Death on Mt. Washington

Originally posted by Smoke
Good one, Walker. I think most of you are totally missing the point. Armor, big bikes, and full face helmets will not save your life.**

They just make your injuries a shade less painful. What good does a chest protector do for a broken neck? Would a big travel bike have made him not crash? Or would he have gone even bigger? How much does a shin pad do for a broken leg?

Face it, pads do pretty much f*ck nothing when it really comes down to serious injury. About the only padding which can make a real difference is a kidney belt and almost no one wears one of those. Full face helmets? Saves money on teeth, maybe. I've seen three broken jaws on people wearing full face helmets, and I've seen a few hyperthermia victims with them too. Hitting your face is painful. Hitting the back of your head is what kills you.

Maybe you should look at your gear and ask yourself why you need it. If it's just to give you the courage to 'go big' then YOU are the accident waiting to happen. Keep it in perspective. It's a couple of millimeters of foam and plastic, not a magic suit of armor.

Picking on folks who want to get into the sport but can't afford all the honch gear is the wrong approach.

Sounds like somebody made a choice out there that turned out badly and paid an outrageous price for it. Tragic for sure, but it's nothing to do with gear.

Know your limits, ride accordingly.

To the family and friends of the fallen, no disrespect is intended from this rant. Heartfelt condolences and sympathy go out to you. **

Very very well said, but i would have to disagree with you about teh fullfaces not saving lives part. Imagine what would have happen to John Waddell if he didnt have a helmet.

Originally posted by Rampager
Very very well said, but i would have to disagree with you about teh fullfaces not saving lives part. Imagine what would have happen to John Waddell if he didnt have a helmet.

Yes but Mr. Waddell had a motorcyle FF on. had he been wearing a mtb FF it prolly wouldnt have helped at all.

Thats brutal:(

condolences. Is there a fund somewhere where we as a community could help out with the funeral expenses?

I know those cost a lot…

Also, that dual slalom course is REALLY tight and fast. I had trouble taking all the berms myself, and usually overshot at least one….

I was wearing a half shell once hitting a jump I had hit before, nothing big. I don't actually know what happened as I was by myself at the time but somehow my face managed to collide with the rocky ground (I think) and I woke up in the hospital 2 days later. The doctor wasn't even sure that I would make it at first. Had I worn a full face the impact with the ground would have been much less and my brain probably wouldn't have started to bleed. So full face helmets do matter and perhaps whoever doesn't think so should try spending a week in a hospital and then have 6 monthes of recovery where you can't do anything because it could restart the bleeding.

Originally posted by Smoke
Good one, Walker. I think most of you are totally missing the point. Armor, big bikes, and full face helmets will not save your life.**

**

I'm sort of disgusted with that statement personally.

Originally posted by RyanH
Can anyone get anymore details on it? Was it in a local paper?

Information will be released shortly - the details of the accident are under investigation and more information will be posted when available.

Originally posted by Rampager
Very very well said, but i would have to disagree with you about teh fullfaces not saving lives part. Imagine what would have happen to John Waddell if he didnt have a helmet.

Let me clarify:

Helmets save lives. Chin guards save teeth. If Waddell had no helmet, he'd be dead. If he only had a skid lid, he'd be a bit uglier than normal. There are instances when the face guard will help in a crash, but there are also instances when it will cause more serious injury (ie.-face guards have been linked to several neck/spinal cord injuries where the guard caught on something).

It's the injuries to the back of the head, known as basal skull fractures, that are the killers.

I'm not saying don't wear it. I'm saying don't put that much faith in your gear. For the most part its just for show.

Like I said, gear won't save your life. Only good judgement can do that.

Originally posted by Smoke
**Let me clarify:

There are instances when the face guard will help in a crash, but there are also instances when it will cause more serious injury (ie.-face guards have been linked to several neck/spinal cord injuries where the guard caught on something).

It's the injuries to the back of the head, known as basal skull fractures, that are the killers.

**

Full face helmets (I mean the ones that have a solid hard shell - Troy Lee, Six Six One, Giro Max Max - not the switchblade with the lightweight chin guard) come lower over the back of the head, protect the temples and when the chin portion comes down (and the strap is adequately tight) the neck is somewhat protected, as the neck is not able to go into full flexion. Visors are likely the part that catches on something.

Basal skull fractures are rare. Subdural hematomas are the bigger concern with head injuries and show up many hours later.

that sux. :(

Like I said, gear won't save your life. Only good judgement can do that.

i think good judgement will only prevent your gear from trying to save your life. but in cases where your good judgement is there but somethin goes wrong anyways, your gear will at least be there.

ride w/ your limitations in mind AND wear your armours.

My condolances to his family and friends, most definatley not somthing you want to hear about to a rider of any ability level…

On a different note I think the thread is getting abit off topic with the whole armour, full face debate. Perhaps a thread dedicated specifically to it would be in order instead of taking away from this one… Just a thought.

my condolences as well, very sad to hear sth like that.

Brutal. Pads by themselves can certainly save you from serious injuries, but people have to realise that really bad accidents can and do happen. A racing accident last year had be covered in bruises and left me with a broken hand. I was so lucky that's all it was - I can still remember flying through the air head over heels.

Think before you do that jump or stunt. This is just terrible news.