Biker dies protesting N.Y. motorcycle helmet law

[Praxius]

Biker dies protesting N.Y. motorcycle helmet law - CTV News

ONONDAGA, N.Y. — A motorcyclist participating in a protest ride against helmet laws went over his handlebars, hit his head on the pavement and was killed, police said Sunday.
The motorcyclist, 55-year-old Philip A. Contos, likely would have survived the accident if he'd been wearing a helmet, state troopers said.

The accident happened Saturday afternoon in Onondaga, a town in central New York near Syracuse.

Contos was driving a 1983 Harley-Davidson on a helmet protest ride organized by the Onondaga chapter of American Bikers Aimed Towards Education, or ABATE, troopers said. The organization states that it encourages the voluntary use of helmets but opposes mandatory helmet laws.

Contos, of Parish, hit his brakes, and his motorcycle fishtailed and went out of control, flipping him over the handlebars, police said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.

New York is one of 20 states that require all motorcycle riders to wear helmets. Lobbying by motorcyclist groups has led some states to repeal helmet laws.

A helmet that meets federal standards reduces the wearer's chances of being killed in an accident by more than 40 per cent, said safety consultant Jim Hedlund, of the Governors Highway Safety Association.

What can I say?

Karma's a b*tch.

Granted, I don't like the idea of mandatory wearing of helmets while riding bicycles (that's my personal opinion and which is why I no longer ride a bike)....... but a Motorbike is a bit different, they're heavier, they go faster and if you don't have seatbelts, then you need something, especially when you're sharing the road/highway with other motor vehicles.

I also understand why it's mandatory, due to the medical costs involved with treating someone with a head injury..... sorry to say, but these guys are idiots and this guy just proved the point about how stupid their protest is.

 

[petros]

Gary Busey all over again.

 

[bill barilko]

lol!!!

 

[Bar Sinister]

Biker dies protesting N.Y. motorcycle helmet law - CTV News



What can I say?

Karma's a b*tch.

Granted, I don't like the idea of mandatory wearing of helmets while riding bicycles (that's my personal opinion and which is why I no longer ride a bike)....... but a Motorbike is a bit different, they're heavier, they go faster and if you don't have seatbelts, then you need something, especially when you're sharing the road/highway with other motor vehicles.

I also understand why it's mandatory, due to the medical costs involved with treating someone with a head injury..... sorry to say, but these guys are idiots and this guy just proved the point about how stupid their protest is.

I would like to say Darwin strikes again, but I note that the biker was 55 years old and probably already had time to pass his genetic material along.

 

[Cliffy]

I don't believe in mandatory helmet laws. But you would have to be an idiot not to wear one. So if they were not mandatory, we would be rid of a lot of idiots in a hurry. I have been riding for over forty years. When I first started riding helmets were not mandatory. I was wearing a leather WW1 pilot helmet for the first while, until I caught a bumble bee on the forehead at 60 miles an hour. It nearly cold cocked me. Don't know how I hung onto the bike, but I did. Next day I bought a helmet. That was around 1964.

 

[petros]

Try getting a bird right in the chest right below the neck. It's like being punched.

 

[taxslave]

Helmets work at slow speed. At high speed they just make clean up easier. I started wearing a full face helmet since they came out after nearly loosing an eye to a bug. All in favor for helmets for other sports as well. I never go snowboarding without one either. I can handle looking like a geek without a concussion rather than cool and comatose.

 

[Tonington]

You only get one brain, and for some it's more of a blessing than others, but why risk it? Foolish. Want to feel the wind against your middle aged balding head? Ride a roller coaster.

 

[petros]

Even those aren't safe.
RideAccidents.com

 

[cranky]

I strongly believe in helmets, and I support - not so strongly - helmet laws.

The only thing that bothers me about 'the gov knows best' laws like a helmet law is: by the time we get about 10000 laws just like this one, we just aren't going to feel like we are in a free country anymore.

In my opinion, of course.

 

[Tonington]

Even those aren't safe.
RideAccidents.com

True. The convertible is a age old midlife toy...but then I suppose part of the midlife crisis is to do something a little more risky isn't it?

 

[Cliffy]

I strongly believe in helmets, and I support - not so strongly - helmet laws.

The only thing that bothers me about 'the gov knows best' laws like a helmet law is: by the time we get about 10000 laws just like this one, we just aren't going to feel like we are in a free country anymore.

In my opinion, of course.

We have about 10000 laws like that already. The stupidest one of all time was when the Socreds tried to pass a law back in the seventies making seat belts mandatory on motor cycles. Caused such an up roar that it got squashed real quick.

 

[The Old Medic]

I have ridden motorcyles since 1954 (regularly since 1962), and I would NEVER get on one without boots, long pants, a long sleeved shirt (usually a leather jacket), gloves and FULL FACE HELMET.

I worked in emergency rooms for many years, and i have seen a lot of people come in with massive injuries that would have been prevented by wearing a helmet.

Some people claim that helmets interfere with their vision. A properly fitting helmet will NEVER interfere with anyones vision, because the sides are actually BEHIND where the eyes sit on the face.

Some people claim that helmets interfere with their hearing. Once again, objective testing has proven that this is NOT the case.

Then you have the Gary Busey argument, that it is THEIR RIGHT TO REFUSE TO WEAR A HELMET.

I will agree with that argument, IF the person is required to carry a minimum of $3,000,000 in medical insurance, to protect the public from having to pay the costs involved if they have an accident and live through it.

You want to go without a helmet? Fine, but YOU take the responsibility if something bad happens.

I carry full and complete insurance on my bike, including $100,000 in medical insurance coverage for myself and for any passenger that I may take on my bike. I also refuse to allow ANYONE on my bike that is not properly dressed and wearing a full face helmet!

It's really simple, you either take responsibility for your own behavior, or you don't. I am all in favor of allowing idiots to ride without helmets, so long as they accept the responsibility of paying for their medical coverage if they have massive injuries as a result of their choices.

 

[karrie]

Personally, I see no reason to target motorcyclists unfairly. We don't charge people who don't wear their seat belts for their medical bills.

There's no damn reason that anyone else on the road should be subjected to having to see what happens to you when you lose control on the highway with no helmet on, plain and simple. Make it law, ticket them if caught without, end of debate.

 

[cranky]

I am with Karrie on this one. There are thousands of ways that stupid people do stupid things that lead to massive trauma injuries. We dont need to be targeting motorcycle helmet protestors, and I've yet to see a 'stupid people' disqualifying clause that seems objective and fair. Once someone finds themselves on the emergency room stretcher, I think we should help them no matter what their level of stupidity is.

 

[petros]

True. The convertible is a age old midlife toy...but then I suppose part of the midlife crisis is to do something a little more risky isn't it?

I'm mid-life. I drove slower, hate cell phones, I complain that all kids are more stupid than ever, their music sucks and there are too many damn foreigners.

No crisis whatsoever.