Motorcycle Helmets
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Motorcycle Helmets
Hi, i'm still a student in high school, and my english teacher is making us write a paper on american policies. She gave us a list of topics to choose from and write about and i picked one on motorcycles. More specifically, I'm writing a paper on why motorcyclists SHOULD wear helmets and how come some states still do not have motorcycle helmet laws. Now this question may seem really easy to answer to some of you, but i would really just like all of your opinions on this. Thank you.
1. Should motorcyclists be REQUIRED to wear helmets while riding a motorcycle? Why/why not?
2. Can anyone be helpful as to provide proof/evidence of policies requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. Or if you live in a state that doesn't require helmets, it would be cool if you could provide links to a site showing the reasons why your state doesn't have helmet laws.
3. If motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, should they be required to wear other gear as well?
4. It would be great if some of you out there could possibly share stories of close encounters with us. What happened and how a helmet/safety gear saved your life.
1. Should motorcyclists be REQUIRED to wear helmets while riding a motorcycle? Why/why not?
2. Can anyone be helpful as to provide proof/evidence of policies requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. Or if you live in a state that doesn't require helmets, it would be cool if you could provide links to a site showing the reasons why your state doesn't have helmet laws.
3. If motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, should they be required to wear other gear as well?
4. It would be great if some of you out there could possibly share stories of close encounters with us. What happened and how a helmet/safety gear saved your life.
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
How about a good visual for your report....Take an egg to class and roll if off the desk..nuff said and if anyone has questions take another egg out of the other pocket and repeat.As we all say its not a matter of how u go down but when.There was a post a few weeks back from a rider who went down after 10 years and he was geared.The bottom line is helmets save lives not to mention brains.Im sure there are alot of people gonna jump on this one...The asphalt will always win.
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From: OH, KY & WV
RE: Motorcycle Helmets
Here's a useful link for you...
It has a listing of the helmet laws for all states. It's hard to say a state does or does not have a helmet law because they have different levels.
For example: My state of Ohio requires 17 and younger to wear helmets and anyone that is in their first year of having a motorcycle license. KY doesn't have a helmet law for those that are 21 and older... and have medical insurance. So you have to really do your homework to know if you have to have a helmet or not.
I know this isn't what you ask for, but I thought it might be some filler material for your paper.
You questions in my opinion:
1. I'm going to be the odd ball here and say NO. If a person with cirrhosis of the liver can choose to drink alcohol and a person with lung cancer can still choose to smoke cigarettes, then why do we have the right to tell any adult to wear a helmet. Children under the age of 16 should be required to wear a helmet while they are still learning, not how to ride a motorcycle, but learn and gather life experience so they can choose to be safe or not. I personally will not ride without a helmet, take a passenger for a ride without one or let me kids ride without one. Until they are 18, that’s my right as a parent.
2. I am the only one in my family that chooses to wear a helmet at all times. The rest of my family and my friends that choose not to wear a helmet have many reasons: Helmets block your peripheral vision, cut down the noise around you and you cannot hear the traffic near you so you can avoid an accident, helmets are heavy and will cause you to break your neck if you wreck (I always love hearing this one) and of course the usual “helmet are hot or uncomfortableâ€.
3. My opinion here follows the same as question #1. People should have the right to die, but protection for the children of such idiots should be required until they are old enough themselves.
4. I always wear a helmet so I can share that they do not block your peripheral vision and if a wreck will cause you to break your neck, it will do the same with or without a helmet. If anything, the helmet would provide a slicker surface so your head slides instead of having the friction of your flesh to grab things. And it will also absorb the impact instead of transferring the pressure to any part of your spine.
