Any downside to a MIPS helmet?

[nctoma]

It was the Charles Owen wide brim MIPS helmet, compared to the Samshield Miss Shield

[vxf111]

I have a Windsor which replaced a Sportage Plus and honestly they weigh about the same as much as I can tell. Any difference that is present is negligible.

[centaursam]

I have a Charles Owen with MIPS and if there is a difference in weight between non-MIPS helmets, it’s negligible, at least in my experience.

They’re putting this in motorcycle helmets, bike helmets, ski/snowboard helmets, etc. so I can’t seem to think there are any downsides and the extra cost is well worth the protection.

[LetItBe]

@CanteringCarrot

The only downside for me is that I cannot find one that fits me! They’re all too round and/or too shallow. So, I’ve stuck with my Uvex.

If I had two helmets side by side, that both fit, and one was a MIPS helmet, I’d choose the MIPS all day long.

Try the Trauma Void Lynx. I tried on the new OneK that you can customize the colors on and while I REALLY want it it just didn’t sit as deep around my head. It hit the right places in the front and back, just not the sides so it did technically fit me correctly I just prefer the deepness all around on my Lynx.

LetItBe

[Calvincrowe]

I adore my TV Lynx-- it fits like a glove, so comfortable, not heavy and just as cool as any other helmet I’ve worn. Given the technology has been tested and proven effective in other types of helmets, it is a welcome improvement to equestrian helmets. I followed Em’s story- she made the decision to buy a MIPs helmet easy! I am thrilled at the Virginia Tech study-- it should be supported by every equestrian!

[CanteringCarrot]

@LetItBe

Try the Trauma Void Lynx. I tried on the new OneK that you can customize the colors on and while I REALLY want it it just didn’t sit as deep around my head. It hit the right places in the front and back, just not the sides so it did technically fit me correctly I just prefer the deepness all around on my Lynx.

LetItBe

I did try the Lynx. Based off of what people said on here, I was sure it would be the one. Nope. The OneK just sits atop my apparently tall and football shaped head. The Lynx had good depth and was fine front to back, but so much room on the sides. My head doesn’t look that strange, but I guess it is!

[CanteringCarrot]

@Momateur

@CanteringCarrot …we must have the same shaped noggins! I’ve tried every brand I can think of (including the OneK long oval). Only Uvex fits – and it doesn’t even fit all that well. I think my head is shaped like a football.

My Uvex Perfexxion II actually fits quite well. Idk why I can’t just fit into a MIPS helmet.

#footballheadsunite

[Momateur]

@CanteringCarrot

My Uvex Perfexxion II actually fits quite well. Idk why I can’t just fit into a MIPS helmet.

#footballheadsunite

LOL! Well, I just ordered an Uvex Perfexxion II, so here’s hoping! I’m very overdue in replacing my helmet, so my fingers are crossed it fits. It looks a bit odd in the hunter ring…but then again, so do I :).

[StormyDay]

So this is purely a ‘heard around the grapevine’ statement. But I have heard that while the MIPS certainly doesn’t hurt, it may not be very useful in horseback riding because of the kind of accidents we tend to have when we fall off. So it may not be the holy grail breakthrough in helmet tech we have been waiting for.
More studies are definitely needed.

Edited to say: Definitely not saying we should not buy MIPS. Just that you shouldn’t expect your helmet to work miracles.

[trubandloki]

@StormyDay

So this is purely a ‘heard around the grapevine’ statement. But I have heard that while the MIPS certainly doesn’t hurt, it may not be very useful in horseback riding because of the kind of accidents we tend to have when we fall off. So it may not be the holy grail breakthrough in helmet tech we have been waiting for.
More studies are definitely needed.

What special kind of accidents require this technology to be useful, exactly?

To me it seems like anytime you hit your head, this technology will help. Am I missing something?

[Xctrygirl]

@StormyDay

So this is purely a ‘heard around the grapevine’ statement. But I have heard that while the MIPS certainly doesn’t hurt, it may not be very useful in horseback riding because of the kind of accidents we tend to have when we fall off. So it may not be the holy grail breakthrough in helmet tech we have been waiting for.
More studies are definitely needed.

Edited to say: Definitely not saying we should not buy MIPS. Just that you shouldn’t expect your helmet to work miracles.

