MUST WATCH - Garrett Reynolds - Street Destroyer

 Sometimes, "cool" is stupid.

 People just assume us BMX'rs don't wear a helmet "to be cool" and that we think we are too cool and badass for helmets. In reality its nothing like that. Die-hard shredder, been shredding my whole life and never really worn a helmet on the bmx. I feel more comfortable without one. Smart desicion? Maybe not, but why does it bother everyone else? For me, it's about going out just me and my bike and the streets, you just hop on and go ride. Helmet doesnt even come into my mind, Street bmx is the most raw riding around, just a steel bike and whatever you can ride, who cares about all the protective gear? Obviously not bmx'rs and that probably wont change. It's really not to be cool but just what is simple and comfortable for myself. Anyone who thinks not wearing a helmet is cool, is dumb. Point is, its not statement, or "look how badass I am with no helmet", it's just going out and doin your thing, being comfortable, being raw and shredding. Safety? why shred bikes then?

 Focus on the absolutely insane riding hes doing not whats on his head..

 @scottyrides5 has a fair point. To each is their own. I ride MTB 95% more than I do BMX. When I do decide to go out and ride the street, I normally don't ride with a helmet as my BMX skill level mainly has me dropping off curbs and bunny hopping flower pots. If I was at a skill level as great as Garrett Reynolds, I could say that I would most likely wear my helmet as that's how I am comfortable when pushing my limits. But I do have to agree that the pros should be held as examples to the crowd that looks up to them. The kids can ride however they want, but at least their heroes are promoting the proper safety equipment.

 Yesterday the werewolf video the guy was riding a mtb on a moving car without a helmet(just his mask) and nobody said a word?

 Sorry just realized he was on a 27 plus, his brain is already injured.

 This is one of the reason's that BMX will never be as big as it could be. Hate me if you want, but not wearing a helmet is the first sign of lack of professionalism. You say it's not your responsibility to be role models? How do you think these guys get paid. Kids want the same stuff they have because they see them with it. If a parent sees there kid doing this stuff without a helmet, they are not gonna want there kid doing it, which means no money spent. If a kid is riding and hits his head without a helmet, the parent is no longer gonna support there kid riding BMX, because they will have to spend there money on hospital bills. I don't care how good you think you are, it is just dumb. If you disagree, then you are either a pansy who has never pushed the limits and gotten hurt, or you're just brain dead already.

 @Ddowmtb 'BMX will never be as big as it could be" Seriously? BMX is absolutely massive compared to MTB, it's an Olympic sport with a huge participation rate. BMX clubs are all over the place organising everything from grass roots local races to massive national and international events with every bit of professionalism you could ask for.

Outside of racing BMX is huge partly because of the anti-establishment image. We are all free to make our own safety choices. I always ride with a helmet, but if others don't that is just fine.

 Please don't compare BMX racing to street riding Arking. How many of those races let competitors enter without helmets? Maybe you don't remember when BMX was practically dead? The only reason it stays around is because there are always young, easy to influence riders coming of age. Most kids don't watch BMX racing online, which is where you're trying to base your argument. There is not ONE SINGLE good reason to ride without a helmet, and that is all I'm saying.

 I feel like skating and BMX are on a different level than MTB. For the most part it lots of smaller techy tricks as opposed to high speed dh riding. Plus if you ever watch how skaters and BMX riders fall, their head almost never goes anywhere near the ground... I for one though do not follow this trend. After several head injuries, one near fatal where I did have one on, I always wear a helmet now and have little confidence without one. I say do what your comfortable with.

 Yay, it wouldn't be a BMX edit without all the helmet crusaders coming out of the woodwork to remove any responsibility of raising kids off the parents and onto people who are just out there to ride a bike! Way to go guys! Keep up the good fight of downtalking and insulting people who choose not to wear a helmet. You best get started on those idiotic kids who don't wear LEATT braces because they just wanna be cool! Think of how many corrupted kids minds you'll save!

