I saw a video part were Andy ollied a 5 stair without a helmet and everyone on Powell yelled at him to put his helmet on, it's like his brand. Pretty funny love those guys
Talavera jr Yea that’s true !! I actually just did heelflip on a flat and slipped and hit my head 2 weeks ago 👌 Had to go to hospital and I still got headache every day. I’m sure gonna buy a helmet before skating next time..
What isn't mentioned in this video is how skateboarding is about learning to control danger and actually putting yourself at the risk of getting hurt to achieve personal growth. If you do not want to get hurt u can take it slow and or wear protection. It is completely up to you. But one has to understand what skateboarding culture is and accept that danger is part of it. I personally would never skate a bigger ramp without protection but i have mostly learned how not to get hurt while skating street courses. Plus I have never experienced any helmet-shaming in real life. If your friends think it's not cool to not want to get hurt they are terrible friends but there are so many accepting ppl in this community. Even pro skaters.
this is literally like a race car driver saying he doesn't wanna wear a seatbelt because it takes away from the thrill. respect to Andy for being true to what he believes in.
I personally don't look at the helmet like this. For me, it's a lot of mass high up on my body. From a pure physics standpoint, you don't want weight higher up because that means a higher center of gravity. Helmets are not mean to be tight either. So when you shake your head, you get a delayed pull from the helmet. This makes it a lot harder to balance and stay on your board. I don't care about looks, it's that helmets make skateboarding more difficult. And skateboarding is already hard enough.
@@heyaisdabomb This is such a lame excuse. Does Andy have trouble because of his helmet? How about Burnquist? Pretty sure you're never going to be trying things as difficult as either of them. How do you think they did it? They simply got used to it. Helmets are light. The idea you won't adjust after a couple of minutes is just ridiculous. Do it up correctly and it won't shift. They ARE meant to be tight. You're just making excuses that don't stand up to even the most elementary critique.
@@nubbiewubbie7285 Except he didn't say "I just don't want to, leave me alone" he said he had a skill issue and can't wear a helmet accurately lmao. Personally, I find having a debilitating brain injury more difficult than skating without a helmet but that's just me.
I put on my helmet and pads about halfway-ish through my skate sessions at the park, basically after I'm warmed up and want to start trying bigger and harder tricks. That's the thing funny thing about pads, they are actually an indicator of someone trying something new and potentially dangerous...courage, basically.
My neighbor was skating and wearing a helmet behind our other neighbor’s driveway. Apparently when the other neighbor was backing out he thought he’d move, but he didn’t. The guy skating slipped out and fell with his head lined up in order with the back wheel of the car. The back wheel rolled over his head 2 seconds before the front tire did. He went to the hospital and walked away with a fractured skull, broken helmet, and NO brain damage. Wear a helmet for fucks sake.
brought me chills, everyone needs to get over this whole thing about it being not cool to wear a helmet. its like the reporter said, "whats cool about having half of your scull missing".
@@iluvcatslol5714 It’s crazy how fragile your skull is. My dad was a paramedic during my childhood and he made certain I always wore a helmet because he saw too many kids that didn’t.
Yeah the mountain bike community is very pro safety. I've tried to convince by pops to wear elbow and knee pads but he says since he doesn't ride fast enough, downhill, he won't need them.
I didn’t care about wearing a helmet until I befriended my five and ten year old neighbours and their parent. After I got to know them I felt like the worst loser every time they spotted my without one. I love those kids the way I love my own family and I want to be a good role model plus wearing a helmet doesn’t take away anything from the experience at all. Now I make an effort to compliment their helmets whenever I see them outside wearing them and wear mine religiously. :)
@@soupiratethesoup6161 Get used to it.. You think wearing full face helmet and goggles down a DH bike course in heat is comfortable? They get fogged up, full of mud, you can't see, and you're over heating..but you walk away man.. well most of the time.. You can't stop all freak accidents but most major injuries are preventable.
