Go to any event featuring RCMP in ceremonial dress, and you’re bound to see Mounties wearing the red serge, blue and yellow breeches, a Sam Browne belt, brown Strathcona boots, and a wide-brimmed, ...

Pith helmets . The first head protection concept introduced to the biking world was a hat made from pith, which is the spongy rind found in the stem of sola plants, aeschynomene aspera.

Pith helmets were far from what we would consider a helmet today, but they persisted until the early 20th century, when bicycle-racing clubs emerged.

Pith helmet craftsmen would press the pith into sheets and laminate it across dome-shaped molds to form a helmet shape. Then, they’d cover the hats in canvas as a form of weatherproofing.