“We wanted to question the idea that safety and sustainability could not obviously co-exist in a helmet. As a protection company our first priority is the safety of our riders, but we also place on ourselves an obligation to use our planet’s resources respectfully.” –Claes Nellestam, POC Senior Designer
No sense hiding it, I’m a huge fan of POC Helmets. Always thought it common sense to go with the same head protection trusted by generations of professional ski racers who risk life and limb ripping down mountains at highway speeds. With that said about POC’s outstanding reputation for uncompromising safety standards, I’d like to highlight this new design they have come up with for bike helmets that increases the likelihood the product will not end up in a landfill after you retire it.
Even without sustaining a major impact, bike helmets have a limited lifetime and should be replaced every 3 to 5 years. This leaves a ton of helmets simply tossed out. If they’re destined for a recycling center, problems arise with separating out the component parts for proper recycling. Here’s the solution, meet The Myelin, a helmet specifically engineered to deconstruct by the end user without any the need for special tools.
To begin with the helmet is constructed from 50% recycled materials. It also features a woven fabric shell, no adhesives, and interlocking construction where each pieces holds the others. When its time to get a new bucket, you grab a pair of scissor and go to town. Really clever. Check out the video to see how it works. They aren’t currently available for sale but you can sign up for an email notification to purchase HERE.