@@_Jake.From.Statefarm_ well this comment is kinda old and now i think it's kinda stupid i still think you shouldn't really need a helmet for chill and small skating
@@soupiratethesoup6161 That's actually a good thing and very humbling of you. I don't use a helmet to ride down the street to go to the store or anything on my bikes..but the second it leaves the plavement or I start riding any kind of speed, I almost think of it like let's to my car. No keys no ride. I think that having a strong line between when and when not is just as important. Riding to skate spots, skating around town, all that you I think you can chalk up for cruzing. When the hills, flip tricks, rotations, stairs , ramps, and rails are on the mind. Buckle up for the ride. Also what needs to happen is companies need to make skate board specific helmets, that are designed to look cool, customizable, match color ways, and over all be used for all board sports. The snow oard helmets with a slight brim would very well for that mold to start.
@@DanielSultana 100%! Accidents happen, and a helmet can be the difference between being a little sore but otherwise unharmed tomorrow and breaking your nose, splitting your lip and knocking out your front teeth.
i think andy is a good figure to promote this too because he's chill about it and doesn't go around trying to force everyone to wear helmets he just shreds. Never seen him without a helmet feel like he has more balls to commit because of it as well
Dang man... I used to skate and always wore a helmet and people would smack me on the back or top of the helmet and it hurt and bothered me. I think you’re the coolest skater and I love your style and peace and confidence, Andy. You’re awesome, keep it up!!!
His style is amazing. I'm glad he's getting notoriety, both because his helmet advocacy is really important, and also because he's a true artist. He's one of the best flatlanders out there right now, like a new Rodney Mullen
I'm thankful Andy Anderson is always rocking a helmet. I know a lot of young skaters look up to him, and its nice to see him preach a good message. Stay safe skaters
Andy is highly intelligent. An artist and musician as well as a uniquely creative skater - he's certainly intelligent enough to protect his big brain. Kid's got style.
It’s simple, most skaters don’t wear helmets because they don’t skate transition (those that do tend to wear a helmet) and skate more rails,ledges and street like I do, which is not going to make you hit your head if you fall as you fall with you’re arms first (it’s an instinct). It was never about looking goofy. So instead of being ignorant think for a few minutes...
To me it was a heat issue. My head would get too hot in summer under my helmet, made me feel nauseous and sweat dripping into my eyes obstructed my view. I use to put the helmet on for harder tricks like backflips or bigger drops 1.5m and more. When I was skating small (grind) funbox I didn't wear a helmet. I clipped the coping during backflip with my back head in the rotation and even with a helmet I could feel the hit through my whole spine and needed some seconds to recover. But u fellas are skateboarding so... wear helmet for street stairsets, halfpipe / mini and basically every funbox bigger than 1.5m. Worked fine for 7 years as a rule of thumb for me, never got my head injured.
My best friend, the only dude I could really talk too. You know the type of friend that can't be replaced. Well he died. Skateboarding..... just think about that. A helmet could have saved him. RIP C.C
My mother-in-law died from an impact to the head, my close colleague at work fell on a bike and suffered serious brain damage and had to early retire. After these I will always wear headgear when skateboarding,snowboarding and even cycling and try to teach my kids that skull and brain is a pretty invaluable asset if you want to keep on living a normal life. This guy is a great role model.
🤷♂️ tbf the guy works with someone who uses Scientology to promote skating, he’s a big kook aha, loads of vert skaters wear helmets and it looks rad, it’s like putting on battle armour, Duane Peters for example, got this mad helmet that he’s painted and stuff. Street skating killed the helmet but for good reason, photos in the streets look way more stylish and gnarly without pads and stuff, wear what you want though I guess
having a helmet probably gave him an extreme amount of confidence to do most tricks he's doing today, much more comfortable knowing u can push it further and make it out alive without brain injuries
Trevor 87 skating comes from surfing, they don’t wear helmets but it’s just as easy to get a head injury on a surfboard. Just how it is 🤷♂️ after a few hits you start learning how to bail out of tricks, it’s pretty much half of the skill. I get wearing one on vert ramps though, that’s a long way down.
