Cyclists without helmets on..

[Writerwannabe83]

Am I the only one who gets really annoyed about this?

If it is the law that us drivers have to wear seatbelts why is their safety choice an optional one?

IF we knocked a cyclist of his bike and he suffered irreparable brain damage or death as a result of a head injury it is us who would have to live with that guilt, even though they made the choice not to wear a helmet.

And then you see some parents out with their children on bikes and although the children always have helmets on, not all the parents do. It is great they are protecting their children, but why do they think their own brains don't matter? I don't mind cyclists on the road at all, but I wish they would wear helmets and keep themselves safe.

Maybe I'm just overly anxious about hitting one....or do they think it will never happen to them?

You do tend to be going at a much higher speed when cycling rather than walking. Speed increases the impact with which your head hits the ground.

"When cycle helmets came out there was a dip in the amount of organs available for transplant"

Source???

I think you or your surgeon friends are confusing motorcyclists and cyclists

Plus, when walking and tripping we have the natural protective factor of putting our arms out to break our fall which can't be done in some circumstances when coming off a bike.

"You do tend to be going at a much higher speed when cycling rather than walking."

And you're going at a much faster speed when a passenger in a car. All the 'but why wouldn't you questions regarding helmets' apply just as much to car passengers and drivers as cyclists.

Passengers have seatbelts. We have that safety measure.

Just like cyclists have helmets as their safety measure - some just don't choose to wear them.

I think you have the protection of the car, ie your head isn't exposed as it is on a bike?

Look at the leading causes of head injuries.

Traffic collisions are way ahead there, ergo enforcing helmet wearing in cars would prevent more head injuries/reduce severity of head injuries.

And as a car passenger why wouldn't you want to protect yourself against that risk, however small?

But we are talking about cycling.

" My other bugbear is those trailer bikes....I've seen very few children in them without helmets....they would give nil protection to any child who was hit."

Do you mean trailers, or tag-a-long type things?

My DC don't wear helmets in the trailer, as mentioned upthread.

If anyone can think of a single mechanism of action that involved them getting an impact to the head while strapped in to the trailer, I will be seriously impressed.

It is designed as a roll cage, though it's practically impossible to tip it over if somehow it did, all that wouldhappen would be the DC would dangle from their seatbelts. If it is hit from front, side, rear, there are strong metal bars that would take the impact of any collision well before coming near the DC. We travel on roads with a maximum 30mph limit, mostly they are 20 mph.

Plus, wearing helmets would force their heads forward from the seat and put them at higher risk of neck injury due to position of their head & weight of the helmet..

Can I add why do some cyclists wear dark clothes? Car drivers can't see them.

And you're going at a much faster speed when a passenger in a car. All the 'but why wouldn't you questions regarding helmets' apply just as much to car passengers and drivers as cyclists.

Airbags? And curtain airbags are available on many models now.

Would you purposely buy a car without airbags?

ergo enforcing helmet wearing in cars would prevent more head injuries/reduce severity of head injuries

LOL, and what do you think happens if you're in an accident? The seatbelt stops your body & your head whips forwards with the extra weight of a helmet on it - wouldn't give much chance for your neck.

That's why all the Rally/Racing drivers wear those great big collars too - but if you get car drivers to wear them then cyclists will need to start wearing suits of armour, because visibility is severely reduced due to the inability to turn your head....

We should all try to be safer - cyclists and motorists - cyclists should wear helmets (not all accidents are with motorists and not all the fault of the driver) and ensure they are as visable as possible and all motorists should drive more safely and roads should br improved to allow cyclists and motorists to co-exist.

Am I the only one who gets really annoyed about this?

Probably not. The UK, being one of the fattest, unhealthiest, car obsessed countries in the world, seems to be full of "cyclist-beraters".

If it is the law that us drivers have to wear seatbelts why is their safety choice an optional one?

Because they are two different things. By the way, it is also the law that cars have to have fully functional lights, drive at the speed limit, have MOTs and insurance. Not all do so. Does that annoy you too?

IF we knocked a cyclist of his bike and he suffered irreparable brain damage or death as a result of a head injury it is us who would have to live with that guilt, even though they made the choice not to wear a helmet

Is that the Royal We? Or are We thinking that cyclists only cycle because they cannot afford cars? If We knocked a cyclist of his (sic) bike with enough force to cause irreparable brain damage or death, a cycle helmet is highly unlikely to prevent this. They aren't substantial enough.

