This Sikh mom couldn’t find a proper helmet for her boys. Now, she’s designed her own | 24CA News

When Tina Singh’s boys began studying to experience bikes, it was apparent they’d want helmets. 

There was only one drawback: Singh could not discover a single helmet available on the market to accommodate her sons’ turbans. 

“My kids keep their hair, so anytime I went to go put a bike helmet when they were going out to ride … nothing fit them properly,” the Toronto mother of three informed CBC Toronto.

Not having a turban-appropriate helmet meant Singh had resort to issues like getting bigger helmets that did not match proper, scooping out the froth inside one to accommodate her youngsters’s hair or not placing a helmet on her children in any respect.

None have been secure choices.

An occupational therapist who has labored with sufferers with acquired mind accidents, Singh says she knew how vital it was to have a well-fitting bicycle helmet.

“I was frustrated that there wasn’t a safe option in sports helmets for my kids,” she stated.

So, she got down to create her personal.

‘Big studying curve’

Now, the Ontario mother has designed what she says is the primary security licensed multisport helmet particularly for teenagers like hers.

For over two years, Singh says she has labored on and examined completely different variations of the helmet. Now, she says it is in manufacturing and licensed to be used with bicycles, inline skates, kick scooters and skateboarding for teenagers over the age of 5. 

“This is a big learning curve for me, it’s not something I’ve ever done before,” she stated.

What makes her mannequin distinctive is it has a domed portion on prime to accommodate a toddler’s hair, whereas nonetheless becoming the way in which a helmet ought to: two finger areas above the eyebrow, making a “v” form across the ear and one finger house between the chinstrap and the ear. 

This previous December, the helmet obtained a passing grade from the worldwide testing firm SGS. 

‘A welcome step’

While Singh’s helmets are for youngsters, the difficulty of whether or not to exempt turban-wearing Sikhs motorcyclists from having to put on helmets has made headlines in recent times.

In 2018, Ontario’s Progressive Conservative authorities moved to hitch Alberta, B.C. and Manitoba in permitting Sikhs to experience bikes with out helmets after calls by Sikh motorcycling teams and federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh.

The earlier provincial authorities, below Premier Kathleen Wynne, refused these calls, saying the transfer would pose a highway security threat.

In a 2008 courtroom case, a decide dominated towards a human rights problem to Ontario’s regulation after a Sikh motorcyclist refused to pay a effective for not sporting a helmet over his turban, saying it was towards his faith to take action.

Speaking to CBC Toronto, Balpreet Singh, authorized counsel for the World Sikh Organization of Canada stated the helmet is “welcome step.”

“There are some Sikhs that do wear helmets and also many Sikhs that choose not to wear helmets because they don’t feel anything should cover the turban. So I think this is definitely one more option that Sikh families can consider and definitely long overdue.”

‘Surreal’ seeing imaginative and prescient come to life

Moezine Hasham, govt director and founding father of Hockey 4 Youth says the helmet will assist Sikh children overcome the challenges to collaborating in sport, saying the business is overdue for innovation. 

“When you think about the impact of the pandemic and the access to sport that unfortunately wasn’t there … the creation of this type of helmet is now going to create an inclusive space, it’s going to foster belonging.”

Meanwhile, for Singh, the discharge of her helmet is not only a resolution for Sikh children, it is also an emblem of being seen in sport.

“It is also a demonstration of inclusion and diversity in sport participation,” she stated.

As for seeing her children put on the helmet she created herself, she says: “To me it feels really surreal… It’s a beautiful moment for me. I did this for my kids and to see them actually reap the benefit of that is amazing.”