Helmets: Ugly, yet necessary
Apr 05 '00
Skiing is by far the best sport in the world. The feeling of sheer speed, big jumps and smooth, arced turns is like nothing else in the world. Unfortunately, no one is on the slopes alone. You are sharing the hill with skiers of less ability, unseen bumps and dips, and trees and lift towers. Hitting any one of those is potentially disasterous. A normal ski hat provides little protection in any fall or collision. It is only as good as your skull is thick, which is less protection than you want for that little computer sitting up there, espcially when you are going thirty miles per hour.
I usually do things with a great deal of common sense. Skiing is not one of those things. I race slalom, GS, Super-G and downhill, and I have no fear of speed in these events. I have no issues with hitting a gate. I ski like a complete lunatic, though completely in control. Of course, this only holds true on one condition: that I am wearing my helmet. I grew up having to wear one while I ski, and I couldn't be more grateful for it. I feel as if I have almost become dependent on it. When I am wearing it, I feel nearly invincible. Without, I conciously feel that I can't go as fast, or jump as high. This allows me to put a restraint on myself, proving that helmets don't just have physical aspects, but pyschological ones as well.
The physical benefits, of course, are tremendous. I have had numerous instances where I've taken hard falls while racing, both with and without a helmet. Without a helmet, I have hit hard on the ice and sometimes blacked out. Wearing one, I can take a much harder fall, shake my head, and get right back up. Because I race, I tend to ski at high speeds. I distinctly remember one time I was bombing a hill, hit a rut and tumbled...right into a tree. You probably have never hit a tree, but it hurts like a b---h. I sat on the ground for several minutes, unable to move. Eventually, the ski patrol came and took me down. I had several bad bruises and a big mark on my helmet, but no serious damage. The patroller told me that if I hadn't been wearing a helmet, I could have had a bad concussion, or a cracked skull.
Of course, there are downsides to wearing a helmet. One might think that they are too hot, which is not true in most cases. On really warm spring days, they are a little to hot to wear. They can also be very expensive, up to $250 for the top race helmets. It isn't necessary to spend this much: around $150 will give you the most protection you will need. There is one more harsh fact to face: most helmets are incredibly ugly. I'm sorry that I don't have a solution for this; you will just have to find one that's fairly good looking. But by all means, get one right away. I recommend Carrera.
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Epinions.com ID:
DanskisNY
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Member: Dan Linsalata
Location: Cleveland, Ohio
Reviews written: 15
Trusted by: 6 members
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