Anatomy of a Helmet

ÿWhile you may hope to never crash, it’s inevitable, as a dirt bike rider, that you’ll take more than a few spills over the course of your riding career. As a wise and educated rider, you should be wearing the right protective gear, including a helmet: the most important piece of gear you’ll ever own. If you think about it, what’s the one piece of safety gear you would never leave home without? If you’re thinking straight, you should have answered a helmet! In this week’s featured article from the safety team at EVS, we’ll take a closer look at the anatomy of a helmet and how it potentially saves your life in a crash.

Believe It…

Helmets actually work! Throw those myths about helmets breaking necks, blocking your vision or impairing your hearing out the door, because they’re not true! These myths have been disproved for many years and responsible studies have proven over and over again that helmets are 100% effective. Motorcycle helmets are a very sophisticated and specialized piece of equipment. Over the years, they’ve been carefully and scientifically developed to give the best protection.

Spill your Guts!

As you look at helmets, the first features you notice about them are color, design and price. However, looking beyond that, in reality you should first consider safety, protection and comfort. After you’ve found the necessary features that suit you, then you can choose how stylin’ you want to be. Let’s take a closer look at the basic construction features of a motorcycle helmet.

Comfort and Fit Padding

-soft foam and cloth layer that sits directly next to your head

-helps to keep you comfortable and the helmet fitting snugly

–refines hearing and cuts down on wind noise

-in some helmet models, this padding can be taken out for cleaning

Rigid Outer Shell

-made from fiber-reinforced composites or thermoplastics (such as polycarbonate)

-designed and intended to compress when hit with a hard impact (this action disperses the energy from the impact to lessen the force before it reaches your head)

–protects head as the shell disperses energy and the liner absorbs impact by either chipping, cracking or breaking

Impact Absorbing Liner

-made of expanded polystyrene (similar to Styrofoam)

–dense layer that is intended to soften the blow when your helmet stops, but your head wants to keep moving

When working together, both the outer shell and the impact-absorbing liner spread the forces of an impact throughout the helmet’s materials. The more energy that is deflected or absorbed during a crash, the less there is of it to reach your head and do damage. Some helmet shells split into thin layers on impact while others may crack and break if forced to take a severe hit. By doing so, the helmet absorbs shock, therefore doing its intended job. However, impact damage from a crash to your helmet’s non-resilient liner may be invisible to the naked eye. If your helmet is damaged, it probably has little to no protective value left and should be replaced.

Face Shield/ Additional Face Protection

–provides comfort from environmental conditions, such as extreme sun, wind or rain

–protects eyes and face from debris and windblast and permits good vision

Retention System/Chin Strap

–a comfortable, yet securely fastened retention system will ensure your helmet stays on your head

–it’s very important to fasten the strap securely each time you ride

What to Look For

As you’re searching the shelves for that perfect helmet, you’ll find a variety of different styles and sizes in many different price ranges. Style aside, as a dirt-bike rider, the first thing you should look for is a three-quarter, open-face helmet. This type of helmet will give you the best protection and the most comfort since you’ll also be wearing goggles. Helmets manufactured today are made of lightweight, modern materials and are improved upon each year. In addition, manufacturers are also working to make them less expensive, stronger and more comfortable.

The most important feature to look for however; is that your helmet is DOT and/or Snell approved. If you find an approved sticker on the inside or outside of your helmet, this means it’s met all of the safety test standards of the U.S. Department of Transportation and/or the Snell Memorial Foundation. In order to fully see what these standards entail visit the following websites: www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/administration/fmcsr/571.218.htm or www.smf.org/stds.html.

Cover your Lid

Riding your dirt bike without a helmet is like driving a car without wearing your seatbelt; it just doesn’t make sense. Now that you’re familiar with your helmet’s basic anatomy, strap it on, fire up that dirt bike and hit the track! Ride on!

“EVS Winning with Safety”