research - what is it good for

Heard on the CBC last evening - A British traffic expert claims that cycling with a helmet can be dangerous to your health. In a study of traffic patterns and bicycles, the research noticed that cars would not give as much clearance when passing a cyclist who was wearing a helmet as opposed to those who did not wear one. After conducting some interviews, he discovered that motorists viewed helmet wearing cyclist as more competent and non-helmeted cyclist as more erratic; thereby deserving of more room. He also noted that women cyclists were given more room when being passed (he tested this theory by donning a wig – he could not find any woman willing to ride his specially designed bike which measured the distance of passing cars).

Yikes – I'm on my way to MEC to buy a skort and to find a wig.