Comic Strips

Okay, let's talk about gear.

Helmets keep you alive. If you're not wearing a helmet with a chin bar (full or modular), you don't care about your face. On such a helmet, the face shield keeps shit out of your eyes and noise out of your ears. If your helmet does not mitigate wind noise very well, you should be wearing earplugs. Tinnitus is no joke. I like the ones with the little plastic filter in them, but even cheap disposable foam ones are better than nothing, and yes, you will still be able to hear traffic noises just fine.

You'll want to replace your helmet every three to five years, because the foam inside degrades and loses its ability to absorb impact. If you accidentally drop your empty helmet on the ground, it's fine; if the helmet hits the ground with your head in it, it's time for a new one.

Airbag vests are great and offer protection from organ damage due to impact. You like your organs. I believe there are also helmets that have neck airbags in them to keep your head from snapping around and breaking your neck.

The rest of the gear is to reduce injury. You won't die without it, but you will hurt. Maybe a lot.

Gloves, pants, jacket all prevent abrasions. Tall boots with proper stiffening also keep your ankles from getting broken. The armor pads are designed to protect the areas of your body that are most likely to skid against the ground: knuckles, palms, knees, butt, elbows, back. All of this gear doesn't have to be replaced on any time schedule, or if you slide in it, but you can easily determine whether it's damaged enough to need replacing. Armor pads are normally removable in jackets and pants.

Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.