53 replies to this topic

[JayWay]

Heres a question to pass the time. Weve discussed a bunch of times who has the nicest helmet, but the REAL question is, who has the ugliest helmet. The type of helmet that just cries out "IM SLOW, FIRE ME!"

My picks:

Wurz-To flashy
Irvine-Dunno, just don't like his design, can't explain it.
Coulthard-Could he be any less original?

[Pascal]

I'm sorry JayWay, but I have to mention Jacques Villeneuve here.

[Indian Chief]

Hakkinen - Too dull
DC - all the sponsor crap has messed up his helmet which didn't look too bad in his Williams days.
Ralf - He has just copied Michaels' helmet design.
JV - helmet design doesn't make sense. PINK in an F1 drivers helmet????

[Makarias]

Wurz gets my vote. I like plain designs that are easy to recognize. Häkkinen, DC and Irvine all have good ones, imo, sort of like flags for the drivers.

[westendorf]

The money decals make any helmet look terrible, but profitable I guess. Most are boring anyway. I'd like to have a plain white one, they call those 'the cue ball' it would be an anti statement. But yea JV's is dumb.

[JayWay]

Thats ok Pascal, im not a huge fan of it either

[theMot]

JV's Helmet looks like **** run over twice. Hey! wait a sec thats also how his career looks!!!

jahhhh

[JaqFan]

Hey, come on!

It's not really that bad, is it? I mean apart from the pink stripe...and the pink sorta goes well with the blue of the crown, and also the blue goes well with the white [H] logo...oh, I don't know...

You all seem to hate it, so I ain't gonna get shouted at for JV's sake.

[This message has been edited by JaqFan (edited 02-25-2000).]

[Eli]

Make your choice:

[Louis Mr. F1]

For past drivers, i have to say, Nakajima, i don't like white helmet.

[DAT]

heidfelds buttons And zontas are crap, but i have to say Villeneuves is really cool

[whiplash]

none of them are particularly stunning, but i must say wurz' is rank.
button's britpop is a bit '96/97.

[Damop]

Yep, definitely JV. The pink makes him look like a Nancy boy, and there is no coherence to the design.

[Pit Babe]

JV gets my vote. I have no problem with the pink in and of itself but it doesn't work with the rest of the schematic.

[F1 Rox]

Any driver who put their national flag on their helmet is ugly. I'm not against drivers are proud of their country, I just think that it is nicer to have something that represent one's personality. As for JV and Wurz, at least they are ORIGINAL.

[smarty]

1st row, 2nd column. Whose helmet is that? Terrible...

[Force Ten]

Wurz... Definitely the ugliest helmet around, with Jaques as a close runner-up.

[whiplash]

f1 rox, wurz has got the austiran flag on his helmet - the red and white.

[Damop]

As for one of the best, I like Paul Tracy's. The green chrome effect is awesome in person - it looks very rich and deep and makes the surface look textured. I think the same guy who does Schumi's helmets does PT's, which would explain the pattern on the top.

[F1 Rox]

Whiplash,

Ooops! Yes, you are correct!
I must have been blinded by those unusual shapes!

[Ivan]

JV's design is the same as his dad's was. Only he added a stripe and changed the colors.

[slc]

I think Salo ranks pretty high on this one...

[pa]

Speaking for myself, I prefer standard white. I have a Bell M3 helmet, and find that the original white colour is far more durable than any paint, which scratches the first time you put it down on a pit wall.

But hey, when you're talking about F1 drivers, they can afford to have a new halmet for every race - I understand that's what MS does.

Those Arai GP 4 helmets (used by most drivers) are over $1,000 a pop! (http://www.grandpri....s/AGP4MK1-1.jpg)

[This message has been edited by pa (edited 02-25-2000).]

[fissijo]

Easy - Wurz's is easily the worst - too crowded and ARGH (sorry best descriptoin!)

My favourite HAS to be Fisi's, it is simple, elegant (?) and easy to spot! Lush!

Joei ;)

[RedFever]

I liked GV's helmet. And Jean Alesi's

[JayWay]

The best helmet is Rubinhos. If I ever get enough money to get a custom paint job when I kart, id get Rubinhos design.

[FordPrefect]

Wurz is the Wurst, too busy, it made my eyes hurz

All the Best FP

[A3]

How about Ralf's:

He took his big brother's helmet, made all the white yellow and there it is......

How original.

[Piquet_1]

I liked Alesi's before he got away from the orginal de Angelis design and went chrome.

Troy Lee's designs are attrocious an always spoil a good helmet. This was the epitome.

[Oachkatzlschwoaf]

Wurz' is definitely the ugliest

[SeaMonkey]

Wurz, for sure. No question. And even though he's not racing anymore I still have to give an honourable mention to Shinji Nakano - now that was an absolute shocker.

[coyoteBR]

Well, I kind like JV's Helmet, it's unique, it defies some rules, just like the driver.
And, sorry to say, but Button's design is pale in comparation to Nigel Mansell's. Now that was a smart and beautiful use of Union Jack.
All in all, no one can beat Wurz in this poll, sorry AW fans.

