The first lesson that any child should learn is the safety of wearing a helmet. Wear a helmet for your safety riding a bike, while playing sports, and you should always wear a helmet when skating. All helmets are the same? But are bike and skate helmets different? Let’s find out if there are any contrasts between a bike and a skate helmet.
Why Should I Wear a Helmet?
Let’s see what happens after you fall down on a bike or in a skating accident. People have been known to obtain head injuries. Helmets shield you from serious injuries to your head. The date for when the helmet was first invented is not known, but resources have suggested that the helmet has been around since 1896 as the first headgear in football.
Don’t risk your life and avoid wearing a helmet because it doesn’t look cool. You are cool for wearing a helmet because you are avoiding any injuries that may put you at a severe health risk.
Bike vs. Skate Helmets
- Safety Standards
For most sports, the helmet works as a different safety standard. To see what your bike helmet safety implements, look at the sticker on the inside of the helmet. Use common sense when performing both activities because it is very easy to have an accident if you are fooling around.
The differences among helmet styles are based on the safety conditions of each sport. Meeting exact certification management and adherence to voluntary standards is also necessary. You should never buy a helmet that is not correctly certified. It also helps to know that some helmets satisfy more than the minimum requirements.
- Bike Helmet
The Consumer Product Safety Commission sets the criteria for bike helmets all across the U.S. Bike helmets are constructed to provide a single major impact. Impacts like a fall on pavement compress the foam in the helmet. Once a bike helmet has sustained a significant hit, the helmet has to be disposed of. The impact alters the helmet.
The design of bicycle helmets can take extreme force from one impact. These helmets need be replaced after one accident.
- Skate Helmets
Some skate helmets offer softer foam. However, this type of helmet is not appropriate to wear for high impact hits. The skate helmet is made for multiple low impacts falls. Unlike a bike helmet, the thicker outer shell of a skate helmet is constructed to withstand multiple impacts. Most skate helmets are safer to use.
If you roller skate or in-line skate, search for a helmet certified to CPSC standards for bicycling. Skating is similar to bicycling. The types of crashes are less frequent than in roller skating, but injuries tend to be more severe.
- Coverage
The principle apparent differences among a bike and skate helmet are the vents, visors, and head coverage. The contrast in coverage comes from the types of falls and collisions associated with each activity. It is very important to cover the back of your head for safety.
- Bike Helmets
Downhill bike helmets have full face coverage. For this activity, helmets are very necessary because of the falls that may occur. Wearing a full-face helmet is not recommended for general usage. They are heavier, not as comfortable, and are hot to wear.
Road Bike helmets are different. They do not cover the lower half of the back of your head. The back of your head is one of the most important areas to protect.
- Skate Helmets
Skate helmets support the back of the head. Nobody knows how they are going to fall. Most sources encourage skaters to fall on their side. That is not always easy. Skate helmets are designed to cover the lower part of the back of your head to help prevent injuries.
- Visors
Visors work so they can keep the sun out of the eyes. Let’s see what the difference is between a bike and skate helmet.
- Bike Helmets
Mountain bike helmets have visors, whereas road bike helmets don’t. The main reason regarding this difference is that road cyclists usually wear sunglasses to shield their eyes from the blinding sun.
Given that mountain bikers often ride in the shade in the woods area, they tend to wear clear or low light lenses and, therefore, appreciate the shade from the sun when they need it.
In contrast to skaters, road cyclists ride with their heads lower, looking at the ground more than what is in front of them. This more aerodynamic position involves visors that can get in the way of seeing.
- Skate Helmets
Most skate helmets do not come with a visor. Manufacturers do not include a visor on skate helmets because of the belief that it may decrease the risk to see where one is going. Unlike bikers, skaters are trying to see what is in front of them rather than staring at the ground. So, a small visor is built on a skating helmet.
- Vents
Vents are constructed in helmets to allow users to breathe. Okay, yes, your head cannot breathe, but think about all that sweat that collects on your forehead. It is very easy to overheat. Vents keep the head cool.
A tip for buyers: when looking into buying a helmet look at how many vents are on the helmet. The more vents, then the more expensive it is.
- Bike Helmets
Road bike helmets have the most vents out of any helmet. Bikers heat up more along their ride. Road bike helmets that are pricier usually pay more attention to aerodynamics. The more aerodynamic varieties have fewer vents, as the vents create wind drag.
- Skate Helmets
The classic skate helmet only has a few vents. The design of a skate helmet is a round, smooth shape. Generally speaking, bike helmets tend to stick to the style of skate helmets for vents and otherwise.
- Style of the Helmets
Helmets are a way to show your personal style. One of the most major differences between and bike and skate helmet is the styles. While style is obviously an individual choice, you should think about safety. No matter what, you are going to look cool wearing a helmet because you believe in safety. Protect your head.
- Bike Helmets
Here is a surprising fact. The bike helmet is not popular among the biker crowd. You choose a bike helmet by size and shape. Bike helmets are designed for higher speeds and different kinds of impacts. Because of the nature of riding a bike, this design is especially true of motorbike helmets since they need to protect the rider’s head at much greater speeds.
Bikers actually don’t like the shape of bike helmets, therefore, being drawn to skate helmets more. Unlike skate helmets, bike helmets have more ventilation shafts.
- Skate Helmets
Skate helmets actually have a better style. Most bikers prefer to wear a skate helmet over the bike helmet. Skate helmets look more youthful. Skate helmets are designed for low-speed impacts and multiple falls before replacement.
Style-wise the skate-inspired design for skate helmets is a better all-around choice because it doesn’t make you look out of place on a bike, skateboard, in-line skating, or even snowboarding.
- Impact Resistance
Trust us, everybody falls. That one person who boasts that they have never fallen has obviously had a fall they are covering up. Helmets have a different impact on resistance. The outside of the helmet has a thin hard shell.
- Bike Helmets
In contrast to skate helmets, a bike helmet is made out of a hard EPS foam that is designed to take one large impact and break, after which you need to replace the helmet.
- Skate Helmets
Traditional, non-certified, skate helmets are composed of a softer foam shell that protects against many small impacts. Though skate helmets are designed to protect the back of your head, they are often not certified.
Buy a skate helmet that uses the same hard EPS foam a bike helmet has, that still protects the back of your head.
Should Skaters Wear Bike Helmets?
That preference is up to all skaters. As mentioned, most skaters or bikers choose their helmets based on style needs. Helmets meeting this standard of the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission provides protection against skull fractures and severe brain injuries when the helmet is used properly.
These designations cover the design of the helmet along with performance requirements for skate helmets. Because cyclists rarely fall on their adventures, the helmet has a very different design. Skaters should keep that factor in mind next time they choose a bike helmet to go skating. Companies follow test procedures for helmets used in the activities of roller skating.
Always Look Out for Your Helmet
This goes for everybody, parents included. Always check your helmet for any damage. Kids should be truthful to their parents if they ever have a fall. Falling impacts the helmet. Examine your helmet to see if there are any new signs of impact from a fall.
