Select to expand quoteHwy1North said..
Saw one those Simba's out in the beginner surf pack last weekend. Seriously kooky, but that's what we said of Gaths when Tom Carrol first made them popular... besides, foilers are aready perceived as villainous kooks anyway!
As I mentioned earlier, I think the bump caps should be worn with cut-out facing forward to protect the back of the head from strikes from the foil, or in my case, a beginner on a longboard who went straight on a closeout and ran right over me as I was about to chip in on the reform. Hurt my foot with his fin, but my bump insert saved my head. Next wave, in pain and flustered, I tried to pop up in too shallow water and landed on the foil. 
Anyone have an idea for Kevlar shorts worn over your wetsuit like kiters used to do? Kujira tip destroyed my suit and left me with a very sore arse!
I have the same kook-mark, but on my thigh, got run over my a longboard gal (2nd trip to emerg in a month foiling). I was wearing a helmet, didn't hit my head, but the degree of damage on my leg, head contact with no helmet, honestly could be really bad. It makes me re think strategy out there on crowded days, kind of like defensive driving when riding a motorcycle, have to assume everyone is going to try and kill you, so always be prepared and thinking contingencies.
Wing tips: I cut my foot on a buddy's kujira, trying it out. I have gofoil NL, I sanded mine dull. Another beach colleague carved his off to nubs. New gen gofoil wings abandoned them....which I suspect speaks to how much benefit they actually offer vs kind of a gimmick. I knocked one wingtip off and rode it like that for a couple months, have to be honest, didn't notice any difference. So....with the safety factor originally moving me from slingshot to gofoil (all carbon, all rounded edges, etc), it seems dumb to now have all these ginsu blades pointing up, basically the most dangerous foil wings out there. :-(
I did research on helmets after a number of high speed face plants and found the best to be the Gamebreaker Pro with D30 advanced impact foam. It received the highest rating for a surf helmet from Virginia State University that seems to be the authority in rating all sports helmets in America.
Most of the impacts are generally falls which when on the head are sub concussive knocks which long term can lead to being more prone to getting a concussion. I bought one direct from the States for about AUD$140 from
gamebreaker.com/shop/gamebreaker-pro-soft-shell-sports-helmet/
Select to expand quoteSouthby said..
I did research on helmets after a number of high speed face plants and found the best to be the Gamebreaker Pro with D30 advanced impact foam. It received the highest rating for a surf helmet from Virginia State University that seems to be the authority in rating all sports helmets in America.
Most of the impacts are generally falls which when on the head are sub concussive knocks which long term can lead to being more prone to getting a concussion. I bought one direct from the States for about AUD$140 from
gamebreaker.com/shop/gamebreaker-pro-soft-shell-sports-helmet/
That looks like a gooder. Mine is a cheap imitation ... spending extra $$ for head safety is likely money well spent.
I hope you paid the extra $10 to get your custom art added. You could really have some fun with that.
Simba are seriously good helmets. Lightweight, don't even know you are wearing it. There's a few retailers in AU that have them. Bit pricey but worth it.
Just an update on the wip helmet. I would not recommend it anymore. It is super lightweight as stated before but it's not strong enough for prone surfing or winging. I've had it for a few months now and it literally broke from duck diving a 2 foot wave. I contacted the manufacturer for warranty but they didn't want a bar of it. Stated it's not designed for surfing or winging, only very light hits from the board or foil. There is a sticker on the helmet saying it's designed for canoeing and white water sports and I would put it in that category but I dunno.. for $150 aus I would steer clear
Select to expand quotewicka said..
Just an update on the wip helmet. I would not recommend it anymore. It is super lightweight as stated before but it's not strong enough for prone surfing or winging. I've had it for a few months now and it literally broke from duck diving a 2 foot wave. I contacted the manufacturer for warranty but they didn't want a bar of it. Stated it's not designed for surfing or winging, only very light hits from the board or foil. There is a sticker on the helmet saying it's designed for canoeing and white water sports and I would put it in that category but I dunno.. for $150 aus I would steer clear
WIP stands for Work In Progress 
I have had my gath helmet for over 30 years and the strap finally broke the other day plus the plastic is now quite brittle. I have bought another one and bolted on a new strap while I wait for the new helmet.