[luisfelipetrigo]

My vote goes to Jochen Rindt. True, it was pre-marketing days but could have been a little less boring.

------------------
Saludos
Luis Felipe

[Mila]

AW's is definitely odd; it looks as though it belongs to a motocross biker.

PD's has the look a downhill skier might have on his/her helmet. actually, didn't PD get the arrows from Carlos Pace's design?

JA's chrome dome aesthetically jibes with the look of the Sauber, but my guess is that a new, metallic white might go better with the blue of the Prost.

HHF's design is special I think. I don't like the graph paper-like lines so much, but the curvilinear treatment with the German colors is much more engaging that the nominal horizontal color fields.

[JayWay]

I agree, Troy Lee is all flash. If you want a chrome helmet go to him, but if not I think its better else where.

[This message has been edited by JayWay (edited 02-26-2000).]

[Nikolas Garth]

How is one meant to know who's helmut is who's, in the above posts. Obviously some are easy to recognise, but I doubt there a more than 10 helmuts I recognise.

[Linus27]

I love Jean Alesi's chrome affair. I thought that looked amazing. I think i have seen Paul Tracy's chrome helmet and I love that also. Jacques is boring but striking. I do not mind Wurz's. I like Fizzy's because I love the green, yellow and white. Herberts is boring. Buttons is don't like as it reminds me of Mansells. Schueys is dead boring. Mika H is again simple yet striking. I love Irvines with the big cloverleaf. Fantastic.

[BlackCat]

ok, Wurz - too flashy; Rubinho - too plain.
btw did anybody notice JJLehto's various helmets during his short career in CART? every next one worse than previous...

[HK]

I am not sure about the helmets... but when they take them off DC has the ugliest head how does he ever get a round helmet over a square head it must cause considerable pain...this could be the reason behind his so erratic driving he need to get a different shape helmet fast to ease the pain and embarrassment he causes to his team & followers.


[This message has been edited by HK (edited 02-26-2000).]

[Skid Jackson]

I'm with Smarty, top row second helmet from left whose god awful helmet is that!!! JV's helmet is on the screwed upside of things to.

At the expense of showing my lack of depth in F1 knowledge why don't one of you tech weanies get some names under those pictures!!

These guys might know how to drive but i think they could use some real help when it comes to helmut design!!

[Skid Jackson]

Hey jayway and Eli you should get pictures of CART helmets and NASCAR helmets and if you wanted to be charitable Irl helmets and then we can have an IROC Helmet contest. See which helmet of all the series is the ugliest and which is the coolest!! A regular world helmut championship!!
There's a joke in there but I'm gonna stay away from it!

[Williams]

Most helmet designs are just too cluttered. The simpler the better. I like Coulthard's and Mika's. JV's is OK because it makes a sort of a statement. Nigel's was cool because it had definite theme. But the worst ones are the one that have arrows on them ! Diniz for example. It's like the driver needs something that says "THIS WAY FORWARD STUPID !" Stay away from arrows.

[Uncle Davy]

Old Man Talking...

They're all too damned busy. And the sponsors take up more space than the designs, it seems. Humor me...

Clark: Black helmet, white visor.

Gurney: Dark blue helmet and visor.

G. Hill: Black w/ rowing club stripes (adopted by Damon)

Surtees: White w/ blue stripes top & sides

Stewart: White w/ tartan banner

Jo Siffert: Red, w/ white stripes & cross a la the Swiss flag

Jacky Ickx: Blue w/ white accents around the edges

Denny Hulme: Silver, w/ two parallel black stripes front to back

Chris Amon: White, w/ red & blue stripes front to back, and a little kiwi silhouette on each side

Just scratching the surface...the point being, simplicity has its virtues.

[Paste]

I don't like Fisichella's helmet. It's very very pale, and looks pretty much plain white when watching on TV. I love the helmets of Greg Moore and Paul Tracy. Two good Canadian boys, who both had amazing, very unique helmets.

Wurz has a pretty bad one too. Stupid Benetton drivers!

------------------
AtlasF1 Test Time Competition

[mark f1]

Pedro Diniz's is the most boring!

[foster]

Wurz's worst.
(I'm a poet. I just didn't know it.)
Some haiku.
For you.

------------------
CHEERS,
FOSTER

[Daemon]

1)Diniz - that helmet looks like you'd expect an F1 drivers to, although a copy of Carlos Pace.
2)Barrichello - simple but effective, and suits the F1-2000 perfectly.

LAST) Alex Wurz - no matter what this guy wears, he still manages to make it look goofy. Helmet, racing boots, lucky he's a good driver..

[BigWig]

I have a purple helmet.

------------------
Bigwig, you know, from Watership Down.

[silver fan]

I've yet to see any helmet past or present that takes my fancy. How about a helmet with a mural like the type you use to have on the side of a "sin-bin". Or perhaps something from Swiss "surrelist" H.R. Giger, something along the lines of his "eroto-mechanics" series would go down a treat.

[selena]

I agree with Smarty and Skid Jackson. The most terrible-looking helmet is the one on top row, second from left. All mish-mash, looks like a madman's. And to HK, very humourous comment from you.