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PlainLight
May 15th, 2012, 08:13 PM
It's been awhile since I posted, but I'm back with another problem. :o I never expected long-haired life to be so complicated!

This problem is about safety... specifically, bicycle helmets. Since a couple of years ago (before I started growing out my hair) I haven't done any bike riding. Now, with excess weight to lose and a beautiful new bike, I'm ready to start into it again. There's just one problem: my helmet won't fit! I don't wear my hair down as a rule, normally keeping it in a bun halfway up the back of my head. I'm afraid of riding with my hair down and getting it caught in something, and I don't know how to braid.

This seems like kind of a silly question, but what should I do? Is there a style of helmet I can look for that might accommodate this? What do you all do when you ride a bicycle?

Venefica
May 15th, 2012, 08:18 PM
When I need to eat up some braid length what I do is that I make two braids down my back and then I tie ladders into them. Basically I take the braids, and just tie single, loose knots with them until I am out of length and then secure that with some sort of elastic. The result is what look like a short chain or ladder of hair. This really eats length and is great for when you need to keep your hair out of the way but do not want a bun, like for example under a helmet.

PurplePenguin
May 15th, 2012, 09:00 PM
I haven't yet come across this issue but I would say do a low bun at the nape of your neck instead of a bun that's in the middle of your head. You might also want to look into learning how to braid.

sycamoreboutiqu
May 15th, 2012, 11:39 PM
Plainlight - 42" hair and you haven't tried braiding ? Seriously, braiding is the answer.

Check out the numerous Youtube tutorials on braiding or get someone you know to show you. Braids are the solution for long hair worries. Buns are great but they can't solve every situation, like a big bun not fitting into a helmet.

darklyndsea
May 16th, 2012, 12:57 AM
I read somewhere (no idea where, so take it with a grain of salt) that bicycle helmets don't protect much, and possibly make you more likely to get hit by cars, so I don't wear a helmet anymore (obviously not something you want to do in places where there are helmet laws).

Other than that, though, I agree with everybody else: braiding's tricky in the beginning, but with a bit of practice you can do it!

katsrevenge
May 16th, 2012, 02:00 AM
Learn to braid lady!

Practice on yarn first if it helps... or have you a friend with hair?

other then that... maybe a redneck braid? This is when you put a low pony in and put hair tyes every few inches down the length. My uncle used to wear them all the time.

Libbylou
May 16th, 2012, 02:04 AM
I don't wear a helmet. I usually don't ride with traffic. I hit the hike and bike trails. They make new ones all the time. Check online line to see if there is one by you.

Kiwiwi
May 16th, 2012, 02:43 AM
Hahaha, this always makes me laugh (not in a mean way!).
My country could very well be bike-country #1 and nobody wears helmets here. Only the serious sport cyclers.

Can you rope braid? It's not the same as braiding, maybe you can do that.
Or indeed a low bun-ish thingy.

Phalaenopsis
May 16th, 2012, 04:56 AM
Plainlight - 42" hair and you haven't tried braiding ? Seriously, braiding is the answer.

Check out the numerous Youtube tutorials on braiding or get someone you know to show you. Braids are the solution for long hair worries. Buns are great but they can't solve every situation, like a big bun not fitting into a helmet.
This.

Braiding has been a savior for many a time!

newbeginning
May 16th, 2012, 05:13 AM
When I wear a helmet I do a regular braid and tie it off. I then tuck my hair/lay it against the back of my head and then put the helmet on. I'm probably explaining it badly but I basically braid my hair and then tuck it under the helmet (I don't use any pins and it stays under the helmet okay). This may not work depending how long/thick your hair is.

torrilin
May 16th, 2012, 07:04 AM
Kiwiwi, yes it is a bit silly to wear a helmet, but it's a lot easier to go along than deal with arguments with loved ones. Plus sadly there's a real attitude in the US and Canada that helmets are magic hats that protect you from accidents :P. I'm pretty clumsy tho and I can assure you I fall way more than a grown woman ought to... the magic hat does not work to prevent accidents. OTOH, with how often I fall, a helmet isn't a bad idea either... I like my head working.

