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grue

I just got yelled at by a cop for not wearing a helmet... on a bicycle?

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Yeah, that law is a bit over the top!

On the other hand, I had a bicycle accident while riding on a bicycle path on a clear day, and ended up with a nice little concussion to show for it. Of course, that explains a lot about me now . . . .
TPM Sister #102

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...and they want to legislate their opinions, not what logically makes sense.



They're legislating their assessment of the risk. Your assessment differs. People are very bad at assessing risk.

Whether you're right or they're right is a different matter.

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Helmet law has ALWAYS SUCKED. Bicycle or a motorcycle.

You wanna take care of your head,,, wear a damn helmet. Your choice.... But don't tell me how I should take care of the body I've been blessed with.

Chuckles,,, in skydiving? I"m still wearing the same 11 year old Protect I started out with.
Its a good day to LIVE, why puck up a good thing.

There is no reply in aad section for. " hell no i would not put an AAD on my back"

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Yeah, turns out there is actually a law even for adults. I'm in Melbourne, Australia. Victoria, the state I'm in, is known for nanny laws, but this one is above and beyond.




It is also a law in new zealand.
Makes sense. When my cousin got knocked of his bike by a car whiole riding to the shop he may not have been killed if he had a helmet on.


.Karnage Krew Gear Store
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Each to their own but my friend and colleague is off long term sick after being knocked off his bike. He was wearing a helmet which smashed into bits and he still suffered a level of brain damage. Its been a year now and he can only walk a mile before he has to stop and then hes exhausted and has to go to sleep...... he used to run marathons and was an Iron Man triathlete :(

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My dad wasn't wearing a helmet when he had a bike accident about 15 years ago when he was just out getting some exercise. He didn't get hit by a car or anything, it was an error in maneuvering around a parked car. He flew right over the handle bars, and suffered broken cheekbones, multiple bruises, water on the brain. The doctors didn't understand why he wasn't in a coma. From the damage to his head, he had problems concentrating, had short term memory loss, and was easily agitated for over a year.

Seems like wearing a helmet is an easy thing to do to avoid so many problems.
She is Da Man, and you better not mess with Da Man,
because she will lay some keepdown on you faster than, well, really fast. ~Billvon

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What's really interesting though is relative safety. I'm on an Austin bicycling list, and the city is trying to pass a helmet law here so its a big to-do. But there was a study recently done (I forget which city) which measured how close cars passed bicyclists. Cars passed something like 6 inches closer to bicyclists wearing helmets than to ones who weren't. The study hypothesized that ones wearing helmets were viewed as more experienced riders by automobile drivers and so were passed closer.

Other interesting results - male riders were given much less space when passing than females. (Chivalry?) Also riders who wore helmets were considerably more likely to get into an accident than ones without..

It was an interesting study.

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I'd wear one on a motorcycle or something, but on a bicycle? I have my limits of what I'll put up with in the name of safety :| If I were on a BMX or something and being a fuckwit on jumps and stuff, sure. For a quick ride to get some juice? Unlikely.



Next time - just punch him in the nose and tell him to wear his own fucking helmet . . .

Is it a local law? Is it required? If not, then sue for harrassment. I'm sure you can supina(sp) the video from that nights doings.
I'm not usually into the whole 3-way thing, but you got me a little excited with that. - Skymama
BTR #1 / OTB^5 Official #2 / Hellfish #408 / VSCR #108/Tortuga/Orfun

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But there was a study recently done (I forget which city) which measured how close cars passed bicyclists. Cars passed something like 6 inches closer to bicyclists wearing helmets than to ones who weren't.



And I hope those cars were being pulled over and ticketed?

Bikes are road vehicles, cars need to pass in the separate lane.

(conversely, if there is a bike path and the bicyclist can't keep up with traffic, then he needs to get his 2 wheels on the path and off the road.)

...
Driving is a one dimensional activity - a monkey can do it - being proud of your driving abilities is like being proud of being able to put on pants

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Bikes are road vehicles, cars need to pass in the separate lane.

***(conversely, if there is a bike path and the bicyclist can't keep up with traffic, then he needs to get his 2 wheels on the path and off the road.)

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I'm glad you said that. I'm all for sharing the road and being considerate, but the consideration should go both ways. It's quite obnoxious to be behind a cyclist going soooo slow when the speed limit is 65 mph, and there's plenty of shoulder for them to take advantage of!!>:(

Mrs. WaltAppel

All things work together for good to them that love God...Romans 8:28

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The study wasn't done by police so I'm sure they weren't. The study was done by putting sensors on people's bicycles if I remember correctly so it measured the distance that every car passed them. It was done in a city so most of the riding would have been done on city streets - some with a bike lane and some without..

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I've been in several bike accidents (some while wearing helmets and other not wearing them.)

I actually hit my head in the accident when I wasn't wearing a helmet and was lucky (ok, I can be hard headed, figuratively and literally) not to be injured more then I was.

Another accident I went over my handlebars and didn't end up with more then a few scrapes and bruises (thanks to falling practice when learning Judo)

I've also been hit on a bike by a Car... (I was very lucky not to have been hurt... and it was a hit an run... in fact I'm not sure the driver even knew he hit me)

ah... good times riding bikes :S:D:|... oh, and I'm very considerate to bicyclists when driving...

Livin' on the Edge... sleeping with my rigger's wife...

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Physics 101: the force of impact your head will have falling from a bike at 10 mph is EXACTLY THE SAME as from a motorcucle at 50 mph. Hitting a wall is another story, but the vertical force is the same.



Your theoretical point is not relevant, I think.

I understand that the 'vertical' component of the speed (and therefore force) of your head hitting a flat level surface would not be different if you are moving or not. However, there is a lot more that can happen to increase the injury besides your head hitting in a 'vertical' direction. For instance, when you are moving, other objects can be hit while your head is along the ground, and your head can be twisted relative to your body, and there is the issue of severe abrasions.

It doesn't matter what you think you remember from Physics 101, your statement is technically correct, but in a way that doesn't matter.
People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

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In British Columbia the cop would not yell at you; he would just give you the ticket.
So there are bicycle helmet laws in (at least parts of) Australia, N.Z. and Canada. What else do these places have in common unlike the US? Oh that's right, the taxpayer is on the hook for putting you back together.
Socialism, how do you like it so far?

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Actually, the taxpayer is NOT responsible for putting me back together. If I used public health care, I could ALMOST understand that law, but I don't.

Plus if they're going to play that card, then they should be telling people they're not allowed to smoke or drink. I have a sneaking suspicion those cost the taxpayers more than the occasional headslap on tarmac.
cavete terrae.

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Our dzm went over the bars on his bike on a casual ride last year. After 3 days in ICU with head injuries, there were quite a few people wishing he would have had a helmet on...

-Hixxx
death,as men call him, ends what they call men
-but beauty is more now than dying’s when

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