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Helmet use remains controversial at the Sturgis rally
The huge motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota, hasn't officially begun yet and safety -- or the lack of it -- is already making national headlines.
Thursday's high profile death of motorcycle dealership entrepreneur Bruce Rossmeyer in a Wyoming crash has news services buzzing. Rossmeyer, owner of 15 Harley-Davidson dealerships, was on his way to Sturgis with several other riders when he passed a slow-moving truck. The truck, which was signaling a turn, swung left as Rossmeyer began his pass. It was reported by local authorities that Rossmeyer was not wearing a helmet, although it is not known if that was a factor in the fatality.
Saturday, in a less-noted but equally tragic crash, a 36 year-old Iowa man died on Interstate 90 near Mt. Vernon, South Dakota, when he rear-ended a camper. The rider was thrown from his bike and suffered fatal head injuries which could have been avoided if he were wearing a helmet, according to the South Dakota State Patrol. Alcohol and speed were not factors in the crash.
According to the Chicago Tribune, roughly a third of all motorcycle crashes for the entire year in Meade, Lawrence, Pennington and Custer counties -- the area that hosts the rally -- happen during the two weeks surrounding the event.
Not surprising, because statistics show that Baby Boomers have the highest risk of a serious motorcycle crash, and they also make up a disproportionate share of Harley-Davidson owners -- hundreds of thousands of whom roll into Sturgis the same chaotic week.
Safety groups in South Dakota have mounted campaigns to encourage helmet use with signs, billboards, leaflets, television and radio commercials, stretching across South Dakota and beyond.
Will they work? History says no. Optimism says yes.
Comments
I don't think it will work, because the guys who CHOOSE to not wear helmets think that they don't need to wear helmets. They think motorcycle safety is all about the rider, and that being a good rider will keep you from going down. Of course that is wrong, but most circles of riders won't figure that out til one of their friends die, if they even figure it out at all.
One time a guy actually said to me that not wearing his helmet saved him because if he had been wearing his helmet it would have gotten stuck inside the car he hit had he would have lost his head.
I'm in CA. A helmet state. Many "Novelty helmets" here. Have a neighbor who went down with one.It splintered into pieces and he ended up with skull fractures. Yet when asked about his "Toy helmet" he states, "If I'da had my full face on, Id'a broke my neck!"
Some folks will never learn ... this lifetime.
Russell: Being a good rider *will* help improve your odds of not going down. And, ultimately, *living* is about playing the odds.
How much risk is "acceptable" is an important topic for us to honestly engage as riders. Just getting on a bike is risky. Who's to say how much additional risk is "too much?"
I, personally, strongly advocate helmet use. But, I also recognize that other riders are far less risk-adverse, and are willing to accept increased risk in exchange for the freedom of riding without a helmet.
People die all the time. It's sad and unfortunate when riders die; especially in cases where a helmet might have saved their life. But, if they fully understood the risk they were taking, and made a conscious choice to accept that risk, who are we to say that they were wrong to make that choice?
On the other hand, as suggested by BJ's comment, ignorance and denial of the risks associated with our choices are something we should all work strenuously to eliminate.
I live everyday with this debate. My 10 year old daughter died when I laid my motorcycle down. Neither of us had helmets on but God took her, not me. She had multiple injuries but the end result on that death certificate reads "head trauma". We were in a rural area{local, home area roads}...my heartache is not having her beside me anymore, my battle is knowing it's my fault she didn't have a helmet on(no helmet law state), I could have made her wear one... An EMT was travelling with us and my daughter began getting help immediately, but immediately wasn't enough. She was an organ donor, through this process we know her internal organs were of no use due to the multiple injuries she had received, the head trauma "alone" did not cause her death, the helmet might have kept her in a hospital bed with no life inside her...helmet or no helmet, I got 2 hell & back everyday in my own mind tring to bring that day back with a different outcome. We rode, We risked it, We lost Brooke.
russell the statement from the guy about getting his head stuck is breathtakingly stupid. natural selection?
I can see both sides of this arguement I am a safety professional by trade and understand all the data that has been compiled to support the wearing of a helmet. On the other hand I am a motorcycle enthusist who understands all the arguments for not wearing on also. The truth is that each person informed should make their own choice on this issue and suffer or enjoy the fruits of that choice.
Folks need to realize that motorcycle safety is being prepared for what the other guy will do to you one day. I had a moron throw a lit cigarette into my path. That was obviously not fatal but I had prepared by practicing just such a stupid act by another. I got on my footpegs and rode until the flames died down.
In 1996 a small group of us were on our way to Sturgis when one of our group went down. She was wearing a DOT/Snell approved helmet, not a novelty helmet and still died as a result of the accident. No alcohol, no other extenuating factors. It happened. Helmets might just give one a false sense of security or non-riders something to blame all motorcycle related deaths on. I feel extremely sorry for the lady who lost her daughter. There are no words to define such a loss.
I hated to hear about the accidents, I ride horses and sometimes wear a helmet. Any sport you do has its risks. Just like I heard they want to stop horse carriage rides in New York due to all the accidents or make motorcyle riders wear helmets. Well we don't wear helmets in our cars and still people die. There will be risks with everything. Everytime you walk our your door you are at risk. If people keep wanting to stop every sport, we might all just stay locked up in our house and never do anything, even that has risks if a burglar breaks in. So Please everyone lets just stop nit picking every little thing, and just enjoy life like we did 20 years. Accidents happened back then on motorcyles, in cars, horses like today, and we still are here!
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