On 11/1/06, Mat Maessen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > On 11/1/06, frank theriault <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > Then there's always the possibility that a cyclist may be completely > > in the right, and that a car might be in the wrong and hit a cyclist. > > Since cars have a mass of some 20 times that of a bicycle and rider, > > physics tend to be on the side of the car in collisions. I'll take > > whatever protection I can, especially if it's unobtrusive and > > inexpensive. > > There's a saying in the motorcycle community: > > "'I had the right of way' is a terrible epithet for your gravestone." > > I still have the scars on my arm from a bicycle accident I had when I > was 14. The helmet saved my life in that accident by striking the > stone wall and shattering into a million pieces. I still wear the > helmet that I bought to replace that one. > That explains the shrunken head. <g>
Kidding, Mat. I don't recall ever wearing a helmet on a bicycle. I also don't ever recall riding a bicycle in the kind of traffic Frank rides in. I would definitely wear one were I commuting in an urban environment. I used to ride motorcycles off-road. I always wore a helmet. I've wrapped more than one bike around a tree, tumbled down very steep inclines I had no business riding on, and on one occasion hit a ditch with vertical sides that was wider and deeper than the tire's diameter. The bike stopped, I didn't. Fortunately, I caught a knee on the handlebars which sent my head straight for the ground. I cut a little trench in the dirt with my helmet that was nearly six feet long. Fun times! Strangely enough, I've never broken any bones. I tend to only wear a helmet riding on the street when the weather is bad, the bugs are out, or the law requires it. It's certainly a risk, and I've had to rely on my reflexes and the bike's acceleration to get me out of trouble more than once. But it's a hell of a lot more fun without that damned thing making my head all sweaty. -- Scott Loveless http://www.twosixteen.com Shoot more film! -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
