VT helmet testing and international safety approvals

[Willesdon]

I’m starting a new thread because I don’t want an important point to get lost within the very long previous one.

Quotes from this week’s Horse & Hound (22 Dec p 8) article headed “New star helmet ratings are welcomed and questioned”

Stefan Duma, Helmet Lab Founder is quoted saying “We found a lot of riders come off at lower velocities and many helmets are too stiff to effectively cushion those softer impacts. The helmets that perform better can deal with different energy levels.”

Champion Revolve X-Air MIPS helmet topped the VT ratings and the Production Engineer at Champion Manufacturing Group is quoted as saying “I think is important to understand that these ratings are specific to their test, as any rating system is…You can only score helmets against what you’ve tested for, but it provides that extra insight. When choosing a helmet, from a safety point of view, look at the whole picture. I would definitely support [having] a MIPS hat, because it adds extra protection. Then look at the STAR rating.”

Charles Owen, which had four helmets tested, said “We appreciate the findings in relation to low-velocity impacts.” But CO were not entirely convinced by VT using videos to create computer models and then using this data to test the helmets… “The three main international safety standards incorporate low velocity impacts as these do play a role in accidents. But there are also crucial tests [unspecified by CO] that also need to be considered. These tests are peer-reviewed and developed by medical consultants, industry experts and PhD researchers to replicate major causes of head trauma and concussion… [The VT] study focuses on just one cause of concussion. While this can be useful, we advocate that consumers dig deeper to understand the standards”.

MIPS “welcome the new benchmark … yet aspects of the testing and rating methods leave room for improvement…While we appreciate the new initiatives to evaluate equestrian helmets and promote helmet safety, we believe the new rating system may cause confusion”.

CO spokesperson concluded:
“We encourage all riders to ensure their helmets meet a minimum of three safety standards as this ensures your helmet has been tested against nine different accident scenarios. Every accident is different”

The VT study rates helmet safety in relation to low velocity head trauma. So when buying a helmet, consider the multiple, international safety standards to cover more eventualities, not just STAR.

[BayAreaRider]

The issue with trying to find helmets that cover multiple standards is that not all manufacturers tell you if they make the one helmet for all standards or separate helmets for each standards.

Charles Own makes it very clear they make 1 helmet and it meets all the standards for each selling region (ASTM, PAS, VG1). Snell, while an improvement, is not a standard that is required for retail sale.

Then there is Uvex, who make it very clear that they make a helmet for each standard. So your US Uvex is not the same as the one from the EU or the UK.

[make_the_time]

These are really good points to consider. great post.

Not all materials behave linearly with applied impulse force, meaning at low force they behave differently than one would expect based on high-force tests, and vice versa. Bullet proof vests are an example. Certain helmet materials are an example. Expect a lot more testing and examination of testing scenarios.

[Willesdon]

A safety standard is a safety standard. The four internationally recognised standards have been designed, tested and agreed by multiple safety and technical professionals and institutions, and even, in the case of the CE certification, across all the EU member nations. And then comes the independent quality assurance process to check the standard is achieved. The UK PAS015 & VG1 requires that one of every 200 helmets from a manufactured batch of 800 to 3200 is tested before an approval label is issued. If a helmet fails the entire batch must be destroyed. The American SEI tests an ASTM F1163:2015 certified batch every 12 months to ensure quality. Snell aims to test at least 1 in 2000 helmets, the sample obtained from the marketplace rather than the manufacturer. The European CE mark only requires new testing if the helmet design is modified after it’s original design approval so, it may be argued, it is the bare minimum safety standard.

A helmet that is certified to meet a particular standard must meet that standard regardless of where it is manufactured. A helmet made in the USA and certified by Snell must meet the same criteria as one certified by Snell and made in Germany. And several manufacturers produce helmets that are tested to meet all the international standards, not just one. It is a hugely expensive process to both achieve and then retain a certified standard.

Beyond any national legal requirements of health and safety, there is no obligation on retailers to sell any particular helmet models: a case of caveat emptor. The various sport bodies, such as USEA, therefore set their own requirements for appropriate certificates.

My concern about the recent VT STAR system is the problem of “Not Invented Here” which too often ignores the research and knowledge found elsewhere. The VT STAR system is demonstrably not the complete picture on helmet safety but riders are now making purchasing decisions based on this research because it is simple, recent, well publicised and, be honest here, probably because it is American. Snell E2016, also American, has the toughest test criteria but it isn’t very widely available.

[make_the_time]

@Willesdon very cogent points

[Xctrygirl]

There’s a lot of great info here, but allow me some additional points.

Helmets that are made AND SOLD in certain parts of the country MUST be certified under the applicable standards where sold. After discussing this at long long length with many manufacturers, there are helmets that are certified with VG1 & PAS015 that are sold here in the USA. But the manufacturers have opted out of carrying the USA badging for the additional Europeans standards as there is more cost to do so. When speaking with some retailers as well, they all almost unitedly agreed that there is no way for the brands to recapture the added cost to carry the additional badging fees in the USA market. If anything it would set the competitors who do not have any non-USA models up to benefit as they would be forced to raise costs where non euro helmets wouldn’t have to.

