Helmets Protect and Save Lives
English 101
Kelly Ann Peters
May 6, 2010

Thesis: Helmet laws should be mandatory in the State of Pennsylvania
I. Introduction to helmet issues A. Background information about Pennsylvania’s helmet law 1. Riders age and experience 2. Law being repealed in 2003 B. Real life examples of helmet safety 1. Ben Roethlisberger story 2. My Story
II. Straight forward facts that helmets do work A. Myths of helmets breaking necks B. Helmets are proven to reduce brain trauma
III. Statistics of head injuries A. Helmets are shown to decrease injury B. Less Hospitalizations when a rider chooses to wear a helmet
IV. Counterargument A. Freedom of choice B. Individual Rights
V. Interesting facts about Pennsylvania’s Law A. Head injuries increasing without helmet law

Are you smarter then Ben Roethlisberger? Isn’t it interesting that Ben is required to wear a helmet when he steps onto the football field but is not required to wear a helmet when he’s riding a motorcycle 100 miles per hour. Safety should be the number one priority when thinking about riding a motorcycle. Motorists feel that riding a motorcycle is a sense of freedom one should have. The issue remains that riding a motorcycle is a privilege and there is no need to take the risk of the rider losing his/her life to a brain injury.
Pennsylvania had a helmet law for 35 years until it got repealed in 2003. Only riders that are over 21 and have 2 years of riding experience are allowed to ride without a helmet. Pennsylvania is one of the six states to repeal the helmet law. There are not enough facts to make a mandatory helmet law. Really Helmet laws should be mandatory in the state of Pennsylvania.
Ben Roethlisberger is a prime example of how important wearing a helmet really is. Roethlisberger went over the handlebars of his bike, a 2005 Suzuki Hayabusa, shattering the windshield of the car with his head. Reports claimed Roethlisberger tried to get up but was bleeding from the head. Reports from the scene and news media indicated that the accident was serious but "not life- or career-threatening," though Roethlisberger would later relate in interviews that paramedics on the scene stopped the bleeding in his throat just in time to save his life. Just think if Roethlisberger made an easy decision to put a helmet on?
I to have a personal experience and feeling toward this law! My friend and I were at his Bay house in Maryland. It was a regular time when we go on a ride and of course we decided not to wear a helmet. About 5 minutes into the ride we started going faster and faster all of a sudden I look up at my friend and at that moment I cant even recall what actually caused the accident. I lost all control of the bike and fell straight into the pavement luckily rolling right in front of my friends motorcycle missing my head by inches. I suffered many scraps, bruises, stiffness and pain for a while and ever since then when going to ride the first thing I grab is my helmet. Wearing a helmet in that situation would have contributed to a faster recovery and would have had no facial scratch’s and bruises.
Case studies show the importance of wearing a helmet while riding a motorcycle. According to the MSF(Motorcycle Safety Foundation) helmets do work; the effectiveness has been confirmed by responsible studies. There are myths out there saying helmets break necks, block vision and impair hearing but they have been consistently disproved(14). Helmet use is proven to reduce brain damage, protect the rider’s face and save a life.
When a motorcyclist decides to ride a motorcycle he/she is taking a risk. Every time a person gets on a motorcycle the first thing they should do is gear up. The helmet is priority number one. The helmet should be DOT (Department of Transportation) approved for