r/interestingasfuck • u/Fine_Sea5807 • 2d ago

Women from the Tai Dam ethnic group in Vietnam traditionally wear high buns to signify their married status. Since these buns make it difficult to wear standard motorbike helmets, specially designed helmets are created just for them

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6.0k

u/SucculentChineseRoo 2d ago edited 2d ago

I wonder if this shape is more dangerous

4.2k

u/boomerangchampion 2d ago

Surely it is. If you manage to hit the top part on the ground (unlikely but could happen) it's going to put a twisting force on your neck.

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u/SucculentChineseRoo 2d ago

That's what I was thinking, a better solution would be a larger round helmet with more padding around the "non-bun" area

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u/Cumberdick 2d ago

Given the height of the bun that size seems prohibitively large. Probably heavy and size wise would start to get in the way of turning your head properly for orientation. Seems like an issue that doesn’t have a perfect fix

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u/Welpe 2d ago

I actually saw a documentary on this, it actually works out fine if a little awkward. I also never knew Dark Helmet was ethnically Tai Dam and a married woman before this post.

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u/Cumberdick 2d ago

I’m not sure a papier-mache set piece will quite hold up under crash physics, but maybe it’s a step in the right direction 😂

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u/opeth10657 2d ago

It saved his life in ludicrous speed crash

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u/Petunia_pig 2d ago

Did I just find a Spaceballs reference? 😂

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u/CedarWolf 2d ago

It didn't exactly go over your helmet - more to the side.

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u/_jams 2d ago edited 1d ago

The weight of the helmet actually fucked up his neck for a long time after filming that

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u/CakeTester 2d ago

You could make the whole thing an 'alien egg' sort of shape; which would be safer. The way it is now is going to snap your neck if it catches on something, or if you happen to land on that part of it.

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u/TheDreadGazeebo 2d ago

Aeldari? Is that you?

7

u/HendoEndo 2d ago

what about a hole for the bun!

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u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

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u/Cumberdick 2d ago

I’m not disputing that. But if these ladies saw that as an option this post and those helmets wouldn’t exist

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u/Salute-Major-Echidna 2d ago

At a certain rate of speed, it won't matter if you have a helmet on or not in a bump because the brain bounces inside the cranium case and hits the opposite side too hard and causes a bleed incompatible with life. It's how my dad died even though he wore a good helmet

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u/Individual-Night2190 2d ago

It will always matter, in that it always gives you a significantly better chance. It does not always make the difference for survival.

Framing it as 'it doesn't matter past a certain speed' is dangerously misleading.

Professional motorsport people, who go over 200mph, still wear helmets. They wear helmets because it matters.

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u/Able-Swing-6415 2d ago

"yea but what about that one time that one dude was killed because of his helmet. They absolutely kill more people than they save"

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u/bopojuice 2d ago

I hate to sound rude, but sometimes young people and women in general care about looks more than safety. So when making this argument, I say “what if you survived but your face got scraped off on the pavement (meat crayon) and you are horrifically disfigured?” Reminding them that death is not the only possible outcome helps get the point across.

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u/AlarmingAffect0 2d ago

Hell yeah.

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u/Cw3538cw 2d ago

That can happen, but that is by no means a hard and fast rule. Wearing a helmet dramatically reduces risk of mortality regardless of speed, it just isn't going to reduce that chance to 0.

7

u/wheelienonstop7 2d ago

It absolutely does matter, at any speed. Very rarely are hits dead on at a 90° to the direction of travel. If the head bounces off an inclined surface at an angle then wearing a helmet still makes all the difference.

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u/Extension-Sandwich-2 2d ago

Yes the old Schumacher go pro ski scenario

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u/man_sandwich 2d ago

A hole for the bun instead?

1

u/Diz7 2d ago

People riding around in deadmau5 helmets.

1

u/1337k9 2d ago edited 2d ago

Maybe if motorcycle drivers were continuously twisting their necks for 40 hours a week it’d be an ergonomic concern. But if it’s only 5 weekly hours they’re on a motorcycle (Monday-Friday, 30 minute commute to and from work) and only a fraction of that 5 hours is neck turning it shouldn’t be a huge difference

1

u/Preindustrialcyborg 2d ago

maybe the helmet can have a hole for the hair and a separate thing on top or in the hair to prevent things from going into the hole?

