Has your helmet saved your life poll

[Pedrosanchezo]

Are you really suggesting that your opinion of the relative dangers is informed only of your experience and that of people you know? There is a whole lot more data available you know. You could take a look at it, although it might challenge your prejudices.

As a cyclist and a pedestrian, which activity (walking or cycling) is more likely to result in my injury??

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

Were you wearing a helmet at the time?

Collar bone instance i was wearing a helmet. Racing BMX as a teenager. Broken wrist i was not. I was on my mountain bike and my hands and wrists took the impact of the fall after i went over the handlebars down a rather fast descent. The latter one i had control of what parts of my body were going to cushion the fall. The former i did not.

 

[Norm]

As a cyclist and a pedestrian, which activity (walking or cycling) is more likely to result in my injury??

They are very similar.

 

[theclaud]

Collar bone instance i was wearing a helmet. Racing BMX as a teenager. Broken wrist i was not. I was on my mountain bike and my hands and wrists took the impact of the fall after i went over the handlebars down a rather fast descent. The latter one i had control of what parts of my body were going to cushion the fall. The former i did not.

I'm just wondering whether you thought the helmet was likely to help with the particular "dangers" of cycling as you have experienced them. It seems from the above that it might have been irrelevant. Do you wear wrist guards?

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

The question which you are trying to avoid addressing is how much more or less likely is acquiring a head injury walking than cycling and from that, at what level of relative risk does the one activity get judged dangerous and the other safe?

Is it a question that we can answer?? I can give my opinion. I feel you are more likely to be in a situation, whilst cycling, that you cannot fully control the fall and may then hit your head. Walking, unless inebriated, is going to pose a far lesser risk.

There is a vast difference between bike racing, cycling for leisure and commuting. Are we to generalise these different activities just to vaguely compare to a pedestrian walking??

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

I'm just wondering whether you thought the helmet was likely to help with the particular "dangers" of cycling as you have experienced them. It seems from the above that it might have been irrelevant. Do you wear wrist guards?

no i do not but i broke my wrist and i am still here. If i do break my skull i may not be.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

They are very similar.

In a sober walking state, in similar age groups, i find that hard to believe Norm.

Now if you are comparing drunks and old people to the average cyclist then i can see how you would come to that conclusion.

 

[theclaud]

no i do not but i broke my wrist and i am still here. If i do break my skull i may not be.

Well forgive me if I commiserate with your injuries and go about happily helmetless as before then, because there seems to be nothing to see here...

 

[Norm]

In a sober walking state, in similar age groups, i find that hard to believe Norm.

You don't have to believe it, just check the statistics. And I'm sorry for not posting them but, given you've already said you find it hard to believe me, if you find them for yourself, you might find them more credible. As a hint, though, I think they can be found on either the Dept for Transport or the Office for National Statistics sites.

The stuff about drunks and elderly is a distraction, IMO, as the stats are about road accidents and you could just as easily discount drunk and elderly cyclists or whatever.

Underlying facts to the smoke screens either way are that the numbers are very similar.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

Well forgive me if I commiserate with your injuries and go about happily helmetless as before then, because there seems to be nothing to see here...

Thats the point isn't it Claud. Each to their own. Why these threads continue to go on and on is beyond me. I would just not like to see someone converted to not wear a helmet due to the points above. There is research, there are opinions of both pro's and amateurs alike but they ignored and the debate rages on. There may never be concrete evidence either way. So again, each to their own. It is our heads. What we do with them is our business.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

You don't have to believe it, just check the statistics. And I'm sorry for not posting them but, given you've already said you find it hard to believe me, if you find them for yourself, you might find them more credible. As a hint, though, I think they can be found on either the Dept for Transport or the Office for National Statistics sites.

The stuff about drunks and elderly is a distraction, IMO, as the stats are about road accidents and you could just as easily discount drunk and elderly cyclists or whatever.

Underlying facts to the smoke screens either way are that the numbers are very similar.

The stats are for all peds and all cyclists. Are you not more likely to walk home from the pub than to cycle home??

What source are you referring? I will google and give you some stats on that search...................

Okay:

http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/...es-of-head-injuries-and-how-to-avoid-them.htm

5 biggest reasons for head injury.

• Car Accidents (passenger and pedestrian)
• Bicycle /Motorcycle Accidents
• Falls (especially kids and the elderly)
• Sports
• Acts of Violence/Assault
  
  
  

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

"Nearly 80% of fatal bicycle crashes are due to head injuries. According to the Brain Trauma Foundation, 800 people die each year from bicycle/motorcycle injuries and over 17,000 are hospitalized.
Further statistics estimate that only 20% of children in US wear helmets while bike riding. Of the 350,000 children involved in bike relate accidents annually, 130,000 sustain head injuries"

From the above link. These stats not count?

 

[srw]

"Nearly 80% of fatal bicycle crashes are due to head injuries. According to the Brain Trauma Foundation, 800 people die each year from bicycle/motorcycle injuries and over 17,000 are hospitalized.
Further statistics estimate that only 20% of children in US wear helmets while bike riding. Of the 350,000 children involved in bike relate accidents annually, 130,000 sustain head injuries"

From the above link. These stats not count?

How many of the bicycle/motorcycle riders were actually cyclists? That's two very different activities.

Based on your self-reported cycling injuries I'd say you've been careless and unlucky. I've gone getting on for 30,000 miles of cycling since my last injury.

 

[Norm]

5 biggest reasons for head injury.

• Car Accidents (passenger and pedestrian)
• Bicycle /Motorcycle Accidents
• Falls (especially kids and the elderly)
• Sports
• Acts of Violence/Assault

American and it puts pedestrians with car passengers and bikes together with motorbikes, so not actually very useful for this.

You could try my suggestion of UK government departments, such as the DfT...
https://www.gov.uk/government/organ...t/series/road-accidents-and-safety-statistics

 

[ufkacbln]

An enjoyable ride but very slow ride indeed. Sheet ice everywhere. One of the best safety features a cyclist can have is judgement and mine was poor in this instance. Walking down the verge on a steep, thick ice covered, descent was certainly enough to remind me that cycling safety starts with the noggin.

Now that i mention the noggin.....

Cycling is in no way comparable to walking or driving a car. It is probably closest to riding a moped or low powered bike. Both of which a helmet is a requirement, though this is a little off topic. I assume you are going to say something like "why don't people wear helmets whilst walking or driving a car?"
I would suggest we could debate that all day. Even if i think the answers are bleedin obvious, you may not. For this reason i ask you not to pursue this point and accept a cycling related answer. This is by definition a forum about cycling.

Cyclists can choose not to wear elbow pads, knee pads, safety glasses, body armour, steel toe caps, kevlar body suits or even a cup for the nether regions (you never know when you might need one!). The difference between all of these methods of self protection and a helmet is quite simple, the helmet is the only one that (arguably) protects your head.
You can break bones, drag your skin along gravel infused roads, snap ligaments and even land on the bars in a position you never ever want to land on the bars! Thing is you will walk away from these unfortunate incidents, you might not walk away from a serious head injury.

I bet a head injury whilst cycling is far more likely than winning the national lottery. I also would like to bet that there are plenty of cyclists (even on this forum) who play the lottery every week but don't wear a helmet. Think about it.......

Question 1.... A cyclist slips on ice and bangs their head. Do you think they should wear a helmet to reduce the head injury?
Question 2..... A pedestrian slips on ice and bangs their head. Do you think they should wear a helmet to reduce the head injury?