To be honest, I really do believe that the "war" between the state which tries to make helmets mandatory while riding a motorcycle and those opposing this has no foreseeable future. Even though I always wear a lid when riding, I cannot help noticing some undeniable facts and asking myself what's better: a helmet or luck?
That is because both sides have their story, which makes more or less sense for the other party, and I am kind of caught between the hammer and the anvil, with some statistics at hand. And they look much more dismal than both the anvil and the hammer combined.
As the NHTSA reported, unhelmeted riders die 10 times more often than those who wear helmets, when the bell rings and the last of luck fades away.
While people like those in the Alliance Of Bikers Aimed Toward Education (ABATE) sensibly say that wearing a helmet does not prevent accidents from happening, I wonder what's their opinion when accidents do happen.
It's rather hard for me that these good fellows are simply resigned in accepting thefate injuries, amputations, and death of their friends and relatives. They're right: wearing a helmet is not anti-SMIDSY insurance.
But as accidents happen by the thousands each day around the globe, I cannot help wondering what else is driving these guys to oppose helmet laws.
They claim that accident prevention and avoidance are most important than wearing protective gear. Even more, they say that drivers should also get better training into dealing with the presence of motorcycles on the roads.
I'm a full supporter of these claims, because it goes without saying that better trained motorists have less chances to cause or become involved in an accident than beginning ones.
Still, there is a huge gap between these perfectly decent claims and what's happening out there in the street. Claiming better road safety through education and asking that all motorists is nice, but this relates to the abstract realm. It's wishing that something be done. It deals with a potential future, and lets possibility play too big a role in all this, regardless of how noble the ultimate goals of such wishing may be.
Too bad that when a driver does not see a motorcyclist, or when the biker is speeding like an idiot, or when a guy runs off the road because he's afraid to lean properly with his bike (and in so many similar cases) we're talking about real facts.
Then all the coulds and shoulds are not worth a rusty dime, because by the time the unlucky rider hits his or her head against the car, tree, road, rock and whatnot, all the education and the "possibilities" would have run out.
Out of all the nice ways to end a ride, life picked a crash. After all the wind in your hair freedom, life decided to show you how fragile the human skull alone could at times be. And you all know that for an overwhelming majority of riders, life will make such decisions, whether you're an MSF master teacher or a noob.
And thinking about that moment, what would you choose: a helmet or luck? Ride safe, brothers and sisters, and a lovely Xmas to you all!
For statistics and more detailed data, Ride Apart has goodies for you.
As the NHTSA reported, unhelmeted riders die 10 times more often than those who wear helmets, when the bell rings and the last of luck fades away.
While people like those in the Alliance Of Bikers Aimed Toward Education (ABATE) sensibly say that wearing a helmet does not prevent accidents from happening, I wonder what's their opinion when accidents do happen.
It's rather hard for me that these good fellows are simply resigned in accepting the
But as accidents happen by the thousands each day around the globe, I cannot help wondering what else is driving these guys to oppose helmet laws.
They claim that accident prevention and avoidance are most important than wearing protective gear. Even more, they say that drivers should also get better training into dealing with the presence of motorcycles on the roads.
I'm a full supporter of these claims, because it goes without saying that better trained motorists have less chances to cause or become involved in an accident than beginning ones.
Still, there is a huge gap between these perfectly decent claims and what's happening out there in the street. Claiming better road safety through education and asking that all motorists is nice, but this relates to the abstract realm. It's wishing that something be done. It deals with a potential future, and lets possibility play too big a role in all this, regardless of how noble the ultimate goals of such wishing may be.
Too bad that when a driver does not see a motorcyclist, or when the biker is speeding like an idiot, or when a guy runs off the road because he's afraid to lean properly with his bike (and in so many similar cases) we're talking about real facts.
Then all the coulds and shoulds are not worth a rusty dime, because by the time the unlucky rider hits his or her head against the car, tree, road, rock and whatnot, all the education and the "possibilities" would have run out.
Out of all the nice ways to end a ride, life picked a crash. After all the wind in your hair freedom, life decided to show you how fragile the human skull alone could at times be. And you all know that for an overwhelming majority of riders, life will make such decisions, whether you're an MSF master teacher or a noob.
And thinking about that moment, what would you choose: a helmet or luck? Ride safe, brothers and sisters, and a lovely Xmas to you all!
For statistics and more detailed data, Ride Apart has goodies for you.
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