I will sound very catty for a moment and suggest that this is the latest line that Samshield and it’s loyal following are going to try to play.

Folks… MIPS technology is VERY useful in a fall on your head, be it riding a bike, a horse, skiing, snowmobiling, rock climbing or working construction. Can it totally allow you to be 100% perfect after a horrendous impact, no. Can it prevent all injuries?, no. BUT it has been studied EXTENSIVELY and thanks to the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab is about to be studied some more. The folks who think that it’s ‘not that useful’ are more than likely the ones who stand to lose something from the changes coming to the world of helmets. Whether it’s the folks who prefer non-Mips brand helmets, or they cannot afford any new helmet, or they (sarcasm) were all prepared to kill off the 3rd hubby on the ex bronco horse on a “quiet” trail ride but he went and bought a MIPS helmet himself. Any way you cut it, there’s not a lot of downsides to having a helmet equipped with a way to allow you brain not to stop suddenly into the skull itself. Have a closer look at the pre-MIPS impact forces in helmets and ask yourself why you prefer that!!!

If you all had done your homework and watched all the video the MIPS folks have made to explain how it works and why, you’d see that what you get is 10-15mm of movement where a non-Mips helmet gives your brain a hard stop and impacts into the skull while not minimizing the impact. The sloshing effect of the cerebral spinal fluid is what’s being reproduced in all “Slip plane” helmet systems. Science is mimicking your own body’s defense mechanisms. And now we’re criticizing it.

Everyone who has a non-Mips helmet has a brain that WILL have more force exerted on it than a person who has a MIPS helmet. The linear and rotational forces on your brain do matter. Look at Football and their ability to at this point, LOWER the impact forces exerted onto the players brains thanks to their “WaveCel” technology. That means our sport is now slightly more dangerous than football. Have a look at Dr. Miller’s Power point that is included on the www.ehsi.net site so you can read about this more.

So just for the sake of saying I did it…one more time. Let’s include the links of how MIPS works, Why Mips works, and some other ACTUAL information not from “the grapevine” but from actual scientists:

1. How MIPS works video: https://vimeo.com/279413370?fbclid=IwAR3sYUve3dzH5HTTWPdma3sb2NXKki1qw-Ai8lyjOEuzffvSyIpzyNWYZcg

2. Explaining MIPS: https://vimeo.com/318457059 Quote from this video: “We know from over 18,000 tests that MIPS ALWAYS adds additional protection in any type of impact situation”

3. Interesting article about how the top 29 4 or 5 star rated bicycle helmets (as tested by the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab) ALL had some type of “Slip plane” technology. (MIPS, WaveCel or SPIN) https://cyclingtips.com/2019/11/virginia-tech-add-more-helmets-to-tested-list-mips-still-trending/

#Mipssaves

Em

[four2farm]

@trubandloki

What special kind of accidents require this technology to be useful, exactly?

To me it seems like anytime you hit your head, this technology will help. Am I missing something?

I had a Contrecoup head injury falling from 17.2 horse at the walk…MIPS would have lessened if not stopped that. If you have never had one, I do not suggest it as a vacation. It took me months to swallow correctly, I had loss of feeling in right arm, the memory loss was significant. It took me weeks to remember my horses’ names, I just called them by color. It was awful. When I hit the dirt, it crushed in my CO Ayr8 at the forehead which gave me a concussion. The concussion was actually worse on the other side of my forehead because a standard helmet does not turn independently of the lining. The shockwave slammed my brain backward in my skull like jello… MIPS would have allowed the helmet to twist away from the protective liner on my head so the concussive forces would have moved sideways in the helmet and not just front to back. This would have severely lessened the shockwave. The Neurologist looked at my helmet and asked why it did not have MIPS, I had never heard of it, he was shocked that riding helmets did not have it. When I was cleared to ride he suggested a bike helmet with MIPS as it was safer than the helmet I was wearing.

There is no question here, MIPS is going to be standard across top level helmets in the near future. I don’t need to see more studies, World Cycling and Motorcross have tested these things already, the science works, it reduces TBI. If helmet manufacturers like Samshield do not integrate MIPs, they will lose market share. Maybe they weigh an ounce or two more, WHATEVER! I think all these new helmets look like Rutabaga’s with straps attached anyway, no matter how monogrammed and bedazzled they are. It took me 6 years to get back in the saddle, I did it with a MIPs helmet this time.

