective, but not an optimal solution for normal hard shell helmets where the ability to fold flat is not a consideration. Just because EPS works best in that situation doesn't mean it's the only solution.
Avshalom 10y ago
Yeah but this fucking helmet will fit in a bag when not in use making a hell of a lot easier to bring it with you.
zeroxfe 10y ago
> So buy a fucking helmet and bring it with you. Wow, that's harsh. She built something novel and potentially very useful. If you live in a city, it's impractical to carry your helmet everywhere you go all the time, and you'll surprise yourself at the number of times you need to quickly rent a bike (but have no helmet handy.) If it passes the safety certifications and rolls out, it will very likely increase the proportion of cyclists wearing helmets.
- jbob2000 10y ago
  Who are these people that think a helmet is impractical to carry? You also have to leave your bike somewhere everywhere you go, isn't that inconvenient too? I rode a bike for 2 years in downtown Toronto, wearing a helmet the entire time, and never once did I think that the helmet was inconvenient. You carry it up to your office and leave it on your desk. Or you turn it upside down and it's an adhoc shopping basket. Or you clip it to your backpack. Or you loop it through your bike lock. There are a million ways to answer the "inconvenience" problem that don't involve wearing a pseudo-helmet.
  - zeroxfe 10y ago
    > Who are these people that think a helmet is impractical to carry? People that use shared city-bikes irregularly (like me.) I don't always go out expecting to use a bike, but life isn't always predictable (subways busted, cabs not available, unanticipated change of plans, etc.) > I rode a bike for 2 years in downtown Toronto, wearing a helmet the entire time, and never once did I think that the helmet was inconvenient. You carry it up to your office and leave it on your desk. Or you turn it upside down and it's an adhoc shopping basket. Or you clip it to your backpack. Or you loop it through your bike lock. Good for you for not finding it inconvenient. That doesn't mean that other's also don't.
  - SippinLean 10y ago
    In a suitcase? The woman says she wanted a helmet while traveling.
- Grishnakh 10y ago
wvjovborkjwdbf 10y ago
A helmet is no substitute for good cycling. If you cycle correctly, you should never come off your bike or collide with anything. Whenever I read anyone say "that helmet saved my life" I immediately think "you probably did something wrong". The way cyclists with helmets ride, it's no wonder they need them.
- pwinnski 10y ago
  How does cycling well prevent someone else from colliding with me? At least in the US, cars and bikes share the same roads, and there's not much one can do while cycling to prevent cars from injuring cyclists.

maxerickson 10y ago

Yeah they have a FAQ: http://www.ecohelmet.com/copy-of-about-us http://www.ecohelmet.com/copy-of-about-us Before we can put it on the market EcoHelmet has to pass the tests necessary to be CPSC certified-- just like every other bike helmet. That should say "we pass the same safety standards as the bike helmets you are used to" before anyone gets too excited.

jbob2000 10y ago
SmartCars have to pass the same safety standards as Ford F150s. Which one would you feel safer in?
- maxerickson 10y ago
  That's the wrong analogy. This is an electric tricycle that hasn't passed any crash testing that is going to save us from pollution.

JoeAltmaier 10y ago

Agreed. All design award winners are of the same class: something that looks like it would work, but probably doesn't. It takes real effort to design working things; their construction reflects the real constraints on the design. If folded paper could absorb impact, that's what a real helmet would have in it.

vinay427 10y ago
> If folded paper could absorb impact, that's what a real helmet would have in it. That's analogous to saying that if the polio vaccine could vaccinate users from polio, that's what would have been administered already. The whole point of this is that it's a potentially new innovation, which implies it is something the helmet industry hasn't yet developed.
- JoeAltmaier 10y ago
  Only if you can possibly imagine that it never occurred to bike-helmet engineers to try folded paper.
  - ascorbic 10y ago
    It's possible for folded paper to be effective, but not an optimal solution for normal hard shell helmets where the ability to fold flat is not a consideration. Just because EPS works best in that situation doesn't mean it's the only solution.

Avshalom 10y ago

Yeah but this fucking helmet will fit in a bag when not in use making a hell of a lot easier to bring it with you.

zeroxfe 10y ago

> So buy a fucking helmet and bring it with you. Wow, that's harsh. She built something novel and potentially very useful. If you live in a city, it's impractical to carry your helmet everywhere you go all the time, and you'll surprise yourself at the number of times you need to quickly rent a bike (but have no helmet handy.) If it passes the safety certifications and rolls out, it will very likely increase the proportion of cyclists wearing helmets.

jbob2000 10y ago
Who are these people that think a helmet is impractical to carry? You also have to leave your bike somewhere everywhere you go, isn't that inconvenient too? I rode a bike for 2 years in downtown Toronto, wearing a helmet the entire time, and never once did I think that the helmet was inconvenient. You carry it up to your office and leave it on your desk. Or you turn it upside down and it's an adhoc shopping basket. Or you clip it to your backpack. Or you loop it through your bike lock. There are a million ways to answer the "inconvenience" problem that don't involve wearing a pseudo-helmet.
- zeroxfe 10y ago
  > Who are these people that think a helmet is impractical to carry? People that use shared city-bikes irregularly (like me.) I don't always go out expecting to use a bike, but life isn't always predictable (subways busted, cabs not available, unanticipated change of plans, etc.) > I rode a bike for 2 years in downtown Toronto, wearing a helmet the entire time, and never once did I think that the helmet was inconvenient. You carry it up to your office and leave it on your desk. Or you turn it upside down and it's an adhoc shopping basket. Or you clip it to your backpack. Or you loop it through your bike lock. Good for you for not finding it inconvenient. That doesn't mean that other's also don't.
- SippinLean 10y ago
  In a suitcase? The woman says she wanted a helmet while traveling.
Grishnakh 10y ago

wvjovborkjwdbf 10y ago

A helmet is no substitute for good cycling. If you cycle correctly, you should never come off your bike or collide with anything. Whenever I read anyone say "that helmet saved my life" I immediately think "you probably did something wrong". The way cyclists with helmets ride, it's no wonder they need them.

pwinnski 10y ago
How does cycling well prevent someone else from colliding with me? At least in the US, cars and bikes share the same roads, and there's not much one can do while cycling to prevent cars from injuring cyclists.