Convincing young guys to wear helmets/protection?

**AlpinePossum** · 21st November 2009, 20:25

So there are some young guys in the area. 15/16/.. somewhere around here.

I suspect they have a somewhat, ahh, shall we say, fast and loose attitude to such things as learner's license restrictions etc.

That doesn't bug me too much.

It's the "don't need Helmets or protection I'm young and bullet proof and an amazingly fricking skilled rider that won't crash" attitude that worries me.

Yeah mate, I believe you. You might just be the best rider since that Rossi fellow. Just a pity about all the damn blind drunk idiots in the tin cans. You had better make sure you have a good safety margin for when those bastards do something amazingly impossibly STUPID.

As I said to them, odds on you won't die in a crash... you'll just be disabled for the rest of your life.

Sigh! Basically nice young lads... really don't want to see them brain injured.

**AllanB** · 21st November 2009, 20:45

Next time you see one of them, stop and have a chat to him. Express your concern about his lack of helmet. If he responds in a negative manner promptly punch him in the guts, then grab him by the scruff of his neck and throw him forwards onto the ground head first with some force.

Now clearly state to him that his head would not hurt if he had been wearing a helmet ........

Sometimes actions are better than words.

**Ladydragon** · 21st November 2009, 20:56

I've seen a few people recently in shorts,t shirt and sand shoes riding a motor bike just last Thursday a person rode past me with a learners plate on wearing those clothes but he had the sense to wear a helmet.You would think if he brought a helmet for protection he would buy some gear too.

**AllanB** · 21st November 2009, 21:03

Originally Posted by Ladydragon

I've seen a few people recently in shorts,t shirt and sand shoes riding a motor bike just last Thursday a person rode past me with a learners plate on wearing those clothes but he had the sense to wear a helmet.You would think if he brought a helmet for protection he would buy some gear too.

NAH - he's just trying to get his fair share of the ACC money back he's been paying in rego.

**McJim** · 21st November 2009, 21:05

You can tell people but you can't be nanny for them. If they don't listen to you then they'll have to deal with Darwin's theory.

It won't be your fault.

**Motoracer** · 21st November 2009, 21:14

The worlds full of em! These guys make even me cringe... At least in the USA, most wear helmets on highways!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7aJF...eature=related

**McJim** · 21st November 2009, 21:24

Originally Posted by Motoracer

The worlds full of em! These guys make even me cringe... At least in the USA, most wear helmets on highways!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7aJF...eature=related

I suppose if you grow up being blown to bits then being spread across a motorway doesn't hold the same amount of fear eh?

**avgas** · 21st November 2009, 21:34

Make it cool.
Point out when the stig or ghostrider takes off their helmet. Point out they must really suck if they don't even need one.
Its how i picked up the seatbelt thing. Had a race driver get us to do a few laps with him and he pointed out they we sucked so much that the seatbelt was not required. Since we were all 'the man' if we were real drivers we should require seatbelt all the time.

**Toaster** · 21st November 2009, 21:36

Originally Posted by AlpinePossum

So there are some young guys in the area. 15/16/.. somewhere around here.

I suspect they have a somewhat, ahh, shall we say, fast and loose attitude to such things as learner's license restrictions etc.

That doesn't bug me too much.

It's the "don't need Helmets or protection I'm young and bullet proof and an amazingly fricking skilled rider that won't crash" attitude that worries me.

Yeah mate, I believe you. You might just be the best rider since that Rossi fellow. Just a pity about all the damn blind drunk idiots in the tin cans. You had better make sure you have a good safety margin for when those bastards do something amazingly impossibly STUPID.

As I said to them, odds on you won't die in a crash... you'll just be disabled for the rest of your life.

Sigh! Basically nice young lads... really don't want to see them brain injured.

You can tell them this:

1 June last year I was riding safely in a cruiser group ride. Came around a corner at a speed well below the speed limit of 100kmh to find a sheep weaving in my lane, I tried to emergency break, then swerve and came off. I was in FULL protective gear that saved my life.

Despite that I still had many injuries that I may never fully recover from and are very painful. The head injury sustained changed my life forever. Since then I have pretty much lost everything and life became a living nightmare. Some days I wish I had died that day.

But I have a chance at life again.

They can choose to give themselves a better chance too. Their choice, but we all pay. One way or another.

**Toaster** · 21st November 2009, 21:40

Originally Posted by Motoracer

The worlds full of em! These guys make even me cringe... At least in the USA, most wear helmets on highways!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P7aJF...eature=related

Great entertainment to watch, but geez, imagine it all going wrong... ouch! More chance of seeing the inside of a coffin than a hospital room.

**AllanB** · 21st November 2009, 21:55

Originally Posted by Toaster

Came around a corner at a speed well below the speed limit of 100kmh to find a sheep weaving in my lane.

Bloody genetic engineering - now the sheep are making the carpets directly from their own backs ...........

**Toaster** · 21st November 2009, 22:03

Originally Posted by AllanB

Bloody genetic engineering - now the sheep are making the carpets directly from their own backs ...........

You never know what's around the corner......

**PrincessBandit** · 22nd November 2009, 06:56

Originally Posted by Ladydragon

I've seen a few people recently in shorts,t shirt and sand shoes riding a motor bike just last Thursday a person rode past me with a learners plate on wearing those clothes but he had the sense to wear a helmet.You would think if he brought a helmet for protection he would buy some gear too.

I wonder how many of them think that low speed accidents "don't hurt very much"? If they're on an L, chances are they're not riding all that fast (she said, optimistically) but even "slower" crashes can have a much higher cost than they think.

It really is Russian roulette they are playing. You can only but tell them, maybe suggest they view the gross ride2die.com site and view the human roadkill consequences. Even then they'll probably think it would never happen to them. Some people just have to learn the hard way.

For those of us who have crashed wearing full riding protection and survived I'm sure we all credit our gear with either saving our lives or minimising our injuries.

**Flynn** · 22nd November 2009, 07:36

AMAZING, Friday 20th, one of the young guys, like the ones spoken about in the first post was playing our tagorama, decided to come round to my place to show he the tag on his rgv150 and binned right out side my house!!

One of those young youg who we've been on at to get decent gear!! He has a shark helmet, shift leather jacket, gloves, but no pants or boots.

I will say at this point that as he came off his pants and undies went to his ankles as soon as he bit the dust, leaving his legs, buttocks, and back with road rash. He would have been travling at 30-40 km, went to hospital with concussion for the night, full bag of morphine for his trouble. Got out the following day feeling ery sorry for him self.

My sincere suggestion after seeing the after effects of what the road does to skin first hand, is your a fool if you don't.

When I first started riding July 2008 I spent 1500 bucks on gear, just middle of the raod stuff, but worth every cent, not that I've tested it yet and I don't intend to.

**CookMySock** · 22nd November 2009, 07:56

Tell them some horrific stories about tears in their mums eyes, mum wiping their bum for the rest of their lives etc.

If it doesn't work, just move on and save your influence for the people you love. You can't fix the world, and if you try, it will just drag you down with it.

Steve