Why don't "bikers" wear helmets?

[Pliablemoose]

They don't wear helmets in Texas because our legislators own Harley's & want to look cool when they ride them, so they passed the damn law...

It was one of the major reasons I quit teaching MSF courses in TX, it allowed graduates to ride without a helmet:|

The peripheral vision thing is BS, you lose your peripheral vision as you speed up, humans didn't evolve moving @ 60 mph...

Modern helmets are vented & if you buy a light colored one, heat isnt an issue,

You can die if your bike tips over & you hit your head on a curb without a helmet :|

 

[ShOcKwAvE827]

God.. so many bikers here in Austin. They all look same. Seriously, they really do. They all have the same facial hair and tatoos. I saw like 200 bikes on the way from Austin to Houston on Friday, at least I know why now

 

[Xtian]

Because there is a law against bikers wearing helmets, introduced by
the government to keep their numbers down.

/xtian

 

[m2kewl]

don't worry about it - separates the men from the gene pool. it's all good.

 

[The Stigenator]

i wear helmet, jacket, gloves and boots when riding.. today my harley friend was wearing tshirt, pants, beanie helmet, no gloves..

we are canyon carving.. he asked me why i wear the gear and i told him "its better this jacket takes teh fall than road rash"

It was int he 90's today and i was in my jacket.. its vented so its still not too bad.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: americangigolo
When you're flying down the highway at 70 mph on a motorcyle, do you really think that helmet is going to save your life? On the other hand, when riding at lower speeds through town I could see the point, but on the highway, no. My dad rides a Harley and I also have heard him say that it hinders (peripheral?) vision.

Yes it will.

I have been in a accidnet and my dad has also.

My dad was doing 60mph and a minivan pulled out in front of him. He went through the side window and his head was jammed under the seat, and his feet were hanging out the window. The only reason he did not go further or crack his skull was because he was wearing a DOT helmet. Witout his Half-shell helmet, he would be dead.

On my accident I had the Kung-Fu death grip so I just rammed my crotch into the gas tank, sometimes I think I would have been in less pain going over the bars.

So yes wear a DOT hemet at all times, even if it is just to move your bike across the street.

 

[ProfessorFate]

Fear of not being accepted.

 

[MedicBob]

Because the medical field needs organ donors. That is why motorcycles are known as Donorcycles.

 

[AgaBoogaBoo]

Off the topic of motorcycle riders. My friends and I usually go biking to a lot of places if the weather is right, we go a few miles for a Ritter's Ice Cream place, to our soccer games, to a park, to a school playground with basketball hoops, to neighborhoods around, donatos, wendy's, blockbuster, etc.

Anyway, there are about 5 of us and most of the time I'm the only one wearing a helmet. I think they don't wear one because they don't think they look good with one on, they don't think it'll help, they dont' think that they'll need it, or they are just too cool for one. One of my good friends actually says that on a hot day, it gets even hotter with a helmet on. We've gone back and forth as to why we should and shouldn't wear one at each other but its ends up being me the only one to wear one. The thing I do n't understand is that those are kids who do good in school, are nice friends, etc. but they just don't seem to value their life as much as me.

We have to cross plenty of roads as well. One of my good friends that I mentioned earlier, only wears it like 20% of the time. We're all freshmans in high school so maybe that has an effect but all I can say is that they won't learn to wear one until they see how much it can help.

When I ask my friend when he doesn't wear the helment of that 80%, he says he forgot it. I ask him how he forgot it. He said he didn't remember. I told him that you and I both hang our helmets on the bike handle when we get done, how do you forget it then? He just said some lame excuse...

Basically, they don't think they're going to need or they aren't cool enough. I think the reasons of needing it, temperature, etc. are all excuses for the 'coolnesss' factor or something. Me? I always wear it...

 

It's the law in Michigan for motorcyclists to wear a helmet.

 

[boggsie]

Originally posted by: jumpr
It's the law in Michigan for motorcyclists to wear a helmet.

In Pennsylvania too, I think.

 

[HappyCracker]

Why don't they wear it? For the same reason people refuse to wear seatbelts: population control. If you're dumb enough to not wear one, you probably shouldn't be here anyway. Think about it. The means are out there, it's up to you to make the effort. Just like getting a job. The ad is in the paper, you're the one that has to make the effort to send a resume, etc. I do see the point in the laws though. People will sue over anything these days and I bet the laws are there for some sort protection or whatever. Natural selection....

 

[Marauder-]

Originally posted by: notfred

Originally posted by: Marauder-
I believe the helmet law in CA is only if you're under 18 - if you're over I believe you can do whatever you please.

That's for bicycles, not motorcycles.

Ah... Touche'

 

[ElFenix]

6th street is always more... interesting... during the republic of texas rally

 

[0roo0roo]

i've seen tests of a REAL bike helmet vs those skull caps some bikers use instead. the skull cap is good for absolutely nothing. from what i remember it couldn't even take a 7 foot drop without delivery killing force to your head. the real helmet was atleast 6 times better. all the skull capis good for is keeping your brains in one place so the mortician has an easier time. still leaves your face free to be smeared across the pavement like butter on a slice of bread. having no helmet is simply mind blowing. look up some motorcycle accident pictures on the net. thats what the nets good for. grisly sh*t will scare u straight.

