I Invented the Helmet Cam - by Mark Schulze

My wife, Patty Kay Mooney, recently "rediscovered" some "lost" video footage of me wearing the first helmet cam rig ever invented, while riding in a mountain bike race in Carlsbad, California in 1988. Here it is, and running at less than a minute, I hope you enjoy viewing the first-known helmet cam rig in action, in the 1980's. They just don't make Lycra bike shorts like that anymore!



Video edited by Patty Kay Mooney
Music: "Slide Show" by Silverleaf

Helmet Cam, Before and After - by Mark Schulze

As I have mentioned in a previous blog post, I am the inventor of the helmet cam. Back in 1987, I rigged an old motorcycle helmet with a camera and hooked it into a 3/4" deck (those who are younger than 30 years old will probably not know what I am talking about) and took this completely top-heavy rig down a few mountains, including the Mammoth Mountain Kamikaze in 1988.

Thought it might interest you to see that helmet cam piece and compare it to a recent mountain bike downhill run through a Southern California ride, about a month ago, using GoPro's helmet camera technology.

I wish this sort of lightweight and high resolution technology had been available back in the "olden times" but I am happy that I was involved, in my own small way, in forwarding Point-of-View footage gathering by way of helmet cam.

Here's the 1987 helmet cam clip:

Mammoth Mountain Kamikaze Downhill, 1988 from Patty Mooney on Vimeo.

And here is the clip from 2010:

Helmet Cam with Olympian Great, John Howard from Patty Mooney on Vimeo.

Father of the Helmet Cam - by Mark Schulze

Image via Wikipedia

When I first modified an old motorcycle helmet into a POV camera device back in 1987, I had no clue where such technology would steer. I just did it because I wanted some good footage from a mountain-bike rider's point of view so that my movie, "The Great Mountain Biking Video" would be more interesting to the viewer.

Now I'm in Wikipedia, and featured in this month's Mountain Bike Tales (thanks to my wife, Patty Mooney).

Don't worry, I am not going to get a big head about this, so to speak. I'm happy that technology has reached the point where video cameras now weigh ounces versus pounds, and they now have far greater resolution than ever before. Also, I won't break my neck attempting bike stunts with a camera on my head.

GoPro, a company that manufactures these lightweight cameras for use in sports, in the sky and under water, would like to team up with me as I gather footage in the new century. I will keep you updated on our progress.