Wear a Helmet when Riding a Bike
The most annoying thing in all the world is to have your mom barking at you when you head out the door to hop on your bike. Put a stop to that. Wear your helmet every time you embark on that bike, and soon she will find the topic so mundane that she won't even think twice about it any more. She will know you are being a good and responsible cyclist and will keep out of your business.
Contents
Steps
- Wear your helmet when you're on a bicycle. Make sure it's covering your forehead, crown and the back of your head the way it should be, and make sure it is strapped on so it doesn't slide around or fall off. Ask for help at a sports store if you don't know how to fit a bicycle helmet properly.
- Keep in mind the human skull is fairly tough, but it was definitely not designed for 20-mile-per-hour impacts with metal or concrete. The helmet is designed to break instead of your head breaking when you fall or crash into something. Would you rather risk a piece of foam and plastic, or your own irreplaceable brain?
- Snazz it up! If you hate your helmet because it looks uncool, feel free to decorate it. Put on some stickers, paint it, add glitter, or whatever you like. The brighter the better, because you want to be visible when you're going riding in the street, particularly after dark.
- If you suffer a crash with your helmet on, discard it and get a new one. Even if the helmet looks fine, it may have developed tiny inner cracks which will make it less useful as a protective device to that thick skull of yours. Don't be stubborn about this. Wear the helmet!
- Adjust the chin strap.
- Adjust the other straps.
Tips
- Everywhere there are bicycle riders, people have stories of accidents. A lot of them can tell you they'd be dead or severely brain-damaged if they hadn't worn their helmets, and some of them who didn't wear theirs are really regretting it now. Listen to them.
- In a car, you're riding in a cage of steel and fiberglass, but on a bike there is nothing between you and the road, or you and a car. You need all the protection you can get.
Warnings
- Make sure that your helmet is securely attached to your head. If you put on your helmet without closing the straps, it will be totally useless.
- Don't ever take your helmet off while you're on your bicycle. In some places this is against the law, but it is always a bad idea even where it isn't illegal. If you absolutely need to take it off, pull over to the side of the road before doing so.