And are you aware you show sociopathic tendencies in your fixation on your own personal guilt in such a victim blaming statement, but no concern for your hypothetical victim. Btw, do you often go around imagining serious injuries to people? Particularly in connection with your driving? Its a bit disturbing.

Might I suggest you get off your backside, take some exercise, and maybe travel a bit outside your own location and whatever Brit destination you go on holiday, to a country where its considered beneficial to encourage people to cycle. Such as Belgium, Denmark, Germany, The Netherlands - gosh you even see MOTHERS with CHILDREN on CYCLE CARRIERS, some of whom are not wearing helmets.

Best to pack the smelling salts...personally, I think counselling might be worthwhile as well, at least to try and increase your acceptance towards your fellow members of the human race.

ps come near me with your cyclist hating attitude, and I'll sue your ass off. Helmet and all.

WOAH, how did I miss 'IF we knocked a cyclist of his bike and he suffered irreparable brain damage or death as a result of a head injury it is us who would have to live with that guilt, even though they made the choice not to wear a helmet' of course you'd have to live with that guilt if YOU knocked somebody off their bike! Strange victim blaming mentality

yabu.

There is no real hard and fast evidence to suggest that wearing a helmet whilst cycling is any safer than not wearing one. There is however research to suggest that wearing a helmet may be more dangerous as statisitcally car drivers are more likely to subconsciously take more risks near cyclists wearing helmets. The only answer from a car drivers point of view is to make sure they give cyclists plenty of room and to drive safely and patiently.

ah, yet another driver on MN telling cyclists how to keep themselves safe. Who would have that that possible?

OP, the best way to prevent these 'accidents' is to not knock us off our bikes. Overtake when it is safe to do so. Surely you're a reasonable driver and this isn't beyond you?

there are sensible car drivers/motorbike riders and cyclists.
There are irresponsible '' '' '' ''.

Cyclists would help themselves if they wore bright reflective clothing (where I live they wear black on black, in the evenings, no lights or anything on their bikes, one was run over because car didnt see him as he cycled without hands on handlebars in front of car. bet car driver got the blame.)

If they held the handlebars when cycling, not on their mobile phones or arms folded.
and if they didnt weave in and out of traffic and jump traffic lights.

same with other irresponsible drivers of vehicles.( bug bear with cars is tailgating, loud exshautes (sp), leaving engine running while parked (fumes) and stereos and speeding.)

and if helmets were made for cyclists then cyclists should wear them?

I think they should be compulsory as well as it is all too easy to get a head injury on a bike.

My oh is a cyclist and one day came home all bloodied and dishevelled after falling off his bike. He was going relatively slowly at a roundabout and skidded on some fuel causing him to fall off. There was a big dent in his helmut so it could have been much worse if he hadn't it on.

And while we are at it we should make it compulsory to wear bright clothes whilst cycling. It is shocking the number of those cycling in drab dreary rainy days wearing dark clothes, no helmut or lights on.

Opalite presumably the OP would then suffer no guilt if she merely broke the neck or back of the cyclist she knocked off with her //weapon of choice-- car. Or run over one of their legs and sever their legs from their body, as someone did to my friend's mother (incidentally she was wearing a helmet and was killed).

I really am fast running out of patience for these sociopathic types.

OP get out of your bloody car, walk, or take the bus, but please stop thinking your evil thoughts about other road users. You really shouldn't be driving, you do know that, don't you? I say that as a car driver as well.

tbf for me to not wear a helmet is counter-intuitive. Same with the dark clothes at night etc.

Having said that, car drivers cause carnage with the best dressed bikes - in my commutes it;s always me that takes responsibility for knob drivers to avoid incidents, despite being as bright as a Christmas tree.
< I mean in terms of illumination, not intelligence...probably.>

yes, it's a common obs I have about drivers' 'complaints on MN. If you're such a shit driver, stay off the roads. Really. (also a driver, horse rider, motorbike licence-holder, skier, canal boat driver etc)

My issue is with lights, round here many of the students either don't have lights and take a chance in the dusk (obviously whilst wearing dark clothing so you really don't see them til you are almost on top of them) or they have very small lights, the type that are powered by pedal power, but these are often very weak and blink rather like a cat blinking than a vehicle on the road. I'd like all bikes to have to have a certain (measurable) level of brightness of their lights as however careful I am, and I am (and my dc and DH cycle a lot), I often can't see cyclists with their weak lights.