Tommy Mulvee: Sid Huddart - Motor Cycling Helmets

Past President Scott Elliot chaired last week's meeting of the Rotary Club and welcomed regular visitor Harold Wilner of Kingston-upon-Thames Rotary Club.  The speaker was former Rotarian Sid Huddart who related a past occupation at Kangol in Carlisle when he was involved in the making of motor cyclist's helmets.  In the early 1970's Kangol was the main manufacturer of helmets and, with them being made compulsory by law to wear in 1973 for motor cyclists and pillion passengers, it was a boom time in the business.  Eventually Kangol had to relocate to larger premises in Stranraer where they still operate today.  He explained the processes involved in mnaking helmets and how critical it is to its safety and efficiency.  They were tested at various levels and, for those used by the armed forces, they had to withstand impact by a .303 bullet.  There are 1.2 million motor cyclists in the United Kingdom and 139,000 new machines are registered each year.  Sadly 328 riders are killed each year but the figure would be much higher without the stringent regulations involving helmets.  Most accidents involving motor cyclists occur on rural roads and the Borders is a popular area for this recreation.  When Sid worked at Kangol they built a car with a body on the same principle as the crash helmet and, when tested, it drove straight through a brick wall without any body damage, such was its strength and the Lotus car company developed a similar sports car with the same results but the experiment was not followed through.  The talk invoked an interesting discussion after which Past President Tommy Mulvee gave the vote of thanks.