Head protection in skating

jjane45 · Jun 8, 2009

Hi All

I am hoping to get recommendations on protective gears for the head after a bad fall in spin practices.
What do you recommend? I am hoping to get something low-key and comfortable but still absorbs impact well. The usual helmet kids wear seem to be rather bulky, but if it's my best option, so be it

Your advices are greatly appreciated! Images / purchase links (US) even better!!!
Jane
---
Thank you so much everyone for your wonderful advices!!
I will definitely look into padded headbands

gkelly · Jun 8, 2009

There are padded headbands designed to be used for protection for soccer players -- that might be useful. You don't want to interfere with your peripheral vision.

After I fell and hit my head on the ice 6 months ago while wearing a hard plastic barrette that broke from the impact and left a bruise I can still feel, I've been relying on ponytail with soft scrunchie whenever I skate. No help if I hit the front or side of my head, but would have been a plus rather than a minus in the fall last December.

Kypma · Jun 8, 2009

At some point, I heard about these head bands which supposedly reduce impact force without being too cumbersome. It was probably during some advertisement or fluff about pair skating, but here's a link:
http://www.icehalo.ca/
Seems like it's Canadian-based, so hope that's not too much of an issue. If not, there's:
http://www.force29.com/products.php which appear to be more breathable and more versatile, and maybe a little less bulky.

There are probably some others; I found these by googling "skating protective headband", and there seem to be several links.

Hope that helps!

-kypma

jjane45 · Jun 8, 2009

Thank you everyone for your wonderful advices!!
I will definitely look into padded headbands
AGAIN, THANK YOU SO MUCH :love:

Raven B · Jun 11, 2009

I have seen the Ice Halo being used and it looks VERY comfortable and the girl said she felt much happier practicing wearing it!! And, she said their club got a huge discount from the Canadian manufacturer by contacting them directly - And, she said they got their order really fast. see www.icehalo.com *the one she was wearing was white fur, didn't obscure her vision at all, and looked better, in my opinion, than the little thin thing Force is putting out. I'm going to find out if I can buy one without going through my coach.

megsk8z · Jun 20, 2009

I can see a new product coming down the line from Bunga.......the squishy headband!
I, myself, am waiting for the full body Bunga to come out.

jjane45 · Jun 21, 2009

Astronauts axels or hockey player spiral, which one do you prefer?

I personally think full body bunga (including head) is a terrific idea!!

Kat12 · Aug 5, 2009

I use MY HAIR! (to be fair, I have a lot of it; it's long and thick and a bun takes up a significant portion of the back of my head)

I used to wear my hair, for skating, in the single braid that I wear it in pretty much every day (I'm not very creative, what can I say). One day I'd just washed it before I went to the rink and didn't want a block of ice on my head, so I put my hair in a bun and put a scarf over top to try to keep it warm.

That was the day that I fell off the back of my blades and hit the back of my head. What may very well have been a concussion was, instead, me bouncing back up off the ice exclaiming, "SAVED BY MY HAIR!"

I refuse to wear my hair any other way for skating since.

OHgal · Aug 7, 2009

LOL, I don't have that much hair, so I just ordered one of the ForceField headbands. I wish I would have done it sooner-- maybe then I wouldn't have this big knot on the back of my head from falling.:sheesh:

Raven B · Aug 14, 2009

I'd be worried about the Forcefield providing protection, I ordered one and there is only a little bit of padding inside it. When I fall, I fall hard, I have very short hair LOL so I can't use it! The Forcefield thingy is more for like, soccer and stuff where you're only damage might be from a ball, and you're supposed to wear it under a helmet :-( ... no thanks!

jjane45 · Aug 16, 2009

I have to agree that the headbands is not helpful when one falls back in skating. Long hair is not an option for everyone, either.
Since I still feel too awkward to put on a helmet for casual skating, right now I am using a regular winter hat, padded inside with makeup pads around the fall-prone areas. Looks fine and should be better than nothing!! :biggrin:

Tinymavy15 · Aug 16, 2009

Kat12 said:
I use MY HAIR! (to be fair, I have a lot of it; it's long and thick and a bun takes up a significant portion of the back of my head)

Remeber when Naomi Nari Nam had that bad fall on the triple flip at the 1999 Nationals? Her fall was cushioned by her bouncy ponytail!

