Poll: Is Wearing a Bike Helmet Worth it?
- Thread starter RootbeerJello
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Just think of it this way, would you rather have the approval of some random douche bag from school, or an undamaged brain/non-cracked open skull?
I don't rid my bike very often, but I do go longboarding (imagine a skateboard. The make it a foot or so longer. Then go down a hill. Thats longboarding). I used to not wear a helmet, mostly because even if I fell it was never on my head. Then I fell, hit my head and got a mild concussion. The next day I went to my local boarding shop and bought a nice helmet.
Of course skateboarding helmets generally look better than bike helmets, but either way I'd rather be made fun of for my helmet than pitied for my paralysis or head trauma.
Of course skateboarding helmets generally look better than bike helmets, but either way I'd rather be made fun of for my helmet than pitied for my paralysis or head trauma.
I actually ride safer than I would wearing a helmet because that way I doesn't mess with my centre of gravity. But really, I never ride bikes, and when I do I don't go far.
The only injury I've gotten on a bike is stopping suddenly and slamming my crotch into the handlebars. I spent a month with a ripped... I'll stop now. Point is... I was wearing the helmet. If I didn't, I probably wouldn't have enough momentum.
The only injury I've gotten on a bike is stopping suddenly and slamming my crotch into the handlebars. I spent a month with a ripped... I'll stop now. Point is... I was wearing the helmet. If I didn't, I probably wouldn't have enough momentum.
I, personally, would be retarded right now after a couple of falls if I were not wearing helmets during them.
So, yes, they are worth it.
So, yes, they are worth it.
Point to note: the argument that 'helmets aren't going to prevent you from breaking an arm or breaking a leg' is entirely specious because they aren't designed for that purpose. You are essentially saying something similar to "don't brush your teeth because it doesn't prevent headaches."
In regards to:
Taking less than 5 minutes on Google turned up this statistic: In 2000, in the under-21 group, head injuries accounted for 62.6 percent of bicycle fatalities in the US. (Funny note- they segment the groups at that age in the USA because apparently, drunken bicycling is something of a problem! Who knew?)
The point being, you probably shouldn't introduce anecdotal evidence into a discussion as serious as one dealing with safety. Maybe throw a little statistics in there to support your position. I mean, stating plain opinion is fine when it comes to video games or movies or whatever, but a subject like health or safety? Just doesn't seem appropriate.
One last aside: in the anti- group, I keep reading comments to the effect of "how many times do you hit your head really?" The truth is much more than you think: a very close friend of mine is a neurologist with a neuroscience institute, and we've discussed concussions, head trauma and the like on many occassions. A couple things I've garnered from those conversations is that many cases of head trauma aren't from direct impacts, but instead are caused by the snapping of the head in which it hits a hard object, and, secondly, with head injury, even the most mild impacts can kill you [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natasha_Richardson#Injury_and_death]. Think of it this way: You get hit by a car on your legs- they both break. Your torso hits the hood, some internal bleeding, maybe a ruptured spleen... also survivable. Your head snaps down and also hits the hood of the car. You now have a concussion and a subdural haematoma. You now require surgery to alleviate the pressure on your brain. You may or may not survive. You may very likely have brain damage to some extent if you do live.
But the car only hit your legs.
OT:
The whole bicycle helmet thing is a pretty hotly debated. Personally, I figure it's a no-brainer (ha, ha)-- if something as simple as wearing a helmet has even the slightest chance to save my life, why the hell wouldn't I do it?
And while people certainly have opinions on both sides as to its merits, not wearing one because of fashion or image seems really idiotic to me. But that's just me.
In regards to:
Not that he was the only one who made the "helmets don't actually make a difference", but that was the first one that caught my eye.WanderFreak said:
Taking less than 5 minutes on Google turned up this statistic: In 2000, in the under-21 group, head injuries accounted for 62.6 percent of bicycle fatalities in the US. (Funny note- they segment the groups at that age in the USA because apparently, drunken bicycling is something of a problem! Who knew?)
The point being, you probably shouldn't introduce anecdotal evidence into a discussion as serious as one dealing with safety. Maybe throw a little statistics in there to support your position. I mean, stating plain opinion is fine when it comes to video games or movies or whatever, but a subject like health or safety? Just doesn't seem appropriate.
One last aside: in the anti- group, I keep reading comments to the effect of "how many times do you hit your head really?" The truth is much more than you think: a very close friend of mine is a neurologist with a neuroscience institute, and we've discussed concussions, head trauma and the like on many occassions. A couple things I've garnered from those conversations is that many cases of head trauma aren't from direct impacts, but instead are caused by the snapping of the head in which it hits a hard object, and, secondly, with head injury, even the most mild impacts can kill you [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natasha_Richardson#Injury_and_death]. Think of it this way: You get hit by a car on your legs- they both break. Your torso hits the hood, some internal bleeding, maybe a ruptured spleen... also survivable. Your head snaps down and also hits the hood of the car. You now have a concussion and a subdural haematoma. You now require surgery to alleviate the pressure on your brain. You may or may not survive. You may very likely have brain damage to some extent if you do live.