Plainlight, it's past time to learn to braid. Not because it will totally solve your problem, because you're probably edging into "can sit on my braid" territory. But because once you can braid, you have style options with your helmet that won't get in the way. All the buns I know that work with helmets depend on me being a ii thickness. There's no way you're going to be able to use a nape bun with iii thickness and 42" hair. And I don't think a vortex bun will get flat enough to be usable. And given your length and thickness you may still need to buy a new helmet... one that is on the loosest adjustment with your hair slicked down flat is not going to be safe. Your helmet needs to fit securely over your hair, or wearing it is not going to do any good. It's better to go without a helmet than to wear one that doesn't fit.

With a braid, simple things like folding it in half can go a long way to protect your length while still letting you wear a helmet. Another option is things like the many crown/Heidi braid variations, which all get quite a lot of hair snugged flat to your head. Braided pigtails can work well too.

GRU
May 16th, 2012, 08:19 AM
I read somewhere (no idea where, so take it with a grain of salt) that bicycle helmets don't protect much, and possibly make you more likely to get hit by cars, so I don't wear a helmet anymore (obviously not something you want to do in places where there are helmet laws).

Wow.... please don't follow this advice.

Bike helmets won't prevent you from breaking your leg in an accident, but they DO help protect your BRAIN, which is kind of necessary to have.

If helmets don't protect from concussion and traumatic brain injury, why do professional football players wear them? Baseball players (when batting)? Hockey players? Race car drivers? Tour de France cyclists?

Go to your local emergency room (A&E in England) and ask the doctors there if they see a difference in brain injury for bikers whose head smashed into the pavement based on which bikers were wearing helmets vs which bikers were bare-headed.


To the OP: if you don't want to braid your hair down your back, you can also "caterpillar braid" it -- a low ponytail with added elastics every few inches all down the length to keep the hair contained.

swearnsue
May 16th, 2012, 08:24 AM
In addition to saving your brain, the helmet will prevent the asphalt from scraping your scalp off.

Madora
May 16th, 2012, 08:35 AM
As others have suggested, braiding is the answer to your problem.

You might also try a "twined" approach...i.e.

1) Detangle all hair thoroughly and divide in two sections.

2) Take one section and pass it over the other section

3) Take the next section and pass it over the other section..i.e. "twining" down the length. Secure end with elastic.

4) Take twined hair and place it like a crown braid around your head. Pin with crimped hairpins.

PlainLight
May 16th, 2012, 09:13 AM
Braiding it is, then! :) I agree it's way past time I learned. And maybe I can find a way to make a braid that I can then quickly coil into a bun once I take my helmet off. Thanks!

spidermom
May 16th, 2012, 09:15 AM
A simple 3-strand braid is not hard. You can do it!

moxamoll
May 16th, 2012, 09:18 AM
Wow! Yes, please, please wear a helmet. I don't think anyone has ever suggested that they prevent accidents - of course they don't! They do, however, keep your brain inside your skull when you do have an accident. Having "killed" two helmets in my biking career, I shudder to think about the mess if I'd taken that impact on my skull. ETA: if there's any correlation between wearing a helmet and being hit by cars, I'd have to imagine it's because the cyclist with the helmet has a false sense of invulnerability and isn't paying proper attention. However, I killed one helmet by hitting a rock badly on a path and getting pitched into a tree trunk, so no traffic doesn't equal no accidents, either.

And yes, braiding is definitely the way to go. I sometimes do an English braid starting just a little up from my nape and then it's easy to coil it up into a bun and spear it with a hair stick.

Nenyath
May 16th, 2012, 09:30 AM
If braiding proves impossible, there's a few other solutions. I haven't tried them, but they look promising!

Hair twisters! Pony your hair, hook and twist..
http://www.hairtwisters.com/

For the more "tough" occasions, this might be what you need:
http://www.hairglove.com/

Happy biking!

WaitingSoLong
May 16th, 2012, 09:32 AM
To the OP: if you don't want to braid your hair down your back, you can also "caterpillar braid" it -- a low ponytail with added elastics every few inches all down the length to keep the hair contained.

There is a term for this? WOW I have been doing it for ages and call it a biker's ponytail.


other then that... maybe a redneck braid? This is when you put a low pony in and put hair tyes every few inches down the length. My uncle used to wear them all the time.

SPEW.....what???? a REDNECK braid? Ok now...I will just leave that alone. walk away WSL...walk away...


Plus sadly there's a real attitude in the US and Canada that helmets are magic hats that protect you from accidents :P. I'm pretty clumsy tho and I can assure you I fall way more than a grown woman ought to... the magic hat does not work to prevent accidents.

