Mounted cam could have compromised the helmet’s structure, GoPro never tested equipment for this kind of impact

Oct 14, 2014 10:21 GMT  ·  By
Michael Schumacher’s brain injuries linked to GoPro camera mounted on his helmet
   Michael Schumacher’s brain injuries linked to GoPro camera mounted on his helmet

Former Formula 1 champ Michael Schumacher was seriously injured in a skiing accident on December 29, 2013 in the French Alps, when he fell on the slope and hit his head on a rock, suffering brain lesions that put him in a coma until June this year. He is now out of it and recovering at home, but his condition is still serious, being unable to walk or talk.

At least that’s what reports in the media say of his state right now. There is a certain implication (not stated outright, but it’s there) that he might never recover fully, and thus never be able enjoy the simplest things in life, like taking a walk in the park, hand in hand with his long-suffering wife.

Could this tragic accident have been avoided, even if Schumacher had not stayed on the regular ski trail? Apparently yes. It was the GoPro camera that was mounted on his helmet that caused his brain injury, it has been suggested.

What we know: the facts

Schumacher was an experienced skier and, as one, he felt confident enough to go off the regular ski trail into an area where he must have suspected were rocks hidden underneath the thick layer of snow. He was irresponsible in doing this, there’s no denying that.

As per the statements of the doctors who treated him, he had a GoPro camera mounted on his helmet and it recorded a 2-minute, first-person video of the accident as it was happening. It showed Schumacher trip over a rock, tumble, and hit his head on another rock. His helmet imploded upon impact, causing his severe brain damage.

Schumacher was in and out of surgery to relieve intracranial pressure, with reports saying his condition varied from “barely able to move his eyes, and nothing more” to promises that he might expect to live a “relatively normal” life once out of recovery completely.

We also know that Schumacher’s family is refusing to comment on his state in any way, except for the initial statement asking for privacy until he was out of the woods – and the investigation into the accident came to an end.

To protect him from unwanted media attention, his departure from the hospital and his journey back home were kept a secret. Some media outlets and plenty of conspiracy theorists saw in this sneaky move the first sign that Schumacher would never be himself again because of the injuries from the accident. Why else all the secrecy?

Trying to find someone to blame: GoPro

Whenever something bad happens, especially to someone as respected and loved as Schumacher, it’s human nature to try and find the culprit or, if not, at least somebody to blame. With some accidents, like this one, we can’t really speak of one culprit because, as noted above, Schumacher willingly went skiing in an area that wasn’t especially designated for this purpose, so he took a risk and put himself in a dangerous position.

However, that’s like blaming the people who died on the Titanic for getting on board of it, because they chose to take the risk of sinking, one could say.

Formula 1 commentator / French journalist Jean Louis Moncet was quoted the other day as saying that he’d spoken to Schumacher’s son Mick, who informed him that it wasn’t the impact with the rock that caused the brain injury, but the presence of the GoPro camera on his helmet.

Presumably, when Schumacher mounted the equipment on the helmet, he compromised its structure, which made it come apart upon impact with the rock. The implication is that the helmet would have sustained the force of impact, at least to protect Schumacher better, if he didn’t have the GoPro stuck to it. He would have still been hurt, but not nearly as bad as he was.

GoPro takes the fall: shares drop considerably after comments

“The problem for Michael was not the hit, but the mounting of the GoPro that he had on his helmet that injured his brain.” That was the quote sourced to Moncet that brought GoPro to its knees today in the stock market: Reuters reports that shares of the company went down 9.8 percent on the Nasdaq, and estimates for the following days are even more dire.

Other companies selling this type of mounted equipment also took a hit, but none as big as GoPro, wherefrom one could conclude that this drop is a direct consequence of Moncet’s comments. All those safety concerns that people have been buzzing about on sports forums (and not only) for months have just been brought sharply into the spotlight.

And GoPro seems to be paying the price, taking the fall. We contacted the company for comment, but as of the time of writing, still no response.  

Moncet backtracks, but does it matter anymore?

The tweets below were sent out by Moncet hours after his initial comment went online and started picking up traction. He seems to be denying he ever made it, saying he didn’t get any interview with members of the family.

Rumors, they can bring even the giants down, we know that now.

What probably happened is that Moncet gave an interview in which he mentioned speaking to Schumacher’s son about the champ’s condition. The comment could have been fabricated by the media, run as legit by one media outlet and then, as they say, it spread like wildfire. Or Moncet could be lying when he says he didn’t say these things, because he’s trying to protect himself from a lawsuit from GoPro.

The bottom line is that it doesn’t even matter anymore: GoPro has already been hit hard by the implications, not just because they're serious but also because they're probably true.

Here’s what the company was saying in February 2014: “We do not have any testing resources available regarding the effects of mounting a camera on your helmet and the impact on the helmet’s safety as a result.” The emphasis is ours.

The same statement also stressed that the cameras and the mounts were not made to stand a “significant impact” and that, in the eventuality of one, they would most probably come off than damage the helmet. However, the fact that they did not have test results to back up either variant meant that this could go either way.

Then, there’s this: helmets meet certain safety standards as they are. You’re not supposed to put stuff on them (not even stickers with certain types of adhesives that are proved to damage the plastic of the helmet) or throw them around, because you’d be compromising their structure, which means they won’t act as they’re designed to in case of an accident.

The Internet is filled with first-hand testimonials from people using GoPro cameras who vouch they were injured worse with the equipment mounted in the front than when they didn’t have any at all. Again, there are no figures to back this up, and the company is yet to answer our call for comment, but the consensus seems to be that, if you stick a GoPro on your helmet, you’re willingly running a higher risk of injuring yourself in case of an accident.   

So what now?

Until GoPro steps forward with a clarification on these new allegations, which have reignited the debate on the safety of their equipment, and offers figures to back up their defense, let’s all learn a lesson from the Schumacher accident: first off, stay on the skiing trail, don’t venture on the side, into unknown areas. Secondly, use a helmet and don’t compromise its safety just for the sake of having something cool to show your friends.

Safety first.