G R A S S W I Z A R D yeah learning how to crash is a huge part of MTB and bmx too. You don’t crash on purpose though and you aren’t always in control of the outcome, there are a million videos of talented skateboarders smacking their head on the street.
@@Zharkan16 it just looks like that cos sandboxes are generally pretty bulky and the strap has a good tightness so long as you can't push it back it's good
This is something agree with alot, as some one who has just started to skate board I thought it be best to wear a helmet, but every video I watch and every skate park I go to I see no one wear a helmet and its very intimateing, and I'm glad to see that there's a professional out there who cares about wearing a helmet
i come from a downhill longboarding background, in the downhill scene if you show up to the hill without a helmet and gloves you are looked at like an idiot. i dont understand why street skaters care more about their personal image then the tricks they are doing. I have taken bails that have nearly knocked me out with my helmet on. if i didnt have it on during one those bails there is a good chance i would look like the dude missing half his skull...
99% of the downhill community thinks like this regardless of what you ride, even most vert and pool riders do. i hope the street community does the same, but with sponsors paying riders who dont wear helmets more the ones that do my hopes are low.
Robert Boespflug yeah. I race enduros and downhill and it’s forbidden to not wear a helmet wherever you go and I think that should start to be a thing at skateparks too. I show up on my dirt jumper and they call me gay just because I wear a helmet even though I can throw banger tricks on a bike.
In positive every pro street skater out there cares about their tricks just as much as their style Or else they wouldn’t be known for what they can accomplish It’s vice versa
@@chrisvazquez6719 you missed the point, a helmet doesnt do anything to hinder your trick or skate style, only your personal image. which only matters for a photo...
I honestly have so much respect for Andy Anderson. I started skating again after a 12 year break (I'm now 28). I never used to wear a helmet/knee pads/wristguards unless the skatepark made me, and I injured myself to the point where some of my old breaks still affect me to this day. I've had so much physio for my knee, wrists and back, and I have very nearly cracked my head on a number of occasions. Looking cool by not wearing any protection means you potentially take up to 20 years off your time skating. Don't make the same mistakes I did kids. I'm lucky I can still skate today wearing full protection.
I've recently picked up skateboarding again too (24 now, 12 when I stopped). I started without protection, then bruised my elbow so bad I couldn't skate for 2 weeks, from a fall on a straight line. I will be using protection from now on. No image is worth a life.
1:25 I crashed while going 30mph e-skating without a helmet and bounced my skull off the asphalt, fracturing it and causing my brain to bleed beneath my skull. By the grace of God, I recovered within a month. PLEASE wear a helmet. I had to spend valentines day weekend in the hospital with my girlfriend, sleeping in the room with me scared
I respect alot of legend skateboarders but this young man earns a different kind of respect in my book. Not a sell out for safety. Stays true to teaching the kids what's right. Much love fam. Keep shining
Fully support this guy. I’m even wearing a mouthguard skating these days. I’ve seen too many people from friends to pros knock out a tooth or multiple teeth. Not down for that, personally.
Personally I never tried a mouthguard, tho for me, a helmet, wrist and elbow protectors are a must when going out. Im still looking for knee protectors that dont impair as much and some mountainbiking stuff has been very promising
Andy is right on. He speaks the truth. It doesn't matter what the terrain is, wear a helmet. I used to not wear a helmet all the time. But as I wore my helmet more and more it became apparent that it was the right choice, I still don't wear it sometimes, but I always feel like I should have been wearing it. Helmets are becoming a must in my skateboarding. There isn't anything like skating, and I think that is why it deserves wearing a helmet.
I love Andy. I almost lost my brain in a longboarding, I wasn't wearing a helmet, I lost a lot of memories and it took a year for my brain to start feeling normal again
"Sometimes you'll end up with a scrape or a bump or bleeding on the ground, and sometimes it feels great!" *Falls off board onto ground* "Ahh, not worth it..."
skaters: hey man, just do your own thing, skating is all self expression also skaters: if you're not exactly like us then you're automatically terrible at skating
@Decrepit Flea48 facts. it is usually at hands of sponsors, or competitions not wanting to have to deal with people getting hurt while they play extreme sports. they can totally do that for ballers though..
