First off, I'm sorry that you were involved in this accident and I'm even sorrier that you are blaming yourself (you shouldn't - lucky for him to have the opportunity to learn an important lesson with only a scraped knee!). However, I don't agree with the philosophy that a 'helmet-cures-all' which nearly all internet cyclists subscribe to.
Originally posted by SpiderMike
This just happened to me about 2 hours ago. I was part of a vehicle/bike accident. I was the driver of the vehicle.
Sorry to be pedantic but a bicycle should be considered a vehicle and operated like one. I submit that not doing so is what caused the accident. A 12 year old is old enough to ride on the road but of course needs instruction like anyone.
I was about to leave the parking lot of the grocercy store. Looked to my left and saw nothing. Checked to my right, clear. Or so I thought. As I look forward and start to go, a 12yr old kid pops out in front of me. I stopped, but bumped him into the street.
Was he riding on the sidewalk or was he on the wrong side of the street?
Luck was on our side, he only scrapped his knee. He had no lights, wearing dark clothes, and worse of all no helmet.
NO HELMET!!!! Yet he survived!!!! I guess he won't be able to write his 'a helmet saved my life' story on the internet just yet.
It seems to me that the two biggest factors in the accident were that he was not visible (You imply that this happened at night but don't say for sure) and that he came from somewhere you weren't expecting (the sidewalk, or riding on the wrong side of the street) and in the case of the sidewalk, at a higher rate of speed than you would expect such as a pedestrian who you
would be looking for.
These are the main factors which kill cyclists, especially children, and should be given the emphasis.
http://www.kenkifer.com/bikepages/health/risks.htm
Putting a helmet on a kid (or any cyclist, for that matter) and sending him off down the sidewalk (especially at night without lights) and implying that he is now 'protected' because he has a helmet is
not the way to prevent injuries and deaths. Anticipating the inevitable replies, I state this is not the same as saying that people should not wear helmets!
For a support of my position, have a look at this article, published last year in the NY times and based on data compiled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission:
http://www.topica.com/lists/massbike...t=d&start=4140
A summary, "The number of head injuries has increased 10 percent since 1991, even as bicycle helmet use has risen sharply, according to figures compiled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. But given that ridership has declined over the same period, the rate of head injuries per active cyclist has increased 51 percent just as bicycle helmets have become widespread."
His dad was apologizing to me for the incident, and telling the kid the bike repairs to his 24'' mtn bike was coming out of his allowance. The dad noticed the bike rack in the back of my truck, and said " and you think your a cyclist."
I'm afraid I don't understand what his position was. He didn't blame you but then he did?
My response was to get some cycling safety info for the kid.
Excuse my cynicism but isn't this just more 'wear a helmet so you are safe' literature? Why not just explain to both of them
why the accident happened in the first place, namely no light at night [I inferred this] and riding along the sidewalk much faster than a pedestrian would be walking?
I wanted to share this. NO matter how much we donate, or talk about being a cyclist..... not everyone hears it. This incident has given me perspective. Get active. I know just reading this my not have the impact it has had on me, but hopefully it will reach some. The next time you see kids riding without helmets, think it could be your kid, or you behind the wheel seeing their head going below the edge of your hood.
There is no lack of promotion about helmets. A press report of
any incident involving someone on or with a bicycle will comment on whether they were wearing a helmet and imply blame based on this status. The general populace has got the memo from cyclist 'advocates' themselves: Bicycling is very dangerous unless you wear a helmet; helmetless cyclists should always be lectured and ridiculed and deserve to be run over.
In other words, count me out of this vein of Cycling [Helmet] Advocacy as it currently exists.