My old Miller’s skull cap sits faded brown on the stand on my desk, it’s velvet thick and luxurious. There is a ton of old memories in that skull cap and I am glad that I was not wearing it in 2014. Time and Science have moved on, as traditional as I am, I embrace those things safer and better. Maybe I will wear it on to hand out candy on Halloween, that is all it is good for anymore…

[StormyDay]

@trubandloki

What special kind of accidents require this technology to be useful, exactly?

To me it seems like anytime you hit your head, this technology will help. Am I missing something?

MIPS protects from a special type of rotational impact. IIRC its forehead first landings (edited: its side impacts). This was a serious problem, especially for bikers, because that is a common way to fall for them and it causes bad concussions and possible neck damage. It doesn’t do much for other types of falls though.

this article talks about MIPS. It’s aimed at biking, but it still cover many of the questions about the tech from an equestrian perspective
https://pelotonmagazine.com/gear/mips-the-reality-behind-making-helmets-safer/

[LetItBe]

@CanteringCarrot

I did try the Lynx. Based off of what people said on here, I was sure it would be the one. Nope. The OneK just sits atop my apparently tall and football shaped head. The Lynx had good depth and was fine front to back, but so much room on the sides. My head doesn’t look that strange, but I guess it is!

Oh weird on the gaps as it’s definitely the long oval of the Trauma Voids.

LetItBe

[StormyDay]

@Xctrygirl

I will sound very catty for a moment and suggest that this is the latest line that Samshield and it’s loyal following are going to try to play.

Folks… MIPS technology is VERY useful in a fall on your head, be it riding a bike, a horse, skiing, snowmobiling, rock climbing or working construction. Can it totally allow you to be 100% perfect after a horrendous impact, no. Can it prevent all injuries?, no. BUT it has been studied EXTENSIVELY and thanks to the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab is about to be studied some more. The folks who think that it’s ‘not that useful’ are more than likely the ones who stand to lose something from the changes coming to the world of helmets. Whether it’s the folks who prefer non-Mips brand helmets, or they cannot afford any new helmet, or they (sarcasm) were all prepared to kill off the 3rd hubby on the ex bronco horse on a “quiet” trail ride but he went and bought a MIPS helmet himself. Any way you cut it, there’s not a lot of downsides to having a helmet equipped with a way to allow you brain not to stop suddenly into the skull itself. Have a closer look at the pre-MIPS impact forces in helmets and ask yourself why you prefer that!!!

If you all had done your homework and watched all the video the MIPS folks have made to explain how it works and why, you’d see that what you get is 10-15mm of movement where a non-Mips helmet gives your brain a hard stop and impacts into the skull while not minimizing the impact. The sloshing effect of the cerebral spinal fluid is what’s being reproduced in all “Slip plane” helmet systems. Science is mimicking your own body’s defense mechanisms. And now we’re criticizing it.

Everyone who has a non-Mips helmet has a brain that WILL have more force exerted on it than a person who has a MIPS helmet. The linear and rotational forces on your brain do matter. Look at Football and their ability to at this point, LOWER the impact forces exerted onto the players brains thanks to their “WaveCel” technology. That means our sport is now slightly more dangerous than football. Have a look at Dr. Miller’s Power point that is included on the www.ehsi.net site so you can read about this more.

So just for the sake of saying I did it…one more time. Let’s include the links of how MIPS works, Why Mips works, and some other ACTUAL information not from “the grapevine” but from actual scientists:

1. How MIPS works video: https://vimeo.com/279413370?fbclid=I…fvSyIpzyNWYZcg

2. Explaining MIPS: https://vimeo.com/318457059 Quote from this video: “We know from over 18,000 tests that MIPS ALWAYS adds additional protection in any type of impact situation”

3. Interesting article about how the top 29 4 or 5 star rated bicycle helmets (as tested by the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab) ALL had some type of “Slip plane” technology. (MIPS, WaveCel or SPIN) https://cyclingtips.com/2019/11/virg…till-trending/

#Mipssaves

Em

I have never owned a Samshield.

I understand you love MIPS tech. You’ve made that very clear. But acting as though it’s some sort of magic cure is just false. It certainly won’t hurt to have it in a helmet, and as long as the helmet fits well get it with MIPS.

