helmet law?

[John]

There are a few instances I don't wear a helmet, and it, like magley64, usually involves speeds at which I can ride a bicycle.

1. Cruising through the park with the scenery and nature sounds blending with the sweet sound of a v-twin.

2. Riding down the block to fill up the bike before putting it in the garage.

3. Going down the street to pick up a video, lottery ticket, burger; or go to the gym.

4. When riding down the sidewalks.

the thing is, most accidents happen close to home. statistically you are more likely to get into an accident going to pick up a video or a burger or going to the gas station than you are on a 400 mile daytrip.

[fusion]

the thing is, most accidents happen close to home. statistically you are more likely to get into an accident going to pick up a video or a burger or going to the gas station than you are on a 400 mile daytrip.

Ummmm no. Most accidents happen close to home, because most travel is close to home not because of how close you are to it. If most travel was done no where near home, most accidents would occur no where near home.

[RSparky]

After reading all 8 pages, I am glad to see that most everybody here wears their helmets. I always wear mine, as well as jacket gloves, boots and jeans. Sure, I get hot, but I like being alive.

As far as being forced to don a helmet, I obviously wouldn't mind, as I do it anyway. Yes, that is slightly over the boundaries set for the government in the constitution, but guess what, people? Most laws are. Mandatory insurance, all things vehicle related, building codes, the "No Child Left Behind" act, and plenty are not really touched on in the Constitution.

Because it is old. Laws update it, in their messed up way. Laws made by messed up, greedy a-holes. When compared to most laws in existence, I like the idea of a helmet law.

Oh, and by the way, loud pipes break sound ordinances.

clink, clink. $.02

[demitrix]

Loud pipes especially some are obnoxious, just today I went the gas station with a buddy before playing some disc golf, some one was riding by and we had to stop our conversation and wait for him to get a block away before resuming it cause his bike was too loud to be heard over, if I can get pulled over for having my head phones in cause I cant hear an emergency vehicle, then mr loud pipes should get a ticket for himself not being able to hear and all the driver on the surrounding block too.

As far as helmet go, would helmet laws save lives? Sure. Do I pay $200-1000 for my car to come with seat belts? No.

Personally I think it'd be nice to see a bike/helmet combo packages. If I buy a helmet and Bike at a dealership, take the price of the helmet off or a percentage of it if its too expensive. Sure, some people would take the helmet and trash it or sell it, but even for the 1 in 10 riders that think, wow I got a free helmet, might as well wear it, it would be worth it.

Basically I feel that it comes down to theres no way to reward/punish helmet wearers or none helmet wearers, so the only people to ride with one are the ones with common sense.

[psyco1]

Ummmm no. Most accidents happen close to home, because most travel is close to home not because of how close you are to it. If most travel was done no where near home, most accidents would occur no where near home.

It still doesn't negate the fact that you're more likely to get in a wreck close to home.

[usafstud]

I have ridden in California, Seouth Korea, Italy, England, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Croatia. All require helmets but Korea. They all allow LANE SPLITTING.

I just don't understand that you can't lane split but you dont need to wear a helmet.

I have been living in Ohio for a 10 days now and my bikes should be here in the next 3-6 weeks. I am not looking forwards to sitting in traffic because lane splitting is illegal. I guess at least I'll look cool sitting there in traffic with a helmet.

[fusion]

It still doesn't negate the fact that you're more likely to get in a wreck close to home.

That's exactly what it does.

[turboglock]

I disagree... Not having a helmet law affects all motorcycle riders through more expensive insurance rates.

I won't ride with anybody that doesn't wear a helmet. If somebody is dumb enough not to wear a helmet they are too dumb to ride with/near me.

will this is wrong in that insurance company's really dont care they are still going to charge you one arm and one leg. helmet law or not. they only asked me what cc my bike was.

[chevysoldier]

I'm bored today, so I'm reading through old posts, and I'm sure I'm going to revive something here, but I thought I'd weigh in.

