I don't require my boys (7 and 4) to wear helmets when operating their scooters or bicycles, unless we're leaving the cul-de-sac. My oldest got his first Swiss Army Knife at age 6 as well. He's not allowed to use it around other kids, though, and every potentially dangerous tool he's allowed to use comes with thorough instruction. If they abuse it, they lose it. They're going to get their hands on them sooner than later, so why not be proactive about it.

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The devil made me do it the first time, second time I done it on my own - W

That is hilarious and I can picture most children in those situations doing that.

You should be happy that he doesn't try and pawn it off at a local market ;)

Regarding wearing it, agree with the others that in a campus environment the peer pressure, or perception, will make it harder for him to use it.

I've heard a lot of comments about when we were younger we didn't wear them and were fine. In my situation, back then the helmets were incredibly dorky looking. Plain looking buckets. We got bought ones that looked like construction hard hats. But it was also not compulsory back then whereas locally it is now. I see a lot of people dressed for work commuting whilst carrying a helmet on their bike. WTF? Likely they don't want messy hair. But I don't get their thought process. Given the local legalities, do they think the cops will let them off because they are carrying it, or that they will spot the cops a mile off and quickly put it on? At least if they leave it at home they can try and say they were in a rush and forgot, or that it got stolen yesterday.

There was a time when seatbelt use was also not compulsory. Most people didn't die then either. I feel uncomfortably exposed these days if I ride a bike without a helmet (taking off and forgetting) and likewise not wearing a seat belt.

My son is younger than yours and at least wears his helmet. Getting him to put on sunscreen however is a whole other story. It's like I'm asking him to take a suppository!

My guess it's them deceiving their partner/wife/husband.

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#WeAreTheForge #BlackGunsMatter

"Look, will you guys at leats accept that you are a bunch of dumb asses and just trust me on this one? Please?" BarryP 7/30/2012

I got hit by a car while commuting at 10mph and broke my helmit in half. I would have been f'ed.

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Don't hold back

lol. That's what I'm talking about.
My son is a track star, does a half mile under 2 min. When he says he's getting fast on the bike , he s probably pushing 40 mph at times. And he likes to drink.

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sometimes

I'm not sure how helpful it is, but when I was 19 and bought my first road bike with money from a summer job my Mum discovered (from looking at my bike computer) that I'd been hitting speeds >40mph. She promptly bought me a lock and a helmet. Only catch being that the lock was already on the bike and she refused to give me the key until I promised her I would wear the helmet whenever I was riding fast.

It kind of worked. I wore it when I was out training, but never wore it for getting around on campus, shopping, etc. But it did plant a seed that I probably ought to be wearing it more and I felt a bit guilty not wearing it, and when a few years later I started getting into triathlons and doing more organised group rides where helmets were either common or compulsory then I started wearing it all the time.

It will be interesting seeing how things change in the next 10 years. Kids these days (including ours, aged 4 and 6) nearly all wear helmets for activities like cycling and skiing that I never did when I was their age. I suspect that when they're teenagers then wearing helmets will be such second nature to them that there'll no longer be a cool factor to not wearing one.

I never (rarely) wore a seatbelt in my 1990 civic hatch, but the night a did decide to wear it, I was hit head on by a drunk driver. Sad thing is, I had also been drinking which was a big reason why I decided to wear it. Tell your son that if he were to ever get in an accident and become hospitalised, he will forever regret his stupidity and that he shouldn't wait for something bad to happen in order for him to wear it. Without a doubt, he will crash sooner or later and even if he isn't seriously hurt, he will probably wear a helmet from that point on. Sounds like he is gambling with his life in order to look cool.