Life without a helmet - Ben may have been saved

[SteelShooter]

Originally Posted by silver & black

That is a ridiculous thing to say!

How do you figure that a helmet would limit neck movement?

As a mtn. biker, I can assure you that a helmet is an esential tool for making it through some rides. I have hit my head on trees, rocks and the ground in crashes that have dented and cracked my helmet. I walked away from those crashes with no head injuries... or a broken neck.

You can spin the no helmet thing all you want but, it won't make not wearing one any less foolish.

You're on the mark Bro!

This would have, most likely, saved his teeth from being chipped, his nose from being broken, and his jaw from being fractured, not to mention the 9 inch laceration on the back of his head.

Someone posted earlier about saving his knees. Follow-on reports this morning stated that they were l"lacerations and contusions", translated as: scrapes and bruises. No problems..... it could have been much, much worse. Thank God it wasn't.

Back to the subject though, to quote you "You can spin the no helmet thing all you want but, it won't make not wearing one any less foolish."

Reps to you on this one!

[Haiku_Dirtt]

Originally Posted by Ohio Steeler

yes it would have, however it was Ben's choice not to wear one and I respect that.

Couldn't disagree more. This is about money not freedom. If you have no fiscal responsibilities then we can go to the Bill of Rights and any other applicable law. But the Rooney's are paying him millions and millions of dollars to be on the field every Sunday in the best condition possible. When you take money from someone and you sign your name to paper the spectrum of rights narrows in proportion to the stakes.

Since you can't go to K-Mart and get a Super Bowl caliber QB the stakes are supremely high. Now you may say the Steelers lapsed when not writing stronger language into his contract and I would would say your 1000% right. But he disrespected the Organization when they asked him to honor the request even if the Steelers forgot to include it in his contract.

If you are one of only say 10 people in the entire world who can play QB in a Super Bowl, then what don't they understand about loss of freedom mixed in with $25-100 million (what might be his next contract)!!!! If you can't find other ways to relax with that size bank account then there is more to the problem. Find a couch or anything other than a motorcycle.

Or give the money back and flip burgers if its that important.

[melroseplace]

everything happens for a reason. whether that reason is because had he been wearing a helmet he would've been in worse shape, or to prove a point to Ben (and others who don't wear a helmet) we'll never know. all we can do is be thankful that he's alive and will be able to walk (let alone play football again)

[BigSteelThrill]

Originally Posted by stlrtruck

I'm not saying he wasn't irresponsible, I'm just saying that in this instance, he may have been saved for not wearing the helmet.

[stlrtruck]

Originally Posted by BBC

You don't know much about this subject do you? No negative effects could have come from wearing a helmet in this situation. Leave speculation such as this to the people who are trained to do it.

I know enough about the subject. I've ridden and been around people that still ride. I have heard people who are trained to do it, talk about such instances where not wearing a helmet has been a benefit to the rider after an accident.

However, I will admit that it's normally the exception, not the rule.

[stlrtruck]

Originally Posted by SteelShooter

You're on the mark Bro!

This would have, most likely, saved his teeth from being chipped, his nose from being broken, and his jaw from being fractured, not to mention the 9 inch laceration on the back of his head.

Someone posted earlier about saving his knees. Follow-on reports this morning stated that they were l"lacerations and contusions", translated as: scrapes and bruises. No problems..... it could have been much, much worse. Thank God it wasn't.

Back to the subject though, to quote you "You can spin the no helmet thing all you want but, it won't make not wearing one any less foolish."

Reps to you on this one!

Just to reiterate, I never said that it wasn't foolish not to wear the helmet.

[Ohio Steeler]

Originally Posted by caseydog

I don't imagine that the 62 year-old lady in the car set out that day to run over a Super-Bowl quarterback.

Accidents happen. That's why helmets are a good idea.

no I dont think she did however she should have been more aware of what is going on around her what if that was a kid on a bicycle instead of Ben or someone puching a baby across the street....

and even if he had a helmet on we would still be talking about his knee's along with his neck

[stlrtruck]

Check out www.kdka.com

They have a video dated 6/14 where they ask "professionals" about the helmet in relation to this accident. There is a dental/facial doctor who argues that a helmet could have been more damaging.

[stlrtruck]

Sorry, date of video is 6/13

[caseydog]

One other thought.

This whole discussion is happening because it was Ben Roethlisberger who got hurt in a bike crash. But, I hope the Ben "Smiths" out there who work regular jobs and ride motocycles are paying attention.

I cringe every time I see some 20-something kid on one of those Japanese crotch-rockets zipping down the freeway in jeans and a t-shirt, and no helmet.

When I heard about Ben's accident, my first thought was not how it would effect the Steelers, but whether he was going to be another young man living the rest of his life with the horrible consequences of a bad choice.

CD