I'm pretty against a helmet law, and against seatbelt laws as well. I wear a helmet every time I ride, but that's because I have to at the moment (endorsement less than a year - I didn't always before, but then got pulled over, which sucked, violating restrictions is a major misdemeanor, same as prostitution and DUI). In the past, I've worn a helmet some of the time, and not others.

I ride a cruiser right now, which I chose for a number of reasons, none of which involved taking risks (beyond the inherent risk of getting on a bike in the first place), so I don't feel terribly unsafe if I ride without a helmet around town, or the long way to work where I hit 55 once for a 1 mile stretch. If I'm on the highway, though, I'll always wear a lid. I'll also wear shorts and a tee shirt on a 100 degree day if I make the 2 mile trip to the store.

While there's some truth to "dress for the crash, not for the ride," there are some days where full gear is just too hot and too uncomfortable to be enjoyable - and that's absolutely a risk, but there are a hell of a lot more risky activities than riding without full gear.

A lot of that is because of the bike I ride, though. I plan on saving my pennies during the off-season for a bike for pure fun, a sport bike. I have no doubt that I'll ride with gear every time, since I know myself well enough to know that I'm going to want to have some fun every time I ride.

The insurance argument seems kind of silly to me. I'm not sure how lower insurance rates would be with helmet law - I pay $100/yr for great insurance. Part of that, again, is partly because of the bike I ride.

I guess the point is, I don't really want to be told that I MUST wear a helmet. I'll choose to wear one a lot of the time, and sometimes I won't, and it's my head that will hit the pavement.

First let me say I too am against helmet laws. But your head hitting the pavement at 35mph can still kill you. Road rash at 35mph is still gonna suck to have scrubbed with some steel wool type stuff. I'd rather sweat and walk away from a crash than bleed after one. A cruiser type bike isn't some magical device that keeps you more safe than a sportbike. Cages don't distinguish between the two types, or any type of 2 wheels for that matter. Yeah sportbikes may tend to run faster speeds, and the risks increase with speed, but there isn't much more of a safety net for a cruiser. Still the same distance to fall, still the same speeds (assuming the legal limit isn't broken), still the same weight of a cage smashing into you, same density of the tree you headbutt. All that being said, I don't care if you wear a lid or not. Not my life, not my choice. I will add that I have ridden without a jacket and lid. Once around the corner to the gas station and a few times on a back road testing and tuning the bike. I had to hear the engine. Plus that road is the one a grew up on. I know it like the back of my hand. But I have always worn gloves.

That part has kind of been taken care of.

In my MSF class, they taught that most fatalities are the result of improper cornering. I hate to say it, but requiring MSF courses might go a long way in reducing fatalities. I've been riding for years, but I learned a lot in my class, and they spend a lot of time on cornering, and proper cornering is actually the most highly weighted part of the skills assessment portion of the class.

I don't understand how you can be against mandatory helmet laws but for mandatory MSF courses?

the thing is, most accidents happen close to home. statistically you are more likely to get into an accident going to pick up a video or a burger or going to the gas station than you are on a 400 mile daytrip.

Most accidents occur near home because you are near home most of the time. How many people make a 400 mile day trip very often? Most people go to work and back home, the store and back home. Most driving happens near home therefor more accident are near home.

[Xfz]

I never ride with out my helmet. NEVER. Having said that, I despise being told what to do.

[jmwildi]

First, loud pipes: I like my bikes to have a loud, throaty growl to the exhaust however there is such a thing as too loud. If people two blocks away can hear your bike like they're sanding next to it, that's too loud.

