rykoala

So there I was, just cruising along on my way to work, only a couple of miles at the most from my office. The route I picked this morning leads me along the back side of the local regional airport, by the way. I'm pedaling along, around 20mph and I hear this *HONK* from a police car behind me. I look behind me and sure enough, flashing lights. I've got a red blinkie light on the back, I'm not riding in traffic (its 45mph along that route) and although I don't have a helmet (its a matter of $$, don't chastise me for something I cannot currently afford) I am not aware of any bicycle helmet laws. So I'm thinking to myself "Great, I managed to find RPD's one bicycle nazi, probably gonna ticket me for something nobody's ever heard of".

So I get off my bike, and just stand next to it and face the car. The officer got out and walked up to me and asked me where I was coming from. I told him. He then asked if I'd been hanging around any of the service entrances to the airport. "Uh, no, I'm just on my way to work." He asked for my ID and my work address, I assume just to cover all bases, and I didn't mind. The guy was just doing his job. As it turns out, "some guy on a mountain bike" (most cyclists around here at this time of the morning match that description) had been spotted loitering around an airport service gate (unmanned) telling passerby he was going to break in to the airport. Real smart guy.

Anyway it turned out rather pleasant, as getting stopped by the police goes, and I finished my commute without incident. I was just glad I didn't get ticketed for anything!

HereNT

I'd be willing to bet that a lot of the time that people get stopped on a bike, it's pretty similar to that. Probably a lot more likely than speeding, for sure. Riding sidewalk in restricted areas or running red lights/stop signs right in front of them would probably have higher numbers, though. I know I was stopped a couple of times when I was younger that were similar situations.

RonH

A helmet is MUCH cheaper than a hospital stay or surgery.

Nashbar and Performance have some for under $20.

catatonic

Yep, LBS and Wally World have many for $25 or less.

If you have a place that sells "po boy" sandwiches, have those for lunch for a month...you'll saved enough to get TWO helmets

Dusk

I was stopped once, like you just going to work (but I did have a helmet). The Cop was looking for person that been reported causing problems in the neighborhood. Wanted to know if I had seen anyone that might fit the "look". The Cop was cool, he said that he often asked cyclists for help as most of us are looking around more than any motorist does.

Cheers

Daily Commute

Two lessons:

1. This shows why we should give cops the benefit of the doubt.

2. If you can't afford a helmet, you can't afford to cycle. Think of being without a helmet the same way you'd think about a bent rim. You'd find a way to fix the rim before cycling again. Find a way to buy a helmet.

Cut something out of your budget for a few weeks, and you can afford a low-end, but perfectly functional one. Do you have cable? A cell phone? Do you ever eat out (including take-out)? Do you eat anything more expensive than beans & rice? Do you drink anything with alcohol in it? If the answer to any of these questions is "yes," you can afford a helmet.

rykoala

Unfortunately Wally-world helmets don't fit me, I have a rather large head. My friends all call me Shrek because I'm built like him. All but the ears LOL. I will have to get a better one than the $20 specials, since I have to get one that actually fits.

Interesting, Dusk. That is true though, cyclists have their eyes and ears on their surrounding, not the car in front of them.

rykoala

Cable? No. Celphone? Company issued. Eat out? Only when my wife is too sick to cook (or we have to get out of the house for a change). Could cut back though. Anything more expensive than beans and rice? Rarely. Our meals are pretty cheap. Alchohol? Don't touch the stuff.

All that being said, I expect to spend my next $50 or $60 on a helmet. Its not like its not a priority, its just not possible. Can't afford to cycle? With gas prices and what not, I can't afford NOT to cycle. The gas savings alone is worth it.

Don't guess any of you are a single income household with 1 gas guzzling car, 2 school aged kids, and a disabled wife? I am Heck my car is a 1977 Chevy station wagon, so no car payments and cheap insurance. I eat $2 lunches. My family wears wal-mart or payless shoes, including me. I have broken couches. Need I go on?

caloso

Stopped by Reno 911! Was it Lt. Dangle? Love those shorts.

Daily Commute

I wrote my message as you were sending yours about trying to buy the helmet (notice the 2-minute difference). It sounds like you have your priorities straight. Given your two kids, $50-60 for a helmet seems like a reasonable life and health insurance policy. And I understand the need to eat cheaply. I often spend about $3 total for a week's worth of high protein/high carb/low fat/low sugar lunches--beans and rice. Too many people say they "can't afford" something when they really can. It sounds like you're not one of them.

The lesson of this thread is: if you don't want multiple, uninvited lectures about wearing a helmet, don't mention that you don't wear one. Now if we really want to get a thread smoking, we need to have a newbie male asking advice about helmetless commuting and wanting acess to the Women's Cycling forum to discuss his "right" to carry a gun while violating all traffic rules with impunity amongst dangerous, obnoxious drivers. Did I miss anything?

rykoala

Daily Commute: I think we are on the same track here for sure! I sure wish I did have a helmet, I can tell you that. I could've used one a couple of months ago when I took a spill. OUCH. Anyway thanks for the comments. Beans 'n' rice. Do you cook it at work or do you pre-cook it? Sounds cheap and interesting. I'm trying to lose weight and don't mind relatively bland food.

And no it wasn't Lt. Dangle

supcom

Yeah. I'm looking for a lube that works on both my gun and my chain. Any ideas?

Daily Commute

I cook them at home. A pound of dried black beans (99 cents) will give me lunches for a week. The rest of the $2 (which is an estimate) is for rice, onion, garlic, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, mexican oregano (if you can find it) and hot peppers (dried or whole).

rykoala

I don't want to hijack my own thread but could you pm me details on how much of each to cook up? Being cheap and good for me is VERY attractive right now. I want/need to lose weight very badly, this sounds like a good lunch for me.

a2psyklnut

Campy or Shimano**********?

Listening to a walkman while riding**********??

Cadence or HRM training**********?

Should I go on?

peterm5365

Hey rykoala, do you have a paypal account? I'd like to donate to the "Rykoala Needs a Helmet Fund."

ChezJfrey

Motor oil? <duck and run for cover>

Dchiefransom

Would that be Hummer motor oil?

Dchiefransom

Hmm, Performance is selling a lot of helmets, some fairly cheap, at their stores here. Some of the models are L/XL. Can you try one on somewhere and let us know which size fits? I have 2 helmets I hardly ever use, but they are M/L, and might be too small.

Allister

WD-40

Guest

Just a side note/slight hijack.

I see you are some kind of webmaster? That means maybe you might know about designing webpages? There is a freelance website I've belonged to for several years now for people in the computer field. I know it's legit. But basically, you register with them, tell them what fields you're interested in working in, and every time someone needs someone with your skills, you get an email telling you to log in and check your account. Some projects are small projects, just a few hundred dollars, but some are larger projects worth several thousand. You mainly work from home, so you can do it in your spare time.

Just a thought.

Koffee

Seanholio

One side: WD-40!
Other side: Breakfree CLP!

Let the games begin.

Dchiefransom

WD-40 works as a solvent, and is not that good as a lubricant. Breakfree is about the same.

rykoala

Thank you for all the wonderful responses! I did not mean to incite such generous responses, rather I only wanted to show the diversity that sometimes isn't accounted for by some folks

As far as the helmet thing goes, I should be able to get one next month, or so.

KoffeeBrown, PM me, that sounds interesting. I do website design on the side

capsicum

I was pulled over for having my blinking red bicycle light on my jacket while motorcycling.