And again… it’s all well and good for Charles Owen to recommend a triple certified helmet but it’s a bit of “Oh isn’t that convenient” for them to suggest this. Since a CO and a Champion helmet are both manufactured in the UK. As such they are REQUIRED to have both VG1 and PAS015. This is mandatory. And to sell those helmets in the USA, they are REQUIRED to have ASTM. VOILA… to be made and sold to the USA, those 2 brands absolutely MUST be triple certified. Since the majority of other brands are made outside of the USA and the UK, they do not fall under the same requirements.

And this is primarily why we had a 20 year hiatus from Champion helmets in the USA. Once USEF stuck it’s neck out and required ASTM certification, the powers that be disagreed since they saw ASTM as “lesser than” the certs in the UK at the time, and they refused to submit the helmets for ASTM. It took Toklat stepping in a few years ago and getting distributor rights going to get the ASTM testing done again. BUT the costs to do so are obvious. Check out the variance of price from a Champion bought in the UK versus one sold in the USA.

I think I am most excited to see the new ARRO helmets, which will be stocked starting in Feb in the USA. I have spoken to their creator and he is a VERY smart rider who did ALL the right things and now has a Snell, ASTM, VG1, PAS015 helmet WITH MIPS, coming to our world. On top of that it’s got a removable chin guard and a brim that can be removed, to be used as a skull cap, also. All of this is currently selling around $450 USD. (I don’t know what his actual US price will be, that’s just the equivalent from the current price in New Zealand where he’s based)

You can read up more about them on https://www.arro.nz/

And they have a fabulous graphic about the safety standards at: https://www.arro.nz/_files/ugd/84942f_4ff07cb5baaa44958e6305288e90aba9.pdf

As for everyone making buying decisions solely based on the VT first results to this point, I have hosted 2 separate webinars open to the public, and have links to the videos that are public as well. One webinar was with Dr. Miller from VT, one was with Madelen Fahlstedt from MIPS to discuss the study and all things MIPS. BOTH of them touched on how to best interpret the study, how safe the current helmets are and how to move forward. I have shared those links as far and as wide as I can.

But Americans are known (by reputation) for thinking they know best and making choices without expert advice, consultation etc. How else can you explain the prevalence of unsafe cars being sold so much, with atrocious safety and reliability ratings? MANY examples to choose from in this category.

Overall people will do what they want. Some will listen, some will argue and some won’t even know this is going on.

That’s just life.

Em

[Willesdon]

Isn’t the politics, cost and history behind apparently neutral safety testing interesting? @Xctrygirl Thank you for the additional info - I know you have been working hard to get info out to the riders. We all want the same thing but so many ways to get there. The ARRO helmets sound very interesting and I look forward to seeing one in person.

[Xctrygirl]

LOL “Interesting” is one word for it.

I think I might end up as bald as my husband with a few more years like the last 6 weeks we’ve just had.

Ha ha. I pull my hair out regularly. I cannot explain things to everyone that are really NOT that complex. But yet… some folks just don’t get it. Which is all well and good, but then this new part of the internet where if you disagree with anything now you send in your friends to “attack/debate/harass” the things/people that you don’t like. So it’s been a LOT of fun.

I will say, getting to know the brands and the people behind MIPS, the VT study and all… THAT makes up for it. I have been very fortunate to be in the right place and just extroverted enough to try to ask questions and get opportunities that can benefit a lot of people. And the fact that folks have mostly said yes has made my year. And it was a BAD year on the whole. So that’s saying something.

Em

[BayAreaRider]

@Willesdon

A helmet that is certified to meet a particular standard must meet that standard regardless of where it is manufactured.

That is true, but not my point. As Uvex clearly states, they make a helmet for each market (US, UK, Europe). So an ASTM certified helmet for the US, Canada market can be made anywhere in the world but can only be sold in US/Canada.

@Xctrygirl

And again… it’s all well and good for Charles Owen to recommend a triple certified helmet but it’s a bit of “Oh isn’t that convenient” for them to suggest this.

I guess it is a business decision as they could have gone the way of Uvex. But for us consumers we at least know what the helmets are certified to. If we are worried about how well our helmets will do if our horse lands on our head, then riders in US/Canada will need to find a helmet that is beyond ASTM certified.

@Willesdon

The VT STAR system is demonstrably not the complete picture on helmet safety

If you watch the interview with Dr. Miller with the MIPS facebook group, you will see that they do not pretend to be the Be All End All of helmet safety. They are one more data point that moves the conversation forward.

[Xctrygirl]

@BayAreaRider

I guess it is a business decision as they could have gone the way of Uvex. But for us consumers we at least know what the helmets are certified to. If we are worried about how well our helmets will do if our horse lands on our head, then riders in US/Canada will need to find a helmet that is beyond ASTM certified.

