*Note before voting - I am not asking if you wear a bike helmet all the time, merely if you are insistent on wearing a bike helmet. I understand an inherent danger in not wearing a bike helmet, and I choose to live with that danger personally, even if offered a helmet, but I know that most people would take the helmet. The question is merely if you could do without the helmet, or if you insist on having one. This goes towards a casual riding setting - obviously, professional riders would never leave home without a helmet; it also talks about a traditional bicycle and not a motorbike. Just wanted to clarify those points.
Now, this issue got raised last night when I was talking to a friend of mine. She was apparently quite stunned that I did not wear a helmet when I went biking 20 miles the other day, and said that I should have worn a helmet. Now, we had a girl from our school who got killed a few months back when she got slammed by a car going 30 from the side - she was listening to music and running a red, the driver did nothing wrong and was cleared from any charges, though he was traumatized by the accident. She also wasn't wearing a helmet, and this was a point my friend made. Now, my belief is that a bike helmet isn't necessary, and if one isn't available to you, it isn't that big of an issue. I can ride quite capably without a helmet through most NYC streets (I have yet to master the art of weaving through gridlock, but I can ride through non-major streets very easily, and Manhattan has a lot of bike paths that prove convenient), and I simply don't get into accidents, certainly not often enough to merit the constant use of a helmet.
So, Escapists, are you insistent on a helmet or no?
Now, this issue got raised last night when I was talking to a friend of mine. She was apparently quite stunned that I did not wear a helmet when I went biking 20 miles the other day, and said that I should have worn a helmet. Now, we had a girl from our school who got killed a few months back when she got slammed by a car going 30 from the side - she was listening to music and running a red, the driver did nothing wrong and was cleared from any charges, though he was traumatized by the accident. She also wasn't wearing a helmet, and this was a point my friend made. Now, my belief is that a bike helmet isn't necessary, and if one isn't available to you, it isn't that big of an issue. I can ride quite capably without a helmet through most NYC streets (I have yet to master the art of weaving through gridlock, but I can ride through non-major streets very easily, and Manhattan has a lot of bike paths that prove convenient), and I simply don't get into accidents, certainly not often enough to merit the constant use of a helmet.
So, Escapists, are you insistent on a helmet or no?