Secnd, helmet laws: Unlike some of the people on this threat, I started riding wearing a helmet and this year I decided to stop. I still wear my jacket, gloves, jeans and boots, just no lid. Riding without a helmet isn't because I think it looks "cool" or because it's not as hot. I don't wear a helmet because I'd rather die than live in a handicapped fashion, i.e. paralyzed, loss of a limb, vegitative state, etc. In my eyes, there's more of a chance of surviving as a parapalegic because of a helmet than without one. I'm not trying to take anything away fom handicapped people who live very full and good lives, but I can not live that way. Were that tragety ever to befall me, I'm confident that I'd wash my mouth out with buckshot before enduring one more day than I had to in that state. Alot of people might call that stupid and selfish. I spent nearly a decade (including two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan) in the military protecting my, and your, freedom to do something stupid and your freedom to get on this site and say whatever you want about it and refuse to ride with me because I don't wear a helmet. So I think I've earned the right to make my own decisions reguarding my personal safety and my own life. If you don't want to ride with me because I don't wear a helmet, no problem, that's your choice. Bottom line as far as I'm concerned is, it's my head so what are you worried about? I guess it goes without saying that at a minimum I think the helmet laws that Ohio has now are fine.

One last thing about scraping brains up off the road since someone brought it up. If it bothers those that do it as part of their job, they might need to find a different job. I picked chunks of people out of concertina wire in Iraq after a mortar attack and I helped clean up a friend's apartment after her boyfriend shot himself in the head with a .38. Didn't bother me a bit and I havn't lost a minute of sleep over it. It might sound harsh, but they should either buck up and deal with it or find a different line of work. Okay, I'm done ranting now.

[magley64]

I don't wear a helmet because I'd rather die than live in a handicapped fashion, i.e. paralyzed, loss of a limb, vegitative state, etc. In my eyes, there's more of a chance of surviving as a parapalegic because of a helmet than without one. I'm not trying to take anything away fom handicapped people who live very full and good lives, but I can not live that way. Were that tragety ever to befall me, I'm confident that I'd wash my mouth out with buckshot before enduring one more day than I had to in that state. Alot of people might call that stupid and selfish.

you do know you're more likely to be a veg because of NOT wearing a helmet than because of wearing one....right?

fft

[cg2112]

It still doesn't negate the fact that you're more likely to get in a wreck close to home.

It doesn't, but it negates the claim that getting into an accident has anything to do with being close to home.

[cg2112]

I don't understand how you can be against mandatory helmet laws but for mandatory MSF courses?

I'm not necessarily for (or against) mandatory MSF courses.

Even if I were, there is a gaping cavern of differences in requiring someone who has never held a motorcycle endorsement to take a basic weekend skills course and requiring all bikers, regardless of skill level or experience, to wear certain protective gear.

I'm just saying that in preventing fatal accidents, taking the MSF course might go a long way.

[max power]

well if they make us wear seatbelts but not helmets then we should at least abolish the seatbelt law. nothing wrong with that right...? i agree that the govt has no place in forcing us to be safe. its my choice right? but if they've already got the seatbelt law locked down might as well try and tack on a helmet law to that as well IMO

You are right. The gubment has no place in forcing us to be safe. Seatbelt laws are another way for the man to generate revenue from us. A helmet law would be the same.

If you believe the government cares about your safety and well being, then you are a fool.

I'm against helmet laws, seatbelt laws, smoking laws, etc...your life is in your own hands. As long as you don't endanger other people in the process, do what you want...

Agreed.

[chevysoldier]

I'm not necessarily for (or against) mandatory MSF courses.

Even if I were, there is a gaping cavern of differences in requiring someone who has never held a motorcycle endorsement to take a basic weekend skills course and requiring all bikers, regardless of skill level or experience, to wear certain protective gear.

I'm just saying that in preventing fatal accidents, taking the MSF course might go a long way.

But if helmets can save lives, and msf classes can save lives, why should they be regulated differently?

[cg2112]

But if helmets can save lives, and msf classes can save lives, why should they be regulated differently?

In a way, they are regulated in the same way in Ohio. Minors must take the MSF course, and wear a helmet. For adults (with the exception of first year riders), both are optional.

That said, we don't regulate everything that can save lives the same way.

Wearing a helmet while driving a car can save lives, too, but I don't think we should regulate driving headgear like we do seatbelts.