One recent story I have is with my dad and stepmother. They have been persuaded to and lead over to the dark side of riding with out a helmet because my brother doesn’t wear one around them. It’s cooler in the summer so they don’t sweat and it doesn’t mess up their hair. They went a ride to took them through WV so they wore helmets so they wouldn’t have to stop and put them on. In OH where they normally ride, a bird flew into my stepmother’s helmet and exploded all over her (she was the passenger on a Goldwing). They had to stop to clean the blood and mess off of her, you wouldn’t believe the mess it made. Egg shells, slime, guts, features and the lovely white stuff all over your car covered her jacket, pants and face. She was wearing an open face three quarter helmet typical of touring bikes. The fairing and wind shield offer a lot of protection so a lot of riders even forget about the eye protection. The bird made a deep scratch in the helmet also so this would have made a nice abrasion down the left side of her head if not worse. Could have fractured her skull, ridded an ear off, or what ever you imagination can think of. They complained about the damage to the helmet and thought maybe the bird would have missed her head if she wasn’t wearing it. Sad. I tried to point it out to them that the helmet saved them a trip to the emergency room, if not the funeral home, and they still see it their way. We are all entitled to our opinions and beliefs. I’ll follow science and facts as far as they wil
It has a listing of the helmet laws for all states. It's hard to say a state does or does not have a helmet law because they have different levels.
For example: My state of Ohio requires 17 and younger to wear helmets and anyone that is in their first year of having a motorcycle license. KY doesn't have a helmet law for those that are 21 and older... and have medical insurance. So you have to really do your homework to know if you have to have a helmet or not.
I know this isn't what you ask for, but I thought it might be some filler material for your paper.
You questions in my opinion:
1. I'm going to be the odd ball here and say NO. If a person with cirrhosis of the liver can choose to drink alcohol and a person with lung cancer can still choose to smoke cigarettes, then why do we have the right to tell any adult to wear a helmet. Children under the age of 16 should be required to wear a helmet while they are still learning, not how to ride a motorcycle, but learn and gather life experience so they can choose to be safe or not. I personally will not ride without a helmet, take a passenger for a ride without one or let me kids ride without one. Until they are 18, that’s my right as a parent.
2. I am the only one in my family that chooses to wear a helmet at all times. The rest of my family and my friends that choose not to wear a helmet have many reasons: Helmets block your peripheral vision, cut down the noise around you and you cannot hear the traffic near you so you can avoid an accident, helmets are heavy and will cause you to break your neck if you wreck (I always love hearing this one) and of course the usual “helmet are hot or uncomfortableâ€.
3. My opinion here follows the same as question #1. People should have the right to die, but protection for the children of such idiots should be required until they are old enough themselves.
4. I always wear a helmet so I can share that they do not block your peripheral vision and if a wreck will cause you to break your neck, it will do the same with or without a helmet. If anything, the helmet would provide a slicker surface so your head slides instead of having the friction of your flesh to grab things. And it will also absorb the impact instead of transferring the pressure to any part of your spine.
One recent story I have is with my dad and stepmother. They have been persuaded to and lead over to the dark side of riding with out a helmet because my brother doesn’t wear one around them. It’s cooler in the summer so they don’t sweat and it doesn’t mess up their hair. They went a ride to took them through WV so they wore helmets so they wouldn’t have to stop and put them on. In OH where they normally ride, a bird flew into my stepmother’s helmet and exploded all over her (she was the passenger on a Goldwing). They had to stop to clean the blood and mess off of her, you wouldn’t believe the mess it made. Egg shells, slime, guts, features and the lovely white stuff all over your car covered her jacket, pants and face. She was wearing an open face three quarter helmet typical of touring bikes. The fairing and wind shield offer a lot of protection so a lot of riders even forget about the eye protection. The bird made a deep scratch in the helmet also so this would have made a nice abrasion down the left side of her head if not worse. Could have fractured her skull, ridded an ear off, or what ever you imagination can think of. They complained about the damage to the helmet and thought maybe the bird would have missed her head if she wasn’t wearing it. Sad. I tried to point it out to them that the helmet saved them a trip to the emergency room, if not the funeral home, and they still see it their way. We are all entitled to our opinions and beliefs. I’ll follow science and facts as far as they wil
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
I personally wear a helmet 90-95% of the time. In most cases I do believe that it will save someones life, but I also have heard of a couple of cases that someones brain swelled up so much, it had nowhere to go because they were wearing a helmet and they died from the brain swelling. Granted, they might have died from the impact as well, but I have heard that a few times. I agree with the other guy about the laws varying from different levels in each state.
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From: OH, KY & WV
RE: Motorcycle Helmets
You need very little medical experience or none at all to disprove, I can’t even call it a theory, the story of someone’s brain swelling and killing them because they were wearing a helmet. A helmet is designed to absorb impact and dissipate the forces from shock. The helmet has some flexibility to it. You skull on the other hand has zero flex to it. A concussion is swelling of the brain. The reason you pass out is a homeostasis reaction of the body to equalize itself and slow the body down and this supplies less blood your brain and helps reduce the swelling.
