Almost everyone who wears a helmet knows that they should find one that’s been approved by the ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials), but have you ever thought about what kind of testing helmets must survive?
Here are two videos that show the types of tests that helmets are subjected to by researchers. One of the things that surprised me? How poorly the old style caliente helmet performed. I can remember when I bought one of those helmets because they were so much safer than the ones that I used wear!
I’ve done enough environmental testing (I’m an engineer) and am nerdy enough that I actually downloaded the standards for testing helmets. I still don’t feel that testing necessarily makes them that much safer! I mean, sure I want one which survives and does well in the testing, but there’s a question to me of whether or not they protect as much as we want to think they do.
Or maybe that’s because I’ve gotten a concussion WITH helmet, and have trouble believing I was much worse off than I would have been without. I still wear a helmet every time I get on a horse!