- Wed Jul 18, 2018 12:42 pm
#403995
Chris,
You've made an excellent point and lead to another.
Yes, you had very good landing skills, and were able to put it down in small places with apparent ease. While we're never going to know exactly what happened to you on that day, the more compelling point is that if it happened to a highly-skilled pilot like you, it can certainly happen to others. We absolutely shouldn't wait until a major impact happens to consider if our current helmet is enough.
From our post-crash discussions, I know you hadn't really given much consideration to the quality of your Charley Insider helmet. It's been a standard for HG pilots for some number of years and has the EN-966 certification for air sports. Of course, anyone who has compared the EN-966 to something more relatable like DOT (what motocross helmets require) can tell the EN standard is quite low. Looking at a HG helmet when compared to a MC helmet is downright scary, and thinking about how a tumble from a dirtbike could easily compare to a HG crash like yours makes me wonder why anyone would leave themselves open to the level of pain and long-term suffering you've endured.
Chris, I've noticed a significant number of you flying buddies change their helmets for something more protective. They've seen what inadequate helmet protection did to you, and are looking for better protection for themselves. In posting on the .ORG I'm hoping to further spread the word, trying to convince others to seriously consider getting away from typical HG helmets. Yes, I'm a big fan of Kali, but there are many other options which are at least better than Charley, Icaro, etc when it comes to head protection.
When will a helmet be designed to protect a seriously TBI'd individual like yourself? I don't know, but I hope it happens. Meanwhile, the rest of us should try to protect against TBI in every way we reasonably can - including improved helmet protection.
RM