Don’t believe everything you read or hear and only half of what you see. When someone tells you a story like this, you need to question it.
Don’t believe everything you read or hear and only half of what you see. When someone tells you a story like this, you need to question it.
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
ORIGINAL: doncollins
You need very little medical experience or none at all to disprove, I can???t even call it a theory, the story of someone???s brain swelling and killing them because they were wearing a helmet. A helmet is designed to absorb impact and dissipate the forces from shock. The helmet has some flexibility to it. You skull on the other hand has zero flex to it. A concussion is swelling of the brain. The reason you pass out is a homeostasis reaction of the body to equalize itself and slow the body down and this supplies less blood your brain and helps reduce the swelling.
Don???t believe everything you read or hear and only half of what you see. When someone tells you a story like this, you need to question it.
You need very little medical experience or none at all to disprove, I can???t even call it a theory, the story of someone???s brain swelling and killing them because they were wearing a helmet. A helmet is designed to absorb impact and dissipate the forces from shock. The helmet has some flexibility to it. You skull on the other hand has zero flex to it. A concussion is swelling of the brain. The reason you pass out is a homeostasis reaction of the body to equalize itself and slow the body down and this supplies less blood your brain and helps reduce the swelling.
Don???t believe everything you read or hear and only half of what you see. When someone tells you a story like this, you need to question it.
________
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Last edited by Brandon77; Apr 9, 2011 at 03:50 AM.
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
+1 on the helmet and the riding gear, i.e. jacket, pants, boots and gloves. Could not imagine going down without it [:'(] asphalt, gravel, anything stationary (even out riding my dirt bike, haulin *** thru the desert) seen to maney pics of the road rash for my liking. Iam in So Cali, helmets are law here, do I think it's a good law ? YES, why ? because I feel they save lives, some people argue that it infringes on there rights to wear one or not, I suppose this is a grey area [>:] they have seat belt laws, speed limit laws, rules of the road laws, sometimes you have to protect people from themselves 
yes we should have freedom of choice, but if that choice can get us killed [:@] or maimed for life because we knew better. Any way thats my 2 cents
yes we should have freedom of choice, but if that choice can get us killed [:@] or maimed for life because we knew better. Any way thats my 2 cents
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
3. If motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, should they be required to wear other gear as well?
Protective gear in Florida is a tough call, The choice between heat stroke and road rash is a tough one, even the motorcycle cops down here ride in short sleeve shirts in the summer. For me, I always wear a full face helmet, I have 4 jackets, even my 'meshiest' jacket is WAY too hot in the summer.
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RE: Motorcycle Helmets
Hello & Welcome!!
Good questions. Here are some answers:
1. Should motorcyclists be REQUIRED to wear helmets while riding a motorcycle? Why/why not?
Yes. Your brain is a fragile object. It should be treated like glass - if broken, useless. I think it should be a requirement for all states to have full face helmets on. People don't realize how important it is to protect your brain..i.e. the football player from PA. With my crash if I did not have a full face helmet on, my face would have been messed up. Chuncks were missing from my helmet and it was scratched all over.
2. Can anyone be helpful as to provide proof/evidence of policies requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. Or if you live in a state that doesn't require helmets, it would be cool if you could provide links to a site showing the reasons why your state doesn't have helmet laws.
http://www.iihs.org/laws/state_laws/helmet_use.html
http://www.helmetshop.com/helmetlaws.asp (by state)
3. If motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, should they be required to wear other gear as well?
Of course, more protection the better. Would you go outside in the cold naked?
4. It would be great if some of you out there could possibly share stories of close encounters with us. What happened and how a helmet/safety gear saved your life.
