It's easy to forget that cars and pedestrians are not the only moving things on the road that we need to be on the lookout... Hope James gets better soon…

Link to Story (http://www.tahlequahdailypress.com/local/local_story_293100522.html)
Link to Map (http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Tahlequah+City&sll=35.918528,-94.953117&sspn=0.041845,0.073299&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Tahlequah,+Cherokee,+Oklahoma&t=h&z=13)

Anyone wants to share any similar lessons learned?

Vendetta

Not wearing a helmet...Outstanding

I fear the worst, pray for the best.
I know exactly what this family is going to face in the coming days.
When will we have to quit asking; Why no helmet?

Helmets save lives and protect us from being vegetable soup.

Riding a Kawasaki, was it a Versys? OK has no helmet law-:thumbdown:

He knew the risk. That is the life we CHOSE.

Had a close call with a bunch of polo ponies on the way to work one day last week. Guess they broke down the fence and decided to go for a stroll. This was on highway 169, between tulsa and owasso, about 5 am. Wrecked three or four cages but, luckily, no bikers, including me.

Three words.

Full Face Helmet.

:guilty:no helmet..prayers for is quick recovery.

safety equation : motorcycle + helmet= safe ride..

Fastoman:dgi:

:guilty:no helmet..prayers for is quick recovery.

safety equation : motorcycle + helmet= safe ride..

Fastoman:dgi:

:goodidea::thumb::goodidea:

FWIW: I'm TOTALLY against helmet laws... but I STRONGLY believe that anyone who gets on a bike without one is a FOOL!!! (and that includes anyone who's not ATGATT, too).

Riding at dusk or dark in areas with wild critters around is dangerous with or without a helmet. If I start out early in the morning i always hold the speed down until it is fully daylight.

The best tip I ever got was NEVER ride behind a pickup truck. You don't know what is going to fly out of the back of it and hit you.

Hey bear , your right life is about choices. It still sucks to hear about them, but wake up and put a full face on. We all see people on the laptop doing make-up and texting like crazy. The body can heal faster then the head

Amen, Bear. Here's the key... "he chose." Sorry for his misfortune and the pain for his friends and his family... but "he chose."

Here's my libertarian, Jeffersonian, Texan showing...

I don't think the people of this country (that's you and me and everyone else) ought to tell a group of people that like to ride motorcycles that they have to wear a helmet when they ride. Neither should we pick up the tab to fix up the fellow who rides without a helmet and bumps his head into something hard at a high rate of speed.

Laws that don't provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our children... should not exist. Tax me for the roads I ride on. Make laws that protect us from each other... but give us as much freedom to make our own personal choices as possible... as long the exercise of individual rights don't threaten the health and safety of others... let it go.

MDL

Had a very large dog run out in front of me once. Knew there was no choice but to hit it. Quickly stood up on the pegs and pulled up on the handle bars just before impact went over him like a good size bump no damage done. All those year of motocross has paid off. Got forced off the road once and had to jump a curb the same way. Feel bad for the guy, Every time i ride by someone thats not wearing a helmet i just shake my head.

Quote from Mighty, "Neither should we pick up the tab to fix up the fellow who rides without a helmet and bumps his head into something hard at a high rate of speed."

Question: Are you implying that we should pick up the tab for for the same type of accident where the driver was wearing a helmet?

Comments: Slippery slope. Who decides what is fair and what isn't. If you pass a motorcyclist laying on the road busted up without a helmet, do you just zoom on by because he brought it upon his self? What about the motorcyclist that was wearing a helmet but was doing something very stupid such as going 100mph in a 55mph zone? Should we just let that one die? (Might be good for the gene pool though) This nation prides itself on taking care of unfortunates. I hope we have enough compassion to continue this tradition.

I would not consider riding a motorcycle without a helmet.

I don't understand why some states allow it. The medical bills aren't always covered by the injured person. So then the rest of us pay for the 'choice' to ride without the helmet.

Kody

The difficulty in talking about "picking up the tab" is that you and I ARE paying for that guy who rides without a helmet... because the hospital will provide his emergency care and if they can't collect directly from him and they end up writing it off, the hospital forecasts the pooled losses for the year and the rest of us pay a little extra to cover it... or the insurance plan that the idiot is part of picks up the tab and the insurance company forecasts a certain number of catastrophic cases and we all pay a little extra to cover it.

The irony is that we as a society hold the value of human life higher than the idiot who's riding around with no helmet. He doesn't value his own life as highly as the EMT who's driving the ambulance trying to save him. It's that imbalance that makes this difficult. Perhaps all of us should wear a bracelet like some diabetics or allergic folks do but with a dollar amount written on it... if the cost to save me is going to be more than the amount written on the bracelet then give me a painkiller and let me go. This way I choose the value of my own life. Riding without a helmet means "I'm ready to die at any moment. I am not willing to give up $100 or the wind in my hair to save my own skull, so neither should you."

And now I wait for the angry mob to come burn down my house.

MDL

Many people hold the same view about all motorcyclists. They just view all of us as organ donors no matter what protective gear we wear. You would change your tune quickly if you were the one, through no fault of your own, laying by the road in serious condition. We are supposed to have certain inalienable, LIFE, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. We can not obtain any of these without good health.

Niemöller:
First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist, so I didn't speak up. Then they came for the trade unionists, but I was not a trade unionist, so I didn't speak up. Then they camp for the Jews, but I was not a Jew, so I didn't speak up. Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for me.

Life isn't fair, but if we all stick together we can have a better life and sometimes that means biting the bullet and taking care of the helpless even if it is their own stupid fault.

My 2 cents. Now I'll shut up.

The difficulty in talking about "picking up the tab" is that you and I ARE paying for that guy who rides without a helmet... because the hospital will provide his emergency care and if they can't collect directly from him and they end up writing it off, the hospital forecasts the pooled losses for the year and the rest of us pay a little extra to cover it... or the insurance plan that the idiot is part of picks up the tab and the insurance company forecasts a certain number of catastrophic cases and we all pay a little extra to cover it.

The irony is that we as a society hold the value of human life higher than the idiot who's riding around with no helmet. He doesn't value his own life as highly as the EMT who's driving the ambulance trying to save him. It's that imbalance that makes this difficult. Perhaps all of us should wear a bracelet like some diabetics or allergic folks do but with a dollar amount written on it... if the cost to save me is going to be more than the amount written on the bracelet then give me a painkiller and let me go. This way I choose the value of my own life. Riding without a helmet means "I'm ready to die at any moment. I am not willing to give up $100 or the wind in my hair to save my own skull, so neither should you."

And now I wait for the angry mob to come burn down my house.

MDL

But they do that for many different situations, not just injuries from riding without gear. They do that for people in car accidents without insurance, people who fall & hurt themselves, pregnancies. You can't single out helmetless riders & say "we're picking up his tab... Idiot!". Our society picks up the tab for bunches of stupid acts. Skateboards, football, home repairs, getting hurt at work. There are many incidents we could nit pick. Some I would say not to cover, while you may disagree & vice-versa. I understand both sides, and some days I lean one way & other days I lean the other. But to me, the bottom line comes down to choice. My choice. I know the risks involved, and I chose to ride.

And for the record, I wear my helmet when I ride. I also wear my gear.