Yes, Helmet Hair Can Be Chic! Stylish Riders Share Their Best Tips

Is there any better advertisement for city cycling than watching a fashion editor speed away from a runway show on her bike, while the rest of the scrum jostles for an Uber? A clean getaway is always chic—but, when it comes to helmet hair, a clean arrival can be more elusive. As one Vogue.com writer (anonymity requested; the shame!) tells me of her risky riding, “Basically I have such flat and unfortunate hair to start that extra sweat and flattening seems like a nonstarter.” When it comes to avoiding said helmet, she’s not immune to finger-wagging: “My mom totally scolds me every time I see her.” Of course, the merits of protective headgear are indisputable, as we’ve already witnessed in wince-worthy accidents during this month’s Tour de France. To prove that style and safety need not be mutually exclusive, we’ve polled a fashionable set of helmet-abiding cyclists (and one ne plus ultra scooter devotee) for tips on arriving in one well-coiffed piece.

Which brings us to that exemplar of effortless French girl hair, Caroline de Maigret, the model and music producer who zips around Paris on her black Peugeot. Her trick for an instant refresh “is to pretend my helmet is difficult to take off, so I have to bend over,” she explains (note: her oft-photographed helmet—as much accessory as protective measure—is made by Ruby). From that upside-down stance, “I flip my hair so it doesn’t look too flat,” she adds, emphasizing her hard-and-fast rule: “Being safe is more interesting than any hairdo!”

The Citi Bike–riding publicist Celine Kaplan has even found certain advantages to the precautionary measure. Under her gold Cyclechic version, she often wears a large braid to lay the groundwork for loose waves. “My helmet acts like a salon dryer,” she reports, adding that a spritz of Christophe Robin’s rose-scented mist lends extra lift. Plus, she says, “I am really into the bed-hair look.”

Elisabeth von Thurn und Taxis, Vogue’s Style Editor at Large, agrees. During her teenage years, she explains, “I did find that sometimes helmet hair, especially on freshly washed hair, can add the perfect bit of grit and sweat, and it almost looks like a deliberate textured blowout.” (She admits she may not be a poster child for helmet adherence of late, but she did just order a matte black one from Tokyobike.) Designer Lela Rose goes a step further, tying on a scarf over her hair before she straps on her helmet. “It seems to keep things in place a bit more,” says the year-round rider. And Vogue.com Photo Producer Sophia Li prefers another summer-appropriate distraction: “I bring a straw hat along for the ride and throw it in the basket of the bike,” she says of her quick swap.

Of course, it’s not squarely a women’s issue, though Vogue Senior Editors Taylor Antrim and Corey Seymour can get away with merely raking their fingers through their hair upon dismounting (the latter, who parks his bike near restaurants with large plate-glass windows, sneaks a glance in the makeshift mirrors). Of the two kinds of helmets, Seymour explains, the “dweeby, super-techie” ones let in more airflow near the scalp, while the “cooler-looking—and safer for city riding—helmets give your hair the full-on helmet press.” Not that Seymour is complaining. The last time he biked without one, a young child swerved in front of him, sending him airborne—and to the hospital for eight stitches along his scalp line. “I would have traded helmet hair for this option on any day,” he says. To which we say: Happy, and safe, trails to all.

 

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