This was written about my crash from my boyfriend:
"We were travelling down 195 by jackson on the right lane doing the speed limit 65. Crystal is behind me, and my brother is behind her. I see a car not paying attention trying to make an exit from the left lane. NO SIGNAL, NO NOTHING!!!... I held my horn down and he cuts behind me and cuts off Crystal...Crystal in reaction hits the brakes, but too hard. Her bike flips up and she gets thrown off about 50 MPH. The guy tried fleeing but other cars cut him off to stop him. I go to him and he says "what did I do". My brother stops about 30 feet skidding and tail assing out, thank god he held the bike up. All of a sudden she runs past my brother ready to kill the guy. My brother sat her down. Her adrenaline was pumping so hard she didn't realize all the road rash she had. Thank god she had her gear on but her knee is swollen to no end..road rash on both legs and her hands....Guys and girls No matter how safe you are watch out for other cars. She is one of the safest riders out there and **** like this has to happen....If your out there thinking your invincible DON'T...She went through LOTS of pain when they scrubbed the road rash...That shook me for a while and i don't think I'll be riding for a little while...Thank god about 8 cars stopped who witnessed the whole accident...3 of which were EMT's and 2 Off duty police officers...The guy recieved a ticket....but the state trooper said it has to be considered a single vehicle accident because the ****** did not hit her. But on the police report it will be "noted" what the **** "noted" that he was the one who caused the accident....Those of you who have her number shoot her a ring...She's fine but Hurt bad at the same time....we were at the hospital from 5pm and i just got in now at 11:30 pm you may call her tomorrow or send me a pm for good wishes or simply post...BE CAREFULL OUT THERE"
Here are some photos of my gear. I am not attaching photos of my damage, as some photos are not eye pleasing. Stupid me only wore my gloves, my helmet, sneakers, and jean capri pants. I was torn up pretty bad.
Good questions. Here are some answers:
1. Should motorcyclists be REQUIRED to wear helmets while riding a motorcycle? Why/why not?
Yes. Your brain is a fragile object. It should be treated like glass - if broken, useless. I think it should be a requirement for all states to have full face helmets on. People don't realize how important it is to protect your brain..i.e. the football player from PA. With my crash if I did not have a full face helmet on, my face would have been messed up. Chuncks were missing from my helmet and it was scratched all over.
2. Can anyone be helpful as to provide proof/evidence of policies requiring motorcyclists to wear helmets. Or if you live in a state that doesn't require helmets, it would be cool if you could provide links to a site showing the reasons why your state doesn't have helmet laws.
http://www.iihs.org/laws/state_laws/helmet_use.html
http://www.helmetshop.com/helmetlaws.asp (by state)
3. If motorcyclists are required to wear helmets, should they be required to wear other gear as well?
Of course, more protection the better. Would you go outside in the cold naked?
4. It would be great if some of you out there could possibly share stories of close encounters with us. What happened and how a helmet/safety gear saved your life.
This was written about my crash from my boyfriend:
"We were travelling down 195 by jackson on the right lane doing the speed limit 65. Crystal is behind me, and my brother is behind her. I see a car not paying attention trying to make an exit from the left lane. NO SIGNAL, NO NOTHING!!!... I held my horn down and he cuts behind me and cuts off Crystal...Crystal in reaction hits the brakes, but too hard. Her bike flips up and she gets thrown off about 50 MPH. The guy tried fleeing but other cars cut him off to stop him. I go to him and he says "what did I do". My brother stops about 30 feet skidding and tail assing out, thank god he held the bike up. All of a sudden she runs past my brother ready to kill the guy. My brother sat her down. Her adrenaline was pumping so hard she didn't realize all the road rash she had. Thank god she had her gear on but her knee is swollen to no end..road rash on both legs and her hands....Guys and girls No matter how safe you are watch out for other cars. She is one of the safest riders out there and **** like this has to happen....If your out there thinking your invincible DON'T...She went through LOTS of pain when they scrubbed the road rash...That shook me for a while and i don't think I'll be riding for a little while...Thank god about 8 cars stopped who witnessed the whole accident...3 of which were EMT's and 2 Off duty police officers...The guy recieved a ticket....but the state trooper said it has to be considered a single vehicle accident because the ****** did not hit her. But on the police report it will be "noted" what the **** "noted" that he was the one who caused the accident....Those of you who have her number shoot her a ring...She's fine but Hurt bad at the same time....we were at the hospital from 5pm and i just got in now at 11:30 pm you may call her tomorrow or send me a pm for good wishes or simply post...BE CAREFULL OUT THERE"
Here are some photos of my gear. I am not attaching photos of my damage, as some photos are not eye pleasing. Stupid me only wore my gloves, my helmet, sneakers, and jean capri pants. I was torn up pretty bad.