It's time to get serious about wearing helmets

摘要

"We don't need to wear a helmet as we only ride slowly." "A helmet isn't needed if going less than 30km/h." "Workers are under the pump and we have not got the time to worry about helmets." "Helmets are too hot, they do not give enough shade, you cannot see properly and you cannot hear." These are common excuses for not wearing a helmet on a farm bike, be it a two- or four-wheel-motorbike. But wearing a helmet is a serious safety issue, one that could save lives. Bike riders need to the 'hardheaded'about safety and wear helmets otherwise they face the risk of head injury or death if involved in an accident. Whether riding on-road or on-farm helmets are equally important. There are extremes in attitudes to helmet wear in the agricultural industry. For example, one Monaro, New South Wales, property manager said helmets were too hot for him and his staff to wear. But on another property in central Queensland the manager and staff will not hop on a motorbike without one, regardless of the season.