 Everyone's choice is their own. I wear a helmet when I ride but don't really care if someone chooses not to.

 Thought I'd check out your profile cause why not went into your photos and sure enough you have dozens of photos of you or your friends riding without helmets so dude your whole rant is invalid

 @scottyrides5: I agree with you in the case you use your bike for commuting, and pop some tricks in the meanwhile. But when you go out for a serious session with friends, you take your bag, put in all the tools you might need, put in some water, make some sandwhiches, check your bike, probably pump up your tyres. I can't believe that after all of this, taking 5 seconds to put on your helmet would kill your flow to 'just hop up and ride'. With that same theory you should be riding bare footed aswell all the time because you have no time to put on your shoes before every ride (which actually takes longer than putting on a helmet).

I've been a street / skatepark rider for 10 years aswell. I know the scene. I know the main reason for people not to wear a helmet is because it "doesn't look cool". I've been there myself. Never really wore a helmet until I had a very bad crash. Luckely that was at a contest where helmets were required, and I still knocked myself out. Don't want to know what would have happened if that helmet wasn't on my head that day... Ever since I pretty much always brought my helmet to all my serious (non commuting) rides. Roughly 90-95% of the times, and i felt shit/unsafe when I didn't have it with me.



@freeride-forever: First of all chill down dude, no need to start swearing. Good luck trying to convince your teenage son to be the only one in his riding crew to wear a helmet. They'll just respond back to you with a big mouth and go outside to ride anyways. The best / probably only way to get all the kids to wear a helmet is by having their idols wear helmets. This copy-ing behaviour is also the strongest marketing effect, that's why all the big companies are sponsoring these riders: the kids want to ride the same bikes and wear the same clothing as their idols do. Same goes for the helmets, kids will copy their idols, so when pro BMX riders won't ride helmets, none of the kids will. If all of the pro BMX riders would ride helmets, all the kids will copy it and all of them will ride helmets. To be honest if I were a sponsor I would contract it that they should wear a helmet, and if they don't wear any, they will get dropped from my team and have to ship everything back (or even have to pay a fine). If all sponsors would do this, and all of those top 50 BMX riders would always wear helmets, than everyone would do it. Then there's also no nee to 'police' it. The sponsors are the ones with all the power in their hands about this, and I especially don't get why helmet manufacturers for example are so easy with sponsoring the BMX riders, but then not caring that they don't actually wear the helmets. If these helmet manufacturers would step up in this, forcing all pro riders to wear helmets, their sales within the BMX scene would go up to probably dozens, maybe even hundreds of times as much as their are right now. Me being a marketing student, I blame it on poor marketing.

For this reason I don't care if an amateur doesn't ride a helmet, in those cases I see it like you do: it's their own problem if something happens to them. BUT, pro riders need to set the good example because everyone will copy what the pro riders do. They are not just responsible for their own brain-damage, but in their case they are also responsible for the probably hundreds of brain damages happenening to amateur riders who don't wear a helmet because "it doesn't look cool."




@Ethansheppy: Indeed I had some session where I didn't have my helmet with me. Most of the time this was when visiting my parents, where I have another bike, but didn't have another helmet for a long time (ended up buying a second one for there aswell). Other than that most session (90% of the time) I was the only one of one of the very view who was actually wearing a helmet. To be honest I don't mind if amateurs don't wear a helmet as they are not role models to millions of others who copy their exact style, including the helmet. Professional cyclists like Garett Reynolds are role models, and have the responsibility to set good examples. Them not wearing helmets doesn't just mean their own risk (don't care about that), but the risk of all the kids not wearing helmets either, because why would you if even the pro's don't wear helmets?

