shiny.new.red.lid

I was worrying myself silly the other week over the fact that I wanted a new bicycle helmet. Not needed one, just wanted one. It seemed silly to buy a helmet purely for aesthetic reasons. And then it hit me. Twice.

One: Since when has a bicycle helmet been an object to covet? An object of beauty? Shouldn’t this be celebrated, not worried over? A great step forward for cycling-kind? A luxury problem, no longer forced to seek out the least-ugly helmet but to be seduced by purty helmets?

And two: As I’ve mentioned before; I’m a hat loving woman. In fact I have always firmly believed that one can never have too many hats. I don’t worry before buying a new hat that I already have one, or ten. And believe me, most hats cost more than a bicycle helmet.

So why not helmets? I’m forced by some of the most ridiculous helmet laws in the world to wear the bloody things, often two or three times a day. In fact, more frequently than I get to wear hats. In fact fact, it’s the helmets preventing me from wearing hats half the time! What more do I need to justify having an array of helmets, one for every occasion?

So dear reader I present to you, the first of my helmet collection. (The old one, bought-purely-to-satisfy-worlds-most-ridiculous-helmet-laws and having absolutely no aesthetic value whatsoever, doesn’t count.)
I chose this particular helmet because it would look most fetching with my favourite winter scarf, a sort of gunmetal grey affair. Certainly one of the most sensible criteria I’ve ever had for selecting a helmet. And yes, red will, obviously, go faster. 😉

Of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder and there may be those amongst you who actually prefer more traditional helmets, the ones that look like a bionicle has been strapped to your head. I’m sure on a Tour De France cyclist hurtling down the French Alps they have a certain je ne sais quoi.

I have no argument with that. I’m just saying, if you like that look and you spend a lot of time on your bike, buy a dozen!