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Lynda Loveland: Helmet? Heck yeah!

By Lynda Loveland

Posted: December 19, 2012

Tags: Lynda Loveland, Parenting, Mom's Life

It’s a hard and fast rule in my house. If you ride a bike, you must wear a helmet. My son, though, thinks he’s above the law.

My kids play down the street with all the neighbor kids. I can’t see them, but I can hear ‘em. I walked down to check on them one day and couldn’t find my son. I had a feeling he’d gone outside the invisible fence.

I went farther down the street into the next neighborhood. Nothing. Went a little farther, thought I heard something. Went a little farther, rounded the corner and there he was, racing down the hill on his bike with three other boys … helmetless. They all were!

He pedaled over to me looking totally busted. I was totally boiling. I told him to get his butt home immediately!

His excuse was this: No other kid wears their helmet. I told him that’s their problem, not mine. I don’t want his head busted open on the pavement! I promptly put his bike on the garage wall and told him it was off limits for a week, along with the scooter which also requires a helmet.

Just a couple of days after he got his bike back, he gave his helmet the Heisman, AGAIN! What the heck? Sooo, I took it away for two weeks.

He was very happy to get it back, finally. He did well wearing his helmet, until he rode his scooter … wait for it … without a helmet!

The first words out of his mouth were, “I don’t have to wear a helmet with my scooter.”

I said, “the heck you don’t! Kiss your two-wheeled, kid cruisers goodbye, ‘cause you’re not seeing them again for THREE weeks! Anything requiring a helmet is in mothballs for just shy of a month."

I get that it’s probably uncool for him to wear a helmet because no one else is, but that’s tough. I have to admit, I’m surprised the other kids get away with it …

Lynda is the mom of three and co-host of Mix 101.5 WRAL-FM's Bill & Lynda in the Morning. Find her here on Thursdays. Click here to like her on Facebook.

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jpittard2- you are a blessing!

computer trainer
December 22, 2012 4:14 p.m.

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Lynda, stick to it!! Last year, my grandson went to deliver something to a neighbor. It was just around the corner, but of course, he took his bike, and even though it was dark out, NO HELMET. On the way home, he had an accident. He still does not know what happened. He was riding on the sidewalk, but somehow he lost control of the bike and down he went, hitting his head. A neighbor happened to go out and saw him lying there. Went and got my son and they wound up taking him to the hospital. Finally got home around 3 AM, with a HORRIBLE headache. Had to see a Neuro the next day. For over a month could not do much of anything. No video games, no bike, no PE NOTHING. In fact, had to have his OWN chaperone for the school trip to the State Fair. Nothing like having your grandfather around when all the girls are trying to mother you. I hope that he learned his lesson. I can tell you that he did try to ride a scooter without it. BIG CHEWING!!!!

computer trainer
December 22, 2012 4:11 p.m.

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Linda...Yoy are awesome, I have always admired your tenacity, you are my hero.

ndcuskue
December 21, 2012 10:59 p.m.

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As a Speech Path. working with children with neurological damage as the result of head trauma, some that could have been prevented by wearing helmets, I talked with the parents on my street about the need for kids to wear helmets. Only 1 family followed through and their 8 yr old daughter was teased by the other kids because she had to wear a helmet. Having heard enough, I walked down to my mailbox and told her that I was glad that her mother loved her brain so much that she wanted to protect it. One of the other kids asked me what I meant. After I explained why the 1st mother loved her brain, the child ran to her mother asking why she did not love her brain as much as the other girl's mom loved her brain. It took about 2 weeks of complementing the kids when their moms loved their brains enough to get them helmets until all kids were wearing helmets. Later that summer, 1 child lost control of his bike and was clipped by a car. Helmet cracked, child was fine. Helmets ruled all summer!

jpittard2
December 20, 2012 8:44 p.m.

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I admire your tenacity, raising children is a very difficult adventure. I used to tell my girls that I made the wear a helmut because I "loved them" more. It may not have been the correct way to go about it but they did not take their helmet's off. Keep plugging away Linda.

lgeorgevich
December 20, 2012 11:48 a.m.

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YOU GO LINDA - don't back off! My kids and grandkids know this rule and pretty much stand by it so much so that if they have a guest they tell them in advance they can't come over without a helmet. But just in case, we keep a couple of spares in the garage.

Raleighnative58
December 20, 2012 11:46 a.m.

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Why are the helmets so darn geeky looking?? Its almost 2013 for goodness sake! I mean they try to make them cool...but slapping a fake mohawk on it does not make it look any cooler. Don't get me wrong...I make my son wear his anytime he is on a scooter or bike...but he does look geeky. I didn't ever wear helmets growing up.

Bklyn2Raleigh
December 20, 2012 11:17 a.m.

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Good for you in many ways - first of all by teaching your kids that rules are for a reason and no matter what they should be followed - the other for being a mom that checks on her kids to see how they are doing and if they are actually following your rules - you mentioned you are surprised others get away with it, but how many moms actually know their kids are getting away with it. I always tell my 3 kids - you are MY kid, I don't want anything to happen to YOU - you are what matters - good job!

katizs
December 20, 2012 10:20 a.m.

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Stick to your rule on this one. Fast forward to driving age and he's riding in a car with his friends. It's not cool to wear a seat belt in the back seat but it sure will go a long way toward saving his life. Forget cool. Life, Health and Safety are much more important!!!

4.13
December 20, 2012 10:03 a.m.

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I must say, working in an ER you see stuff that you always compare to "what if that was my kid". While my daughter is not old enough to ride her bike yet I always use examples of what I have seen to by brothers and sisters who do not like wearing helmets, or wearing their seat belts properly. I think the seatbelt thing is my biggest pet peeve, seeing them and other other kids putting them on wrong. It'll them they might as well take it off because it is going to them no good in a wreck. I am not sure how old he is but maybe if you look up a news story of a child being killed or seriously injured on a bike that would open his eyes up to how important it is. Kids are so desensitized to death these days because of video games and things, they don't realize what kind of consequences their actions may have.

johnnagrabowski
December 20, 2012 9:26 a.m.

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Lynda Loveland: Helmet? Heck yeah!

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