Originally Posted by shasta

I ride at night with no lights and no helmet. I just recently got a front brake because I almost hit a parked car and ended up running into my garage door while skidding in the rain. I don't weave in and out of traffic much, mostly because I don't trust drivers to not hit me.

I rode with no brake because I thought my skidding was good enough. I don't have lights because I have never felt like I needed them. I avoid the cars, so they don't need to see a light on my bike. I plan on getting a taillight soon because I know I have already pushed my luck too far. I don't wear a helmet. I don't know why, they seem like the condoms of bike riding. I like to feel the wind on my head. I skated and rode bmx for so long without a helmet that they seem foreign to me now.

My lack of safety precautions has a lot to do with me being young and dumb. I'm still young enough to believe (falsely, I'm sure) that I am invincible. There is definitely a bad-a ss factor to it as well. No brakes, helmets, or lights always made me feel like a ninja when I rode at night.

Why do young men do any of the dumb stuff they do? Why do we climb mountains, do wheelies on motorcycles, and get in fights? Risk taking was probably an evolutionary advantage or something.