What is the best way to clean my helmet?
Believe it or not, a new trend among English riders is to clean their ASTM-SEI safety helmets by sending them through a full cycle in their dishwashers. That’s right: Various versions of helmets–pretty much any styles not covered in velvet–are being loaded in a machine designed to clean dirty plates and silverware. Adherents to this practice claim that their helmets come out looking brand new and smelling as fresh as, well, clean dishes. But is this a safe way to get rid of layers of arena dust and that offensive odor referred to as “smelly head?” The short answer is no. The heat and forces inside a dishwasher are too intense. While your helmet may look brand new when it comes out of the dishwasher, it may no longer protect your head in the event of a fall. Even the heat inside the trunk of your car is dangerous for the integrity of your helmet. Trunk temperatures can exceed 160 degrees and that damages the helmet’s materials. The best way to preserve the helmet’s quality is to keep it
