Many people think it’s no big
deal it they don’t wear a helmet while riding a bike. They scoff at the idea
that helmets are a needed head protection, and steadfastly refuse to wear them.
One Twitter follower sent me this message on the helmet issue: “ffs, you don’t
need a helmet if you’re riding at children’s speeds or pootling to the shop.”
Well, here’s the thing,
Shoestring Cycling, if you figure children’s speeds are too slow and safe to
warrant wearing a helmet, I argue that even slow pace crashes can still be pretty
violent smackdowns. A slow speed crash tends to stop the bike in its tracks,
and gravity and momentum suddenly pile-drive the rider straight down to the
roadway or trail. That’s been my experience over the years. And having a helmet
on in any crash sure doesn’t hurt to cut the chances of a brain injury.
Most of my slow falls have
been on a mountain bike and some have roughed me up plenty. I once was climbing
a steep trail on my mountain bike, creeping along, when a rider coming downhill
the other way didn’t give me enough clearance and our handlebars clipped.
Because I was going so slowly, it stopped my bike, and it tipped over. I went
down on top of it, unable to unclip in time to break my fall. I fell on top of
the sticking up end of the handlebars, right over my heart, with my full
weight. It felt like someone popped me in the chest with a pole vaulter’s pole.
I rolled off it and sat on the ground as the rider asked if I was OK. Stunned from the sharp blow, I
couldn’t even speak. I remember thinking how blunt force trauma over the heart
can send you into cardiac arrest, so I concentrated on staying as calm as I
could. I had a helmet on, and I didn’t hit my head, but I still got hurt. I
eventually got it together enough to get up and ride on.
Another time I climbed
a technical steep dirt path when the front tire hit a rock, stopped and tipped
me over on the steep downhill side of the trail. Again, I was unable to kick out
of the pedals in time to break my fall and, still attached to the bike, landed
on my back over a square piece of granite about the size of a lunch box. Didn’t
hit my head there, but man, that fall was painful. My back was out of whack for
several days.
So even if you’re riding
slowly, and are sure your ride could never be in danger of a crash, don’t be so
sure. Something can suddenly get in your path like a car, a rock or a squirrel,
a loose running kid, a dog. If you’re forced to make an evasive move to
avoid a collision, or you do a panic brake, the bike may go down and you with
it. These scenarios happen all the time.
On my road bike, I’ve been
hurt on quick slap-down crashes from wet tires slipping out from under the bike
on a deep lean curve, and from a gopher running under my front wheel on a
descending curve. There was no helmet hit on either crash, but plenty of
forearm road rash. Still, glad the helmet was on because you never know what
part of you is going to collide with something unforgiving like pavement, a
rock, or a sidewalk.
I have a friend who is an
expert bike rider who was out for a seemingly harmless spin and accidentally got
his tire caught in a railroad track groove embedded into the road. The groove
grabbed and suddenly locked his front wheel to a stop. He fell hard from his
forward momentum, hit his head on the pavement, wrecked his shoulder, and fractured
an arm. He limped home, his one hand unable to squeeze the brake. His wife
drove him to the emergency room and he later needed shoulder surgery. He’s
always been a big believer in riding with a helmet, especially parents out with
their kids. And his crash confirmed his pro-helmet stance.
Even though his crash messed
him up, and his head took a hit, his head wasn’t injured. But his helmet was
scraped and cracked from the fall. He’s sure the helmet saved him from a brain
injury that could have put him and his family in a long-term world of hurt. He has
two sons and is the family’s main breadwinner.
Note to self: Don’t move furniture
My lower back tightened up
last weekend while moving furniture, and it kept me off the bike for a few
days. After doing stretches, core work, and sitting through a lot of chair massages, I eventually
went out on the bike with a much more relaxed back. Still, I had some sciatic nerve pain
on my inside left quad. I just pedaled an easy pace for most of the ride,
didn’t feel much nerve pain in the leg. When I got home, I tested the leg and
the pain was almost gone. So now all that’s left to do is ride more
to gain back leg strength. But dagnabbit, all that gnarly pain and back/leg
rehabbing could have been avoided. Just needed to keep my back straight and use my
legs while moving furniture. But for me, that’s easier said than done. I forget, then ow-ow-ow, oh that was stupid. But on the good side, I think I
now have a great excuse to avoid moving furniture in the future!
Accepted cycling dos and don’ts
I recently read a couple
things out there listing in great detail what are considered the proper rules
of behavior for cyclists. Some struck me as ridiculous: Never attach a bicycle
pump to your bike, or never have a saddlebag on your bike, everything you need
should fit into the back pockets of your jersey. Shave your legs. There were many more, ad
nauseum, but I lost interest. In my book the only rules that usually make sense
are those meant to help avoid injury. But too many rules for anything easily
become mock-worthy, because, yes, there are plenty of questionable rules that
don’t really need to be followed. Hey, if they don’t make any sense to an
independent thinking person, and not following them doesn’t hurt anybody else,
why should anybody be compelled to follow them?
Here are my two rules about
cycling: Ride safely, and have fun. And don’t worry about being scorned if you
ride with hairy legs and heaven forbid, attach a tire pump to your bike!
Til next time, remember to
strap on a helmet every time you get on the bike. Then keep the rubber side
down, ride safely and have a blast.
-- Mark Eric Larson
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