 

[Siddhartha]

Originally posted by: WinkOsmosis
I'm talking about folks that ride Harleys and Indians and such. The Republic of Texas biker rally is this weekend in Austin, and only about 10% of the bikers I saw on the streets wore helmets, but most of those wear those little useless helmets without any apparent protection. What really annoys me is the guys who don't mind having passengers without helmets. It's fine to endanger your own life, but how could you, in good conscience, endanger your old lady's life?

Also, how come no one rags on them for being "squids" like they do when they see sport bike riders with no helmets, tank tops, and shorts?

Wasn't there a poll\thread about a law forcing people to wear seatbeats on this forum recently? A lot of people who responded to it wrote something about big brother imposing on them.

 

[kermalou]

in Cali bikers have to by law wear helmets

 

[Fudssa]

Originally posted by: gopunk
people that don't wear helmets don't have much to lose.

 

[Bulk Beef]

Originally posted by: americangigolo
When you're flying down the highway at 70 mph on a motorcyle, do you really think that helmet is going to save your life? On the other hand, when riding at lower speeds through town I could see the point, but on the highway, no. My dad rides a Harley and I also have heard him say that it hinders (peripheral?) vision.

My helmetsOne on the left was a highside at @70mph. One on the right was a highside at @110mph. I'm still here. High school physics. The vertical impact is what the helmet is intended to protect your grape from, and that force doesn't change much, whether you're doing 13mph or 130mph.

As for peripheral vision, helmets are required to have a wider field of view than you do.

As for not being able to hear, a helmet really acts as a noise filter. If you think of the things you want to hear as signal, and the things you don't want to hear as noise, the helmet will enhance the signal/noise ratio. I also wear earplugs.

As for helmets causing neck injuries, yes, in some cases, riders have sustained (sometimes fatal) neck injuries as a result of wearing a helmet. It's also extremely likely that those same riders would have sustained fatal head injuries without the helmet, a tidbit that anti-helmet types conveniently forget about.

The only legit argument against helmet laws is that regarding freedom of choice. Safety issues are complete horsesh*t. Helmets save lives. Period.

 

[clamum]

Originally posted by: sward666

Originally posted by: americangigolo
When you're flying down the highway at 70 mph on a motorcyle, do you really think that helmet is going to save your life? On the other hand, when riding at lower speeds through town I could see the point, but on the highway, no. My dad rides a Harley and I also have heard him say that it hinders (peripheral?) vision.

My helmetsOne on the left was a highside at @70mph. One on the right was a highside at @110mph. I'm still here. High school physics. The vertical impact is what the helmet is intended to protect your grape from, and that force doesn't change much, whether you're doing 13mph or 130mph.

As for peripheral vision, helmets are required to have a wider field of view than you do.

As for not being able to hear, a helmet really acts as a noise filter. If you think of the things you want to hear as signal, and the things you don't want to hear as noise, the helmet will enhance the signal/noise ratio. I also wear earplugs.

As for helmets causing neck injuries, yes, in some cases, riders have sustained (sometimes fatal) neck injuries as a result of wearing a helmet. It's also extremely likely that those same riders would have sustained fatal head injuries without the helmet, a tidbit that anti-helmet types conveniently forget about.

The only legit argument against helmet laws is that regarding freedom of choice. Safety issues are complete horsesh*t. Helmets save lives. Period.

By vertical impact you mean either something dropping on your head or you falling head first onto the ground?

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

Originally posted by: americangigolo
When you're flying down the highway at 70 mph on a motorcyle, do you really think that helmet is going to save your life? On the other hand, when riding at lower speeds through town I could see the point, but on the highway, no. My dad rides a Harley and I also have heard him say that it hinders (peripheral?) vision.

Yes a full face Snell/DOT approved helmet(brianbucket) can and will save your life, but at that speed you need to be wearing full protective gear, cause you're head will come out ok, but your body will be road rashed.

 

[clamum]

Originally posted by: JeffreyLebowski

Originally posted by: americangigolo
When you're flying down the highway at 70 mph on a motorcyle, do you really think that helmet is going to save your life? On the other hand, when riding at lower speeds through town I could see the point, but on the highway, no. My dad rides a Harley and I also have heard him say that it hinders (peripheral?) vision.

Yes a full face Snell/DOT approved helmet(brianbucket) can and will save your life, but at that speed you need to be wearing full protective gear, cause you're head will come out ok, but your body will be road rashed.

My reasoning for saying that was that it may save your head but I just thought at speeds like those on the highway, when you hit something you're gonna go flying and get messed up anyways. That's my dad's POV and he's been riding motorcycles for about as long as I am old and has been in accidents and seen accidents. But I guess there's evidence that it really does help. So maybe I would wear one on the highway. But I'm all for choice, making a manditory law is BS.

 

[Bulk Beef]

Originally posted by: americangigolo

By vertical impact you mean either something dropping on your head or you falling head first onto the ground?

Your head hitting the ground.

 

[conjur]

cuz helmets aren't 'cool', man.

Here in Ky, you don't have to wear one but you have to sign some sort of waiver that you have insurance or something.

 

[AstIsis]

It is called "personal freedom". If they choose not to wear a helmet that is fine...it is their life to do as they wish.