Ben Meacham here from Holding it Big Motorsports -

Ok, so there’s been a couple of MAJOR motorcycle accidents lately in Frederick, MD that have prompted this blog post. What is the deal with our fellow bikers DYING left and right these days on their motorcycles because of serious head injuries from an accident? Coincidentally, these riders that have been involved in accidents that sustained life threatening head trauma, happen to be wearing the ever-popular “half shell” helmets. These helmets are also referred to as “brain buckets” or “skull helmets”.

half shell helmet

These types of helmets are the cheapest, most light weight, most basic form of a helmet, and the least constraining. Its not hard to understand the appeal, and why a lot of people wear them. The main reason is just an attempt to ‘be legal’ … because these helmets offer nothing more unfortunately. And by “be legal”, I simply mean visually being seen wearing a helmet in order to not get pulled over. These types of helmets are actually ILLEGAL because they are not safe and not approved by the DOT or SNELL or the other saftey standard bodies.  They actually have to be sold as a “novelty” to be legally sold most of the time. They offer virtually no crash protection. However, it’s almost impossible to ‘prove’ that the type of half shell helmet being worn is not certified. It’s not as simple as a DOT sticker being on the back of the helmet or not.

Here’s some interesting info: “According to The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, head related injuries are the main reasons for death in motorcycle crashes. ‘Legal’  helmets in the U.S. that meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety 218 standards reduce accident fatality risk by 37 percent by lowering brain injury probability by 67 percent.”

So what’s the problem here? Listen, this debate could go on for days. I’m not about to delve into all of the pros and cons on each side here. Believe me, there are plenty of both. I think ultimately it should be up to the rider to make their own choices on how to protect themselves. But don’t sell your safety or health short by choosing sub-standard protective gear for riding your bike. A quality helmet is the single most effective way to protect yourself in the event of an accident.  Don’t be a statistic!

This blog post is really just meant to bring some awareness to a growing trend/problem within our tight knit community. At the end of the day, if anyone gets seriously hurt or dies on their motorcycle, its still a horrible situation & completely tragic, no matter who’s at fault. We all want to live to ride another day. RIP to all of our fallen riders.