View from the Driver's Seat

[ellyssian]

It's a commonly known scientific fact that when you're running late, slower traffic will appear automagically from side streets, pulling out immediately in front of you.

While I fully agree with the common claim that, to put it eloquently, "Helmet Laws Suck," I do however, think it is entirely inappropriate, insane, and insulting to ride a Harley whilst wearing flip-flops.

Now, just for the record, my personal choice would be to wear a helmet, but that's just me - I don't think it should be a law, anymore than something else that has little to no effect on society at large, such as wearing a seatbelt, choosing what to do with your own reproductive organs or their issue, marrying whoever you might want regardless of their gender, or forcing you to eat at Burger King when you really like McDonalds. Just think about how silly it would be to make everyone eat superior gourmet food, when they'd rather skimp and eat garbage at Mickey D's. Decisions like that belong in the hands of those who have to deal with the heart burn. But flip-flops on a Harley - that's just wrong.

On the serious side of the record - the B-serious side, of course - I've heard plenty of stories where injuries in a motorcycle accident were not fatal because of a helmet - but the damage was so severe, that many feel those folks would be in a better place if they weren't reduced to living pieces of meat with the stuff inside the helmet changed into guacamole. That's why at least some folks choose not to wear a helmet - chances are, at the speeds they'd be utilizing the safety features, they'd be in terrible shape. Some would rather end it quickly and that should be their choice.

During my brother's accident almost two years ago, no head injuries were involved, so the helmet he wasn't wearing didn't enter the equation. However, his legs, arms, and feet would have been in much worse shape if he had not been wearing a leather jacket, jeans, and heavy boots. He's been known to change from shorts and t-shirt into heavier clothes just to ride - even in the heat of summer.

I still can not believe the idiot in front of me - pulled out slowly, naturally - was wearing shorts and flip flops.

Comments

[wyvernfriend.livejournal.com]

grutok won't let me on the bike without trousers, books or heavy shoes, jacket and helmet (Ireland has helmet laws) and doesn't get on his without them either. It boggles my mind when I see people with shorts and sleeveless shirts on bikes. The idea of what that would do to you if you came off is horrific. I have sweated buckets because of it but I'd prefer to sweat rather than get injured.

[crowyhead.livejournal.com]

Sometimes around here I see guys on the freeway going in excess of 90 mph in shorts and t-shirts. It makes me break out into a cold sweat every time. Not that a helmet and leathers are probably going to help you TOO much if you're going 100 mph, but still..

[wyvernfriend.livejournal.com]

every little helps, you'd kinda like to give yourself every help to survive, not that if you come off at 100 you're going to have a good survival prognosis but you'd like to think you'd give yourself a good chance. I'd prefer that my skin doesn't resemble mince meat.

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

Those guys on the sports bikes... yikes! They think they're invincible.

Did you catch the news when that guy took out the family of 5 in the minivan - at those speeds, those sports bikes are essentially missiles.

Ooops

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

Family of 4. 5 including the guy on the bike.

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

Exactly.

I've slid down a road at 30 miles an hour, and I can say, if I'd had a leather jacket on and jeans I would have been injury free.

Of course, that was a bicycle, so if I had all that on that hot summer morning, I wouldn't be able to go 30 MPH. I probably wouldn't have even made it the first five miles, let alone the 10-20 miles before my bike decided to take a sharp left onto the railroad tracks without asking my permission first.

[kk1raven.livejournal.com]

I believe in letting people decide what risks they want to take for themselves. The governement's job is not to protect people from themselves. I also believe that the rest of us should not have to pay the price for their risky behavior. My solution to combining those two things is that people who want to not wear appropriate protective gear should have to buy special insurance coverage for their risky behavor. Don't want to wear a seatbelt? Buy car insurance with "no seatbelt" coverage. Don't want to wear a helmet on your motorcycle, by "no helmet" coverage. Yes, if the act is truly dangerous your premiums will be high. That's your choice though. Don't want the pricy insurance? Then don't take risks that might leave the rest of us paying for your care when you get mangled or to raise your children when you die.

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

That would work only if they had a clause in the less expensive, less risky insurance that indicated if you were found to have gone without protection and got into an accident you would not be covered.

[kk1raven.livejournal.com]

Definitely. My plan actually goes further than that. It calls for people who don't have proper coverage and do stupid risky things anyway to be treated by the law as not having the required insurance coverage.

Now if only I had the power to put my plan into effect.

[rowancat.livejournal.com]

Flip Flops?!? Those sometimes twist right off your feet when just walking on the wrong surface.
Since bike riders often use their feet when stopping, etc...
that's just asking for a very painful way to wind up with
bloody stumps for feet and much worse. They may as well just ride barefoot.

[ellyssian.livejournal.com]

Probably safer to ride barefoot! They can also get caught and tangled in things. Or melt from a hot engine/exhaust.

[nhmetalchick.livejournal.com]

Well I'm guilty of a few of those, I don't wear a helmet, I wear tank tops and short sleeves. The shorts however, only took one burn on my leg from the pipe to change that, and I do wear sneakers not boots. As for the ins comment, why not toss is "do you plan on using your cellphone, eating or drinking while driving, yelling at your kids?" The list can go on and on...