Using downhill mountain bike helmets for skiing?

mine would let the tree limbs poke through the vents and puncture my skull, thus deflating me.

ppphhhhhhhhhhhhhht...

oh.
well then.
carry on, mate.

I helped coach when my son was ski racing in high school a couple years back. All the racers where required to wear helmets. Certified (I'm not sure which standard) bike helmets were allowed. Besides bike helmets, some of the kids used skateboarding helmets (mainly the snowboarders that were racing).

A bike helmet would give you more protection than not wearing a ski helmet, but it offers far less protection than a properly fitted ski helmet.

Bike helmets don't give you any protection near the ears. They are one bump designs. You throw them away after taking a fall on them. Ski helmets are designed to be used again and again. The standards are much lower for a bike helmet. The speeds ski helmets are designed and tested to with stand are much higher than a bike helmet. The fit of a helmet is extremely important. A bike helmet fits the head much more loosely than a ski helmet. A good fit is the second most important feature in a ski helmet protecting you; you can't accomplish that with a bike helmet.

Look at the new Giro 9.9 helmet for the best venting system to date in a helmet. Unless you have a square shaped head a good helmet fitter can find a helmet that fits your head.

If the shorty is poorly vented wouldn't a dh mtn bike helmet be way too vented?

I have never held a downhill helmet so I am thinking of a traditional helmet which is supervented by design. Maybe the dh is more solid like a ski or motorcycle helmet?

freeze yer brain

which could be interesting

My Carrera helmet is probably less warm than a hat would be. Are you one of those who skis with out a hat? I always assumed those people's ears were so badly frozen that they didn't feel the pain anymore and were unaware that their hat had blown of their head.

On a similar subject, can't somebody make a helmet I can use for everything? I hate that I need a separate helmet for biking, skiing, rock climbing and kayaking. I actually use my rock climbing helmet for kayaking but it doesn't dry as well as true kayaking helmet does.

worldfishnski,

You could buy a full face shield motorcycle helmet. That would work. Plus they have the best graphics of any helmet manufacturer. It might make doing kayak rolls a bit dificult as it fills up with water when you are inverted.

Powderhound is right in that most bike helmets (though I confess I don't know anything aboout downhill specific ones) are meant to be disposable. They should be thrown away after one impact.

I could be wrong, but I have always been under the impression that ski helmets like motorcycle helmets are reuseable as long as you haven't done any visible damage such as crack the outer lining. Maybe I'm totally off my rocker on this one.

The testing is done differently by the lab on ski helmets, it involves a heavy weight test that hits it like a pendulum from the top, front and sides, they are also supposed to be using a penetration test now, I guess to simulate tree branches? It is my understanding that bike helmets testing is less servere, I believe it is due to the impact speeds involved with skiing, but it is logical to think that you could get going just as fast on a downhill biking too. If the testing requirements are less severe it is a safe bet that the manufacturers are building bike helmets to lower specs than ski helmets. I was thinking of a normal bike helmet, not the one you are describing that is more like a motorcycle helmet, picking up one of those normal ones with the flimsy styrofoam inside just makes me shutter thinking about hitting a tree or a big rock.

Can't you rent a helmet and try it out? It sounds like you haven't worn one and are just assuming you will be too hot. A lot of our ski areas in Colorado offer a free helmet use when you rent from them. We had a group of head surgeons about 2 years ago donate about a thousand helmets to some resort rental shops for just that purpose. I guess they were tired of seeing all the brain injuries.

I agree with Powderhound about replacing a helment after it shows a crack. Remember that the head bucket is only good for impacts less than 14 mph, so It's probably good you have few trees in NZ because it's useless in the woods. Also try not to get a helmet that goes down in the back. The hement becomes the weapon when you have whiplash.

Although I wear one I'm not a real fan. The advantages are, keeps me warm in NE weather(< 20 degrees), keeps me safe in NE "powder", and every once in awhile I can paste a political statement "Global Warming" on it.

Disadvantages are, it's a pain to carry around, it muffels sounds, except for wind speed, which is accenturated, and the thing is 5 times more expensive than a good hat (Pro Form Price).

We need to put this helmet impact thing to bed. As I have said in another post I rep a helmet line. This is direct from an email from the Corporate Sales Director.

“With any impact you should inspect your helmet. Look for crack's in the shell or the EPS liner (styrene foam). Our helmet as a two year warranty for workmanship and or an impact. If your helmet burns in a fire or is stolen we don't replace it. So after any hard impact check your helmet or send it in to get checked. There is no such thing as a multi-impact helmet!!!!! If there are any more questions let me know.”

Ski helmets are ONE IMPACT ONLY.

Jim

edit--- Yes, you can rent helmets. Booth Creek resorts rent OVO helmets $5.00/day.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ January 18, 2002 06:23 AM: Message edited 1 time, by Jim O'D ]</font>

In all honesty I would refrain from making any statements about the safety of certain types of helmets, and certainly making statements about the reusability of helmets. If I wanted to make such statements I would only do so if I'd have references; just to protect myself... I.e. the post above this one would be a good example of how to do it, even better would be a reference to something that has been published in some form.

<FONT COLOR="#800080" SIZE="1">[ January 18, 2002 06:32 AM: Message edited 3 times, by Semmed ]</font>

Thanks Jim - I was hoping that somebody would point that out. Looking at the gyro-9 snow helmet vs any other gyro product the structural details appear to be the same.

Haven't even got started on UV or ozone degradation

I just bought a Boeri ( I believe it's a shorty )and it fits quite well. I understand your concern about overheating. It's comfy on a cold day but I can imagine that a warm day will cook my brain. I'm thinking the bike helmet would be less overall protection and look a little goofy. Although they breathe quite well.

TheXcop
<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by kiwiski:
I have tried on about every ski helmet I have found but the only one which comes close to fitting is the Boeri shorty. But this has the most pathetic vents I have ever seen and I am sure I would overheat in one.

So has anyone used or thought of using goggle compatible downhill mountain biking helmets? Venting would be more than adequate, goggles are just the same just more tint. Is there any reason why this isn't done?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Another endorsment for the Giro Nine from a fellow hot-head.
3 plugs for the vents, earflaps come off for really hot days. On an extremely cold day I have a thin fleece cap to wear underneath, but I've only needed it the once and it was -14 F that day ( -10C). Brrrrr.