Raven B · Aug 23, 2009

Yes! That's why I wear my Ice Halo - I love it, it's all white a fluffy and people keep asking me where I got it! It's like, the same whole idea of your make-up pads (haha, I never thought of that!) but more re-assuring. And I have short hair. :-( My ice halo is a band instead of a full hat so I don't get hot, and it's all really padded and comfy and doesn't look dumb like a helmet! I just bought it last season and put it on, adjusted it to fit cozy, and never worried about it again..I just love it....I just wish they'd come out with something like that for my butt! hahahah...I spent so much time landing on it my first season, I got called Smurfy by my man!! maybe I'll get, like, two more halos and wrap them around there...course, I tend to land on my feets now - thank god. yup, me and my ice halo, we're making progress - i think it makes me feel more confident somehow, like, cause, if I do fall, my head won't make that sickening crack noise anymore - ugh that is so gross!

jjane45 · Aug 23, 2009

It's very reassuring to hear from someone who used both soccer headbands and ice halo! What is the major difference besides amount of padding?
I had two tough falls so far, both hit the top portion of the back of my head, is that area covered by Ice Halo? --- ITA it looks very attractive

Raven B · Aug 24, 2009

Ice Halo vs other headbands

Yea, the Ice Halo works better for me because it actually is wider (like, up and down, wider) and padded at all the way around, so, includes the back. (it's thinner - not less padded, but like, thinner up and down, so it doesn't get in my eyes at the front).
It's actually padded all the way around, not like the other thing (forcefield headband - which is basically for soccer and land sports) which is only padded in certain areas and like, half the thickness - which is scary when you're thinking about falling on ice! hahaha - me, I want it THICK - especially at the back. And I can adjust it, too - with the velcro tabs, it's not just a headbandy thing, which just stretches. I can make it nice and snug and then take it on and off when I want without have to do it up again ...and not worry 'cause I wouldn't want it to fly/fall off while doing anything with a quick spinning motion, like twist lifts, throws, or side-by-side jumps and spins.
so... like I said... me ... and my Ice Halo ... heheheh...we're going to be great some day! hahaha

Skate@Delaware · Aug 31, 2009

If you are going to protect yourself you should also wear a mouthguard. I fell a few years ago and landed on my chin....didn't do anything except give me a concussion and my teeth hurt for weeks!

The impact of my chin rattled right up to my brain and was severe. Had I been wearing a mouthguard I might not have had a concussion, just a bad headache!

The ones by shock doctor are the best! They come in all different sizes and models and most are under $20 bucks. They even have models for braces. I'm in no way connected to the company, just a very happy mom-my son wears them for hockey.

jjane45 · Jan 28, 2010

Coming back to report that the ice halo looks fine and attracted a lot of positive-sounding comments like "what... a cute hat!" but I found it too hot for indoor ice and somewhat insecure.
Will give light weight bike helmets a try before getting into back spins

Bennett · Jan 30, 2010

Yeah, skating can be dangerous. I had a friend who hit the head for doing something that I cannot remember. Anyway she became unconcious and did not remember what happened (and fortunately recovered!). I also had another friend who cut the chin. He was learning a new spin and it was bad-centered.

Raven B · Dec 7, 2010

Ice Halo Headband

I use the Ice Halo because it fits snuggly and doesn't get in my way. My hair is too short to pony. I have two of them now. One a fleece kind of material that doesn't make me hot, and one a furry bunny that I wear outside when it's freeeeeezing.

I looked at the forcefield one and it's like a sweatband. no protection at all. Maybe if you wore it under a helmet it might be good for a sweatband, but the halo is washable and it doesn't make me sweat. It says it on their site "Our coaches have tested the Ice Halo and tell us it does NOT impede speed, timing or jumps!" and I find that all true. And you can order online. www.icehalo.com There a a lot of skaters using them now. Hope that helps! :laugh:

Kypma said:
At some point, I heard about these head bands which supposedly reduce impact force without being too cumbersome. It was probably during some advertisement or fluff about pair skating, but here's a link:
http://www.icehalo.ca/
Seems like it's Canadian-based, so hope that's not too much of an issue. If not, there's:
http://www.force29.com/products.php which appear to be more breathable and more versatile, and maybe a little less bulky.

There are probably some others; I found these by googling "skating protective headband", and there seem to be several links.

Hope that helps!

-kypma

Raven B · Dec 8, 2010

It's not a hat....

Yes, I found my fur one warm - but for indoors the micro-fleece one was better than getting a concussion :laugh:

You have to wear it right for it to be of any use - if you read the instructions it says to do it up snuggly around the widest part of the back of your head. I've seen another girl who wears it on top of her head "like a hat" - It's not a hat. I always figure if I'm going to put out money for something to protect my head, I should wear it properly.... just sayin'..... :biggrin:

..... buy hey, if you're good with helmets go for it! Did nothing to keep my chin safe though

jjane45 said:
Coming back to report that the ice halo looks fine and attracted a lot of positive-sounding comments like "what... a cute hat!" but I found it too hot for indoor ice and somewhat insecure.
Will give light weight bike helmets a try before getting into back spins

Head protection in skating

jjane45

gkelly

Kypma

jjane45

Raven B

megsk8z

jjane45

Kat12

OHgal

Raven B

jjane45

Tinymavy15

Sinnerman for the win

Raven B

jjane45

Raven B

Skate@Delaware

jjane45

Bennett

Raven B

Raven B

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