Realistically there are many helmets that are sold in the USA and abroad and as such are compliant with more standards than just ASTM.

@BayAreaRider

If you watch the interview with Dr. Miller with the MIPS facebook group, you will see that they do not pretend to be the Be All End All of helmet safety. They are one more data point that moves the conversation forward.

Thank you for mentioning this. For this and other helmet related webinar videos, you can always find them on this YouTube Playlist of mine.

(Odd… the whole playlist is there…but it wants to link the MIPS lecture…)

Try this:

Dec 12, 2022 Webinar w/ Dr. Barry Miller

Emily

[SeeSpotEvent]

I think that new ARRO looks amazing! For anyone curious, I sent them an email and they replied quickly. I am on the pre-order list for my requested size and color. They said ~March 2023 US Availability.

Excited to be able to potentially have only one helmet to haul around, especially one with a safe wide brim. That brim is a necessity in the southern summers!

[endlessclimb]

That thing looks super cool. I’ll be looking for it when it comes out, I want to try it on!

[dr5627]

I just looked into the ARRO helmet website and it doesn’t go smaller than 6 7/8, I’m a 6 3/4 so I guess I’m not getting one!

[Xctrygirl]

This is 1 person who is making these, not a major company. He has started with the most common head sizes. If and when these take off, he has acknowledged he will likely make more sizes. But this is ONE guy. He’s starting small.

Em

[Xctrygirl]

What’s really cool about Rhys (Powell, the creator) is that he has been to Virginia Tech’s helmet lab, he’s a vendor at Rolex/Land Rover, he’s been to Fair Hill Saddlery. He is definitely doing it all the right way.

Em

[make_the_time]

@Xctrygirl innovation in hi-tech usually happens by small disrupter teams, like the ARRO guy. Glad to see it. The features of this helmet look very good, and something which is needed, IMHO. The pricing is very good, actually. And, compared to a top motorsports helmet such as the Bell HP77 at $5000 each, the ARRO is a steal.

[SeeSpotEvent]

Did anyone at Land Rover try on the ARRO helmets? Curious how they fit. When I chatted with them last year they said they fit TTS but thought I would see if anyone tried before I ordered.

[leighbo009]

I tried them on. I have a large head and the Arro comes up to a 59cm. When trying the 59cm, I had a small pressure point on my forehead at first, but we were able to move the liner around and then it fit. I would have liked to have 1 size larger to try, but that’s not available yet. They have different thickness liners it sounded like, to slightly shim, but the 59cm I had on already had the thinnest liner if I understood correctly. I measure right at 59cm according to the sellers. They are interesting because they don’t sit as far down above the eyebrow. I would say they are true to size.

Comparatively, I went to CO to try on the halo. Their 61 was too small (probably not the right shape 100%) and that was the largest they had to try on.

[Xctrygirl]

I flew to Ky specifically to meet Rhys, talk to him about what he went through to make his helmets and be able to touch and see them and try them on. His whole presentation is impressive and the helmets are very well put together. I can say this because he has examples of them in pieces, shell, inner layers, etc. You can see the what and why of each helmet. Each helmet has the capacity to interchange with 3 styles of brim, regular, wide brim (Added cost) and no brim (Skull cap). They’re snap on so they will break away in a fall. They’re easy to put on and take off.

They lived up to the hype and the costs incurred to get to see them. That said, it wasn’t a perfect fit on my head and there are a couple questions still lingering about where we (Americans) will be able to buy them and such. I do believe they are amazing. I think the folks who fit the helmet 100% accurately will be so well protected it’s kind of amazing.

The size availability is only because this is a ONE MAN ACT. He has to sell the first run of sizes and be successful to be able to build out to more sizes. This is not a big multinational company. It’s a man and his product.

The name, “Arro” is an acronym of the first letters of his, his wife and their two sons names. The helmet is great and I hope we can tweak a little so it can match the fit of the existing helmets that I own.

Pics of me wearing some:

Emily Daignault-Salvaggio

Em

[Xctrygirl]

I 100% do not mention round fit or any shape fit on my posts. I promise. Here’s why…

There is no standard in the world of helmets of what is “round” vs what is “oval” or “Long oval”

Helmet brands use different head forms and what I have seen happen, which is not helpful to anyone (Consumers, retailers, helmet makers etc), is that people believe that their head is X shape. Someone will inevitably say “I have a round head… I cannot fit anything oval” and they shut themselves off from trying on anything that anyone else has said is the shape that they don’t believe they have. THIS alone is preventing a TON of people from finding the right helmet for their heads.

Now, I do believe that some helmets won’t fit some heads, but try them first yourself with a professional helmet fitter on hand. DO NOT BUY OFF THE INTERNET without a helmet fitter available. Kim Chick from Fair Hill Saddlery does offer online Zoom fittings, even if you didn’t buy the helmet from her.

@trubandloki it’s important to try all the helmets you’re interested in on your head. Preferably with an experienced fitter.

Em