Answer:  NO
While California law requires that all those on motorcycle must wear a helmet, there is no such thing as an approved helmet.  Some government literature has stated that bikers must wear or should weat DOT approved helmets.  This is not true.
California’s motorcycle helmet law is as follows:
 The helmet law for “riders”27803. (a) A driver and [...]

It started with leather in The Wild One. Then, Harley Davidson made a line of clothing to go along with membership in Harley Davidson consumer groups across the country. Yes, bikers dress a certain way. Whether it’s bandana, t-shirt, jeans and boots to leather chaps, motorcyclists have their own distinct style, and they are not [...]

The allure of motorcycles has always been their link to freedom. They indeed symbolize freedom from the constraints of everyday life. This association became cemented in our brains in the 1954 Marlon Brando movie The Wild One. It is considered by many as the first and foremost biker film to focus on leather, gangs and [...]

It’s spring time, days are longer, weather is warming up, and you have had enough of weekday jaunts in traffic. You feel the open road beckoning—perhaps a long haul across the desert to Las Vegas. Winter zipped by and so will the opportunity to take advantage of perfect weather to haul out your baby and [...]

Two of the most controversial topics regarding motorcycles in California are helmets and lane splitting.  
In California, it is required by law to wear a helmet while riding a motorcycle.  It is still unclear to me how a motorcycle helmet would prevent a car from making an illegal u-turn or from getting struck by a [...]