Abstract

To assess the thermoregulatory effects of wearing two different styles of cycling helmets eight male triathletes underwent three prolonged submaximal cycling tests in hot, dry conditions. The subjects exercised at a constant workload set at approximately 65 of VO2 max, and attempted to complete 75 min of exercise in each test; the three tests involved the wearing of a Bell VI-Pro hard-shell helmet, a Brancale racing (leather strip) helmet or no helmet, in random order. The results showed that there were no significant differences between the three test conditions in oxygen consumed (VO2), heart rate (HR), rectal temperature (Tr), mean skin temperature (Tsk) or sweat losses. Performance time was also not significantly different, and averaged 65.2+/-3.4 min over the three tests. The only significant difference recorded was in forehead skin temperature, which was significantly lower (p<0.01) in the no helmet condition, than in either of the helmet conditions. It was concluded that wearing a cycling helmet (either a leather strip or hard-shell helmet of the type used in this study) does not accentuate the cardiorespiratory and thermoregulatory responses to prolonged submaximal cycling in hot, dry conditions. Verf.-Referat