Do Yourself A Favor, Wear A Helmet
The quarterback for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Ben Roethlisberger, has been injured in a motorcycle accident. Reports indicate he was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.
Roethlisberger was in serious but stable condition, said Dr. Larry Jones, chief of trauma at Mercy Hospital.
"He was talking to me before he left for the operating room," Jones said before the operation. "He's coherent. He's making sense. He knows what happened. He knows where he is. From that standpoint, he's very stable."
One Steelers source told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that Roethlisberger was in surgery for a broken jaw, an injury that can take approximately seven weeks to heal. The Steelers season starts in 12 weeks.
The 24-year-old Roethlisberger likes to ride without a helmet, a habit that once prompted coach Bill Cowher to lecture him on the dangers.
I've known several people who were spared very serious injuries by wearing helmets while riding motorcycles. I also known one person who was wearing a helmet but died anyway (But she did not die from head injuries, rather from other internal injuries). Do yourself a favor, wear a helmet. There are some risks that are just not worth taking.
Our best wishes go out to Roethlisberger.
UPDATE: Pittsburgh Trib media is reporting the following list of injuries:
Roethlisberger lost most of his teeth, fractured his left sinus cavity bone, suffered a nine-inch laceration to the back of his head and a broken jaw, and injured both of his knees when he hit the ground, police said.
I wouldn't count on him for this season, I think.
UPDATE: The surgery is reported to have lasted seven hours, but doctors are calling it a success.
By PoliticalCritic, Monday, 12 June , 2006 @ 1:45 pm
Hopefully this will get the state to pass a helmet law. Roethlisberger is one of the most well known people in the state and it sounds as though his face is going to need some major reconstruction. I wish him well.
By Gaius, Monday, 12 June , 2006 @ 1:47 pm
I’m not much for helmet laws. If people truly want to be stupid, by all means let them.
By Black Jack, Monday, 12 June , 2006 @ 2:03 pm
“Do yourself a favor” and don’t ride Murdercycles. Oh, it’s rather exciting for a while, so long as it doesn’t rain, but the price of that temporary fun can be much higher than you can possibly imagine.