VICTORIA was first in the world to make bike helmets compulsory, but now a small but determined group of cyclists want to ride like it's 1989. Bareheaded.

The Freestyle Cyclists, with fewer than a dozen core members but hundreds of supporters, are planning an act of civil disobedience next month with a helmet-free ride along Merri Creek. The group's petition has attracted more than 600 signatures, calling for bike helmets to be made optional in Australia and New Zealand.

Bicycle advocates for abolishing mandatory helmets: (from left) Raquel Fajardo, Mark Van-delft, Arwen Birch and Peng Au-Yong. Credit:Wayne Taylor

The group's spokesman, Alan Todd, said helmets gave cyclists a false sense of security and provided only limited protection in an accident.

Before the ride on October 6, supporters will gather at CERES Community Environment Park in East Brunswick to hear from Chris Rissel, a professor of public health at the University of Sydney.