Biking? Use your head

A few weekends ago, I took advantage of the beautiful spring weather and hauled out my recumbent tricycle for a spin on the Centennial Trail. Needless to say in this outdoor loving town, I wasn’t the only one basking in the glory of a luminous Spokane spring day. There were bike riders and rollerbladers and runners and strollers of all ages. I loved it. We all loved it.

But all was not perfect. Too many people were riding their bikes without a bicycle helmet. Clutches of teenagers and almost teenagers did not see the need for a helmet. The occasional lone adult would pedal by bareheaded. The scene that really floored me, though, was this family picture: Buddy and Sis were out riding in front, properly helmeted, followed by Mom and Dad, heads naked to the wind. What kind of message does that send to the kids?

It’s the Centennial Trail, you might be saying. No cars, to avoid or run into. But what if you skid to avoid a bunny rabbit or a kid or a dog? There are trees to run into, pavement to fall upon, and steep hills to slide onto and tumble down. Even a fall on the Centennial trail can scramble your brains.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 500,000 bicycle riders end up in the nation’s emergency rooms every year. This doesn’t include the innumerable cases of road rash treated by tender mothers uttering reassuring words. The scarier statistic is that 700 people per year die as a result of bicycle-related injuries.

Bicycling, like any other sports activity, is not without its risks. But why not take advantage of a proven risk-reduction strategy? Studies show that bicycle helmets can prevent up to 88 percent of serious brain injuries. They can reduce injuries to the mid and upper face by 65 percent.

How can a dinky foam and plastic helmet reduce brain injuries? When a hard head hits the hard pavement, the force of that blow has to go somewhere. The brain is encased in a hard shell, our skull, and although the skull takes up some of that energy, most gets transmitted to the brain, which bounces around in that tight, enclosed space. Depending on how hard the blow is, some pretty severe damage can happen. The helmet can absorb a lot of that force so it never makes it to the brain.

When worn properly, a helmet can protect the forehead and face as well. It should sit square on the head, so that it covers the top of the forehead, and it should fit snugly enough that it doesn’t slip down over the eyes or back on the head. The helmet comes with extra pieces of foam so that it can be custom fit.

The strap should fit snugly as well, just allowing two fingers to slip in.

All helmets manufactured after 1999 must meet mandatory safety standards established by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, so make sure your and your kids’ helmets have the CPSC endorsement. Anything older than that ought to be tossed unless it’s brand new. If it is, it should be certified by the American Society for Testing and Materials or the Snell Foundation. Helmets certified by American national Standards Institutearen’t up to the new standards, so don’t use them.

Manufacturers recommend that helmets be replaced every five years. Maybe that’s hype to get us to buy more helmets, but I’m not willing to take the risk with my family’s brains.

Of course, we usually lose them before then. If the helmet’s been in a crash, toss it.

Studies show that the biggest determinant in getting kids to wear helmets is having parents who wear helmets. You owe it to your kids to teach them that bicycle safety doesn’t stop when childhood ends.

So, all you bare heads out there, get yourself a helmet! Aren’t you worth it?