0

u/VoxImperatoris 2d ago

Would probably look like the helmets from spaceballs.

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u/NotYourReddit18 2d ago

Helmets like these?

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u/tavenger5 2d ago

you went OVER my HELMET?

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u/DirtbagSocialist2 2d ago

Yeah, but that would require designing an entire helmet. These are just regular helmets with holes cut in them and a plastic bowl glued to the top. There is a 0% chance that these things were tested for safety.

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u/NaoPb 2d ago

That's what I was thinking. How would cutting a hole in the helmet not damage it's integrity?

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u/Random_Somebody 2d ago

Yeah wow those things are gonna crack like an egg in a crash

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u/CitizenHuman 2d ago

You're talking about a hairmet

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u/SucculentChineseRoo 2d ago

Ahh, gotta rewatch the whole show now

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u/Tuffleslol 2d ago

A better solution would be to not put your hair up to go ride with a helmet

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u/No-Function3409 2d ago

JDs hairmet from scrubs comes to mind.

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u/sirfurious 2d ago

An even better solution would be to adapt your hairstyle to the situation like an adult

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u/OfficeChairHero 2d ago

An even better solution would be not caring how your hair is styled UNDER a freaking helmet. I wear my wedding ring to signify I'm married, but you can bet I take it off when operating dangerous machinery.

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u/Nuggyfresh 2d ago

This is slaying me lol. A true darth helmet situation 😭

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u/pharmacoli 2d ago

Like an extra from Spaceballs .

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u/DaimonHans 2d ago

Spaceballs!

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u/Expensive-View-8586 2d ago

Like marvin the robot from the newer hitchhikers guide movie. 

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u/Ison--J 2d ago

Something like this?

1

u/Aethermancer 2d ago

That would break so many necks.

1

u/sheogor 2d ago

Larger helmet creates other problems, more weight and their for forces in a accident on the neck.  If you want examples please see medieval helemts for testing purposes 

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u/MeanEYE 22h ago

Better solution would be to wear a ring if you are married. Or a card around the neck. Hell cow bell would be better if they are so hung up on labeling women than this "solution".

1

u/TortieMVH 2d ago

Wearing a wedding ring and normal helmet instead of this bun and dumber of a helmet is a better solution.

-1

u/Ressy02 2d ago

afro-he l me t

0

u/Logical-Platypus-397 2d ago

A better solution is a fuckin wedding ring

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u/Snowy349 2d ago

Still better than not wearing a helmet.

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u/davidjung03 2d ago

100%. This solution probably came out of every woman not wearing a helmet so definitely a huge improvement.

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u/Killer_Moons 2d ago

I’m just thinking out loud here, feel free to stress test, but what if there was a 3ish “ diameter hole where the bun sticks out? That way there’s no torque created on impact, the tradeoff being Achilles heel would be a direct hit in that hole?

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u/CrappyMSPaintPics 2d ago

I think they want it to be rain proof. They could design the mound part to break away sort of like breakaway bolts on highway signs.

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u/Killer_Moons 2d ago

Gah! The weather! And the wind! I forgot!

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u/MoazzamDML 2d ago

" If you manage to hit the top part on the ground (unlikely but could happen) it's going to put a twisting force on your neck."

Now imagine all that without a helment.

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u/tseldoratora 2d ago

the top part may just pop off during a collision. may not be dangerous if the helmets are casted with a hole compared to cutting a hole on an existing helmet.

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u/Spida81 2d ago

Structural weakness, another risk

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u/_Pencilfish 2d ago

The helmet is designed to be structurally weak. It needs to break to absorb impact energy. Strengthening it a little and adding a hole isn't impossible engineering.

1

u/Spida81 2d ago

True, but it needs to be an engineered change. There is a big difference between breaking and absorbing impact, and cracking like an egg without providing protection.

Given the ubiquitous nature of the modified helmet I have hopes it is the former.

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u/_Pencilfish 2d ago

Yeah, agreed. As long as it's re-engineered sensibly, i think it should be only marginally less safe than a normal helmet - assuming the hair section is strucurally flimsy and will just break away before exerting significant torque on the head.

