By Christine Arnefors.
Vehicles have often been used as a means to state a lifestyle and to become more attractive to other people. A classic convertible turns heads, and so does a high-speed motorcycle. The drivers of these babe magnets clearly have the upper hand to the drivers of, let’s say, Volvos. The safe choice in traffic tends to give associations of boringness and squareness.
But in the Danish capital Copenhagen where 36 % of the citizens take the bicycle to their place of work or study, bicycles are an excellent opportunity to check out the blondes. A friend of mine even practices bike flirting. While biking home from school she occasionally starts to playfully drive around another biker, as a way of showing interest. To be noted is that this girl does not wear a helmet. In fact, only around 10 % of the Danes wear a helmet when riding a bicycle. When asked why they turn down such an easy yet powerful protection, people around me respond that they look silly and that it is unpractical.
I decided to find out for myself. For the first time since I was 12, a bicycle helmet once again adorned my head and I went for a tour de Copenhagen. I was eager to find out how wearing a helmet would affect reactions towards me. Would people point their fingers and laugh, or mistake me for a girl scout?
The truth is, wearing a helmet gets you a little extra attention. I felt warm smiles from parents with kids – as a good role model wearing a helmet – but also surprised glances when I performed my usual drive-against-red-lights and dangerous turns. A helmet wearer should know better. A helmet wearer is someone who will make you use coasters under glasses, as one of my friends puts it. A helmet seems to be the ultimate symbol of a responsible and sensible adult.
Although I felt safe and comfortable with my helmet (except from the moment when I took it off and my hair went along vertically) I feel reluctant to live life a helmet implies. Refusing the helmet also involves clinging on to freedom and fun, and being able to flirt with the biker next to you while waiting for green lights.
Ninety percent of my fellow cyclists and I, we live for the moment riding without helmets. However I wonder if I am I rejecting living for the future when I ride to school helmet-less, which in turn will give me a well-paying job in a couple of years, or I when I ride to the gym, which will give me a better health in the years to come. Are we deceiving ourselves?
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