Topic: Helmet Law

[loonymoon]

I'm glad I've got a flip-up lid - makes it easier when you have to sneeze...!!!

They make everything a lot easier, especially running in to the gas station to pay for your gas.

Yes it's pretty much a godsend especially as I wear glasses. Keep ruining the frames trying to put on glasses with a helmet on but the flip-front makes it easier. Sometimes though it looks like a ghost lives in my helmet.... (look carefully at my face....you can see eyes (several) - but I was wearing dark glasses... scary!!)

[mennedy]

When I first started riding there were no helmet laws and no seat belt laws!

Man, when that horse farted it really messed up the romance!

Marty.

[eldar]

North Dakota sorta has a helmet law. If you are under 18, you must wear a helmet. After that, we do not have any laws on it. As for helmet use, most of the cruiser riders, you know, the ones who do it cause they think it is the cool thing to do, do not wear helmets. Some do but most dont or if they do, it is a skid lid.

Rocket riders on the other hand are about 50-50. Which is kinda suprising given most of the attitudes they have.

[loonymoon]

there was some debate here in the UK about whether UK helmet laws should be waived for people who ride a BMW C1 (like in several other european countries). For those who don't know what at C1 is it's a 125 BMW scooter with a proper roof and seat belts - weird thing!!



Here's a story about a chap who was aquitted for not wearing a helmet on a C1 (but perhaps it was because he's really spiderman!!)


http://www.streetbiker-mag.com/sb0128/2.html

Here's some more info about other cases which were and were not so successful.

http://www.kevinboone.com/c1_law.html

[nickjtc]

Talk about 'special cases'..........

We tested a sikh rider this am. In BC a sikh may ride a motorcycle without a helmet, as long as he is wearing his turban. Apparently as we were leaving the lot to start the test some people in the Tim Hortons next door (coffee shop) saw him riding without a helmet and came over to complain at the local traffic safety inspector.

I wonder if there will be a letter to the editor in the local rag....

[angeldeville]

I live in New Mexico and there is no law here, helmet or otherwise...

But I always wear mine, most Hardly riders and a few of the sport bikers don't.

[loonymoon]

Talk about 'special cases'..........

We tested a sikh rider this am. In BC a sikh may ride a motorcycle without a helmet, as long as he is wearing his turban. Apparently as we were leaving the lot to start the test some people in the Tim Hortons next door (coffee shop) saw him riding without a helmet and came over to complain at the local traffic safety inspector.

I wonder if there will be a letter to the editor in the local rag....

I think the law's the same here in the UK about Sikh's (anyone know for sure as I've never seen a sikh riding a bike in a turban?). That's a difficult one as I'm sure the turban wouldn't protect him in an accident but you can't preclude someone from riding a bike because of their religious belief!

[Kelvin8]

If I'm on my bike I'm wearing my helmet.

Years ago, out in the San Fernando Valley, on a Halloween night I passed an accident scene. Biker down. Ambulance crew moving like they were on a coffee break. Biker looked like his face was in a pot hole ... only there wan't any pot hole (I knew the intersection well). There was a helmet on the storage hook on the side of his bike which was on it's side. ... If only he'd been wearing it.

[snickram]

The state of Indiana doesn't require a helmet law and I completely hate them!!  However, I have 2 boys (2&4yrs. old) and I feel it's something I must do.  My wife will only let them ride if they have helmets, so we now have helmets..  Not the full face kind but the half helmets.  Helmets suck!!!!  Oh well, at least my cranium is protected..     

[nickjtc]

The state of Indiana doesn't require a helmet law and I completely hate them!!  However, I have 2 boys (2&4yrs. old) and I feel it's something I must do.  My wife will only let them ride if they have helmets, so we now have helmets..  Not the full face kind but the half helmets.  Helmets suck!!!!  Oh well, at least my cranium is protected..     

Sorry to be a safetycrat, but in over one third of accidents that part of your head which hits the ground first is the lower face and chin. At least you'll be able to wink at the kids in a catastrophic accident.

And those who wear beanie type helmets can feel smug in the knowledge that the part of the head protected by their helmet is injured in about 5% of accidents....

"People who have brains wear helmets to protect them."

Those of you who enjoy popcorn should step out and get it now.......

[ofreen]

I agree wearing a helmet while riding may well reduce the severity of injury in a crash, so no argument there. 

Head injury and brain trauma are some of the leading causes of death and disability in car crashes, even when the drivers are buckled in.  Yet I've never heard a proponent of mandatory helmet laws for motorcyclists propose the same for car drivers.  Why not?  I've asked that many times in these discussions and have never received a satisfactory answer.




OK, gun thread is going elsewhere, helmet thread is renewed, who's game for the oil thread?

[nickjtc]

Head injury and brain trauma are some of the leading causes of death and disability in car crashes, even when the drivers are buckled in.  Yet I've never heard a proponent of mandatory helmet laws for motorcyclists propose the same for car drivers.  Why not?  I've asked that many times in these discussions and have never received a satisfactory answer.

