Sunday, March 21, 2010
If you ride a bike, wear a helmet
Mark Taylor is outdoors editor at The Roanoke Times.
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Mark Taylor
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Talk among parents at the bus stop on a recent morning turned to the arrival of spring, and the things we're doing.
"I've been taking the kids bike riding a lot," one dad said.
I knew. I'd seen them out the afternoon prior.
One of the kids had a brake malfunction and plowed into a tree, the dad said with a half chuckle.
The kid smirked.
"You need to wear a helmet," I said.
Even before the awkward silence that followed I regretted the comment, for which I later apologized.
The problem wasn't with the message, but the delivery.
It wasn't my place to bring it up there, like that, in front of other parents and kids -- no matter how strongly I believe in bike helmets.
And strongly is putting it mildly.
Like so many things that shape our convictions, this one is rooted in personal experience.
On a pleasant early spring day in 1988 I was out for my first bike ride of the season, but had broken an important rule by not ensuring that my gear was in order.
During the ride my front wheel became loose, and it flew off when I hit a bump. When the bike's fork dug into the asphalt I went from 30 mph to 0 in an instant, my head and shoulder taking the blow.
The force was so great that it cracked the inside foam lining of the helmet.
As I lay in the hospital that afternoon with a broken collarbone and blistering headache -- but luckily no concussion -- I thought about what could have been.
Would it have killed me? Maybe not. But I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have been partying with my college buddies on spring break two weeks later.
Few argue with the importance of helmets for serious, high-speed bike riding. In fact, among regular riders it's rare to see anyone without a helmet.
But what's the big deal for kids just toodling around on sidewalks or on greenways at low speeds on a pretty spring or summer afternoon?
I mean, who among us wore helmets when we were young? And we made it by just fine, right?
The reality is that chances of something serious happening are low.
But the risk is real.
Consider these figures compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:
In 2007, the most recent year for which statistics are available, 698 bicyclists were killed in accidents.
Of those, 107 were between the ages of 5 and 15.
That year, 12,000 riders ages 5 to 15 were seriously injured.
And now think about these stats compiled by the Children's Safety Network:
Among children and youth to age 19 in 2000, head injuries accounted for 62.6 percent of bicycle fatalities.
Properly wearing a safety-approved helmet provides a 63 to 88 percent reduction in the risk of head and brain injury for bicyclists of all ages.
The takeaway?
Bicyclists of all ages have accidents. Those who are wearing helmets are less likely to face serious injury or death than those who aren't.
It's pretty straightforward.
The good news is that helmets are easy to find, and affordable.
Basic helmets that have passed safety standards -- look inside the helmet for the approval sticker -- can be had for less than $20.
Here's another thing: All the cool kids are wearing them.
Really.
When nearly all serious adult riders, including pro cyclists such as Lance Armstrong, are wearing helmets, there's nothing uncool about it.
Of course the people most kids look up to are their parents. So, while it's important to put them in helmets, it's just as important to put yourself in one.
And not just because you'll be setting a good example.
But because you're going to crash eventually, too.
