From The Mind of Merc - Helmets

Sometimes I find my mind wandering over various eclectic topics and occasionally I am inspired to write some of them down. Today I was thinking about cycle helmets. To my mind, there is no reason why someone wouldn’t wear a cycle helmet.

The only excuses I’ve ever heard run as follows:

-    It’ll mess up my hair 

      – And an accident will mess up your head

-    It’s inconvenient 

      – Not as inconvenient as a brain injury

-    It’s uncomfortable 

      – Find one that isn’t (Also, if it’s uncomfortable, that could well mean it doesn’t fit properly)

-    It’s not a legal requirement 

      – Neither were seatbelts in cars but you wouldn’t dream of travelling without one of those nowadays

-    If it were it would mean less people would cycle 

      – It would also mean less people would die

-    It’s not cool 

      – Neither’s a coma

-    I can’t afford one 

      – Can you afford the medical and rehabilitation bills for a brain injury?

-    It’ll never happen to me 

      – Tell that to the people who thought the same (oh wait, you can’t)

They were not invented as an inconvenience or time waster – they were invented as a life saver and they do exactly what they’re supposed to do.

According to statistics, cycle helmets reduce the risk of serious head injury by up to 88%. What this effectively means is that in an accident, if you’re wearing a helmet, you have an 88% less chance of dying.

In case you hadn’t noticed – a car is a lot harder than you or your bike. In a fight between you and a car – you will come off worst. Why would you run the risk of permanent debilitating injury and the implications that can have for you and your family for the sake of wearing a small domed-shaped object on your head?

For further examples of why helmets are so important, visit this page: https://www.buzzfeed.com/daves4/helmets?utm_term=.kv8ANkVQe#.norK8aNXE

Still think they’re a waste of time, money, effort?