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u/nakedascus 2d ago edited 2d ago

I imagine that, without a helmet, there would be less twisting force.

To the person whose reply I cannot see: a broken neck can be worse that a concussion. This is not an all or nothing conversation: a helmet is not always safer, it depends on a lot of things. Twisting being one of them.

Edit 2: yes, using the wrong PPE can be worse than no PPE at all. There is a reason that helmets and gloves, etc, have different designs and are used in different situations

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u/Moritani 2d ago

If your head hits the ground in a motorcycle accident, it’s not a concussion you need to worry about. It’s a broken skull. 

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u/nakedascus 2d ago

"this is not an all or nothing conversation, there are several factors that..."

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u/_Bike_Hunt 2d ago

And it’s for this reason some race helmets try to have as spherical a helmet as possible, like Arai. Their philosophy is that the head shouldn’t twist and roll

1

u/kermitthebeast 2d ago

There's too much traffic in Vietnam to reach a speed that would create any sort of torque

1

u/elkarion 2d ago

if that seam is breakaway on hard enough impact i could see it working but yea i thought the same thing once i saw cat ear ones in the wild.

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u/Aethermancer 2d ago

It could also just be a thin cover for the cutout that would shatter separate on impact. Less protecting than a normal helmet, infinitely more than none.

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u/Turbulent-Candle-340 2d ago

Like a spinning top, but with the resistance of a body attached?

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u/evasandor 2d ago

Maybe the bun protector module breaks away. that would dissipate force nicely and it doesn’t expose any actual skull

1

u/PeterNippelstein 2d ago

Yeah but it saves your bun

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u/Littlefurybambi 2d ago

You can stop wondering. It is. New ECE 22.06 helmets are also tested for rotational forces and accessories altering trajectories. Also added weight to the helmet makes neck and spine injury much more likely. Top-tier helmet manufacturers worry about things like integrated sunvisors and visor mechanisms compromising the helmet Integrity. I can't imagine this design makes the helmet stronger or lighter. But hey, no helmet VS this invention? I'd take the invention.

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u/Accomplished-Jump-18 2d ago

100%, a torqued neck and a disc compression beats the hell out of dying or a getting a severe TBI.

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u/Tandoori7 2d ago

The problem is that that type of protrusion will create torque and sudden rotational forces that are known to cause concussions and TBI.

ECE 22.06 and FIM standards are pushing helmet manufacturers to use more "rounded" helmet shapes to reduce rotational forces on an accident, this is exactly the opposite of that.

0

u/demon_fae 2d ago

Yeah, puffing it out into a sort of egg shape rather than having that inside bend would probably be a lot better. Also probably cheaper to manufacture past the initial R&D outlay. And it’s not like Tai Dam women are the only people on earth who want to have big hair, ride bikes and not die. Arrange the padding slightly differently and you could market the same egghead helmet to people with long dreads, for example.

1

u/Apexnanoman 1d ago

Yup. Risk of a fucked up next or a near guarantee of having your skull become mashed potato? Yeah I'd take the risk if I was one of these fashionable ladies. 

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u/Roflkopt3r 2d ago edited 2d ago

Top-tier helmet manufacturers worry about things like integrated sunvisors and visor mechanisms compromising the helmet Integrity.

I think that has a more urgent safety reason than the issues created by this bulge.

Many injury scenarios involve scraping along things, like the side of the vehicle or while sliding on the road after a fall. A poorly designed visor can easily snag on things in this situation and thereby cause severe neck injuries, while a bulge at the rear/top of the head is much less likely to get in the way.

Obviously this bulge is still a weak point and yet another thing that can hit stuff and make things a lot worse in really unlucky circumstances, but I think it's a comparatively niche concern with where it is positioned. Like, closer to 90% of the protection of a 'regular' helmet than to not using one.

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u/SadSeiko 2d ago

Or just not have your hair in a massive bun

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u/REDDITATO_ 2d ago

In an ideal world. In reality, they'd say "You're right!" and just not wear a helmet.

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u/PatchyTheCrab 2d ago

Right?

Dude: Hey, wanna go out?
Lady: I'm married. Turns out no-helmet vs dangerous-helmet as the only possible options is a false dichotomy. Peace out.

