Riding Your Bicycle to Space

                                      The Future of Sporting Equipment?

                                             

The evolution of sports equipment is more aligned with performance and protection than with alterations that revolve around aesthetics. Currently in the NFL, the progression of player’s helmets is to eliminate concussions instead of creating a fashion statement. In lacrosse, the manufacturers are continuing to make the heads lighter and still durable. Soccer cleats are being made to provide the best feel on the ball as possible. Basically, while the aesthetics can be altered into being more appealing, usually that aspect takes a back-seat to a more important goal.

Two Swedish designers decided appearance was just as important as safety. They decided to revolutionize biking helmets by turning a jacket into an airbag system that upon crashing shoots out an inflatable helmet that engulfs your head. In spite of claims that the product's design is based around aesthetics, it actually creates the appearance that you are an alien from the movie Alien. If for some reason you crash, I would peruse the surrounding areas to ensure that Ripley is not in general vicinity.



Victim from the thrown bottle



The “invisible” helmet Hovding (Swedish for Chieftain) uses gyroscopes, accelerometers, and advanced sensors in order to trigger the release of the helmet upon crashing. Ok, so I understand that this can sense that you are falling, but what happens if a disgruntled postal worker who has had a day filled with ravenous canines and extreme heat decides to throw a newspaper at your head, or Chris Brown and Drake decide to have an altercation on the streets leading to a bottle being tossed at your skull. Does the product still inflate? While I'm sure both scenarios have been instrumental in the development of the product, nowhere does it state whether such incidents would lead to the inflation of this jacket airbag.

At this point there is no turning back. These Swedish designers have received millions of dollars of funding, have done their due-diligence by employing a brain-trauma specialist, and in my opinion have come up with a potentially more profitable patent than product as their idea of utilizing small sensors to predict falls and crashes in clothing could become something of the future for public servants. They also contain “black boxes” that record up to 10 seconds before the actual crash which is not only useful for continued research, but it can also be utilized to understand who you need to sue after the incident.

After understanding the complexity of this product, it is only fitting to learn how much it will set you back. While most biking helmets range from $50-$100, the Hovding costs only a mere $600. Seeing how no one is riding their bikes to the Oscars, my personal opinion is that these are not worth the hole they create in your wallet. As a majority of cyclists ride for transportation and recreation, I would leave this helmet to the stormtroopers.

-Kyle