You made me laugh, thought this is not true, skaters really say it is all self expression, and they really mean it, I never got problems for wearing a helmet or not...
I came here cuz my dad is currently teaching me how to skate and sumtimes i watch competitions with him and lleme say from like the 5 or so I watched (obvi coming from a professional here) it seems that it's the sponsors and the like announcers that stomp on the ppl who wear helmets i have no problem with wearing a helmet my dad once came home with staples in his head bc he cracked his skull open and ever since then he won't let me try and skate without one
My very young son has just started skateboarding and its worrying that so many of the pros that he will be influenced by do not wear helmets. Thank you Andy for setting a good example to our kids.
One day it was really really hot and I was just gonna go ride around on the road and just chill for a little bit. I decided I wouldn’t wear my helmet and just be really careful since it was so hot. I blinked my eyes and I was on the ground and somehow managed to hit everything BUT my head. I also almost got ran over by a car while I was laying there. I felt like that was life trying to teach me a lesson so I’ve always worn my helmet since then.
and pro skiers and snowboarders has died even slamming with a helmet on... rip Sarah burke and cr johnson... but you gotta remember skiers and snowboarders are hitting 85ft jumps and hitting 22ft pipes boosting 20ft+ high also.
Absolute Respect for this guy. One way to change this is by creating better designed helmets so people don't feel unconfortable and draw too much attention.
Just recovered/Still recovering from a severe traumatic brain injury due to skating without a helmet. I was super lucky and I have sworn never to skate again without one.
Sad that that’s what most other people need to happen in order for them to wear a helmet, it’s either them or a friend they know that gets bricked before they wear a helmet
That's basically a Bern "Watts" helmet which they've had available for over 10 years. How do I know? I've gone through two of them. Replaced the first one after a nasty fall that I may not have gotten up from if I hadn't been wearing it. 50 bucks is nothing when it comes to your brain's health: www.bernhelmets.com/collections/skate/products/team-watts
They do sell his helmet. They're a little pricey but they're super safe and fucking quality. I wear mine for snowboarding but I really should for skating too. They have more on amazon for cheaper and easier options usa.sandboxland.com/collections/classic-street/products/classic-street-black-camo
When i was a kid my dad would always say to me “dress for the slide, not the ride.” Falling off is an inevitable part of skateboarding. Rather be safe than look cool.
when i was skating in the 00s the skate parks had mandatory helmet rules, you had to have your helmet on at all times if you were skating :) stuff like that is a great idea.
Stay safe out there everyone. I had my friend Brandon Sealey pass away from a head injury sustained from skateboarding when I was younger. A tre flip down a 4 stair at the local park ended with him passing away after a week long hospital stay and the doctors were never able to get the swelling in his brain to go down. Remember you can get hurt no matter the size of the obstacle, no matter how confident you are, no matter how long you've been riding a board. Enjoy the passion of skateboard just like Brandon did. But please be careful while you are. Rest in peace Brandon. We'll skate again someday.
Yeah, I slammed on my face just cruising around and hit a rock. Broke my nose and had to have a Rhinorocket jammed up it to stop the bleeding. Was a miserable experience that I don't ever want to repeat. I always wear a helmet now.
@@CreightonNelms It's like a plastic balloon that they stick up your nose to apply pressure to the inside to stop a nosebleed. They stick it in and then inflate it. I hope to never have an injury like that again, but, if I do, I won't make the mistake of getting one of those put in again unless I really have to. If I would have known that was going to happen, I would have just jammed paper towel up my nose and gave that more of a try. The Rhino Rocket was worse pain that the original injury. I had to have it in for like a week too. I guess I'm just lucky I didn't have a brain bleed too. Sorry to hear about your friend.
@@punkgrl325 If the impact is high enough to tear off a limb, the pads will do nothing. People only really wear kneepads anyway so that when they bail they can slide on their pucks and knees. The really good ones wear nothing but a helmet and pucks because they know how to fall.