But the car only hit your legs.
OT:
The whole bicycle helmet thing is a pretty hotly debated. Personally, I figure it's a no-brainer (ha, ha)-- if something as simple as wearing a helmet has even the slightest chance to save my life, why the hell wouldn't I do it?
And while people certainly have opinions on both sides as to its merits, not wearing one because of fashion or image seems really idiotic to me. But that's just me.
Okay, after reading more responses to this, I'm frankly a little bit disgusted: People, the whole point of a bike helmet is to protect you from an accident. Accidents, by their very nature, are not planned and as such you cannot always be prepared for them. There are infinite ways to take a spill on your bike, from misjudging a pot hole to being t-boned by a car. You can't be ready for them all, no matter how slowly or defensively you're biking. These can also happen if you're riding on the sidewalk!
If you've ever been in an accident you know that the milliseconds you spend air-borne are not enough to adequately adjust for your landing, even if you have experience with breakfalls. (Personally, I teach stage combat and have Judo and Jujitsu training, all of which is useful should you find yourself unexpectedly mid-air but none of which guarantees a safe landing.)
A helmet is not a perfect safety device, but it does help against head trauma and since the majority of serious bike injuries are head trauma (62.6% of bike deaths are due to head injury*) it is a little thing to wear a helmet when you ride.
Be safe people!
*(Source http://www.helmets.org/stats.htm )
If you've ever been in an accident you know that the milliseconds you spend air-borne are not enough to adequately adjust for your landing, even if you have experience with breakfalls. (Personally, I teach stage combat and have Judo and Jujitsu training, all of which is useful should you find yourself unexpectedly mid-air but none of which guarantees a safe landing.)
A helmet is not a perfect safety device, but it does help against head trauma and since the majority of serious bike injuries are head trauma (62.6% of bike deaths are due to head injury*) it is a little thing to wear a helmet when you ride.
Be safe people!
*(Source http://www.helmets.org/stats.htm )
The biggest bike injury i've ever had was when i fell down a hill and dislocated my arms (have you ever tried getting up with dislocated arms? Doesn't work). A helmet wouldn't have stopped that, and i doubt it'd stop any serious injury.
So no, I don't wear one.
EDIT: i'm talking about bicycles. Because generally unless you're riding like a massive tard in the first place injuring yourself seems unlikely. And i've only had one serious injury (the aforementioned arms dislocating) in the 10 or so years i've been biking.
Motorcycles? Wear a damn helmet.
So no, I don't wear one.
EDIT: i'm talking about bicycles. Because generally unless you're riding like a massive tard in the first place injuring yourself seems unlikely. And i've only had one serious injury (the aforementioned arms dislocating) in the 10 or so years i've been biking.
Motorcycles? Wear a damn helmet.
All I know is if you're going to wear the helmet, wear it PROPERLY. I hate those kids who don't buckle the helmet, you might as well not even wear the thing if you do that.
Agreed, yuo don't get the Cool Kid Helmetless Look, and you don't get the safety either. Totally useless.yanipheonu said:
i dont ride a bike but if i did i think that id rather look like a fag and prevent brain damage then be a cool drooling badass
You wear your seatbelt but i dont hear any sarcastic comments about rediculous car accidents. Bike accidents are quite common, when you get hit by a car i think most people are too shocked to do anything but launch your hands out in front of you and ram your eyes shut.The_ModeRazor said:
Sorry, you make a valid point but i dislike the statement.
"Lol so if we dont do X everyones gonna die of Y huh?"
No but someone might, its a risk prevention, builders wear hard hats, how often do you think they get struck in the head? I dont think they look bad or good, its a helmet, people wear them. If some cares THAT much about how they look cus of a piece of plastic on your head then your iether really vain or really paranoid. Does it matter? How hard must you be trying to look cool if the best you can do is to not wear a bit of plastic on yoour head to prevent death. Really? Are you that pathetic and insecure? I live my life on the basis that "no one cares THAT much about the way i look, i dont really care and niether should they"
Wow, what was your helmet made out of? Concrete? Most modern helmets weigh less than 16 oz., and I doubt that any helmet would add enough weight to appreciably impact either your center of gravity or your angular momentum.Mr Montmorency said:
Yeah, well I'm not going to argue with that.BiscuitTrouser said:
But I simply don't care enough to get a helmet, sorry.