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I disagree. Its probably more about lower speeds associated with casual riders. But, people, especially kids, are unpredictable. I once literally ran over a bo

I disagree. Its probably more about lower speeds associated with casual riders. But, people, especially kids, are unpredictable. I once literally ran over a boy around 12 years old on a bike path in the US. He was riding with a younger sibling and his father riding head on at me. They were riding inline on the right side (their right), with the kid I ran over in front. Just seconds before we were going to ride past each other (I was also on my right side of the path), the kid swerved directly across me, and dumped his bike. I literally had no time to respond, and rode right over him. I was on my mountain bike at the time, and the bike just thought it was a bump. Kid was fine, maybe a bit of road rash, dad was pissed at me. Something along the likes of "WTF are you doing riding recklessly and hitting my kid?". The real WTF was like "did you not see what I saw? You kid swerved in front of me and dumped his bike." Dad was so irate I got to the point quickly of: I'm done talking with about this, whats your insurance amd I'm going to call the police to sort this out (my bike had a little bit of damage like a dinged wheel and a bent pedal from it). To this day, dont know if he was running a scam or just had a moron for a son, but as soon as I threatened to bring the cops in, the dad dropped it and went on their way.

seanmcdirmid 7y ago
When I lived in China, someone swerving unexpectedly into traffic was just very normal, drivers and bikers all drove very defensively as a result. At any rate, I think helmet use is required for kids in the Netherlands.
- rossjudson 7y ago
  I had a Chinese driver's license for a while, and did a little driving there over about a month. I had a simple rule when driving. At every moment in time, imagine the most asinine/ignorant thing every driver around you could possibly do. And that is what they will do. But. They will do it slowly. So when somebody just merges straight into you while you're in the straight lane, they'll just ease it over slow enough that you can react. They'll cut directly across from the left lane to the right lane, ignoring the lights, to make the turn they feel like making. And run over a little old lady in the process, and scream at her body. I was all like "I know the rules, I'll follow the rules", and I'd do batshit insane things like stop for pedestrians because they had the right of way. They'd look at me like I was a serial killer just waiting for my chance, usually until they noticed I wasn't from around there. Then they'd laugh at me and walk. China has great rules of the road. Nobody follows them.
- henryackerman 7y ago
  > At any rate, I think helmet use is required for kids in the Netherlands. I'm from the Netherlands, and unfortunately wearing a helmet is not required for anyone. I don't always wear a helmet, for me it depends on the ride. I wear my helmet when I ride fast or through a busy city.

seanmcdirmid 7y ago

When I lived in China, someone swerving unexpectedly into traffic was just very normal, drivers and bikers all drove very defensively as a result. At any rate, I think helmet use is required for kids in the Netherlands.

rossjudson 7y ago
I had a Chinese driver's license for a while, and did a little driving there over about a month. I had a simple rule when driving. At every moment in time, imagine the most asinine/ignorant thing every driver around you could possibly do. And that is what they will do. But. They will do it slowly. So when somebody just merges straight into you while you're in the straight lane, they'll just ease it over slow enough that you can react. They'll cut directly across from the left lane to the right lane, ignoring the lights, to make the turn they feel like making. And run over a little old lady in the process, and scream at her body. I was all like "I know the rules, I'll follow the rules", and I'd do batshit insane things like stop for pedestrians because they had the right of way. They'd look at me like I was a serial killer just waiting for my chance, usually until they noticed I wasn't from around there. Then they'd laugh at me and walk. China has great rules of the road. Nobody follows them.
henryackerman 7y ago
> At any rate, I think helmet use is required for kids in the Netherlands. I'm from the Netherlands, and unfortunately wearing a helmet is not required for anyone. I don't always wear a helmet, for me it depends on the ride. I wear my helmet when I ride fast or through a busy city.