This was really cool to watch. For about a year I've been wearing a helmet while skating. I may look a bit weird when I show up to spots and skateparks, but no one's seemed to care once they see that I actually skate. I'll occasionally wear pads, too, to try new things and not get hurt as bad, which just lets me keep skating instead of needing to take a bunch of rest days.
I've skied and snowboarded my whole life; from such a young age I honestly can't even remember not being able to ride anything I want (on or off piste) with comfort. I wear my helmet *every single time* I go and have passed up a day of skiing before simply because I didn't have my helmet. That may sound silly, but as a formerly highly competitive downhill speed skier I can count more than one occasion where I was severely concussed, knocked unconscious, and surely would have died without top-quality head protection. I have hit my head on rocks and trees, but even just slamming on snow or ice at speeds over 60 or 70 mph can be deadly (roughly the speeds of the aforementioned head injuries). I will always stress how vitally important helmets are to high impact sports, and I respect skating, but it's patently absurd to me how widely normalized it is to not wear helmets while performing dangerous stunts on concrete or metal features.
bro, I like a heavy, sweaty, wet hat fogging my goggles tho.. Ditto I have been skiing 40 plus years now and the winter helmet is one of the best innovations we have had. Lighter, warmer, with ventilation and minimal to no fogging. I even went full face a few seasons ago as I'm always smashing trees and was sick of the fat lips.
Not about fashion culture, the people who are serious about skating learn how to fall and bail properly to prevent injury. It’s called being aware and not doing things that are above you’re skill level.
@@savatoredreams it definitely is partly about fashion culture, otherwise it wouldn't matter to skaters and magazies if people wore helmets or not. Your argument comes from the same kind of arrogance that is involved in pretty much every accident, where people believe they're better at things than they actually are. Nobody who crashed whilst not wearing a seatbelt thought they were about to crash, they thought they were a good enough driver to avoid it. It's the exact same principle with helmets. Nobody who caved their skull in coming down a rail thought that's what was going to happen or they wouldn't have done it.
@@savatoredreams _"Not about fashion culture, the people who are serious about skating learn how to fall and bail properly to prevent injury."_ No one is going to a padded gymnasium to practice falling before getting on a board. The vast majority of us learn how to fall properly through real-world practice, ie. falling improperly on hard ride-able surfaces. And can you honestly say there's a fool-proof way to fall safely when you start reaching any decent speed? Accidents happen fast and aren't always foreseeable. "It’s called being aware and not doing things that are above you’re skill level." This is not a serious approach to anything. How much time should we waste perfecting one thing before trying something new? Passion doesn't breed that kind of patience... The people who take anything seriously understand the necessity of pushing limits and tempting fate. Mitigating risk allows you more wiggle room to improve and helmets are about as basic as risk management gets. It's also not going to hinder your ability or potential in any way so there's no logical reason not to wear one. IMO that leaves fashion culture as the prime suspect in this weird anti-helmet trend.
@@savatoredreams What? How does anyone ever become pro if they have the philosophy of never trying anything above their skill level? It’s about pushing your limits. That is what skating is. If you never slam, then you aren’t trying hard enough. If you slam, but never hit your head, you are just lucky. Wear a helmet or accept the consequences for you and your loved ones. Either way, this shaming people for valuing their own life needs to stop. I’m a blader, but my 8yo son skateboards, and I encourage him to watch Andy Anderson videos BECAUSE he wears a helmet. This is a needed cultural change. There is no practical reason for not wearing one. This goes for the blading community as well.
@@savatoredreams Not doing things above your skill level.. that's a great criteria, however we do it all the time if we're trying to get better. I also rock climb, and there are guys who don`t even use ropes (that's called free climbing), below they'r skill level for obvious reasons... still some get killed
magazines might have rejected his photos but he is now being recognised as one of the greatest skateboarders and a total game-changer who is a top level skater in street, freestyle and transition. he's a legend. a hit to the head could kill you or leave you disabled. there is no reason to not wear a helmet.
You have much greater chances of becoming the best if you are protected and can stay in the sport withoit injury. Wearing a helmet can literally be the difference between fractured skull, brain damage or death and a temporary 5 second stunn aftet which you can just get up and keep going...
