Open face helmets

  • Thread starter Thread starter RR
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RR

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Its probably me, but my head freakin cooks while racing! I wear a closed face helmet, and was wondering if folks found it more comfortable wearing an open face style instead? Are they still legal? Dont see many people wearing them but they must be cooler. Thoughts???
 
Originally posted by RR:
Its probably me, but my head freakin cooks while racing! I wear a closed face helmet, and was wondering if folks found it more comfortable wearing an open face style instead? Are they still legal? Dont see many people wearing them but they must be cooler. Thoughts???
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They probably are cooler. Until something hits you in the face, or you do a face plant on the steering wheel.

G-Force has a forced air Kevlar helmet for $300. At that price, I see zero reason to not get a full-face helmet and keep the shield down.

Don't worry about quality. I was until I saw them in person. My G-Force is better quality than my Bell Sport II IMHO.

I had been thinking about a forced air helmet, but the offerings from Bell and Homer, er, Simpson, are really pricey. The G-Force came along and was tempting me. All it took for me was to see one in person and try it on.

Now I have to build a cooler/blower set-up.


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George Roffe
Houston, TX
84 944 ITS car under construction
92 ITS Sentra SE-R occasionally borrowed
http://www.nissport.com
 
It may also be more comfy not to wear seat belts too...

Despite their "legality" forget the open face style.

They are painful when raining or dusty!
 
I used open face helmets for a long time for the same reason, it makes a big difference having the cool air on your face. In a flash of common sense (maybe just getting older) I started rethinking the safety issue and came up with a compromise. A couple of years ago I bought a Bieffe Integaral its a touring car style kind of like a full face but with a large hole and no shield, I think its the best of all worlds as well as being the most comfortable helmet I've had in 24 years of racing.
 
I just took off the shield of my helmet. It makes me claustrophobic, and I feel like I can't breathe. Since I am in a closed car, it didn't seem quite as big of a safety issue.

That being said, I can remember once getting hit right in the nose with something that got kicked up and made it through the window net. Going with a mesh net on my 'new' ITC Civic.

Meg Meyer
 
Let's play Pyramid!

Scalding coolant
Whole rear view mirror
Grasshoppers
Dirt, dirt, and more dirt
Fuel
Broken glass
Branch still attached to a tree
Battery acid
LOTS of rocks
Fiat crankshaft journal with rod big end

Things that Kirk has seen fly into the driver's compartment of closed cars?

Ding!
 
Fire! A co-driver yrs ago at the Longest Day lost all facial hair when they had a flash fire after refueling. At least keeping the face shield attached would give you a chance of slapping it down before you exit the car.
 
Rally co-driver, anyway...

Another rally guy in the NW (used to run an Escort MkI) went off and had a broken fir branch stab a hold in the shoulder bolster of his seat, about 4" from his left ear. The other branch intrusion was actually on a road course (Seattle), where a guy went off at the exit of T2 and ended up in a pile of branches just past the end of the tire wall.

I didn't include fire because I thought that was obvious. It should go without saying that, if you wear Nomex because you think there is a risk of fire (not just because it's required) then you should have your face covered and shield down.

K
 
During my first drive in a formula car, I was hit in the throat by a rock as I was driving at speed down the long straight into turn nine at Riverside. It didn't hurt that bad but it made me think. Now, I always wear a closed face helmet with a hood, I just keep the shield partially open to let in air.
If you have facial hair a hood is required.

I'm still here but Riverside isn't.

Tom
 
While I agree with the safety concerns of not having a visor on the helmet that many have brought up, a real concern for drivers in the south east (as well as other regions of the country I am sure)is the heat. I have come close to blacking out due to the high heat and humidity at some of our races. I remember a race at Charlotte a few years back where it was 123 degrees in the paddock, no breeze due to the enclosed track, and way up in the high eighties humidity wise. My solution was to cut the visor so that only a small area (maybe three inches across) of my face is exposed. It helps tremendously to get some cooler air on my head, and since I always wear sun glasses (non shattering sports type), at least the smaller stuff is less of a concern hitting the eyes. I would love a cool suit or cool air blower but I am already over weight on the car......

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Tristan Smith
Buffalo's Southwest Cafe
ITA Nissan 240sx #56
 
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