Wow I do not know anyone who would agree with this at all. Magic? PREVENTS accidents? Sorry but this is absurd and I don't know who would be...I will say naive...enough to believe a helmet PREVENTS accidents.

On that note (steps up on soapbox), I am super sick of the generalizations people impose upon Americans as if we have no regard for real life, other people or have any brains at all. I see a lot of posts on this forum of this nature. I would not impose any kind of generalization on any given group, reagardless of how you categorize them. That is called prejudice. Definition of prejudice: pre-judging someone based on their religion, location, race, ethnicity, age, job, gender, sexual preference, political party, etc. It can even be positive, like certain races being better at sports. It is still prejudice. Don't ever assume anything about anyone. That is a form of identity theft. (steps down).

OP: If you bicycle on a regular basis, you WILL have an accident. Guaranteed. Tires pop. Gravel skids. Dogs jump in front of you. Potholes happen. That being said, car vs. bicycle is the worst accident and a helmet is essential if you will actually be riding on public roads. Road rash is mendable. Broken bones are mendable. Brain damage, not so mendable.

Woldn't hurt to carry pepper spray, too. More than once I have been met by a viscious dog, and there are a lot of missing women news stories around here that are bicyclers. But you asked about hair. I have no advice other than what has been given already.

My dd struggles to make "proper" braids. She can braid, but not tightly or evenly. When she really wants her hair braided, she asks me to do it. Don't get discouraged. It make not look pretty at first but that will come with time and technique/fingering.

WaterMusic
May 16th, 2012, 09:44 AM
Several others have articulated themselves better than I, so I won't say more than this: Wear a helmet.

GRU
May 16th, 2012, 09:46 AM
Road rash is mendable. Broken bones are mendable. Brain damage, not so mendable.

My son's pediatrician puts it this way: "I'm pretty good at fixing broken bones and broken skin -- I have plaster and I have stitches for those things. Broken brains, however, I'm not so good at fixing, so you need to not break yours in the first place -- wear your helmet, every single time!"

Nae
May 16th, 2012, 10:16 AM
My DS gets bullied for wearing his helmet. They call him "Helmet Boy" which has a kinda superhero side-kick vibe to it, but it really bothers him, so he doesn't ride his bike very much anymore.

I love him dearly, and don't want him to be bullied, but I will NOT allow him to ride without one. I had a friend in high school who ended up in a bicycle accident with a van, of course she ended up in much worse shape than the van's driver and was in a coma for about 2 months. She had to learn to walk again. She still isn't the same girl, ability wise, that she was in high school, and never will be again. All because she didn't wear a helmet.

So, I wouldn't say that Americans all wear their helmets. Especially not if it is something that is ridiculed. But they should.

And my little Americans WILL wear their helmets regardless of what others think of them.

OP, yep, braiding is the answer. Have a great time biking!

GRU
May 16th, 2012, 11:04 AM
My DS gets bullied for wearing his helmet. They call him "Helmet Boy" which has a kinda superhero side-kick vibe to it, but it really bothers him, so he doesn't ride his bike very much anymore.

We went through this for a while too... "But nobody else on the whole block has to wear a helmet!!!!"

My response: "If they give you a hard time about it, just tell them that their parents must not think they have enough brains to bother protecting, but YOUR parents know you're smart and they want you to STAY smart, so you always wear your helmet -- because your brain is worth protecting."

He has no problem wearing his helmet for hockey, and I don't see how this is any different....

RoseOfClare
May 16th, 2012, 11:35 AM
If you don't know how to braid I would say to go with this : Banded pony

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2780/5834841532_f343b3cdcb_z.jpg

Works quiet well from keeping it getting tangled i use to do it all the time when I was younger. I would use diff color hair ties.....

But I dont wear a helmet and I don't ride on busy roads

Celtic Morla
May 16th, 2012, 11:39 AM
If you cantr get the hang of braiding doing a low bun at the nape should do it.

For thoise who dont wear a bike helmet I can testify that they will save your brains! My son was rinding his bike and crossing a raod when a car turned into him and if he hadnt been wearing his helmet he would have definately been hurt bad he hit head first and cracked hi shelmet in half, didnt even show sugns of concussion! His bike was trashed but he walked away from it!

heidi w.
May 16th, 2012, 11:52 AM
This is NOT a silly problem. There are all kinds of safety concerns that occur with long hair that shorter haired people never even realize could be a concern. I must wear my hair up all the time because of problems along the way that I may encounter during my daily activities.

