[eon]

I’m wondering how the specs of the F1 helmets compare to what we can buy. For those of you who do not follow F1, the Brazilian driver Felipe Massa was hit on the head by a metal spring at 160mph last Saturday. Now his injuries were/are very serious. He has had several operations, was in a medically induced comma for a couple of days and there are concerns over his left eye. But still, he was hit on the head by a metal spring, probably weighing several pounds, at 160mph. It even hit the area where the visor connects to the helmet so the visor had to absorb some of the impact. This all seems far and above the 15′ drop our lids are designed to protect us from. I’ll have to do some googling to see if I can find the specs for those helmets. They definitely fit the bill of more money = more safety but I think they cost around $15,000 each so it will be a while before I get one

[eon]

I would argue the aerodynamics of a helmet depends greatly on the bike and the position of the rider. Most of us don’t ride with our chin on the tank seeking that last extra 2mph. A helmet shaped to work well in that position is not necessarily the best for sitting straight up behind a windshield. I have a Scorpion EXO-400 which is on the cheaper and heavier side but I also have a tall windshield. I only get minimal buffeting on my helmet and after a full day riding I have never experienced neck pain. Sort butt and cramped legs yes; sore neck, no.

Helmet fit is the most important thing to look for, more important than price or anything else. Good luck finding a well trained salesperson helping you determine the best fit. I think the onus is on you to try on as many as you can to find what works for you. The simple maxim of the tighter the better works well. I think I lucked out on the EXO-400 as the fit is so snug I have been unable to find a pair of sunglasses I can get on, yet I do not feel any pressure points after hours of riding.

I think you make a good point about shell sizes but do you know where you can find out information about these? Even if a manufacturer was only to make one size, if that just happened to be the best size for your head then that could be better than the more expensive brand. Are there any articles that talk about how big an issue this is? Any recommendations from SNELL etc? It’s just something that is not much talked about.

[eon]

I’m not convinced it makes sense for Harley to make a beginner bike. It would make sense for the rider but not necessarily for Harley. I suspect folks who want HD go get one. I’ve certainly seen plenty of beginner riders on 1000cc+ cruisers (not necessarily HD). I know one old lady with arthritis whose first bike is a 1800cc Victory. That thing is huge. Seems to me that in the States, bigger is better and that applies more to the cruiser market than others.

There would also be the danger of watering down the brand image if they made a ‘beginner’ bike. Seems like this is what concerns Buell but if it’s good enough for Honda/Kawasaki/Suzuki/Yamaha I’m not sure what concerns them. If they are trying to turn themselves into a premium brand like Ducatti, they have a long difficult road ahead of them.

[eon]

LOL….now if only I had thought of that

[eon]

If you do take your friend up on his offer I would make sure both of you are clear on who pays for what in case you drop it or hit something. Something to think about.
If it was me, I would try to hold off till the BRC. Just seems the simpler & safer option.

[eon]

You live in the mid Atlantic? Isn’t that kind of err, wet?

[eon]

Wow, you da man.

[eon]

I find the following advert very odd. Seems like they are trashing themselves?

And this is just weird.
http://www.buell.com/en_us/bikes/blast/index.asp

[eon]

I think it must make a difference to the handling. The new BMW F650GS and F800GS are in some ways the same bike. The smaller 650 is aimed at road users and the larger, more expensive 800 is aimed at off road use. The 650 has alum rims with tubeless tires, the 800 has spoked wheels with inner tubes. Presumably the extra flex the spoked wheels give is an advantage off road.

Not sure if the rigidity of alum wheels is an advantage for road use but it would seem they are more practical. Spokes sure look good on those retro bike though.

[eon]

What are the pro/cons of wheels with spokes and inner tubes?
Can you patch a puncture on a tubed tire without removing the tire from the wheel?

Don’t mean to thread hijack here but this could be relevant to making a decision on which bike to get. I love the look of that TU250 myself.

[eon]

There is some argument over which testing methodology is better, SNELL or the European ECE tests. Look back for a thread with SNELL in the title (To SNELL or not?) and you will find a lot of useful information and you will be able to make your own mind up on what is important to you.

There is a new SNELL standard and you can read their sales pitch here.
http://www.webbikeworld.com/motorcycle-helmets/snell-2010-standard.htm

For my money, all helmets do not provide the same level of protection and I wish there was more than a simple pass/fail report. I like the SHARP scheme in the UK in that they give a star rating between 1 and 5.
http://sharp.direct.gov.uk/

But in short more money is going to get you more comfort/aesthetics/brand name.

[eon]

Riding in light mist/rain is actually worse from a visibility point of view than heavy rain. Going faster can help the water to bead off your visor. RainX helped me a lot but I stopped using as I was worried it was clouding up my visor (don’t think I had the plastic specific one). Plenty of other stuff out there to try.

I try to avoid wiping my visor as that just seems to smear the water across and makes things worse. Turning your head from side to side can help clear it. I’ve never had a real problem with fogging on my EXO-400 but it did seem to get worse over time. I guess whatever they treat it with wears off eventually.

It sounds like you had the worst situation to ride in. Night, no street lights, misting rain, glasses and a fogging visor. In that situation I would get home as soon as I could. It’s not always going to be as bad as that. No matter what you do though, riding in rain is rarely much fun.

[eon]

I would urge caution when pulling through if there are cars on either side and you cannot see past them. All too often people will whip into free spaces not expecting someone to be “pulling through”. It also means you have to ride over 2 spaces worth of crap on the road. Can’t say this is something I do too often but then I usually look for corner spaces off to the side. The little nooks and crannies that cars cannot get into.

EDIT: Should add that I live in a downtown environment where most parking lots are underground. The crap from the cars does not get washed away by the weather so it gets really bad. These lots are usually pretty tight and there are usually small spaces by the concrete pillars. Actually there are usually dedicated bike parking areas

[eon]

I posted a link recently to a clothing company that makes bike gear with soft armor. The guy who runs that place make vehement arguments against hard armor. He argues it does not absorb the impact but simply spreads it around. That does not sound too bad to me. Would you rather be hit with a hammer or a hammer and a nail? Having a combination of both would seem like the best solution. Spread the force around and then absorb that lesser force.

If you are looking for a back protector (and have faith in the CE testing methodology, that guy does not), then the best one around just now is the Forcefield Pro Sub4.

[eon]

Ha, no need to apologize to me. To be honest I never considered scooters myself. It was a new Ninja 250 I wanted but they were impossible to get last summer. The fact I live beside the scooter dealership had a lot to do with my decision. The thing was just sitting there. I could ride away with it that day or wait who knows how long for a Ninja.

I can’t really help you as I don’t know a whole lot about other sportbikes. I would say pay attention to the seating/handlebar positions. One of the sport bikes I part beside at work the handlebars are the same height as the seat. Great for the track but not great for seeing through city traffic or long rides I would think.

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