What’s the most important part of your body? Everything, if you were to be asked, but the main and central organ that controls everything is located in the head. Almost all your senses are located there, including sight, smell and hearing. Your sense of balance is also encased in that super-hard skull of yours, so all in all, if you lose your head, you won’t be much of anything, can you?
You need to protect your head from all kinds of danger, like head injuries, wounds and others. It’s not every day an anvil falls on top of you so there are specific situations when additional protection will be greatly appreciated by you. Sports activities make use of head gear more often than other activities, except for construction work and motor vehicle driving.
One of the sports that need helmets the most is biking. You will definitely require a road cycling helmet once you start this certain hobby. What is it exactly and what does it do? A road cycling helmet is a specifically designed protective gear for the head used by cyclists. Its main purpose is to protect the cyclists’ head and to minimize impact when it is hit on a hard surface like the road, for example.
Although safety is the most relevant use for the road cycling helmet, it can also be used to enhance a rider’s performance by providing comfort. With a strenuous activity like biking, it is necessary for the helmet to have a good ventilation system to keep the head cool.
This is especially useful because due to the active workout you get from biking, you will give off a lot of body heat that needs to go out somewhere instead of staying in your head. If not, there will definitely be a threat of heat stroke. It is also important for the helmet to be lightweight and airy to keep the head comfortable as well as decreasing the added amount of weight you carry.
A characteristic of road cycling helmets that amateurs usually overlook is its aerodynamic drag. The standard issue of the helmet reduces the acceleration to the head due to the impact. The internal parts of your head would decelerate gently instead of forcefully when no helmet is worn. Most companies make use of thick expanded polystyrene to make the foam softer.
But, if this is a feature that you cannot be without, you must be aware that it will definitely make the helmet look bulkier and weigh heavier than your conventional road cycling helmet. It also increases the risk of having rotational head type brain injuries. However, not all helmets are perfect in every design. There will always be a deficit in its features depending on what kind of helmet you want. Companies from all over are doing their best to create top-of-the-line helmets for the avid bikers to fulfill all their cycling needs.
Although this is true, most are trying to popularize designs that are thinner, lighter and have larger vents. The protection it offers is not as effective as the bulkier models but is mainly designed to cater to the need for speed among bike enthusiasts. Not only that, but comfort is a high seller among helmets so as long as the wearer is cool and comfy, they might not be so tolerant of the thick and hot padding of the bulkier-sized helmets.
When choosing a road cycling helmet, you must make sure that you know what you need and the risks of choosing the wrong kind. Depending on your cycling preference, it’s easy to choose once you know what to look for. This way, you will experience the best cycling performance as well as keeping your head, and this pertains to your whole body, safe.
