Helmet logic

Unfortunately, an American football player wrecked his perfectly good Suzuki Hayabusa last week (his was newer than mine, and black, and customized). He also smashed up his face because he wasn't wearing a helmet. Today CNN says:

The debate over motorcycle helmet safety resurfaced last week when Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, an advocate of helmet-free riding, broke his jaw, nose and several teeth in an accident. He underwent seven hours of surgery.

I guess Ben learned his lesson. I'm glad he survived. Driving a 200 Mph rocket is a lot of fun, but it's a lot more fun if you don't crack your head open. Accidents happen, of course, and I've had a couple of little crackups myself. On one occasion a taxi changed lanes behind me at Hyde Park Corner and clipped my back tyre, sending me out of control. My (helmeted) head made contact with the road, so unfortunately I'm having to claim £200 for a new helmet (among other things) from the taxi driver's insurance company -- but that's better than the cost of brain injury rehabilitation, don't you think? The article continues:

Physicians and insurance companies say helmets are crucial safety gear. But Merritt Island motorcyclist and helmet law opponent Dave Carroll said the helmet law debate is misguided. "What causes most of the crashes is cars," he said. "Usually, it's the car driver turning left at an intersection and causing an accident because they didn't see us coming."

Well that's good logic, Dave. Cars cause accidents therefore we shouldn't have to wear helmets. Isn't that a bit like saying "cars should avoid hitting pedestrians, therefore pedestrians shouldn't have to look both ways before crossing the road"? We don't cause most accidents therefore we shouldn't have to protect ourselves? Do you think that by pointing this out, you're going to change the attentiveness of car drivers? Car drivers aren't getting any better Dave, they're paying less and less attention to the road nowadays because they're talking on the phone, playing with electronic gadgets, and (EEK!) watching television.

If you ride a lot, at some point you'll come off your bike -- maybe it'll be your fault, maybe it won't. The question is whether you want to walk away from it. Dave, you are a tool.