Helmet B

                         

Should you always wear a helmet when you ride a bike? This is one of those issues that crops up regularly on blogs and in the media and more often than not written by people who don’t ride regularly. I’m not going to go into it now, it’s a personal choice and people should be left to make their own mind up in my opinion.

One of the reasons people cite not wanting to wear a helmet is they are often bulky, heavy and can be quite hot too. Well French designer Julien Bergignat has come up with an idea called Helmet B, also known as ‘Tatou’ or Armadillo. Using the Armadillo as inspiration for the form of the helmet it creates a protective shell when riding but can be laid out flat when you’re not on the bike.

I think it makes a pretty nice looking helmet but not convinced it would protect you that much on impact. It’s just an idea at the moment but I would love to see it put into production to offer something different in the helmet market.

                         

                               

Stylish cycling

If you ask most people to describe cycling and specifically cycling to work I bet most of them won't use the word stylish in their answer. The majority of people in the UK and definitely in my home town of Birmingham see cycling as dangerous, sweaty, expensive or just too difficult. However, I believe cycling is a fantastic way to get to work, in the main its stress free, safe and enjoyable and more people should do it. In fact the more people who cycle the safer it gets.

On my cycle to work every day I pass many people riding to work in a wide range of outfits but the majority are wearing day glow colours on a hybrid or mountain bike with a few in the dreaded Lycra on their expensive road bikes. The emphasis seems to be placed on over the top safety gear and functionality and this is another issue that will scare a lot of people off. No one seems to think you can cycle to work and still be stylish but this isn't the case, just check out this flickr group. This blog isn't breaking new ground really, sites like Cycle Chic show how easy it is to look stylish and be practical but this message needs to be spread further.

The picture above was taken in a small city in Denmark called Aarhaus, literally bikes as far as the eye can see and there were plenty more bike racks like it in the city. We Brits have a great history of cycling and played a huge role in their development, now we need to take to our bikes once more. It's good for you, good for the environment and best of all fun, so get out there and make the roads safer for everyone.

Hopefully this blog will inspire you to get back on your bike or if you all ready do cycle just provide some nice things to look at for your bike. Hope you enjoy it.