Saturday, February 28, 2009

safety first!

Today I found myself in a little predicament which required me to ride my bike two miles in the cold rain to the nearest post office. Two miles would be nothing on any other occasion, but today the car was definitely tempting.

I survived the short trip (quite comfortably actually) with the help of two very well-designed accessories. One was a portable fender that my brother gave me as a gift last year. The other was my helmet. I've wrecked enough times to know that riding without one is a very bad idea, regardless of how silly it looks. The good thing is, thanks to companies like Bern and Yakkay, you really don't have to look all that silly.



Today, I wore the Baker helmet with winter gear attached. The ear flaps kept me so warm and the visor kept the rain out of my eyes! I think they are geared more towards snow and skate, but the EPS foam complies with all bike safety standards. Plus, it's waterproof and dries quickly after each use!










If I could afford one, I would be sporting a Yakkay helmet.

"YAKKAY's products are developed on the basis of our insight into contemporary people’s specific wishes and issues. This insight is transformed into obvious and beautifully designed solutions. The solutions are YAKKAY's products."

I've always thought that stylish bike safety was an untapped market. Another opportunity for design to improve the human condition. How much would the number of bike-related deaths decrease if wearing a helmet was cool?

1 comment:

  1. I started wearing a helmet after moving to San Diego. It's really not that big of a deal and flat out a good idea. a lot of the bike shops around here promote it under the phrase "Safety is Sexy" It's usually included at the bottom of group ride fliers, critical mass fliers, and other bike event fliers. woohoo!

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