Helmet Redux - Reduce Sun Damage

Poster note: This particular post is of no interest to Canadians, unless they happen to be in Afghanistan with the NATO forces. Everyone knows that even the noontime summer sun barely melts the ice in the frozen northland, making things difficult for the snowmobiles. Gives me shivers just thinking about it! If you are Canadian, read this post instead. If that's not enough, there's more for you here.

As my doctor told me this morning when I was getting examined, a helmet helps keep the sun off one's head so this is less likely. She noted that the sun is intense enough in Texas summers that one is at risk even when riding home from work at 5PM. Use more sunblock! And use that helmet to keep the sun off your head. It's another way that bicycles are different (except for convertibles and cars with open sunroofs). Besides getting more sun, per travel mile, cyclists live for more years, getting even MORE exposure. The simple-minded might think "use a hat, you twit!" but haberdashers do not brag about the superior cooling passages on their products.

The danger is particularly severe for those with superior scalp cooling or who have shaved their heads. Those looking like a yeti (shown here) may not be as concerned with this danger.