[UofAWildcat]

Hey everybody! My name is Whitney and I'm a new rider with a question. I'm planning on riding my Ninja to my college campus and I was kind of hoping to get some suggestions on the safest way to keep my helmet on my motorcycle.

What is really nice about the campus I'm attending is they have lots of really nice motorcycle specific parking (covered and not) where cars are NOT allowed. I'm planning on parking in a nice covered lot that is a slight walking distance from my class and I really don't want to have to lug my helmet back and forth from class but I'm worried about leaving it just with the simple helmet lock that is on my Ninja.

What do you ladies do when you leave your helmet on your bike? I have a really nice Shoei that my fiance bought for me and I would be really upset if it "walked" away or someone knocked it off my bike. I'm just looking for some different suggestions on the best way to keep my helmet secured to my bike while I'm hitting the books.

Thanks for any feedback!
:-D

 

[brown recluse]

You have the older Ninja body style? You can get an inexpensive bicycle lock and lock the helmet to the grab bar on the rear seat. Run the cable through your helmet chin bar if it is a full face.

 

[UofAWildcat]

yea, its a 2007. That is a really good idea, thanks!

 

[Bubba68CS]

I've always carried mine with me (also a Shoei)...though I have a lab I can leave mine in for walking around campus. But if you are going to leave it with the bike, I've heard quite a few people taking BR's recommendation with success.

Whatever you do, I would NOT leave it sitting or hanging unlocked...while I've seen people even leave jackets out over their bikes, I wouldn't trust anyone not to walk away with my $400+ helmet :shock:

 

[UofAWildcat]

I know this took me a long time to report back on but I managed to make an inexpensive helmet lock that works great. I bought some thick, plastic coated cable, looped the ends with metal clamps made for looping cable, and then cut some thick rubbery hose and slipped that over the metal clamps used to secure the loops, this way they wouldn't scratch my very nice Shoei OR my bike. I bought a high strength lock and now I feel like my helmet isn't going to walk away!

I slip the cable through the opened face shield and then loop it around that grab bar on the back of my Kawi. I bring the two looped ends together, lock them and then lean my helmet over the right side (in case some very nice person knocks my bike over, my helmet won't be suffering the weight of the bike and the harsh, unforgiving cement).

I totally agree with you Bubba! I'm shocked when I see people at my college campus who leave their Arai, Shoei and even nice Icon helmets just resting on the back of their bike not even secured with the helmet lock! It is even more shocking to see people just leave their expensive jackets draped over the seat! I saw one guy pay for this dearly...he had what looked like a brand new jacket that he just tossed on the seat of his bike...the sleeves slipped and ended up hitting the scalding exhaust pipes and he turned around to various screams of "YOUR JACKET IS MELTING!!!!" Their were HUGE holes in the sleeves and it smelled pretty awful...hoping he didn't do that again!

 

[Suze711]

I actually DO carry mine around...I throw it in shopping carts in stores & under a desk when I was going to classes. I still carry it in class each day as a teacher. However, I have left mine on the more upright brake handlebar...Nobody has ever messed with it. Maybe I'm naive, but I feel like people without bikes don't even notice a helmet & those with bikes adhere to a certain code...& if they need a helmet THAT BAD, lol....go for it. Here in Yuma, MOST riders do leave them with their bikes, without any problems, but glad you've found a way of securing it that makes you more at ease. Ride safe!

 

[Kawasaki Noobie]

Whenever im at my highschool...ride right to the front of the parking lot 5 minutes before class starts, park it on the hashed yellow lines. I either slipped my helmet over the footpeg/rear brake on my ninja or cbr and if I had my Vstar it would go right over the sissybar. Very rarely would I lock it to my bike unless I was parking in the back of the school in the teacher parking and my v-star never had a lock point that worked with saddlebags. Just beacuse I knew they had cameras (one time my GF was giving blood and I was waiting, a kid pulled up, took my helmet off my bike and my GFs helmet and put them in front of the two rear tires of a pickup that I parked next to) And I started locking forks/helmets after that.

I knew a few teachers who would let me leave it in their classroom (one time I walked in on him telling his freshman class it was his and that was his bike in the parking lot lol) but depending on who you have(FIND ONE THAT RIDES TOO) and talk to them about their bike or flatter them, and then ask casuallly if you could leave your helmet in their class, depending on the Campus.

Whenever I was down at the Ex's campus visiting, I always carried my helmet and jacket around getting flirty looks and just left it ni her dorm when we didnt go out riding.

 

[Belrix]

An rubberized cable a couple feet long can lock your helmet (if it's a FF helmet) and a jacket to a bike. Run the cable down the sleeve of the jacket, through the eye-holes of the helmet and attach the ends together. There's any number of cable locks that can do this for you.

If you get a non-retractable kind, make sure its long enough that you can sling it over your shoulder like Miss America's sash. It makes for easy carrying when you get back on the bike.

 

[jaseman]

I know this thread is getting a bit old at this point, but....

I've been using the steel cable method for over 20 years. Some things to consider:

It doesn't have to be very thick. Just enough that someone would need actual cutters to get through it. I actually used plastic coated cable that was left over from a dog-run in my back yard. Looped the ends, and clamped them. It's just as strong as a bike lock, and a good bit thinner.

Keep a couple of them at different lengths if you can. I have three. One just long enough for the helmet. One long enough for the sleeves of a jacket. And the third is a bit longer, to allow two jackets, or run through a jacket, a helmet and the tankbag (the wife is often with me, so it makes it easier).




Another suggestion if you're gonna leave your helmet. Make it as hard as possible to get to the inside as you can. Close the facesheild and turn it so the inside is hidden. Not only does it keep the weather out, but it can help deter idiots from thinking it's a trash can. Yes, people can be that disrespectful, and yes I've seen it happen. I've had friends come back to everything from simple trash, to chewed gum, and even a Slurpie poured inside their lids.


For me, personally though, unless I'm gonna be doing something that prohibits me from it, I almost always take my gear with me. Unless it's 100° out, I can walk around with a jacket on, strap my helmet to my tankbag, and sling it over my shoulder like a backpack. I spent way too much on my gear to trust it to the general public.

 

[sim37]

Mine has a helmet lock built into the bike. However I will still usually carry it. If you want to really have to fun, find a way to link a taser to it in a way that anybody who touches it on your bike but you will be knocked out. It would be fun to watch and you can identify scumbags instantly.

 

[LTD fan]

I used to ride my bike to high school just about every day. locked my helmet to the helmet lock on the bike and never had a problem. Of course i was the only one to ride a bike and the helmet was the run of the mill open face. Maybe get some of that fake dog poo from spencers or joke shop and put it on the top of the helmet. LOL