 I'm pretty much immersed in the bmx and the bmx scene and from who I ride with it's not an opinion that it's not cool to ride without a helmets. It makes bmx feel different from mountain biking that you don't need to get padded up and a helmet on and that you can just walk out the door and ride your bike. Makes it more of a lifestyle than a sport. I don't wear one cause it takes away from me being on the bike and enjoying myself. Never sits comfortably on my head. Even on the mountain bike I take the helmet off every chance I get. There is pros now that do wear helmets and it's not mentioned that one rider is better cause he doesn't have a helmet. I will say though it is a good thing that more pros ride with them as kids do obviously follow that trend but there comes a time when everyone chooses for themselves. I think it's more up to the parents than anyone else. No one likes parents who thinks there kids suck cause of tv. There kids suck cause your a bad parent. Take responsibility for them if it's important to you. Also Garrett Reynolds just continues to win bmx. Go and check out the behind the scenes video of this edit and you'll see he's the best role model in the sport. He's not in it for the money but for the love of the bike and he just seems like any other rider.

 i do folow mattin on this. first of all i already broke my skull at 2 places i could have died in the first 24h. i needed to lay for more then a week in the hospital.i risked to die after 6 weeks of my accident. ive porbably lost some of my balance. i lost days of riding my bike. coudnt work etc. all because of a night i took up the city bike to go working on my spot. tehres no need to wear a helmet... shovel in the hand darkness no lights. car hits me a 10 kmph stops directly fall on head. just a slight hit was enough. if i weared a helmet it would not even be broken.
pro bmx guys know how to fall they are pro ride everyday whole day. not everyones pro. and not everyone has the skill to save their butt. even then it still happens. and yea its a personal choice. you maybe have little chance but the chance exist and thats enough for me. i have seen reports of people that died riding bmx. and not comfortable? what is more comfortable wearing a hlemet and lossing your hair, or not wearing one and lossing your brain. imo people that laugh with you cause you wear your lid are the stupid ones. those who dont wear it and respect others choice well can only repsect that but its great to be an example. and dont forget a helmet is not a guarantee to save you. still its better then nothing

 bunch of fucking girls

 That's Garrett Reynolds your talking about there. Might possibly be the greatest rider off all time in any discipline. Show some respect.

 If your helmet is not sitting comfortably you are wearing thr wrong (sized) helmet. Its like with shoes, you have to go into the shop and try them on to see which one fits best.
If it doesnt fit comfortably, just like with shoes, you bought the wrong one.


@Thebotoriousmike: I usually dont respect people based on riding level. For example i have much more respect for a beginner who can hardly bunnyhop but is a great guy and fun to hang out with, than with a pro rider who rides insanely well but has a bad personality. I dont know Garrett personally, but I do think pro riders have the responibility to set the good example helmet-wise.

 He is setting a good example by winning life, breaking the Internet on the regular and being so far ahead off everyone else that nobody has the right to criticise him especially not you. Besides why should he wear a helmet? He's just doing what he's always done and somebody's decided to pay him he's not a roll model. If you have a problem it should be with the people who gave him the exposure not him.

 Actually every single sponsorship deal is a matter of the cyclist being a role model. Sponsors dont pay riders because they are skilled, they pay riders / hook them up with free stuff because it is cheap and effective advertisement for their own company. Much cheaper and more effective as for example putting your logo on an advert in a magazine. Sponsorship is not some charity like you think it is. It is purely advertisement where they use the cyclist as a role model, which customers look up to, who customers want to copy and even be. Its all about making money.

 ^ Actually, no they're not. They're not hired to be role models but moving advertisements. All they're paid to do is shred and be decent to the fans, not to be their friggen parents. Man this is pathetic.

