Helmets

Ok, this has been argued to death in the ski/snowboard forums, but I thought it was a non-issue in the biking world. The other day I was riding at Case Mountain (in Manchester, CT) and I saw not one but TWO separate people riding without helmets. I could sort of understand (the ignorance) if these guys were just kids on walmart bikes checking out the trails, but no. They were fully decked out in lycra (ew, BTW), SPD shoes, and high end rigs. I.E. not amateurs.

If you're dumb enough to think that you're so good that you have a zero percent chance of hitting your head on any of the branches, trees, rocks, etc. that you are flying by at high speed, well that's one thing. I'm a big believer in Darwinism, and I can only hope these people have not yet bred. But aside from being incredibly stupid, what I doubt these people have thought about is their fellow riders. If one of these jackholes bounces his coconut off a rock, it is then on the people with and around him to get him to the hospital. They may be good friends or complete strangers, and they now have the enormous responsibility of dealing with a potentially life-threatening head injury, all because you couldn't be bothered to wear a helmet.

Don't be a dick. Wear a helmet.

It's pretty unbelievable, but those people are still out there. We see them occasionally where I typically ride too.

I mean, what's the big deal? It's not like there's any rocks at Case...

It's not like these guys were out for a leisurely ride either. They followed us down the tinty trail at full blast. I really wanted to say something but I didn't feel like getting into a pissing contest mid ride. I know that if you show up at one of our group rides sans helmet, you'll be kindly asked to remove yourself.

I'd love to say that if I saw someone laying on the ground with a head injury that resulted from a lack of helmet that I'd just keep riding, but I know that despite being a souless ginger, I'd have to stop and help. I'd be sure to let him (if he ever recovered) and his friends and family know that he's a complete asshole, and if I see him out there without a helmet again, I'll GIVE him a head injury and leave him in the woods to be eaten by fisher cats.

Amen brother!
People be stupid...

It's very very rare that I see someone without a helmet Mountain Biking / Trail Riding or doing "serious" road biking.

Leisurely pedal along might be different as far as seeing people without helmets, but it does not sound like that is what you are talking about.