Never bought a helmet? No problem, though it's worth investing a little time into the exercise. A good helmet will protect you in a tumble and feel like a second skin once you get to know it.

Avoid fins - no matter how wicked they look
Never bought a helmet? No problem, though it's worth investing a little time into the exercise. A good helmet will protect you in a tumble and feel like a second skin once you get to know it.

There's a baffling array of styles and materials out there, with price ranges to suit. No need to panic, as a little patience will ease your search.

Okay, what sort of riding are you planning on? There's two clear choices: road and off-road. Road helmets are designed to withstand sustained freeway speeds comfortably, while dirt lids are aimed at relatively low speeds and maximum ventilation - requiring a good set of goggles as part of the set. If you do a lot of both, plan on buying two lids - sorry, there's no easy way out of that one.

The good news is that you don't need to spend a million dollars. Buy something well within your budget on the basis that you update it in a few years' time. Helmets wear out. The lining gradually compresses, so it no longer fits as well; and day-to-day things like exposure to the sun's UV rays, occasional drops, the odd scratch, or doing up the strap for the effteenth time all take their toll.

Use your head......

HOW IT WORKS

A helmet protects you by being tied closely to your head. If you bounce off the road, you want four things:

A shell that will absorb much of the initial impact
A tight lining that stops your head from bouncing around in the shell, and also absorbs much of the force
The lightest possible weight - less weight means less stress on the spine
A nice round-ish shell that slides down the road and doesn't grab on anything

Buy a worn-out helmet and the first two don't work. Buy anything with a fin and you're risking your neck - literally. The reasoning behind the last is that anything that causes neck rotation during a crash (such as a fin hitting a lip in the pavement) is asking for trouble.

The overall reasoning for current helmet design is like that for cars. One crash, and the helmet dies by absorbing much of the impact. You live to buy another one - which is much better than the alternative.

FIT
This is the biggie. Assorted folk around the trade and riding community have distilled their wisdom into the following:

Try as many brands as possible - they're all different and only a couple will really suit your head
It must be tight - if you can smile without looking like a disturbed puffer fish, it's too loose
It shouldn't hurt - wear your selection for 10 minutes (read a newspaper) - if it's starting to hurt in some places, it's the wrong shape;
Can you work the chin-strap and visor easier on this model than another?
Never mind the paint, check the quality - how does the finish of the upholstery or visor compare to another helmet of equal value?

OPEN FACE?
There are crash studies which say open-face helmets present less risk of spinal damage, though the potential damage to your face in even a minor spill is another thing...

Open face lids are also extremely uncomfortable at sustained road speeds - you cop bugs, grit and a lot of noise. Finding a good set of goggles or glasses is critical to making them work. The bugs and grit can be dealt with by a full-length visor, but the noise remains. If you're buying one helmet, get a full-face. By all means try the open-face option once you have some experience, when you can calculate the risks better, and appreciate the sun-on-face and extra noise...it's a great feeling in the right environment.

GIBBER
There's a lot of talk getting around on the various virtues of assorted shell constructions. Plastic, fibreglass, composites, carbon-fibre - you name it. What you're really looking for is the best-fitting, lightest and best finished helmet you can afford. Stick to those three basics and you'll be fine.

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