I don't get people's resistance to helmets!

[Zen]

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.

Making a judgement about someone you don't know is not very respectful. It's like junior high school. They're not wearing the "uniform" so they're not real cyclists.

Whatever.

V.

If these cyclists have a family they are indeed stupid and irresponsible.
if they die, they leave a grieving spouse and children . When someone dies, the grief will always be there though it will fade with time. A wife whose husband dies can eventually find someone to share her life with.

If they don't die and suffer irreversible brain damage the grief continues.
I have a friend who was a triathlete. He was not wearing a helmet when the car hit him. He can barely communicate and needs to be supervised all day. His wife has to attend to his rehab and care arrangements and she no longer has the man she married who was her lover and life partner.
His son doesn't have a father who can give advice and act as a role model

He evaluated the risks and decided he didn't need a helmet either.
I call that stupid and irresponsible.

[Tuckervill]

Salient point, Running Mommy. It's satisfying when things come together that way.

On the flip side of asking kids about their missing helmet, I try to compliment the ones who *are* wearing them. I'll say, "whoa, look at that cool helmet!" or "Nice helmet!" as I pass. Some kids want to be thought of as smart, but almost all kids want to be cooooool.

I'm a fat chick--I don't cut any slick racing figure on my entry-level bike. But on a ride through the trail at the ballpark this week, a little girl sitting on a bike with training wheels watched me coming and looked up at me as I passed slowly by. She was literally staring at me with her mouth hanging open. I smiled at her and she smiled back. I think she'll be more inclined, not less, to wear the helmet that was hanging off her handlebars, don't you? I think she thought I was a vision of loveliness, maybe.

We can be a positive example. We don't have to preach it.

Karen