[madcap69]

I personally don't mind wearing full leathers. They are really comfy, not to mention confidence inspiring. I've had guys I ride with total their bikes washing out in a corner, hitting the pavement at 80mph. They walked out of the hospital the same day because they were wearing leathers. I saw way too many of my dad's buddies get all jacked up cause they weren't wearing proper gear. Here's a link to an interesting story...

http://www.sj-r.com/sections/news/stories/N09162002,a.asp

I was especially interested in the guy from ABATE and what he had to say. Personally, I thought the guy sounded like an idiot. Helmets don't restrict anybodies vision (Unless you have 180 degrees of peripheral vision)

It's sad that with all the legitimate issues facing motorcyclists ABATE is best known for fighting helmet laws. Consequently, the cage driving public thinks they're idiots.

 

[Muthuh]

I personally don't mind wearing full leathers. They are really comfy, not to mention confidence inspiring.

Hmmmm, good point - I realized the other day how comfortable my OL's silk panties are, too... man you should have seen how inspiring they were! LOL

Hey - taking the stand that this is a personal decision, by default I gotta respect anybody else's decision, too.... a corner at 80mph? The boy needs a spanking, not a helmet!

 

[ziggyhd1]

Hey Mutha, gotta agree with you on the lid thing. Me and the OL only wear the smallest of "legal"(well it does have a dot sticker) pots. We both have halfs that we wore once, to take the MSF course(which I failed) oh well can't win em all. If I die ridin' then at least I've died happy. Ive had my share of slide and falls and run off the roads and lived to tell. I only wear leathers if it's too cold for jeans & T-shirt. But I/we always wear boots and jeans. I always love seeing the crotch riders in their shorts and tennies, but with a $400 helmet-that way when they're in the hospital with all the road rash they can still enjoy it!

 

[Muthuh]

I've been to the corner store in shorts and sandals... a risk I accept. I don't laugh or snear at anybody who wears helmets or full leathers on a hot day or any other... their choice...my choice... where's the beer?

 

[SVROD]

Basically my view is that it should be up to each and everyone to decide whether they use a helmet or not. Personally I always go with one on primarily due to avoid the wind in my big flapping ears when cruising at 130 km/h.

But the problem with personal freedom to choose helmet or not comes when taking into account the financial consequences that impacts not only the individual decision maker but all other's that have to help finance inevitably higher medical expenses for the ones crashing head-to-tree/pavement etc without helmet - either via taxes in a social welfare system or via higher insurance premiums in a privately financed system.

If one could be fully personally financially responsible for taking on higher risk, I would fully agree with Muthuh, but the insurance guys would not allow it.

 

[madcap69]

Hmmmm, good point - I realized the other day how comfortable my OL's silk panties are, too... man you should have seen how inspiring they were! LOL

Hey - taking the stand that this is a personal decision, by default I gotta respect anybody else's decision, too.... a corner at 80mph? The boy needs a spanking, not a helmet!

That's funny!

Evan had a knee dragging the pavement on his Yamaha R-1 when he slid out in that corner. He was following a buddy on his ZX-9 and I was behind him. We don't know why the bike lost traction there as I ran right over the same spot and didn't have a problem. I think his compression dampening was set too stiff.

Most of the guys I ride with have sportbikes as their primary bikes. Some of them have cruisers too, and one guy who rides a Hayabusa most of the time (200+mph machine) owns 27 bikes at last count. He collects all sorts of bikes.

I would feel a bit over dressed wearing leathers on a vintage style cruiser, but a full face is a must for me.

 

[Muthuh]

The insurance guys in Florida seems to have come to grips with it - in 2000 their helmet law permits riders with 'adequate' coverage to dump the helmet. Many old-time bikers still have to wear the thing because they don't have coverage. I go along with that - personal responsibility for your actions. If my brains splattered all over the Blue Ridge Parkway isn't gonna cost you anything, then leave me be. Besides, like I said in another thread, 53% of MC fatalities wore helmets. (NHTSA report page 59 of the pdf, 56 of the report - interesting reading for all of us) http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/Rpts/2001/809-271.pdf

I like my odds better, but I'm rather odd in any case...

 

[Sidewalk]

My wife pointed out an observation that I believe sounds true. The people who usually don't wear (or want to wear) a helmet are those who are on the cruisers. The main reason for them to go down are the cagers.

The ones who insist on the full face are those who ride hard. I am an example. I love getting my pegs to drag. These people have to contend with higher speed, in tougher situations (and with thier ego), pushing the limits of traction. They now have to contend with these limits, and the cagers.

So, IMO, it isn't the helmet that kills, it is the riding style.

My only beef with not having helemt laws are with SVROD. If I have to pay for someone elses mistakes, then I want a law. If it is not going to touch my pocket, then it is up to you.

Of course, insurance premiums go up with those higher risk riders on the crotch rockets. My bike isn't exactly cheap because of that engine it has. Kinda sucks since a cheaper 750 is about equal in power...

 

[streetrod]

53% of MC fatalities wore helmets. (NHTSA report page 59 of the pdf, 56 of the report - interesting reading for all of us) http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/Rpts/2001/809-271.pdf

Did the report say what percent of total riders wear helmets (I'm too lazy to read it)? For example.......if 90% of riders wear helmets and 10% didn't, 53% total fatalities of people wearing helmets would lend high credibility to the safety of wearing a helmet (the 10% that didn't still represent almost half the people killed). If 10% of people wore helmets and more than half of the people that died were wearing helmets, it would suggest just the opposite.

 

[Muthuh]

Damn, you're good....course only the more intelligent people live in Wisconsin anyway so it makes sense.... that was my only argument, and you saw right through it...... I'm still looking for the overall percentage of riders who choose to ride lidless.

From my perspective in a lid-law state, all of us do...when I am in a state that has no law, I'd say no more than 20% wear them - just an observation mind you.... so overall, I dunno - I would screw up my face and disagree with 10% though...my guess would be overall more like maybe 30%...but you're right - do ya know what a kewpi doll is? Go ahead and take one!

 

[Sidewalk]

That is what I get for making the assumption that number for number, 53% were wearing helmets.

I assumed that if only 90% wore helmets, then the math would be done accordingly to compare the two numbers.

Of course, statistics are made typically to prove a point. You can always tweak them in some way to prove your point. So the question is, are they trying to prove that helmet laws are not a good thing?

 

[streetrod]

[
Of course, statistics are made typically to prove a point. You can always tweak them in some way to prove your point. [/B]

.........or, if you're part of the liberal media we have in this country, you can just "make up" statistics to support your position.............

 

[Sidewalk]

.........or, if you're part of the liberal media we have in this country, you can just "make up" statistics to support your position.............

69% of all statistics are made up on the spot. 32% of the population know that

 

[blackwhisper]

I happen to live in a lidless state, and i would bet 10% is a fair figure. Much lower for Harley riders, I know several riders here that don't even own a helmet. Most Harleys riders here never wear a helmet, except when they all break out the novelty helmets for rides into NC.Only time I saw helmets on Harley riders was at MSF.The sport bikes all have them tied to the back end of the bike, to thow them off. Really the only time a I see helmets are groups of sportbikes, in full gear headed for the twistys.