I mean, wearing a helmet is still the smarter thing to do. I don’t, because I don’t go very fast anyway and wearing one feels quite uncomfortable, but it’s still always the safer choice.
That said, the actual benefit is vastly reduced if
you just go at relaxed speeds
car drivera are very aware of cyclists existing and as such drive more carefully
good bicycle infrastructure means there are few points of contact with larger vehicles anyway
Since helmets only matter in severe accidents, if your odds of one are very low in the first place, they don’t change too much. But you can of course always get unlucky. Just like you can get unlucky with a helmet and ram yourself shoulder first into a tree and break your spine.
It does reduce other injuries if you don’t have to protect your head going down even in low speed accidents. Last time I got hit, I was wearing a helmet and t-shirt, that let me roll onto my upper back as I slid so my arms didn’t get any roadrash. Without the helmet I would have probably fucked up my hands and legs, keeping my head and face from hitting.
I mean, wearing a helmet is still the smarter thing to do. I don’t, because I don’t go very fast anyway and wearing one feels quite uncomfortable, but it’s still always the safer choice.
That said, the actual benefit is vastly reduced if
Since helmets only matter in severe accidents, if your odds of one are very low in the first place, they don’t change too much. But you can of course always get unlucky. Just like you can get unlucky with a helmet and ram yourself shoulder first into a tree and break your spine.
It does reduce other injuries if you don’t have to protect your head going down even in low speed accidents. Last time I got hit, I was wearing a helmet and t-shirt, that let me roll onto my upper back as I slid so my arms didn’t get any roadrash. Without the helmet I would have probably fucked up my hands and legs, keeping my head and face from hitting.
You can fall awkwardly and hit your head on a curb at walking speed, there’s no reason not to wear one.