You could try making sure the helmet is on the head properly, such as the front is down over the forehead. Not the most attractive, but most people I see wearing a helmet are wearing it incorrectly for maximum safety. If this is more down, the back will be more up, allowing one to bun their hair lower on the back of the head.

Because of the use of velcro on these helmets nowadays, I had to gather my hair in a bun, wrap in a scarf or bandanna, then put on the helmet, or I get hair caught up in the velcro. Something to beware of.

I don't know your overall length, but is a braid a possibility? Braiding eats up a lot of length, and this just might be more suitable than hoping the position of a bun is in the right place for a helmet to fit.

I now have to watch out for oven doors; walking up the stairs particularly--not as big of an issue walking down the stairs; sitting in office chairs with rollers on them; file cabinets that close; car doors; car windows; seatbelts; my dog stepping on my hair; kneeling down as when I go to stand up I can step on my own hair and yank my head back or worse, fall backwards. I have to watch out for fans or even any sort of wind such as from outdoor wind to fans to A/C units. I have to move my hair when I am seated on the toilet; wear it up during lawnmowing, and so on. Lots of little things that are normal to me, but essentially I just wear my hair up all the time and none of this is therefore a concern. But down, it's a big concern.

Stuff you come to know as one gets longer and longer hair.

heidi w.

heidi w.
May 16th, 2012, 11:55 AM
If you cantr get the hang of braiding doing a low bun at the nape should do it.

For thoise who dont wear a bike helmet I can testify that they will save your brains! My son was rinding his bike and crossing a raod when a car turned into him and if he hadnt been wearing his helmet he would have definately been hurt bad he hit head first and cracked hi shelmet in half, didnt even show sugns of concussion! His bike was trashed but he walked away from it!

Be sure a low bun at the nape is well secured. You don't want to be riding and your hair falls out, and then there you are in the street, re-doing your hair updo for the day.

heidi w.

heidi w.
May 16th, 2012, 11:57 AM
We went through this for a while too... "But nobody else on the whole block has to wear a helmet!!!!"

My response: "If they give you a hard time about it, just tell them that their parents must not think they have enough brains to bother protecting, but YOUR parents know you're smart and they want you to STAY smart, so you always wear your helmet -- because your brain is worth protecting."

He has no problem wearing his helmet for hockey, and I don't see how this is any different....

If everyone is wearing a helmet all together (not a bunch of people wearing one helmet, a bunch of people wearing their own helmets, but all are wearing their individual helmets at the same time) then that's cool. If one person is wearing his helmet and the majority are not, then he's weird. It's all about group dynamics and power.

Too bad a kid is scared off from bike riding over this. That's sad.

heidi w.

jacqueline101
May 16th, 2012, 01:25 PM
I'd say braid of some type is the answer.

torrilin
May 16th, 2012, 01:26 PM
Wow I do not know anyone who would agree with this at all. Magic? PREVENTS accidents? Sorry but this is absurd and I don't know who would be...I will say naive...enough to believe a helmet PREVENTS accidents.

Didn't say it was smart :). But I routinely hear people who don't bike ask about helmet use after a biker gets hurt. And then they're surprised if there are injuries and a helmet was used. It took a couple DAYS to get it through my mother-outlaw's head that helmets do not prevent broken collarbones this winter. Really irritating. There were similar issues when I sprained my knee. And a lot of folks on bike related forums report similar experiences, which sucks.

I think it's partly an exposure thing. I get the weird and silly responses most from the people who have the least interaction with bikes and biking.

ladylowtide
May 16th, 2012, 01:36 PM
Please wear a helmet.

I drove my dad to the hospital after he was t-boned by a car going 35 miles an hour, while he was on his bike (she ran a stop sign). I have never been so scared in my life. He hit the car so hard she couldn't open the drivers side door. All of the windows were busted out. Luckily he only had some deep bruising and a wrist fracture. The messenger bag he had on his back, and his helmet (with a nice big dent in it after the accident), saved him from getting gravely hurt.

So from my perspective, the helmet isn't optional. Sorry about the big long paragraph, I just saw some people in this thread didn't wear helmets and I just thought I should share my father's story.

Now for the matter of your hair. When I was little and had hip length hair, I used to ride my bike all of the time. What I did was the long ponytail with scrunchies at even intervals down the length, or three low braids that I then braided together. The later seemed to really secure my hair and keep it short and in place.

