bike helmet

If a car hits a bike or a bike hits a car, it's going to be bad for the bike.

If the bike rider has 250 dollars in injury with a helmet or 50,000 dollars without a helmet, then the people paying the bill want to say something about it.

You and I are amoung those who pay the bill by paying our insurance and our taxes.

For my money, I want more money spent on bike lanes that are safe and car-free.

I ride to work - 12 mile round trip - and I enjoy it. I wear a helmet and a bright vest and I may or may not look fashionable to some people, but I feel safer and I think that I am.

I also drive a car and when I pass the bike park at 9th and West Avenue, I wonder about how many injuries have been caused by these mounds of dirt. Do I have any responsibility as a citizen of Austin for the maintenance and repair of these mounds? Am I also liable for damages to skulls? If one of the "Goth" bikers dressed all in black on a 20" bike swerves in front of me because he has lost his balance from shooting the finger at some enemy, I can only think that he has a place in the section of the cemetery marked "RIP, but I had the right-of-way!"

The "perceived" safety of a bike helmet is perceived because the car drivers "perceive" safety and are calmer. They may be belligerent assholes, but remember, "it's going to be bad for the bike."