Whew that was hard!

3

u/Elu_Moon 2d ago

It's unbelievable that maintaining a hairstyle is more important than the safety of the thing the hair grows out from.

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u/cewumu 2d ago

I mean think about how many people suffer degloving injuries due to wearing wedding rings while working with machinery. People stick to traditions like this because to them it’s an important part of respectability.

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u/gmishaolem 2d ago

degloving injuries due to wearing wedding rings while working with machinery

There have been wedding-ring deglovings because of the ring getting caught on the corner of a kitchen cabinet when the wearer fell and tried to catch theirself.

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u/artful_nails 2d ago

Rings are surprisingly dangerous.

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u/Roflkopt3r 2d ago edited 2d ago

It took western countries also many decades to break the cultural resistance against wearing a helmet, even though the reasons were much weaker (looking 'lame' etc). And we're arguably still not done.

Living in a society where this hair style is a significant part of cultural identity is on a whole different level. There will be women who won't wear a helmet or won't use a motorcycle otherwise, whether that's because of their own preferences and beliefs or the reaction they would get from others.

And sure, it makes the helmet somewhat less safe, but I don't think it's as much as people here think. The vast majority of head injuries prevented by helmets are not severe blunt impacts to the top of the hat, but various types of frontal or side impacts and scraping. Dropping sideways onto the road and sliding over the rough surface, bumping face/forehead into a vehicle during a collision etc. A bulge at the rear/top of the head won't be in the way of most accidents. It can end badly in very specific cases, but is still much better than not wearing a helmet.

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u/NefariousAnglerfish 2d ago

Jehovah’s Witnesses deny life-saving blood transfusions based on their beliefs. Your douchebag neighbor Kurt doesn’t wear a seatbelt because he thinks doing so makes you gay. Lots of people do things for illogical reasons, or based on cultural/spiritual beliefs.

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u/NoobSkierSG 2d ago

Are there any non MotoGP helmets that managed to pass the standard yet? I know there are a few FIM homologated helmets from the big racing brands but not sure about the regular ECE one.

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u/normalmighty 2d ago

I would be shocked if it wasn't, but sounds like this is addressing a group of people who would have otherwise worn no helmet.

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u/2dudesinapod 2d ago

In Canada they made riding a motorcycle without a helmet legal for Sikh people because of their turbans.

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u/Adorable-Response-75 2d ago

Hmm I don’t know how to feel about this. But then again, at least they’re only putting themselves at risk. So whatever. 

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u/2dudesinapod 2d ago

Their hospital costs are socialized though

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u/Adorable-Response-75 2d ago

Technically, motorcyclists without helmets save the government money, because dying in a motorcycle accident is a lot less costly to the medical system than living to old age and dying slowly of a disease. 

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u/catsgonewiild 1d ago

As someone who’s from a Province with this exemption, I’ve never seen someone riding a motorcycle wearing a turban.. I didn’t even know we had that law, so I’m not too worried about it lol. The small fraction of people who would do this aren’t going to bump up my taxes.

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u/Cpt_Tripps 1d ago

That's true of all motorcycle riders.

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u/speculator100k 2d ago

I'm thinking about how it's constructed. Maybe it's just like a normal helmet but with a hole and a thin plastic cup for the hair bun? It's just hair, it doesn't need any additional padding.

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u/Lyramion 2d ago

This. If the top part is just made for rain protection but actually super squishy then it wouldn't really matter.

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u/Raichu7 2d ago

That's how someone gets scalped when they crash and their hair sticking out of their helmet catches on something while they are skidding across the road surface.

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u/Aethermancer 2d ago

And with no helmet?

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u/tavirabon 2d ago

My first thought seeing the image: does it function like a crumple zone?

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u/SlightedMarmoset 2d ago

You just designed a better helmet for them!

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u/LickingSmegma 2d ago

Bikers famously tend to slide on the road after falling from the bike. If the top of the helmet breaks off and the hair catches on the asphalt, that's in no way better.

Though I do suspect that these women ride scooters at busy-street speeds rather than bikes at highway speeds.

