There was a guy on the news last night advocating for removing the law forcing cyclists to wear helmets. This, to me, sounds like a great idea. I stopped riding a bike the day they brought the law in. It felt dorky - and looked dorky too.
The thought of leaving the cafe and just jumping on a black bike with high handles, and a basket on the front for my handbag, whipping up the road to work, with the wind blowing through my hair as I make my way there, just sounds wonderfully European and romantic.
The reality - of a bike seat half the size of the seat of my pants, muffin top on display, frizzy hair, the smoke fumes from the traffic, and near life-and-death misses while sharing the road with buses - is perhaps a little less romantic.
I think it's a good concept, but I'm not so sure it's been thought through. I think there should be guidelines. So I've come up with a list to clarify what the law should say:
People who don't need helmets:
- Me, and anyone worried about their hair and/or outfit.
People who should wear helmets:
- Anyone on a road that I'm about to drive down in my oversize SUV, or anyone who drives in a similar way
- The school children who whip past on the footpath while I'm reversing out of my drive way.
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