I'm not saying that I think that MSF courses should be required. But they would go a long way in reducing fatal crashes. Most crashes are the result of improper cornering. Teaching every new rider how to corner properly, as well as some basic emergency maneuvers, and you'd probably reduce fatalities more than you would if you required every rider to wear a helmet.

I don't think requiring riders to take the MSF course is a great idea - a better idea might be to give a significant insurance discount to those who have taken the course.

[buildit]

How about asking some people who've been in accidents with and without helmets? Having been in several on and off road, I have always had a helmet and in full gear. Till this year it has left me uninjured and even the accident I had this year that broke my leg, I had no road rash or other injuries! It is too late to wish you had a helmet, gloves, jacket, or proper pants on as you skid across the dirt or road leaving pieces of yourself behind as you go.

Having said all this do I think it should be a law? No. Something our government will never admit is you can't regulate stupid, no matter how many laws you pass. lol After all we have very strict laws about drinking and driving, and every year people still die in alcohol related accidents because there are those who think the law doesn't apply to them or they arn't like those dangerous drunk drivers.

[jmwildi]

you do know you're more likely to be a veg because of NOT wearing a helmet than because of wearing one....right?

fft

Taken care of with a living will, if I'm in a coma or become a carrot - unplug the machines and nature take it's course. Thankfully my rather small family feels the same about being a vegtable so they'll gladly do me that forvor should it ever come to pass, just as I would or them.

[magley64]

Taken care of with a living will, if I'm in a coma or become a carrot - unplug the machines and nature take it's course. Thankfully my rather small family feels the same about being a vegtable so they'll gladly do me that forvor should it ever come to pass, just as I would or them.

obviously you missed my point...

[Aerik]

Taken care of with a living will, if I'm in a coma or become a carrot - unplug the machines and nature take it's course. Thankfully my rather small family feels the same about being a vegtable so they'll gladly do me that forvor should it ever come to pass, just as I would or them.

I agree. I don't have any real reason to stay around if a crash leaves me unable to do the few things I actually like about being alive. So, if I make a mistake and crash hard, I'd just as soon stay down. I also have a living will to make sure I don't spend the next 20 years being a turnip.

In the end, I think to wear or not wear a helmet needs to be a personal choice. Some of my friends do, others don't, and each of them has a different reason for choosing the way they did.

Edited August 29, 2010 by Aerik

[2Wheeler]

I hit a car at 50 mph w/out and survived I've seen my freinds die with a helmet on and with a seatbelt on and with both in a racecar. Safety equipment CAN save you but can also restrict movement and vision.

No piece of equipment can guarantee your safety!

What we do is risky. We deal with that risk in our own way. Some guys dress up, some slow down. If you want SAFE, Dont ride.

[alienpi]

I hit a car at 50 mph w/out and survived I've seen my freinds die with a helmet on and with a seatbelt on and with both in a racecar. Safety equipment CAN save you but can also restrict movement and vision.

No piece of equipment can guarantee your safety!

What we do is risky. We deal with that risk in our own way. Some guys dress up, some slow down. If you want SAFE, Dont ride.

Stuff that is fun is usually not logical. What's the point in doing wheelies through town? It's not logical, but it sure is fun.

[jmwildi]

obviously you missed my point...

Nope, I got your point very clearly but I think you may have missed mine. Allow me to reiterate. It's my head so what are you, or anyone else, worried about? (read "head" as "life") I've come within a breath of dying several times now both in the sates and durring deployments overseas. Everyone has to go sometime and I look at it as an all or nothing kind of deal. I think Aerik summed it up nicely with this.

I agree. I don't have any real reason to stay around if a crash leaves me unable to do the few things I actually like about being alive. So, if I make a mistake and crash hard, I'd just as soon stay down. I also have a living will to make sure I don't spend the next 20 years being a turnip.

Some people call it stupid, I call it free choice. If I'm not bothering or infringing on someone else's rights and freedoms, then why should anyone else care what I do? Provided what I'm doing is inside the bounds of the law.

[Harb67]

I've spent the last week in San Diego, and I have to say that it's a beautiful thing seeing every single rider on the road with a helmet on their head.