apparently fly and ride doesnt include helmets and my wife had her mind set on bringing our HD JET 3/4 DOT helmets with comm sets to Sydney and Tauranga New Zealand for the Ultra Classics we're renting, now I'm reading DOT helmets may subject you to a $250 fine, that Australia/NZ requires a 1698 certification. what are your experiences with that?

 

Yeah, legally speaking if you are wearing a DOT helmet you arent wearing a helmet.

Aussie helmets have to have an Australian Standards (AS) sticker on them.

I doubt you would have a problem with your DOT helmets, as long as they are arent the skull cap style which dont meet the AS. Ultimately it depends on what you are doing - if you get caught doing 170 k/h in a hundred zone on the wrong side of the road you will get a helmet ticket and a speeding ticket. If you are just stopped for a breath test and you tell the copper your story about being touring yanks just here for a few days you will get let off.

Ultimately who gives a sheet anyhow? If you get a ticket its not like you actually gotta pay it. Its not like the aussie govt is going to take your USA licence away. They have no juristiction over you so any ticket they write will be unenforceable anyhow.

BTW I ride with a DOT skull cap helmet which is totally illegal and I have never been pulled over for it (touch wood and whistle).

 

ha, great, King, just the answer I was looking for. I just received a reply from our tourgroup in New Zealand that DOT helmets are legal there but to check with Fraser about whether they would be legal in the land of Oz. We are really fired up about riding down under.

 

DOT Rating

The DOT performs a straight forward impact test. Using a simulated head placed inside a helmet, testers drop the helmet from a height of ten feet. The head cannot receive more than 400 G-force units on impact. A G-force unit measures the force of gravity exerted against an object in motion.

Now here's the kicker with DOT rated helmets--manufacturers don't need to test their helmets in order to claim a DOT rating! A helmet manufacturer simply needs to feel that a helmet is meeting the DOT specifications to brand it as "DOT rated." The DOT might occasionally pull helmets to perform testing, but the majority of helmets sold as DOT certified do not undergo any level of testing.

Snell Rating

The Snell certification stands in rigorous contrast to DOT specifications. Helmet manufacturers voluntarily submit their products to the Snell evaluation service and pay for the testing procedures. These procedures are extensive and include seven test types, from impact to shell penetration tests to flame resistance testing. The type and degree of testing is dependent on the type of helmet and its application.

Snell cites the following areas as critical in helmet safety:

* Impact management: how well the helmet protects against collisions with large objects;
* Helmet positional stability: whether the helmet will be in place, on the head, when it's needed;
* Retention system strength: whether the chin straps are sufficiently strong enough to hold the helmet throughout a head impact; and
* Extent of protection: the area of the head protected by the helmet.

Snell Memorial Foundation, Inc. ( 2005). 2005 Standard for Protective Headgear, 4.

In short, Snell offers the highest certification standards regarding helmet safety. But a buyer will pay a higher price for Snell certified helmets, as the added costs of production and testing add to the overall value of the helmet.


Safety Matters

A number of points exist in the mind of a buyer when considering a helmet purchase. Style, color, fit, and comfort are extremely important factors when purchasing a helmet. Price is also a consideration for many buyers. However, safety should be paramount when purchasing a helmet. If you scrimp too much on price, you might get a nice looking helmet that unfortunately doesn't hold up in those critical moments. So take the time, do your homework, and find a helmet that will keep you alive and allow you to keep riding for years to come.