I am not a skateboarder, so I am completely shocked to hear that they actually try to get the guys to take off their helmets!?😳 How dumb! Companies don't even care about people anymore, just their profits. This guy is extremely mature beyond his years, and does not fall for peer pressure, which is admirable. Maybe he has seen enough injuries that made him be proactive. Good for him!!!
Hi, is there a helmet with protection on your chin, as my 5 yr old grandson had 2x hit his chin on the floor n his first time had an injury. Can you send me where can we purchase one as im scared everytime they skateboard. Thanks!
Andy you are hands down one of the greatest skaters of all time!!!! Cheers to you man!!!! Greetings from a lesser known skate punk from Pompano Beach FL lol just ordered a helmet
I’m 16 and have had 5 concussions, it’s no joke I didn’t wear a helmet and I would do anything now to go back and wear one. Long term concussion effects are real.
Like half of skaters think he's a kook already anyways so if anything that would DISCOURAGE lots of skaters from wearing helmets. I know I'd be less likely to wear one if he did, cause I didn't think too highly of him. Also, it's probably too late for him, he's taken enough nasty slams that he's probably gonna get CTE later in life regardless.
by the way, I am now finally wearing a helmet! thought I didnt need it as long as I´m only skating flat, but how many excuses can I find really? its so easy and saves your life, ffs. I feel so sad when I hear Andy talking about how the skate industry and even his fellow skaters dislike the helmet ... I only started skating 1 week ago and I didnt wear a helmet or pads because everyone told me not to. but I met some cooler guys, who wear those and watched alot of Andy and now I do wear helmet and pads. less time recovering from injuries, more time skating!
I almost died for dont using helmet, i broke the bones of my head and stayed in coma for a long period, they had to open my head to remove the coaguleted blood. For a time i wasnt able to feel flavors, to speak, to walk and even to hear with my left ear. I forgot who i was and how to do a lot of stuff, i culdnt even clean myself. It took years to recover and now i have only scars to tell the story, thanks god. unfortunately some dont have this luck so please use helmet, even if you think it inst cool or mess your hair. We always think it will never happen with us til it happen.
We once had this attitude with push bikes but now i rarely see a cyclist without a helmet. Hopefully skating can change too, power to Andy, this is a great thing to do.
Reminds me of the culture in professional road cycling and the arguments about wearing helmets. There was huge resistance for decades, eventually it changed...but it took a lot.
I have taken a few good smacks to the back of the head looping over and i was extremely dizzy and immediately stopped riding. Cant imagine what would have happened without the helmet
Andy is who actually inspired me to start wearing a helmet again. In fact I bought the same helmet he wears. Now if I can just get my hands on his Flight Deck that I really want to try out.
I love skateboarding it's one of my favorite hobbies. I'm a down hill longboarder and I cant even imagine not wearing a helmet. I've cracked my melon on the street a couple of times and I'm glad I was wearing one. Plus once I'm geared up I feel like i can push myself more.
@@headinthecloudsagain1735 How am I supposed to get a helmet if I can't afford one they have to get the prices down if they expect people to buy helmets
This is the best and most courageous way to change the attitude towards skating. Andy I take my (protective) head off. You just became my favourite extreme sport athlete!
Shook yeah, it only takes one bad one. One bad concussion, and your life is forever changed. Even if it’s a lot more minimal then what this guy suffered, it is shocking how much it can come to affect you later on in life
I admit I dont even own a helmet, but it is a smart thing to wear a helmet. 6 months ago I hit a crack rolling out fakie and landed ON the back of my head on concrete. Spinning double vision, ears ringing, loss of balance, and a huge bloody knot on the back of my head. It took about 3 weeks for the knot to go away, and another couple weeks after that for the scabbies to fall off. I know it's not cool, but if you bust your head open and die, or end up with a brain injury, I guarantee you all your skate buddies WILL forget about you. The only people that you'll matter to will be family that have to take care of you. Wear your helmets, my dudes. Life is long, and there IS more to it than partying and skating. Take care of your body.
