James_B_Wads2000
03-21-2005, 04:22 PM
After recieving several reprimands for my pictures without helmets from my latest adventures, I'm tempted to get pissy-- it should be known that I am an indendendent, prideful dude and I hate unsolicited advice or censure, however sage it may be (just ask my dad)-- but I won't, because you have a point. However, folks should realize that wearing a helmet is a personal choice and you shouldn't feel obligated to tell everyone without one how wrong they are and consider them an idiot as long as they are making an informed adult decision not to. Be warned, what started as a simple post has turned into quite the blathering exposition.
I know I should wear a helmet and I actually usually do. However, of all the canyoneering I did this week, the only canyon I wore one for was Mindbender. Now y'all are making me feel guilty, but honestly, before I started reading these egroups, I've always done a lot of scrambling, climbing, and exploring that has exposed me to the same dangers of canyoneering and never given helmets a second thought.
Why I didn't wear a helmet on Bluejohn? Given the large amounts of hiking in the sun that day (12 miles), and the very short amounts of technical slot we were going to do, I decided to excercise my freedom not to wear a helmet on this one, and took my favorite hat. ;0 I consider this to probably be among the least technical of the class 3 canyons I've done, and I chose to leave the extra weight at home. Personally, I assess the canyon before I go in and decide wether or not I'm taking the helmet. Honestly, about 80% of the time I do. I imagine most people do this, but they just have different thresholds of when they put the helmet on. Do you wear a helmet in the Subway? Orderville? The Narrows? The point: YMMV. Everyone has a personal preference, and unless you are a guide book author-- in which case you're justly obligated to tell everyone to use helmets-- you're preference shouldn't be the standard by which you judge others. I know for a fact that there are very skilled canyoneers out there that rarely or never use helmets. I bet that really bugs some of you, but I don't think it should. That would be like me getting bugged by all of you that decide to destroy your livers and lungs with the popular addictions of today... I'd rather just let it go, and chances are I won't be lecturing you about the dangers of doing X potentially harmful thing any time soon because you already know.
I see helmets in the same way that I see seatbelts, it could be the difference between life and death or the difference between serious injury and no injury at all. An example why helmets are important:
http://www.climb-utah.com/Powell/leprechaun2.htm
After taking some newbies sans helmets on some easy technical routes this weekend in Moab (feeling guilty about that too), I told them if they ever plan on going canyoneering again, the first thing they should buy is a helmet. I imagine the one or two that are now considering it as a potential hobby will take my advice.
Benny R
Dude
I know I should wear a helmet and I actually usually do. However, of all the canyoneering I did this week, the only canyon I wore one for was Mindbender. Now y'all are making me feel guilty, but honestly, before I started reading these egroups, I've always done a lot of scrambling, climbing, and exploring that has exposed me to the same dangers of canyoneering and never given helmets a second thought.
Why I didn't wear a helmet on Bluejohn? Given the large amounts of hiking in the sun that day (12 miles), and the very short amounts of technical slot we were going to do, I decided to excercise my freedom not to wear a helmet on this one, and took my favorite hat. ;0 I consider this to probably be among the least technical of the class 3 canyons I've done, and I chose to leave the extra weight at home. Personally, I assess the canyon before I go in and decide wether or not I'm taking the helmet. Honestly, about 80% of the time I do. I imagine most people do this, but they just have different thresholds of when they put the helmet on. Do you wear a helmet in the Subway? Orderville? The Narrows? The point: YMMV. Everyone has a personal preference, and unless you are a guide book author-- in which case you're justly obligated to tell everyone to use helmets-- you're preference shouldn't be the standard by which you judge others. I know for a fact that there are very skilled canyoneers out there that rarely or never use helmets. I bet that really bugs some of you, but I don't think it should. That would be like me getting bugged by all of you that decide to destroy your livers and lungs with the popular addictions of today... I'd rather just let it go, and chances are I won't be lecturing you about the dangers of doing X potentially harmful thing any time soon because you already know.
I see helmets in the same way that I see seatbelts, it could be the difference between life and death or the difference between serious injury and no injury at all. An example why helmets are important:
http://www.climb-utah.com/Powell/leprechaun2.htm
After taking some newbies sans helmets on some easy technical routes this weekend in Moab (feeling guilty about that too), I told them if they ever plan on going canyoneering again, the first thing they should buy is a helmet. I imagine the one or two that are now considering it as a potential hobby will take my advice.
Benny R
Dude