Over the past 6-8 months, I have gotten very involved in the BMX biking world as my oldest has taken to the sport and loving it.  I think that getting kids involved in BMX biking is a great idea for parents as it is by far the best way to learn bike handling.  With the rhythm sections helping with controlling handlebars over bumps and the banked turns helping to teach kids to stear the bike by leaning and weight shifting rather than turning the handle bars.  They also learn how to control speed and ride in close confines of others.  In just six months, my son Kennan  is handling his bike better than many adults. 

The cycling community has its own culture and mindset.  Within the overarching cycling community falls the niche of BMX.  From my experience in BMX, there is pushed to appear “tough”, “rugged, “unstoppable” and “never give up.”  Some of these traits are very positive at times to teach to our children as it will help them in many other aspects of life.  This persona shows itself when I have attended BMX races and see riders competing despite having compression fractures in their spine, recently placed pins in their fingers and other seemingly major injuries.   Riders in BMX are taught also to get up and finish races no matter what.  This further amplifies the above culture. 

The above paragraph was not meant to bash or defame the culture of BMX.  It is a tough sport and often a dangerous sport when at higher levels.  To succeed in this sport, one must demonstrate some of the above traits. 

There is however one aspect of the sport that is pervasive and of great concern to me.  The importance and enforcement of use of helmets always is downplayed and downright shocking to me.  I regularly attend BMX practices and BMX races where little kids and adults are riding around outside the tract without helmets as well as riding in parking lots over jumps without helmets.  There is seemingly no concern over this, and it seems as though it is often encouraged.  I don’t know if the practice of riding without a helmet is acceptable because there is a belief that this further strengthens the culture of “toughness” and “going rogue.,” but this can’t be further from the truth. 

I know too many people that have gotten in crashes and suffered concussions, brain injury and even have been paralyzed.  The practice of not wearing a helmet does not symbolize “toughness” but rather stupidity.  It only takes one car to not see a little child in the parking lot while backing out or one mishap on a ramp to drastically change a life forever.

As most of you know my background originally began with the sport of triathlon but I got connected into cycling culture as I raced internationally in Para-Cycling and in the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. In triathlon, the rules about helmets are very strict.  If anyone is seen by an official not wearing their helmeet while on a bike around the race venue they are automatically disqualified.  This means, if you are in the parking lot or on a running path that leads to the course, etc.  If you haven’t started your event than you don’t start your event.  There are no exceptions, and everyone is aware of these rules.  Also, during any triathlon practice or training, it is mandated that all individuals always wear their helmeets.   There is also much more of a viewpoint that an accident or injury could happen at any time and therefore helmets must be worn.  The key is that the precedent or expectation is set from those at the top.  Unless those organizing and regulating the events make a hard stand on this than the culture will not change. 

My CALL FOR CHANGE to USA BMX is to make a hard stance and always enforce the wearing of helmets while on a bike.  Will it take a child to get hit and killed or to have a traumatic brain injury for those regulating this sport to realize the importance of helmets?  It’s great that they require helmets during competition and while on the track, but we all know that often times serious accidents happen when we don’t expect them or when we have let down our level of focus and situational awareness.   The requirement to wear  a helmet needs to be enforced  anywhere  at the race venue and the importance of wearing a helmet whenever on a bike needs to be reinforced beginning with our kids at young ages. 

With this all said, I am not asking for BMX to change their culture or change who they are as a sport.  I am only asking that the governing body of the sport make a stance on the importance of helmets and make strict policies that demonstrate the seriousness of the stance.  When participants begin getting disqualified or not allowed to race because they were in the parking lot riding without a helmet, they will quickly change their actions and put on a helmet. 

This is my CALL TO CHANGE, and I hope there would be overwhelming support by all of the BMX and Cycling community.