There are some roadworks on the road at the end of our close and yesterday I was radically cut up by some pl**k*er in a beat up Vauxhall flying the Cross of St George on both sides who just couldn't bear the idea of being stuck behind a cyclist going through the traffic light regulated section. He almost lost a wing mirror as a result.
Today I was waiting for the lights to change next to a very nice open-top Mercedes SLK (an AMG no less) when the driver turned to me and suggested that I should ride down the pavement "like everyone else does, it's much too dangerous on the roads now". Unfortunately the lights changed and I didn't have an opportunity to put him straight on the relative risks of pavement and road cycling. Mind you, it would have been fun if he'd suggested I should have been wearing a helmet. I would have thought a suitable helmet would be much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike! -- Michael MacClancy Random putdown - "He has no enemies, but is intensely disliked by his friends." -Oscar Wilde www.macclancy.demon.co.uk www.macclancy.co.uk
I would have thought a suitable helmet would be much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike!
Not especially. They have pop up roll hoops that shoot out once you get past a certain tilt IIRC.
And what about birdshit, stones and if you're not wearing a seatbelt? -- Michael MacClancy Random putdown - "He has Van Gogh's ear for music." - Billy Wilder www.macclancy.demon.co.uk www.macclancy.co.uk
"Doki" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
Michael MacClancy said:
I would have thought a suitable helmet would be much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike!
Not especially. They have pop up roll hoops that shoot out once you get past a certain tilt IIRC.
Even if they didn't exist, however effective the helmet may be, your neck wouldn't exactly be thankful for having to support a tonne.....
Maybe a HANS would help 😄.
PS: That's one of those neck brace things you wear in a race car. Designed to stop your neck muscles having to support your head when cornering and braking at silly Gs. Not sure it'd help with the upside down car scenario supported by one's head scenario...
"Doki" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
Nathaniel Porter said:
"Doki" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
Michael MacClancy wrote:
> I would have thought a suitable helmet would be > much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike!
Not especially. They have pop up roll hoops that shoot out once you get past a certain tilt IIRC.
Even if they didn't exist, however effective the helmet may be, your neck wouldn't exactly be thankful for having to support a tonne.....
Maybe a HANS would help 😄.
PS: That's one of those neck brace things you wear in a race car. Designed to stop your neck muscles having to support your head when cornering and braking at silly Gs.
Not strictly true - the HANS device (and the Hutchen's device) are designed to limit head and neck movement in the event of an impact in order to ease whiplash and brain-skull collision injuries, by making the head move with the torso.
Quoted message said:
Not sure it'd help with the upside down car scenario supported by one's head scenario...
Something for the rescuers to pull the corpse out of the wreckage with ;-)
I would have thought a suitable helmet would be much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike!
Not especially. They have pop up roll hoops that shoot out once you get past a certain tilt IIRC.
All right, I'm probably going to look silly here, but do they really? In Oz, were I grew up, all open top cars had to have "roll bars" since sometime in the '70s, as I understand it. In the UK they don't seem to be required, and after 20-odd years I still shudder seeing a sports car without.
PS: That's one of those neck brace things you wear in a race car. Designed to stop your neck muscles having to support your head when cornering and braking at silly Gs. Not sure it'd help with the upside down car scenario
HANS is actually meant to protect the neck in an accident. Although like you I'd have thought it was useful as a support against g forces in normal racing, F1 drivers were only interested it when compulsion forced them.
"Ian G Batten" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:
In article <[email hidden]>,
Doki said:
Maybe a HANS would help 😄.
PS: That's one of those neck brace things you wear in a race car.
Designed
Quoted message said:
Quoted message said:
to stop your neck muscles having to support your head when cornering and braking at silly Gs. Not sure it'd help with the upside down car
scenario
Quoted message said:
HANS is actually meant to protect the neck in an accident. Although like you I'd have thought it was useful as a support against g forces in normal racing, F1 drivers were only interested it when compulsion forced them.
Not only that, many F1 drivers actively campaigned against them, as they were uncomfortable and restricted movement of the shoulders. In some cases the device trapped blood vessels and nerves (indeed Rubens Barichello was given an exemption for a couple of races last year because of this).
Some NASCAR drivers also campaigned against compulsion for the HANS (and Hutchens'😉 devices, but this probably has more to do with NASCAR drivers generally behaving like spoilt brats.....
I would have thought a suitable helmet would be much more useful in an open-top sports car than on a bike!
Not especially. They have pop up roll hoops that shoot out once you get past a certain tilt IIRC.
All right, I'm probably going to look silly here, but do they really?
The Mercedes do, since about 1985 I think. I'm not aware of any other marques using this technology.
-- [email hidden] (Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/ "The result is a language that... not even its mother could love. Like the camel, Common Lisp is a horse designed by committee. Camels do have their uses." ;; Scott Fahlman, 7 March 1995
Some NASCAR drivers also campaigned against compulsion for the HANS (and Hutchens'😉 devices, but this probably has more to do with NASCAR drivers generally behaving like spoilt brats.....
IIRC, one of the more senior NASCAR drivers was against HANS and many other drivers folowed his lead. That man is now dead. Other NASCARists soon changed their tune.
This sounds similar to a "wearing a helmet saved my life" comment.
