Sad Irony for Motorcycle Rider

One person in this thread tries to speak for him and it begs the question, "Was it worth it"? Bella seems to think it was worth it. I'm with SpeedRacer and think it's most likely he would say it was not worth it. Originally Posted by Booth

You're right, I made the mistake of speaking for a 55 year old man that I didn't know. I was actually speaking for myself.

I am good with my life; I have accomplished more and been gifted with more in the past 50 years than I could ever have imagined and certainly more than I deserve. When I go, whether because I chose not to wear a helmet or for some other reason, I may think "Not yet", but I will also know I lived on my terms to the extent that I could.

I WILL add this, for those that may not know it: His brother is quoted as saying, "He would have wanted it that way."

Eyewitnesses say that his bootlace got stuck in the chain. He should have been wearing laceless boots.

Incidentally, we are all entitled to our opinions, yes?

I may or may not agree with your opinion but I will never disagree with you having the right to state it.

Hypothetical question for you -- if a supreme being came to you and told you that within the next year you would die in a motorcycle accident but would be saved from death and injury if you were wearing a helmet, what would you do?

Personally, I love cycling. But if I knew beforehand that I would die cycling on the road sometime in the near future, I would look for alternatives to cycling. Like you, I have lived a life on my terms and have succeeded far beyond my wildest dreams, but I will still say that I want to maximize the length of my life. I have out-lived in terms of age my mother, father, and step-father, all of whom made stupid choices in their lives which killed them. Smoking and alcohol. My guess is that they would have changed their lifestyles had they known the consequences. But maybe not. It is easy to say that a dead person died the way he would have liked to have died, but since we can't ask him/her, we can only speculate.

I don't get the system!

You have the choice to ride without a helmet but you don't have a choice to ride with out a seat belt!

WTF is the difference?

I don't get the system!

You have the choice to ride without a helmet but you don't have a choice to ride with out a seat belt!

WTF is the difference? Originally Posted by TX

Actually folks DO have a choice. You may get a ticket, but none the less, you have a choice.... just like there is a "choice" to obey the speed limit and I'd bet a dime to a dollar many make the "choice" to go faster than the posted speed much of the time. Life is a crap shoot, nobody would choose to die, but they DO chose to play the odds. A lot of the folks that die in accidents were obeying ALL the laws.

Motorcycle buddy of mine gave me sage advice once.

There are only two kinds of motorcycles, those that have gone down and those that will.

So my 'opinion' is to wear a helmet, or get yourself some extra life insurance so people can benefit from your foolishness. too much shit on the roads, lousy drivers, and evil shoelaces in this world.

there is no way out of this life alive.. your buddy was right, and some learn from it.

I ride, and this is just nature's way of cleaning the gene pool. As Budman stated, the motorcyclist's mantra is it's not if you will get in an accident, but when. And even a 5mph fall to the pavement is enough to split your skull and spill your brains on to the pavement. Riding without a helmet is nothing but an ignorant, selfish act. Selfish towards not only the people that care about you in this world, but also the people who have to clean up your brains off the street and drag your lifeless carcass away. And if you don't have medical insurance...selfish to the rest of us who have to pay for your ignorance.

Not wearing a helmet has as much to do with freedom as it does with one's ability to drink a gallon of bleach if they choose. There's absolutely, positively no valid reason for not wearing a helmet, period.

that's one opinion... voiced by a few. Been riding for over 50 yrs.. but so what!?!

that's one opinion... voiced by a few. Been riding for over 50 yrs.. but so what!?! Originally Posted by nuglet

Nuglet, I think F-Sharp is a little over-the-top but consider this. Suppose the person killed had been hit by a car and the accident was determined to be the car driver's fault. That driver is going to be bankrupt by the time the court decides on his penalty. Had the motorcyclist been wearing a helmet and had only minor injuries, the driver's auto insurance would most likely cover all expenses.

True, but I'm one of those riders that believe ALL bike "accidents" are the bikes fault for not expecting some dumb-ass to screw up. Not that the cage didn't break the law, but it's ALWAYS the bike that loses.
If you don't drive extremely defensively, you're gonna be a statistic.. As a biker, I may have been right by the law, but I'm still fucked.
Not that I don't drive aggressively at times, but always defensive. That attitude has served me well through the years, but it took some bruises to learn... luckily, just bruises and road rash, then... 40 yrs of happy riding. Probably just me, but I ride like "they are always out to get me".. LOL
I think it's bad enough with a motor between my legs, bicycles require even more smarts, and I don't think I'm that smart. Not sure how much help a helmet will be in a conflict with a cage. May be alive, but fucked for life... the trick is DO NOT GET IN THAT CONFLICT.. IMO

Everybody dies.

Length of life isn't everything.

Texas summer is problematic; overheating makes your odds of getting into an accident go way up; over a hundred degrees it might be safer not to wear one. Or, you know, to ride in an air-conditioned cage instead, of course; choices.

I lowsided a couple of weeks ago, totaled the bike; I wasn't wearing a helmet, girl on the back was. She went to the hospital to get checked out, I didn't. I got boo boos; if I'd been wearing boots and leather I probably would've been unmarked; not a practical strategy when it's over 100. My head never touched the ground; still a god of ukemi....

If the motorbike guy in question had been wearing a helmet there is always the great probability that he would have broken his neck and been a quadraplegic needing intense personal care and a large expenditure of cash for the ret of his short tragic life.

If the motorbike guy in question had been wearing a helmet there is always the great probability that he would have broken his neck and been a quadraplegic needing intense personal care and a large expenditure of cash for the ret of his short tragic life. Originally Posted by stikiwikit

"Great probability" or slight possibility?

yep, just a possibility. The human body is amazingly resilient. A helmet will help a little, but it's sure not the do-all, end-all answer to being in a wreck. the head could be in great shape, on the other side of the highway from the body.. This is the proof of the saying, "it's not the speed that kills, it's the sudden stop"...

Been riding since I was 8 years old..Cant count the times I have crashed..Always wear a helmet..On the street either full leathers/boots or leather jacket, textile pants with armor and boots. Always wear armored gloves.There is alot of protective gear out now the work well and still keep you cool/ventilated and comfortable in Texas ..