Nutcase? Describes me pretty well, actually

My mother doesn't know what to get me for my birthday which is later this month. My mind ranged briefly over the Shimano Nexus 7 Hub but I thought it was a bit expensive and not the sort of thing my Mum buys for me. I did consider the DVD set of the TV series Flambards from the 1970s/1980s but then found something more useful and practical while doing a round of the bike blogs, something I haven't had time for much lately.

Nutcase helmets are now available in Australia. Now, I hate helmets. I won't get into the helmet debate, save to say that helmets are compulsory here even if you're just trundling a few blocks along a quiet street to the shops. I can see the point if you're commuting on major roads, but I get grumpy at the thought of getting fined if I get caught without one on the back streets. They make my head unbearably hot in the summer humidity - so much for the 'wind in your hair' element of cycling; it doesn't happen in Oz any more thanks to the nanny state.

Another reason I hate helmets is that most of them look so naff. Do I really want to look like a road racer? Until recent years there wasn't a great deal of choice really. You got a bike helmet that screamed 'bike helmet' and gave you the head shape of an alien. My alien head is purple; on the plus side, it has a lot of ventilation:

Then I got hunting through the Nutcase site and found my birthday present. OK, so it doesn't have as much ventilation as I'd like, and I suspect on the hottest summer days I'll have to resort to the Purple Alien Head again. But I won't feel so annoyed at having to wear a helmet when it looks like this:

Yes, this is the helmet I chose. It was a tough decision as they have some great designs but I figured this one goes with both my bikes and a fair amount of my wardrobe. Not that I wear pale pink... but the pink will complement other colours in my armoury and I do wear plenty of green.

Another downside is that it won't accept a sunvisor, which is a shame as I get quite photophobic in bright light. I know some Bern helmets come with a visor but have even less air vents than this. And frankly, they aren't as stylish, graphics-wise. I'll figure out a workaround for the sunvisor. I did ride for years with a helmet that didn't have a visor anyway. The kind people at Nutcase Australia ("Have a nutty day!") suggested wearing a fabric sunvisor under the helmet but that's another layer of fabric/stuff around my head so not an option really. 

My helmet should arrive next week, but I'll be a good girl and wait until my birthday to open the box, and post a review on the helmet when I've used it for a few hours.