Quote Originally Posted by Veronica View Post
go to the dentist, don't exercise, etc.?

I have a great deal of respect for the cyclists I was riding with. They are not stupid or irrespsonsible people. They have incredible bike handling skills. They have evaluated the risks and decided that they don't always need helmets. It has nothing to do with being "cool" either for these people.
Personally my reasons for wearing a helmet are not because I consider myself to be a poor bike handler or accident prone, nor do I wear a seat belt because I am a poor driver. I do both of these to protect myself from *other* people and from the completely unexpected that can happen no matter how good you think you are.
If you have decided that risking a greater chance of death or life long disability is better than wearing a helmet so be it. If you honestly think that you are accident proof because you are a good cyclist then I think you are deluding yourself. Yes, you can still be killed or injured when wearing a helmet, but I prefer to protect myself as best as is possible. Even if helmets aren't perfect they are better than nothing - and wearing one does not make me any less cautious, as I really like the rest of my body parts in their current configuration too...