First get four wheeled users to always use their seat belt...then we'd see a marked reduction in life threatening injuries as a result of car accidents. Seat belt use minimises the risk that a car occupant will be ejected in the event of an accident.....less need for a helmet then, perhaps??

[ofreen]

.....less need for a helmet then, perhaps??

Nope, head injuries are sustained even when buckled in.  Surely less than if not buckled, but think of how many injuries would be prevented if car drivers wore helmets.

[loonymoon]

.....less need for a helmet then, perhaps??

Nope, head injuries are sustained even when buckled in.  Surely less than if not buckled, but think of how many injuries would be prevented if car drivers wore helmets.

Yes but probably mainly because they'd no longer be able to use handheld mobile phones.....  

There was an argument for not wearing helmets in the BMWC1 motorcycle (with a roof) because wearing the helmet increased the severity of neck injuries when the rider is strapped in. However rally drivers and F1 racers wear helmets so there must be a point!!

[jbailey]

Side airbags along with front airbags and seatbelts should prevent most head injuries/trauma in automobiles.  Helmets would restrict vision and head movement, possibly causing more accidents.

If you recall, Dale Earnhart Sr. died due to neck injuries caused by his helmet.

P.S. I always use synthetic.

[nickjtc]

Helmets would restrict vision and head movement, possibly causing more accidents.

Why would that be?

[SuperVel]

You know,

[SuperVel]

Boy am I getting mad at this computer.  If I get up to any speed with it, it shifts into send mode.  I will try typing slower and concentrate on each button I push.
As I was saying, I have been around for a long time and about 25-30 years ago a very smart "old timer" told me to always wear clothing to adsorb the affect of sliding down the road surface with or without my bike attached.  This includes leathers and helmet.  I think that trying to protect your mellon with something stronger is not a bad idea and I don't pity the guys that try to look cool at the risk of their health.  If you think that getting killed in the accident would make you feel bad, put yourself in a wheelchair or a bed for your remaining years and possibly being able to move only your eyes.
I wouldn't wish anything on anybody but I cannot see going into harms way without protective gear.

Take Care,

Marty

[hopterfixer]

As mentioned before, Indiana has no helmet law for licensed riders over 18.  You do have to wear one with a permit or under 18.  I ALWAYS wear my helmet.  As good as a breeze through the hair feels, asphalt through the scalp is not as refreshing.  I am kind of an "imagine the worst case scenario", safety kind of person by nature.  My job as an EMS helicopter technician also lets me see and hear about all of the bad things that can happen or be made worse without a helmet...  like the guy we flew that was on his way home from work one morning after third shift, on his hardley, without helmet, and a deer hit him.  He was obviously bad enough that ground transport to the nearest trauma center was not an option.  The "I'm a safe rider" excuse is crap.  It is about all of the things that can happen around you.  My medical crews, let alone my wife, would not let me ride without one, even if I did want to.   

[boatsdickson]

Living in missouri requires me to but my surrounding states dont. I always do though. I cracked an owls skull in the middle of the nite once right above the visor. If he only had a helmet himself...

If I only had an xtra pair of underroos with me...

[nickjtc]

Riding season is fast approaching for most of us in the Northern Hemisphere.

"Remember - preserve nature, always wear a helmet, think safety"

[pyro139]

.....less need for a helmet then, perhaps??

Nope, head injuries are sustained even when buckled in.  Surely less than if not buckled, but think of how many injuries would be prevented if car drivers wore helmets.

be less injurys if we ban cars make 4 wheels ilegal and make bike trikes and scooter mandatory

[stresssolutions]

MN is funny....not really a helmet law, but...if you just have a permit to ride, as I do, a helmet is required.  I suppose that they are trying to get us used to them and hoping we'll keep wearing it when we get the license.  I had a mental picture of getting hit by a deer and falling off the bike head first onto the frozen road with nothing but a stockng hat between my hair and the road......doesn't seem quite bright to me.  I think I'll wear mine when riding, but not when not riding.

[oldfordguy]

I'm against helmet laws, but I never ride without one.  We don't have one here in Kansas, and most riders don't wear helmets.  I believe in the freedom of choice, and that of natural selection.

[edbikerii]

I have always agreed with the logic that adults are responsible for their own actions.  If they don't wear a helmet and end up dead or crippled, then it is their own stupidity, and nobody else's business.

BUT..... then I had children.  Now I worry that my son or daughter might give in to peer pressure and go riding (maybe as a passenger) without a helmet.  If is is illegal to ride without a helmet, that will be much less likely to happen.

I know that it is my job to educate my children, but certainly we've all done stupid things because of peer pressure.  Many of those things probably seemed worse than riding without a helmet, too.  Until your daughter's pretty, unprotected head goes bouncing and scraping along I95 at 80mph, that is.

Just the thought of that makes me physically sick.  So, I'm going to be a hypocrite on this one issue.

I'm against helmet laws, but I never ride without one.  We don't have one here in Kansas, and most riders don't wear helmets.  I believe in the freedom of choice, and that of natural selection.