But OP isn’t here for easy to find info online. That’s why I posted. Because we all know how MIPS works. The question that hasn’t really been answered yet is if that makes a difference for equestrians.
This reminds me a lot of air vests in eventing. It seemed like a great idea, a breakthrough, no one would have to wear those bulky vests again! But 10+ years on, eventers Are still required to wear traditional safety vests because it wasn’t the amazing break through we had hoped for. No one would argue that air vests haven’t prevented injuries. They certainly have. But, we also don’t look twice at the person on course with just a traditional Tipperary on.

[four2farm]

@StormyDay

I have never owned a Samshield.

I understand you love MIPS tech. You’ve made that very clear. But acting as though it’s some sort of magic cure is just false. It certainly won’t hurt to have it in a helmet, and as long as the helmet fits well get it with MIPS.

But OP isn’t here for easy to find info online. That’s why I posted. Because we all know how MIPS works. The question that hasn’t really been answered yet is if that makes a difference for equestrians.
This reminds me a lot of air vests in eventing. It seemed like a great idea, a breakthrough, no one would have to wear those bulky vests again! But 10+ years on, eventers Are still required to wear traditional safety vests because it wasn’t the amazing break through we had hoped for. No one would argue that air vests haven’t prevented injuries. They certainly have. But, we also don’t look twice at the person on course with just a traditional Tipperary on.

Good point, my TV Lynx is lighter, cooler and much more comfortable then my CO Fian or my second CO Ayr8.

I tried all Mips brands they had in stock, even a couple of Samsheilds, One K and CO’ s that did not have Mips to see if I could feel a difference. I could feel none, no extra weight or balance issues. The TV was the most comfortable for me. Budget was not a consideration. There was a OneK that was okay, the 3rd place in comfort went to the CO MyPs. So to me, no cons at all.

[Cinderella]

I’ve had a TraumaVoid with MIPS for about 2 years now. I love it and I’ve worn it in the hot Texas summers with no problems. I will definitely get another MIPS helmet when it’s time to replace my old one. I haven’t found any cons to them, in fact it was half the cost of my old Charles Owen. My dad is an ER doctor who has seen many a patient with riding injuries, including TBIs. When he learned about MIPS technology, he gifted me with a MIPS helmet that same day. And then went out and replaced his cycling helmet for one that had MIPS in it. If I were you, I’d definitely go with the MIPS😊.

[173north]

No downside if they fit! I have tried on every one on the market and they are all too oval for me; I think something in the MIPS makes the shape just a tad oval so I think I have to wait for more manufacturers to introduce them.

[vxf111]

Whether you’re a MIPS fan or not, if indeed a helmet brand is starting a whisper misinformation campaign about helmets that ought to concern and upset you. I don’t know if that’s true but if it is that’s really crappy behavior.

[GoneAway]

I’ve likely had a couple very minor concussions from falls (not really sure, probably two or three… it was the “hospital or on” era) and I never lost consciousness. But it was a hockey concussion that sent me to a TBI center for a couple months back in 2017. Funny enough, it wasn’t the ice hockey that made the docs give me the side-eye, it was the fact that I was an equestrian. They apparently see a lot of us. And this is purely anecdotal, but every fall I can remember has had some sort of rotational or twisting aspect to it (ie. runout/refusals, bucking, etc). Can’t think of a single one that was a straight-on impact with no torsion/rotational force. As a result I feel safer in a MIPS-equipped helmet which is specifically designed to help reduce the rotational forces and resulting damage.

I’ve had the TraumaVoid EQ3 for a couple years now and it’s been my go-to that entire time. I just got a Tipperary Windsor and love it. I don’t think the EQ3 is a bad looking helmet, but if you want something a little closer to the trendier lids out there (ie. samshields), then the Windsor can be an attractive option if it fits you. I think it’s light, breathes and fits well, and well-balanced. My EQ3 is my backup so I have two MIPS helmets available at all times.

But the debate of “will MIPS actually be useful for equestrians” just emphasizes the need for an independent study on riding helmets as VT offers as Em has already mentioned. VT’s comprehensive study on hockey helmets a few years ago was what drove me to ultimately trash my sweet looking/classic (but abysmally protective) Bauer 4500s because they ranked so low on the list. Got the top performing helmet to hopefully reduce the risk of another significant injury and avoid compounding the damage that has already been done.