AndreaPetrea
May 16th, 2012, 01:47 PM
Wow, people can't be very smart if they think that a helmet will protect anything else than the head it is covering.

I was also bullied a lot in school because my parents made me wear a helmet (and because of a million other things). I ended up letting my mother drive me to school. Then I got bullied for that. Sometimes you just can't win... But I will say like GRU, my classmates' brains weren't worth saving anyway.

Sorry for the OT. OP, unfortunately I don't have experience with long hair, but really, braiding is not very difficult when you learn the technique :) I'm sure you can learn it!

Cupofmilk
May 16th, 2012, 02:01 PM
I was going to post about this recently. I can braid but the friction of the braid on my top causes it to be fuzzy mess when I take it out. I was thinking of braiding and using scrunching to tie a silk scarf around it.

katsrevenge
May 16th, 2012, 02:10 PM
There is a term for this? WOW I have been doing it for ages and call it a biker's ponytail.



SPEW.....what???? a REDNECK braid? Ok now...I will just leave that alone. walk away WSL...walk away...


Yes. They call them both here actually. :) I tend to go with the redneck braid term as the bikers here tend to be not very nice guys and the rednecks on the other hand are for the most part. And ya know, my uncle. His was a manly BSL for years and that is what he called it. :p

jtsck
May 16th, 2012, 02:39 PM
Make sure if you wear a helmet (which you should!) that you check it regularly for dents and dings. A helmet can only save your brain once! If it has been crunched at all, its ability to protect is massively diminished.

LaurelSpring
May 16th, 2012, 02:51 PM
For motorcycle riding now I am doing a low side pony behind the ear and tucking the end under my shirt.

jeanniet
May 16th, 2012, 03:26 PM
It's fine to not wear a helmet, as long as you don't mind the possibility of being permanently and sometimes profoundly disabled if you suffer a traumatic brain injury. I worked with brain-injured adults, and I guarantee you, if your brain is bashed around enough, you will never be the same again. Not with rehab, not with time, not with anything.

But make sure you wear a helmet properly. I see so many kids (and adults) with helmets slapped on their heads loosely. They're just doing it to follow the law, but helmets don't work if you don't bother to put them on right.

I agree, learning to braid is the best solution.

Nae
May 16th, 2012, 04:09 PM
:D
We went through this for a while too... "But nobody else on the whole block has to wear a helmet!!!!"

My response: "If they give you a hard time about it, just tell them that their parents must not think they have enough brains to bother protecting, but YOUR parents know you're smart and they want you to STAY smart, so you always wear your helmet -- because your brain is worth protecting."

He has no problem wearing his helmet for hockey, and I don't see how this is any different....

Bwahaha, almost word for word that is what I have told him in the past. Great minds think alike!

He and his dad (an avid biker) will be going out a lot this summer so hopefully since they are doing it together he will have a chance to get over the Helmet Boy thing. I go out sometimes with him, but biking for me is kind ick.....what with the ouchie butt that I get every fricken time no matter what type of seat I use. Blah.:o

Now that I have overshared.......back to your regularly scheduled programming. Helmets and braids....what a great combo!!

WaitingSoLong
May 17th, 2012, 06:43 AM
Yes. They call them both here actually. :) I tend to go with the redneck braid term as the bikers here tend to be not very nice guys and the rednecks on the other hand are for the most part. And ya know, my uncle. His was a manly BSL for years and that is what he called it. :p

"redneck" is a derogatory (sp) term around here. You are either proud to be one or angry if you are accidentally mistaken for one. They have a reputation of being extremely prejudiced and supremist in these parts and synonymous with "white trash". Guess it depends on your locale. I, personally, would not like to be called one. It has long since lost it's original application to farmers though we have plenty around here, they are just called farmers now. LOL

On the other hand, bikers are not much better. There are the "good ones" and "bad ones" (motorcyles, not biycles in case anyone is confused). I personally don't have anything against bikers but I won't go to their gatherings or festivals. A bit too X rated for me.

Anyway, I have rarely (I think 3 times ever) seen someone wearing a caterpillar braid (this is what I will choose to call it LOL). It is how I wore my hair while mowing until it got too long to do that safely (the motor fan is directly behind my seat and I can only shudder to think of my hair getting sucked into it). It's buns and do-rags for me now. Gee, guess I must look like a biker all the time, what with the braid and do-rags.

End OT. Sorry OP.

Do fill us in on your braid attempts!