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                                               Brother Larry Ritchey                      " Free Spirit " Artist: Jillane Curreen

 When someone is in your life for a REASON, it is usually to meet a need you have expressed. They have come to assist you through a difficulty, to provide you with guidance and support,  to aid you physically, emotionally or spiritually. They may seem like a godsend and they are.  They are there for the reason you need them to be.  Then, without any wrongdoing on your part or at an inconvenient time, this person will say or do something to bring the relationship to an end.  Sometimes they die. Sometimes they walk away.  Sometimes they act up and force you to take a stand.  What we must realize is that our need has been met, our desire fulfilled, their work is done.  The prayer you sent up has been answered and now it is time to move on.  

There are many different responses to crisis. Most survivors have intense feelings after a traumatic event but recover from the trauma; others have more difficulty recovering — especially those who have had previous traumatic experiences, who are faced with ongoing stress, or who lack support from friends and family — and will need additional help.

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A motorcycle helmet must withstand an impact of less than 126 foot pounds.

60) Facts vs. Twisted Stats [by Dr. JM on February 28, 2006

Let's cut a whole lot of this stuff down to something simple and basic - something easy to follow and understand - something easy to remember and repeat correctly...

Fact - To comply with government standards, a motorcycle helmet must withstand an impact of less than 126 foot pounds.

Fact - The average adult male can throw a punch that delivers between 100 and 190 foot pounds of impact.

Fact - A professional boxer in the heavyweight category can deliver a punch exceeding 300 foot pounds of impact.

Logical Conclusion - An approved motorcycle helmet is designed to protect the wearer from an impact of less than that of the punch of the average adult male.

Extrapolation - A helmet will absolutely save your life only if you have a physical abnormality that would allow for the punch of the average high school junior or senior to kill you in a school-yard brawl.

Fact - The human neck is perfectly designed, and trained throughout a lifetime of use, to hold the human head through an impact of up to 80 gravities of impact. That means if your head weighs the average 9 pounds, your neck can withstand the impact of 740 foot pounds, which translates as up to 60 mph, depending on directionality and type of impact. The skull itself is capable of withstanding far greater impact, again depending on the type and directionality of the impact.

Fact - Adding the 6+ pounds of helmet to the head, and increase of 66% in supported weight) significantly reduces the impact absorbing capabilities of the neck.

Fact - A helmeted person is at significantly greater risk of neck injury at any given speed or force of impact, when all other factors are equal.

(For a better understanding of this, investigate the HANS Device)

Logical Conclusion - You are at least 66% more likely to suffer significant cervical spine or neck injury while wearing a helmet during any given impact, when all other factors are equal. The percentage is actually considerably higher than 66%, but I said I'd keep this simple, so I won't get into the physics of mechanics and impact.

Extrapolation - If you were involved in a motorcycle accident while wearing a helmet, and didn't suffer significant neck injury, it is very unlikely that you would have suffered significant head injury/trauma without a helmet.

Fact - The average six foot tall person's head achieves a higher velocity during a standing fall than an approved helmet is designed to withstand.

Fact - Proponents of helmet laws make big noise about the fact that motorcycle fatalities increased by 11% in Florida during the 5 years after the repeal of the helmet law. What they don't want people to know, and work very hard to keep very quiet is the fact that motorcycle registrations increased by 20% during that same time frame, and motorcycle tourism increased by roughly 43%. In other words, fatalities decreased significantly during the oft quoted time period.

Fact - By digging a bit into the studies oft quoted by the NHTSA, and many of the other alphabet soup groups, we discover that motorcycle helmets MAY have prevented injury in only .46% of motorcycle accidents. 46 injuries out of every 10,000 MIGHT have been prevented. That's injuries, not fatalities. Injuries include bumps, scratches, etc.

Fact - And, an odd fact at that - By digging even more, we find that the numbers are the same for people that MAY have lived had they been wearing a helmet. That is to say, of 10,000 fatalities, 46 MIGHT not have died had they been wearing a helmet. It's actually 459 out of 100,000, but that's being a bit nit picky.

