CALIFORNIA - CHP urging motorcycle safety after string of local crashes

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http://www.ksby.com/news/chp-urging-motorcycle-safety-after-string-of-local-crashes/
CHP urging motorcycle safety after string of local crashes

 by Kelly Orsini, KSBY News

The California Highway Patrol is warning all drivers about motorcycle safety after a string of bad crashes locally. The CHP says there have been two major-injury motorcycle crashes and two fatal motorcycle crashes in just the past few weeks on the Central Coast. The CHP says this time of year, the nice weather means more motorcyclists on the roads, so officers are asking everyone to put safety first. The main message -- all helmets are not the same.
Carrie Zimmerman knows all too well the importance of putting safety first when it comes to motorcycles.
"The difference is life and death," Zimmerman said, "I've lost my brother on a motorcycle who did not have a helmet on and he {had} head trauma. And I've lost an uncle for the same reason."
It's why the CHP is at the Santa Barbara County Fair, educating people about the safe way to ride.
"The risk versus gain is do you want to live and be safe? Or do you want to potentially compromise your safety and risk possibly a fatal injury because you want to be comfortable," said CHP officer Rob Wallace.
In one recent crash, the rider was wearing a novelty helmet some choose to wear based on looks or comfort. CHP officers are showing people at the fair the different between a novelty helmet and certified helmet.
"The legal helmet with all the styrofoam in it protects the head from trauma, then he showed us novelty helmet which has zero protection it's just for looks and if you get in an accident and hit your head with it you might as well say goodbye," Zimmerman said.
It's a message that riders like San Luis Obispo resident Nathan Wells already take to heart.
"I don't want to get something cheap and fall and break my noggin open, so something that's going to keep me safe and looks alright at the same time," Wells said.