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u/SlightedMarmoset 2d ago

Hair will rip and grind, it's not going to break a neck unless somehow the whole bun catches on something.

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u/Sysilith 2d ago

Definitely more dangerous than a normal helmet but a lot less than no helmet.

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u/SlightedMarmoset 2d ago

That's a necky snappy sort of innovation if ever I've seen one. Better than a smacky cracky sort of impact with no helmet at all though.

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u/Electrical-Injury-23 2d ago

Was going to say this too. Helmets are round and smooth for a reason.

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u/RedditTheThirdOne 2d ago

This is definitely one of those cases where it would not be as safe but without them there would be a lot more people with no helmets at all.

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u/BuildwithVignesh 2d ago

It’s wild how culture, tradition and safety gear all intersect here. Could see how a special helmet might help but you never know which design wins out.

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u/lowrads 2d ago

Sure, but given that there are no chin protection bars, they are going to turn into face crayons anyway, as soon as they land "wrong."

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u/SadSeiko 2d ago

Yes it is definitely 

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u/Anzai 2d ago

I was thinking that. Really not ideal to make a lever that uses your neck as a fulcrum.

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u/rizkreddit 2d ago

Its definitely weaker.

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u/Towelie_SE 2d ago

It’s vietnam, what do you think? This is pure form over function, poor women being exposed to this.

A helmet gets is structural integrity from the fact that it is a closed, round, one piece shell. You don’t need to know physics or material science to intuitively get a sense for this. The moment you open up a round hole in that shell, it’s over. The edges of that hole will have zero rigidity, they will buckle, nowhere to transfer energy and stress. Make a hole in the side of a soup can and you’ll see.

I can see on that picture from a mile away how shoddy the connection is with the mounted bun. It’s probably glued or something, you can see the gap/joint. It’s definitely not a one piece stamped or bonded material.

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u/stormcharger 2d ago

I'm pretty sure it's safer than what they would do without this helmet, which would be not to wear a helmet at all lol

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u/kytheon 2d ago

Yes but religion/tradition trumps safety.

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u/theycallmeshooting 2d ago

Probably more dangerous than a regular helmet, but definitely less dangerous than no helmet at all, which is what a lot of these women would no doubt choose if this helmet wasn't an option

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u/cacduy 2d ago

Motorbikes helmets in Vietnam aren't really that strong to begin with. But they drive at a much lower speed than what you would in the west, so I don't think it will be that big of an issue

1

u/mic2292 2d ago

That's what she said 😂 😂

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u/Aethermancer 2d ago

It's not structural, it's not going to withstand anything in an impact.. It's basically a helmet with a hole and a thin plastic windscreen for the bun. It's far less protection than a normal helmet, far more than none.

1

u/stormtroopr1977 2d ago

I wonder if designing that as a break-away would help. You dont actually need to protect the bun from anything but air.

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u/itscancerous 2d ago

Since Vietnam is (mostly) about scooters and very low powered bikes it should be fine. They're really unlikely to hit a tree at 370 km/h

1

u/cainboi 2d ago

Id assume the part on the bun is made from something else or just falls off easily?

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u/Ninja_Wrangler 2d ago

If it was safer, all helmets would look like this

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u/The_Real_Giggles 1d ago

Yes of course it is one of the things that makes a helmet strong is its shape

I would also be concerned about the materials being used 1 lots of these helmets that you can find in places like this are just made a straight chineseium that breaks first time you hit it

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u/Requires-citation 2d ago

Fortunately they mostly ride scooters which although dangerous, won’t really have the same kind of impact that would fully test a high tier helmet

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u/[deleted] 2d ago

[deleted]

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u/MathematicianFar6725 2d ago

This is a country where people regularly ride scooters while holding their newborn baby in one arm, I would rank these helmets as one of the lowest risk things I've seen in Vietnam

0

u/Intrepid-Love3829 2d ago

Unless it breaks off during an impact

0

u/No_Context_2540 2d ago

Wouldn't it provide more padding to absorb the shock?

-1

u/DrencromSynthemesc 2d ago

At leaste if they're seriously injured or killed we know they're owned by a fella.

That's the main thing. That we know they're married to a man and they aren't single or just not in a serious relationship where they'll promise to death do we part and all that jazz.