 Garrett Reynolds has his own bike company he effectively sponsors himself so no not every sponsorship deal is a matter of being a roll model. He doesn't even need to ride he could just use the rest of his team to promote is company. It all comes down to choice if somebody wears a helmet or not he's not under any obligation to do the right thing in your eyes for the kids besides when he's on TV he's normally wearing a helmet it's just the web edits that you don't see him in one.

 actually...there are a few good reasons to ride without a helmet, just maybe not when riding DH, a jump set, racing or pushing your limits on a street bike. For just riding around town, commuting, going to the cafe etc...there's not really a lot of evidence that shows wearing a helmet makes riding safer. It's a contentious and usually emotional debate...not a scientific one.

 the anti helmet policy lives in the bmx world i see. good thing some kids do still wear them anyways. is there something like the helmet hate comments too? its rather funny tough do you like water 50 procent says yes the otherhalf says no. so it is with everything... i am not hating people with no helmets riding... i just find them dumb thats all. imoand i love mo

 nice reference... man, where is that RED VHS anyhow. Such a sick movie, the intro alone....

 Thanks man, it's sitting on my book shelf in between Etnies Forward and Nowhere Fast!

 As a Rehab Dr. who routinely deals with head injuries, many from sports like this, I call bull. My helmet has saved me on multiple occasions including my old XC helmet that split in two after pile driving head first onto a rock slab. Came out of it without even a concussion. Also does much more to prevent a cervical spine injury than a neck brace. There have been several severe head injuries in recent years in high level BMX'ers and skate boarders. Have seen many a patient who would still be walking if they had been wearing a helmet..

 bicycleuniverse.info/eqp/helmets-nyt.html

 There was a test where they tested helmets and checked how much difference it actually makes. The result of the test was, that with a certain ammount of impact, where you would die when not wearing a helmet, you could get away without even having a light concussion when wearing a certified helmet.


The article you showed was purely based on helmet vs. truck. Yes if you get his by a truck riding 100 MPH the helmet won't make any difference. Helmets are not designed for such impacts (else you'd have 3ft big balloons around your head. But if you do a trick and fall, you'll fall within the range of forces that the helmet is designed for, so it can make a huge difference. Like said the difference between death and not even having a concussion.


Obviously helmets are not magical wizardry that will magically safe your head from everything, but it is super effective within the range and type of crashes it is designed for.

 I agree about the benefits of a helmet, I wear one myself. Yes in some situations a helmet won't help, but it can't hurt. My point is more that the idea of wearing a helmet creates a false sense of invincibility. You are concerned that children see athletes such as Garrett Reynolds and will emulate him. I think children, and many adults need to know that essentially Garret Reynolds is a stuntman, and very skilled at what he does and in doing so takes calculated risks. If a lesser rider (essentially everyone) sees this and decides to copy it they should be aware that a helmet may not make a difference. We should all be viewing these videos with a grain of salt for what they actually are. If your children (or future children) said they were going to jump the fountain at Caeser's Palace would you just say "don't forget your helmet". When we watch a typical "stuntman" there is an idea that they are going beyond the boundaries, Garrett Reynolds and other professionals such as himself are no different and everyone watching should be aware of that.

 Im more concerned about the younger people who idolize these people and follow their example, sure hes a sick rider, but doesnt think about people who will follow his example and quite likely get hurt

 Rad video or not, it really shouldn't be on here w/o a helmet.

 I'm sure garret is pretty bummed he lost your respect haha but honestly is this like peoples first time seeing a bmx video? not wearing helmets is nothing new, get over it.

 A kid died of head injuries at my local dirt jumps, not wearing a helmet. Teenagers are much more susceptible to peer pressure and copying their idols, therfeore it's important for the pros to set an example for them

 Just remember this, with ignorance there's a price to pay and that price can be your ability to ride again or even worse your life. Almost paid it my self...put the helmets on. You'll look cooler on your bike than in the hospital.

 Fest series?

 Bmx's have 20"

 I think matt was joking.

 Clearly doesnt get it does he? @fatenduro

 I think pinkbike should have articles everyday about this a new wheelsize craze. 20" singlespeed bikes with 8 inch riser bars and no brakes. They seem to be capable of doing crazy huge hucks to flat.