helmets

20 Stories

Biker Who Fought to Overturn Helmet Law Dies Ironically

Ron Smith, Brenda Volpe weren't wearing helmets when they died of head trauma in crash

(Newser) - A Florida lawyer who aggressively fought to overturn a state law requiring bikers to wear helmets died in a crash with his girlfriend. Neither were wearing helmets. Ron Smith, 66, and Brenda Jeanan Volpe, 62, were on their first ride with the American Legion Post 173 in Holiday on Aug....

NFL Players Aren't Sure About Pads for Helmets

League says protection early in the season can mitigate head injuries later

(Newser) - "Obviously, they don't look pretty," an NFL defensive lineman said at training camp this week. "You feel like a bobblehead," a lineman on another team said. "They're stupid," a player on a third team said. The complaints were about the Guardian Caps...

NFL OKs These 6 Social Justice Decals for Helmets

As well as slogans to be stenciled on end zones, to support movements against racism, police brutality

(Newser) - The sports league that once outlawed kneeling during the national anthem is now attempting to pick up more of the social justice mantle. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy tells the New York Times that players will be able to choose from six helmet decals this season bearing one of the following...

Schumacher Would Be Dead If Not for Ski Helmet

But doctors won't say much more than that on the ex-F1 champ's prognosis

(Newser) - Michael Schumacher remains in an artificial coma, with his body temp lowered to 93.2 to 95 degrees, after hitting his head on a rock while skiing in the French Alps yesterday—and doctors are refusing to predict any outcome for the seven-time Formula One champ, reports the AP . Says...

Easter Bunny Gets Pulled Over

Gets off with a warning after motorcycling without helmet

(Newser) - He must have been in a rush to hide some eggs. The Easter Bunny was pulled over on Saturday for riding his red motorcycle without a helmet near San Diego, the Los Angeles Times reports. The bunny told a California Highway Patrol officer that he was en route to a...

Motorcycle Helmet Laws Save Lives and Cash

They save money, too: CDC

(Newser) - Fewer motorcyclists die in states that require helmets, and the costs to society are lower as well, according to a new federal study. About five times as many no-helmet biker deaths occur in states with less restrictive laws, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study found. "These laws...

Motorcycle Deaths Hold Steady

Even as overall road fatalities decrease

(Newser) - The number of motorcycle fatalities in 2011 did not budge compared to 2010, even though overall vehicle deaths dipped to the lowest level since 1949, says a new highway safety report. One theory: High gas prices might be encouraging more people to drive motorcycles instead of cars, reports the Los ...

4 out of 5 of Bike Sharers Don't Wear Helmets

Study also finds that about half of cyclists overall skip the headgear

(Newser) - Bicycle-sharing programs are catching on around the country, which is good if you care about the environment, and bad if you care about people's skulls. A new study from Boston's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center found that about half of all cyclists and more than 80% of bike-share...

Easy Way to Reduce Tornado Injuries: Helmets

Grab a bike helmet if one is coming, say Alabama researchers

(Newser) - A cheap, practical, and easy way exists to reduce injuries during a tornado, say researchers at the University of Alabama: Wear a helmet. Strapping on a motorcycle, bicycle, or football helmet in a pinch could provide crucial protection, especially considering that head injuries are such a common cause of tornado...

Biker on Ride Protesting Helmet Laws Hits Head, Dies

Trooper says man likely would have survived had he been wearing helmet

(Newser) - A motorcyclist who joined a helmet-less ride yesterday to protest New York's helmet laws died after flipping over his bike's handlebars and hitting his head on the pavement. Philip Contos, 55, was part of a large group riding down Route 11 in the town of Onondaga, near Syracuse,...

Helmet Lets Pilots Shoot Targets With a Glance

Turns out looks can kill

(Newser) - Equipped with new headgear, British fighter pilots can knock enemies from the sky with a mere gaze. The $390,000 Striker helmet shows pilots nearby radar-detected targets. The pilot merely looks at a target to choose it, then speaks to fire. It’s one of the biggest technological advances the...

