All You Need to Know About Hat Etiquette

[hatophile]

I had a patient who was a life long resident of the Tacoma WA area. He had visited a friend in Texas for two weeks a couple of months prior and was so enamored of the "cowboy culture" that he started to wear a Stetson cowboy hat, western shirts, jeans with a wide belt and large buckle and cowboy boots. He was also trying to talk like a Texan, y'all. He stated that he did not take off his hat even while eating. He noted that he did not take off his pants while eating why should he take off his hat? I excused myself and retrieved my FedIV. We conducted the clinic visit in our hats. When in Rome...

Isn't there some cowboy culture in Idaho?

 

[HeyMoe]

He noted that he did not take off his pants while eating why should he take off his hat?

You know, I think I now know why I have been banned from all the local resturants! I never considered leaving my pants on!!!!

 

[Dan Rodemsky]

No marks. I use a clip with smooth, curved jaws. No teeth. Came from a conference nametag.
Works well when flying as well, as I can hang my hat from the folded-up tray table.

I have another "where to put it" question. Scottyrocks, maybe you can answer. How do you carry a hat while riding a motorcycle? I have some fairly large leather saddlebags but I don't think my fedora would like them. Am I going to have to buy a top trunk? I wouldn't like the looks on my Bonneville.

 

[scottyrocks]

That was always an issue for me. When riding, it had to be a hat I could pack, and I usually kept it in my jacket for more wind protection, and easy access when I got off the bike. My eight-panel newsboy caps fit the bill best. Fedoras were for most other times.

 

[Magister]

I have another "where to put it" question. Scottyrocks, maybe you can answer. How do you carry a hat while riding a motorcycle? I have some fairly large leather saddlebags but I don't think my fedora would like them. Am I going to have to buy a top trunk? I wouldn't like the looks on my Bonneville.

Time for a sidecar.



Seriously though, you might consider a large tankbag. I have a fairly large tankbag with a pleated extension and ridgid sides, yet the thing can be flattened and stuffed in a saddlebag when not in use.

 

[Dan Rodemsky]

Time for a sidecar.



Seriously though, you might consider a large tankbag. I have a fairly large tankbag with a pleated extension and ridgid sides, yet the thing can be flattened and stuffed in a saddlebag when not in use.

Thanks! I have an old tank bag I'll have to dig out.

 

[amador]

Well yes Idaho does have a cowboy culture, Boise State University Broncos for example. Seems that almost everyone has a horse in these parts. Encounter with "Tex" was in Tacoma, WA. Thanks

 

[scottyrocks]

Tank bag? Tail trunk? Bikes can be very different. You have to understand where my POV comes from. Here is my ride of choice:

Not exactly a whole lotta room for anything but me and a sandwich.

 

[DavidJ]

Time for a sidecar.

My first thought was "you need a drink?".

 

[Dan Rodemsky]

Cool bike, the hat? Not so much

 

[scottyrocks]

It's not even clear what type of hat it is from the picture. Although it has a bill, it's not a baseball cap. It is something called a Robo-cap, made of denim. It was one of those purchases I made at a bike event many years ago. It folds up smaller and flatter than a baseball cap and I don't have to worry about breaking the brim when I tucked it in somewhere while riding. The brim is a double layer of denim and it keeps the sun out of my eyes when off the bike. It has some other interesting features, but if a person doesn't like it, they don't like like it.

Anyway, this is what is looks like:

 

[Dan Rodemsky]

My bad. It looked like a ball cap in the bike picture :eusa_doh: I should have known better.

 

[univibe88]

I take along my beater Akubra and just shove it in a saddlebag.

 

[TugboatTony]

Very Informative and entertaining! I now know all I need to know about about when to remove my hat and got some fantastic ideas on protecting it in public.


This should be required reading.

 

[hatsRme]

Here is a new(?) question regarding the acceptability of hats at the counter or bar in a restaurant... If keeping a hat on while seated at a bar or counter seat is okay, then how about when sitting those bar-height tables and chairs we're seeing around here? Just a talking point.

 

[Historyteach24]

The only time I do not take my hat off in a restaurant is if I am at an outdoor cafe, the bar or one of those bar table you spoke of. Booth and nice table seating I always put my hat under my seat. Again another exception is a place like Logan's roadhouse where they are allowed to throw their peanut shells on the floor. The hat stays on my noggin then.

 

[Sam Craig]

This keeps coming up ...

It is good to be polite.

There just ARE eating establishment ... in this part of the world at least ... where it is NOT offensive to leave the lid on at the table. It's casual, the tables are small, it just IS acceptable.

Then there are other places that are more formal. I don't know how else to put it. In those places it is polite to remove the hat. A gentleman just KNOWS the difference. And if you aren't sure, err on the side of caution and take off your hat, even if you have to eat with it on your lap.

What you DON'T want to do today is hang it up outside your site or your reach, not if you want to get it back.

On the other hand, restaurants that want to set rules about hats in their establishment should return to the day of the hat-check and the hat-check employee. Make sure they are secure and we'll leave them there.

When I was a PROFESSIONAL projectionist, back in the mid-70s, the theaters where I worked had the policy that if a patron left a hat in one of our theaters, it had to be kept in the manager's office for six months before it could walk out the door.

I ended up with a really nice Greek fisherman's cap and a Stetson that way, but waited to make sure that no owners claimed them.

My sad experience has been that such rules aren't followed any more.

Just keep the hat with you.

Sam

 

[jbucklin]

With the absence of hat racks, hat checks, etc. the safest place for my hat---anywhere--- is on my head. I'm always shocked at how many people---especially kids will grab them and treat them like they're worthless objects. You don't know how many times I've had to tell people just what that hat costs.

If anyone says anything about it I simply tell them that my head is substituting for a hat rack.

 

[Benzadmiral]

If you leave your hat in the car on a hot day, leave it in the trunk. Keep a clean blanket or cloth in there, set the hat on it brim up, and shut the trunk. That'll be less likely to heat-shrink the hat than leaving it in the greenhouse of the car interior.

I've done it a number of times when I was pretty sure I wouldn't have a spare chair to put my hat at a restaurant, and it worked fine.

 

[majormoore]

I take mine off in church, barber shop, at home for the first time, or at the movies, all other times it stays on my head, I never wear a nasty or dirty hat in any place to eat or drink, as stated in alot of other post, 99% of places have no means to hold your hat safe, I have never had a place tell me to take mine off or you can not come in, I have taken guest out 6 of us total to some really high end places in Chicago, New Orleans and Atlanta , where the bar bill and dining bill was over $1000.00 for the six of us, if I ever go and am told I must remove my hat, then my money will be spent some where else.

Major Moore