Nah bra you dont get it. I cave with that many dollars of gear because I like to see well and carry at least one extra source of light (because if one goes out you're screwed if you dont have another or unless you can fix the light in complete darkness), I like to protect my head (in the caves I visit there are boulders to climb across and places where one can easily slip,trip,or fall if not careful and injure their head permanently), and I like to get to the car, take off my coveralls (that are protecting my clothes underneath from being permanently stained with cave mud), and hop on in the car without wasting anymore time.
Ha, I wore Levi's... I ripped the ass right out of a pair once. It got caught on a projection while sliding down a rock. Maybe a pair of horses couldnt rip them apart but one human ripped the ass right out of them. Needless to say, that was an interesting trip out of the cave.
Are jeans always the best choice? No. Are jeans always a bad choice? No. Are you automatically safer, better, or happier than a poor man because you're draped in hundreds of dollars of equipment? No.
I dont every recall mentioning that wearing hundreds of dollars worth of equipment was the best choice... Just saying that's the best choice for me...
Is a man in this cave over here with a helmet automatically safer than a man over there in that cave with no helmet? Nope, Helmet Man may be a clumsy, careless ignoramus in a dangerous cave. Helmetless Boy may be a careful, aware caver in a cave that he knows poses little risk.
I use to think the same thing...One bump to the head is all it took to think otherwise. I have hit my head on numerous occasions with my helmet on. One of which would have most likely been fatal. I slipped on a rock and fell about 5 feet. In the process of falling foward my head bounced off of a projection on the wall (talk about spine compression). Had I not been wearing that helmet, I may not be here typing this message to you.
In conclusion, I feel each person has there entitled opinion on the helmet issue provided their cave conditions, etc. I dont hold it against you at all. That being said, I would recommend that you wear a helmet because there's always the risk of hitting your head. That's your decision and the price you put on your head.
There's nothing that makes me more excited than finding a place underground that no one has ever seen or been in!
NSS#60861
wvcaver2011