I have been riding a motorcycle since 1966. The first time a rock went by my head at 60 miles from the back of a dump truck going the other direction made up my mind. I bought a helmet and have worn one ever since.

Myself and anyone that rides with me will wear a helmet. What other people do and why I can't control and I don't lose any sleep at night over it.

Lee

Live To Ride
Ride To Live

 

Well, I guess I got my answer... most either do or don't but still support everyone else's decisions. Most.

In response to some, yeah, I like beer and bikes, and fully exepcted one or the other to have killed me long before I reached 50, but still hanging in there. My biggest concern would be taking someone else out with me when I go, and a helmet ain't gonna change that much...

Someone suggested I wear my dirt bike helmet on the street and in response, I did try that once since the dirt bike helmet was so comfortable, but without a faceshield, the wind tends to try and rip it off my head at any sort of road speed. Even behind the batwing. Not sure having my head pointed straight up at the sky was any safer than going without a helmet...

Thanks for all the replies... Learned a lot.

 

I think it comes down to the fact that it's all about choice. Having seen massive head trauma first-hand on several occasions - I'll always wear one...but that's just me.

JB

 

Here in Tn., It's mandatory, but given the choice, I would go "lidless" and as far as loud pipes, I got mine...(V&H Longshots sans baffles with torque cones)

 

Man, after reading a lot of these responses and hearing that Primo when down and seeing the damage to his helmet, I’m almost convinced to use one. I used to use a full face religiously for years when I had my Ninja, and felt odd when I didn’t have it on. I went down once at about 80 and there was a little scuffing on my bucket, but I can’t say that it saved my life. I used to ride hard and new that I would go down sooner or later.

The thing that I hated about the full face was the amount of sound that it blocked from surrounding traffic. Without a helmet, and especially with loud pipes, I can actually hear the sound reflect off other vehicles or objects around me so it makes me more aware of what’s around me. As a result, I picked up a DOT half helmet but I have only used it a couple of times because of the excessive wind noise and my head bobbing around from the turbulence.

I don’t know the statistics for sure, but I imagine that of all the millions of riders our there and the thousands of accidents that occur that only a small percentage can actually say that they survived as a result of the use of a helmet.

I enjoy and appreciate the ride so much more without the lid. Maybe one day I will regret it. But for now, I ride without…

 

I always wear a helmet and personally believe everyone should...having said that, i also believe that it should be your choice to wear or not wear a helmet. I have worked for a large county EMS system for 17 years now and have been on many scenes where the only major injury was head trauma due to not wearing a helmet.

Cool Dog, I have to respectfully disagree with your statement about accidents. I have personally seen many times the difference between wearing and not wearing a helmet. Its your right to not wear a helmet....but dont fool yourself into thinking that they dont make a difference.

 

Well..... better my helmet than my face and head.

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Lobbyists and advocacy groups...the stronger ones always win.

 

We have a great anti-helmet movement in Minnesota that keeps the dogs at bay. A lot of good charity and social work done by bikers. Oddly enough we are a liberal state and we still have the option of not wearing a seat belt. Just went to a .08 from a .10 under duress from the feds. May the force be with us to keep the hand-wringers from ruining our ability to choose.[sm=patriot.gif]

 

I don't leave the garage without a helmet. Even if Kalifornia didn't have a helmet law, I'd still wear one. Riding without one is just plain dumb, IMHO. To each his own I say, you should have the freedom to make that choice for yourself, not the government. I wear a DOT German helmet, but am thinking about switching to a nice carbon fiber skid lid from daytona helmets. I am also toying with the idea of going to a 3/4 helmet or a full face helmet. I have too much to live for, too much to protect in my head.

I think everyone should wear a helmet, but that is up to you to decide.