Calif. Mulls Tough Helmet Law for Skiers, Boarders

Helmets required for anyone under 18, and ski areas would be responsible

(Newser) - Two bills making their way through the California legislature would give the state the strictest US regulations governing helmet use while skiing or snowboarding, and dramatically shift responsibility onto resort operators. The first bill would require anyone under 18 to strap on head protection, and subject parents to a $25...

Bulletproof Turban in Development for UK's Sikh Cops

(Newser) - Scientists are developing a bulletproof turban that would allow Britain’s Sikh police officers to handle firearms and become riot cops, the Telegraph reports. The religion requires men keep their turbans on at all times, barring them from wearing helmets required in certain high-risk scenarios. “There needs to be...

Richardson Rejected Ski Helmet
 Richardson Rejected Ski Helmet 
Mar 21, 2009 5:15 AM CDT

Richardson Rejected Ski Helmet

$10 helmet could have saved actress' life

(Newser) - Natasha Richardson turned down a $10 ski helmet that could have saved her life, workers at the Mont Tremblant ski resort tell the Sun. Employees say the actress was cheerful but a little nervous ahead of the ski lesson that led to her fatal fall. She told staff she wasn't...

Quebec Docs Push to Make Ski Helmets Mandatory

Minister may act after Richardson death

(Newser) - Doctors in Quebec are pressing their case to the province's sports minister to make helmets mandatory for skiers, the Montreal Gazette reports. They met with the minister yesterday, the same day Natasha Richardson died after falling on a beginners' course there. She had no helmet. Minister Michelle Courchesne will next...

Could Helmet Have Saved Richardson?
Could Helmet Have Saved Richardson?
Mar 18, 2009 1:14 PM CDT

Could Helmet Have Saved Richardson?

Celeb's ski accident renews debate on safety gear

(Newser) - Natasha Richardson’s crippling accident while taking beginner's lessons has renewed the ski-helmet debate, the New York Times reports. Safety gear is more popular today—43% of Americans donned helmets last ski season, up from 25% 5 years prior—but still not required. Critics point out that fatalities haven’t...

US Army Orders Mind-Reading Helmets
 US Army Orders 
 Mind-Reading Helmets 
glossies
Sep 15, 2008 6:53 PM CDT

US Army Orders Mind-Reading Helmets

(Newser) - The US Army has dished out $4 million for helmets that can read soldiers' minds, Time reports. The goal is to have commanders in the field think up orders that brainwave sensors pick up and distribute to troops. "It'd be radio without a microphone," says a neuroscientist in...

Bike Helmets? Up to You, Says London Mayor
Bike Helmets? Up to You, Says London Mayor
OPINION
Jun 17, 2008 6:58 AM CDT

Bike Helmets? Up to You, Says London Mayor

Sometimes it's just too nice out to be safe, writes Boris Johnson

(Newser) - The bicycle-loving mayor of London has a clear message for riders in the capital: wear a helmet, or else don't wear one. Writing in the Telegraph, Boris Johnson admits that despite the obvious arguments about safety, it's not always easy to put on an "undignified plastic hat" in fair...

Pentagon Destroys Surplus Goods
Pentagon Destroys
Surplus Goods
Jul 23, 2007 2:21 PM CDT

Pentagon Destroys Surplus Goods

Surplus dealers angry at scope of gear purge

(Newser) - The Pentagon is scrapping millions of dollars of gear it has traditionally resold to surplus dealers, Time reports. The army claims that sorting passels of helmets, boots, and sleeping bags is too onerous, while suppliers are concerned the move is the vestige of an effort to keep old jet parts...

Kids Skate on Heelys to Emergency Room

Skater shoes set off scraped knees epidemic

(Newser) - A new craze has kids gliding across hard surfaces on tiny skate wheels built into their sneakers—but the "heelys" are deceptively unsafe, a new study says. The report claims the skate shoes sent 1,600 youngsters to the emergency room last year.

20 Stories
Most Read on Newser