The Importance of Wearing a Helmet (Youth Center Safety Class Post)

We got a request, a very sweet request to post this article:

 http://www.dandalaw.com/resources/should-you-wear-a-helmet

Emily and Mia wanted to share this with the Chainlink. They just attended a bike safety class at a youth center and asked their instructor, Rachel Martin if they could post this on The Chainlink. They are going to take a look at it today so please add your encouraging words and stories for Emily and Mia to read. Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by pjc jr on April 29, 2015 at 5:11am

Yes! They save lives! Heard a stat from 2012 that 95% of cycling death was a result of no helmet head trauma.  

Permalink Reply by Rich S on April 29, 2015 at 5:52am

Not the result of a car hitting them or something like that then??  

Not saying many, even most, of those unfortunate riders wouldn't have survived had they been wearing a helmet. But I don't think most of those people fell and hit their head on their own. Just sayin! 

That being said I wear my helmet always. I've already had the misfortune of breaking one while wearing it. Did not fall on my own. :) 

Permalink Reply by Juan 2-3 or more mi. on April 29, 2015 at 5:48am

Great info-graphic!

Permalink Reply by David Barish on April 29, 2015 at 6:05am

A friend, a very experienced rider, rode his bike to a class. He left his helmet at the class. After riding a mile or so on the way home he realized he had forgotten his helmet. So, what should he do? He decided to ride back to get his helmet. Then,  on the way home a large limb fell off a tree and fell on his helmeted head.  No disaster and no harm. 

Permalink Reply by Alex Z on April 30, 2015 at 2:17am

But, if he hadn't turned around, he wouldn't have been there when the branch fell. ;)

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on April 29, 2015 at 7:00am

My brother, an experienced cyclist, recently took a corner a little too tightly when it was wet and he went down. He was ok, his helmet was cracked. I agree with the comments that there is much more to safety than wearing a helmet but I believe the bike safety class covered much more than helmets.

Permalink Reply by MLK on April 29, 2015 at 7:32am

I know there's been some back and forth about just how great the efficacy of helmets is, and I know that a helmet won't protect anything on my body but my head, and even then only at certain speeds. However, until someone proves that wearing a helmet actually makes me more likely to me seriously injured (and I'm not talking about risk-aversion/-compensation), I'm going to keep wearing one! Even if it only protects me in, say, 5% of situations, I'd rather have that protection than nothing.

(I also know that people point to the helmetless folks of the Netherlands but, frankly, until we're the Netherlands, I don't buy that as a valid argument for the US.)

Better safe than sorry, you know?

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on April 29, 2015 at 7:42am

I agree. Why not?

Permalink Reply by Jose A. Terrazas on April 29, 2015 at 3:19pm
I also wear a helmet. But that was not always the case.When I first began commuting full time on a bicycle I rarely wore one. I began wearing one more and more to ease my wife's concerns about my safety. Not too long after that I ended up in a crash. It wasn't my fault or the person I impacted, it was a bad move by someone three cars ahead of us. I learned a lot after that. I improved my cycling skills and chose better routes. I do believe in personal responsibility and situations will arise when you may not have access to a helmet but as long you have the confidence and knowledge on safe cycling things will be ok. But I will say I have not gone without a helmet ever since that day.
Permalink Reply by Asper K on April 29, 2015 at 4:23pm

I always find it strange how people go bonkers about people needing to wear helmets but rarely talk about riding defensively which is much more important.  Not to mention, having a properly illuminated bike that is in good working order. 

I don't wear a helmet when I'm on a Divvy bike and don't feel guilty about it either.

And good point Jeff..That's the main thing.  Not the church of helmets.

Encouraging cyclists to think about safety is a good thing.  But I think it's really important not to give people the impression that bicycling is so dangerous that they are doomed unless they wear a helmet.

Permalink Reply by Shawn Evans on April 29, 2015 at 4:36pm

The article has debunked statistics and bad links. Emily and Mia need to do a better job.

Permalink Reply by Yasmeen on April 29, 2015 at 4:51pm

Yes, because young kids should be able to do better research. Why aren't they working at college level yet? Don't be silly.

Their intention is great - they want to learn and be safe when they ride their bikes. They had their instructor ask us if they could post this article and this is their first experience with Chainlink. I think being supportive of learning (and going a little easier on school kids), is probably our best approach. Words of encouragement are greatly appreciated. 

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