Fact - Contrary to oft repeated urban myth, NHTSA's numbers also show that fewer people die when they don't wear helmets than when they do. I know, you're just chomping at the bit for an explanation of that one. Unfortunately, since the numbers go against the party line, they've made a real study of not making a study of this "oddity". I'd venture a theory, or two, but that's not what this is about. This is about facts.

Fact - The NHTSA also claims that unhelmeted riders create a 5% additional burden in medical expenses when injured. What they don't mention is that this is not a standardized cost. They simply took the total, without accounding for variations of costs at differing facilities. The actual difference when these variations are accounted for is insignificant at .043%.

Fact - Refering to the previous, what they also fail to make significant mention of is the fact that helmeted riders who paid for their own care had a 19% higher standardized cost than non-helmeted riders.

Fact - Of the average two million traumatic brain injuries sustained each year in this nation, 780 of them are attributable to motorcycle riding. Half a million are attributable to automobile use.

Fact - Of the various causes of accidents, fatigue is always very high on the list, depending on the study referenced. Adding 66+% to the weight the neck is required to hold is an absolute guarantee of increased fatigue.

Ok, that's enough of that. Time for me to hit the sack. I need the rest. Tennessee's still a helmet state, too. *sigh*

The HANS Device

The HANS Device

Four NASCAR drivers have been killed on the track since May 2000 -- Adam Petty, Kenny Irwin, Tony Roper and Dale Earnhardt Sr. All of these drivers were killed when their vehicles slammed head-on into a retaining wall, causing a fracture to the base of the skull. Some believe this type of injury is due to the driver's head being left unsecured in the car while his body is strapped securely to his seat.
The risk of severe injury, and possibly death, prompted six NASCAR drivers to try out a new device called the Head And Neck Support (HANS) system at the 2001 Daytona 500. This device was co-developed by Dr. Robert Hubbard, a professor of engineering at Michigan State University, and his brother-in-law, former IMSA car driver Jim Downing. The HANS device is designed to reduce the chance of injury caused by unrestrained movement of the head during crashes.

The HANS device is a semi-hard collar made of carbon fiber and Kevlar, and it is held onto the upper body by a harness worn by the driver. Two flexible tethers on the collar are attached to the helmet to prevent the head from snapping forward or to the side during a wreck. The device weighs approximately 1.5 pounds (0.68 kg).

Doctors have said that it is unclear if the HANS device could have saved Earnhardt, but it is believed that the device saved the life of a Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) driver in January 2001. While practicing for an upcoming race, Bruno Junqueira spun out of control and slammed into a concrete wall at 200 mph (322 kph). Junqueira, who was wearing the HANS device, walked away from the crash without injury.

NASCAR officials have said that NASCAR race cars are different from CART cars, and they are unsure if the device would be as effective for NASCAR drivers. Drivers, including Earnhardt, have complained that the device is too bulky, would restrict movements and would make it difficult for drivers to exit the car in emergencies. Hubbard/Downing Inc. said it was producing only three to four of these helmets per day just weeks before the 2001 Daytona 500, but received nearly three-dozen orders within hours after Earnhardt's crash. Ford has offered to pay for a HANS device for any driver who wants to wear one.

In October 2001, NASCAR officials mandated the use of an approved head-and-neck-restraint system for all drivers racing in the Winston Cup Series, Nascar Busch Series or Nascar Craftsman Truck Series.

Conclution

For those who wear a helmet, make sure you wear a Hans Device to protect you from Spinal neck injuries, Catastrophic Injuries, as in Paralysis.

Better common sence would tell me, cagers need education in:

1. Motorcycle Awarness

2.Inattentive Behaviors

3.Distaction/Causation

4.Cell Phone Abuse while driving

5.Teen Driver Education Courses( Hands On )

6.Impaired Motorist/Avoidence courses

7.Basic Motorcycle Rider Course(before a drivers Lic. is Issued)Advanced, Experianced course

8.Education, Reviewed Courses for DOT, NHTSA Executives, and top Management Employees, To Protect all who share the road!!

9.Public Safety, a no Brainer!!

Helmets are NOT a Band-Aid Solution for Catastrophic Injuries, sustained by Bad Driveing Habits from Cagers!!

Did the light just go on? I hope so!!!!