ZooTech wrote:
You see...this is the kinda stuff I'm talking about. I saw the picture of the bike (nice, BTW!) and the "lack" of gear never even occurred to me, especially since he's actually way more protected than I was on the ride to and from work today. A
I think you're making this argument in the wrong forum Zootech, this one is called Safety, Security, and Rider tips.
If you don't like what you read here, there are lots of other forums on the site, I've noticed a lot of really funny stuff going on in the New Riders forum... and there's a couple of really sweet pics in theretoo, Verm makes some funny threads, and he takes some really good pictures. I personally spend a LOT of time in the blog section because I like reading about other people's rides might be worth checking it out.
I'll admit that some people don't always post their scary stuff in the right forums, but that's no reason to make a fight out of it.
ZooTech wrote:Well, what's your view on it? Would you be "afraid" to ride to work tomorrow wearing only a pair of Sketchers, some jeans, a polo shirt, and sunglasses? There's an obvious fear of going down that is common among many here, and even a seemingly unconscious social responsibility to point out when others aren't "properly" equipped.
And yes I would... it's like -10 out and there's a foot of snow on the ground! LoL. In all seriousness though, I don't like the idea of riding without a helmet (even if I was sure I wasn't going to get in an accident). I have to wear regular glasses, so I couldn't wear your cool shades that semi seal around the eyes, so I'd be 1/2 blind.
There's also a lot of gravel on the roads around here all the time, so getting hit in the head with little rocks is a very common occurance, not to mention the bugs. I've caught a butterfly in the throat doing 70kmh and GOD DAMN THAT HURT! Poor little thing was still alive too.
To me the argument comes down to this, you're welcome to not wear your helmet, but the way you present it sometimes makes new riders think that a helmet won't protect them, or that they don't need one. Do you wear your seatbelt? Would you tell someone else not too?
as for riding scared, no, I fully enjoy that the sport is dangerous, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't minimize the risks, I mean you see football players wear all that padding, you see hockey players wearing helmets. And racers all wear full body leathers and full face helmets. LoL, even sky divers wear helmets, though from that height I cannot imagine why, you're going to splat regardless, "I just fell 50000 feet and landed on my head... but I was wearing my helmet so I lived." Anyways this is WAY off topic now, and I'm sad I got in on this thread this late.
When riding in a group I try to give the newbs and REALLY old guys a wide bearth. Riding with a grop can definately improve the new guys skills, but the experienced guys need to ease up a bit, or make it clear that he not push to hard to keep up with them. Basically you just need to be more careful with a new guy around. Make allowances for his lack of skillz. Of course I'm generalizing from a single example here, but everyone does that. At least I do.
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