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The Importance Of Bicycle And Helmet Safety

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People ride bikes for various reasons. Some people ride bikes for fitness purposes, some ride bikes to get from place to place, and some ride bikes to clear their mind after having a long day. Whether you ride for fun or for sport it is important to know the factors that go into bicycle and helmet safety. A study in 2014 shows that 103.7 million people rode a bike that year and 34 percent of Americans age three or older rode a bike at least once in that year (“Study: 103.7 Million Americans Ride Bikes”). The importance of bicycle safety cannot be underestimated. According to the 2008 Alabama Traffic Crash Facts, there were 182 bicycle crash injuries and four fatalities. In 2008, children 14 and under accounted for 27% of the bicycle crash injuries. Bicycle helmets are 85% - 88% effective in preventing head and brain injuries; however, only 20% - 25% of all bicyclists wear bicycle helmets (“Bicycle Safety”). One of the first factors that go into bicycle and helmet safety is learning how to ride a bike. Many people learn how to ride a bike when they are four or five years old and some do not learn until they are older (Donaldson). Learning how to ride a bike is the first and most important step because without knowing how to ride a bike you will not know what type of bike you will need.
The first step when learning how to ride a bike is to make sure you are in a suitable location. Starting off on grass or smooth gravel helps since falls there hurt less. These surfaces make

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