My child attends Brownell Middle School and it always surprises
me the number of children that ride there bikes to school not
wearing helmets.
Put on your thinking helmets
My child attends Brownell Middle School and it always surprises me the number of children that ride there bikes to school not wearing helmets. One day I decided to take a look at the bike rack, which is located in front of the office, and noticed only a very few helmets locked up to bikes. Either they are putting the helmets in their backpacks (which I highly doubt since I can’t even get my child to bring a lunch) or the bike riders are not wearing helmets. Isn’t it against the law for a child to ride their bikes without a helmet?
Red Phone:
Dear Caller, Thanks for alert. Red Phone is on it! After some investigation we found that kids without helmets is a huge problem not only at Brownell Middle School, but all over California. From our research we’ve concluded the problem here must be ignorance because if these parents knew what kind of real danger they are puttting their children in, they would force them to wear helmets.
Parents, cover your heads with shame. In California, 22,441 people were severely injured and 619 killed in bicycle-related crashes between 1996 and 2000. You don’t want your children injured or killed, so Red Phone is giving you training wheels.
To battle your lack of knowledge, we’re rolling out the education options for you. Everyone from the Gilroy Police Department to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is concerned about the problem. The police offer services to educate parents, students and teachers about bicycle helmets and bicycle safety. They go into classrooms and present the dangers. Maybe your kids weren’t listening enough to come home and tell you about it. They also hold bike rodeos where they round up kids, parents and bike safety info into a good time.
The state of California does a lot as well. It has implemented the Bicycle Safety Head Injury Prevention Program, which is “putting helmets on heads and helping to make biking in California safe and fun,” according to the governor’s office. They’ve not only put together information packages, but also found a way to hush a parent whose excuse is not enough money. They’ve developed strategies to get recycled helmets to low-income children. Sunshine Bicycles in Gilroy has stepped up on the local end of that program and distributes helmets here.
The state also has come up with Bike Days and offers “A How-to Guide for Conducting a Comprehensive Bicycle Safety Event” on the Web site. So, let’s get together, Gilroy. Parents, teachers, students, police, bike shops: Let’s put our spokes together and have the biggest bike day in California. If we can’t get these kids to listen to us, we’ll get the Governator to put the fear in them.
Who’s in? Give Red Phone a call or let us know at www.gilroydispatch.com /redphone And remember, the best way to beat things into their heads whether they are wearing a helmet or not is to show them. Wear your own helmet!
For more information about the Bicycle Head Injury Prevention Program, go here: www.dhs.ca.gov/epic/bike/default.htm.
