Yes, I rode to work today.
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| 0700CST |
Often on Monday mornings getting inside the Courthouse can be rather hectic. Some Mondays are worse than others. Today was such a day. People were lined up reporting for jury duty, employees were attempting to enter, and the deputies were trying to ride herd on it all. One of the deputies saw me and waved me up to the front of the line. This is normal operating procedure. I cleared security and grabbed my backpack as it cleared the imaging machine. There were people all over. I moved toward the elevators doing my usual morning organizing juggle with helmet and backpack. I'm not really sure exactly what happened next. I think I was bumped, but I'd not swear to it. I know a deputy stopped directly in front of me and began directing people traffic and this caused me to stop rather abruptly. Whatever happened the result was me helplessly feeling my helmet slip out of my hand from above waist level and fall onto to the very solid marble floor. It made a very loud sound as it hit. Not good. As I picked my helmet up I noticed a small piece of plastic on the floor. It looked like a tooth from the latch of a backpack. I gathered it up just in case it was from my helmet hoping it wasn't.
When I got upstairs to my work area I checked over the helmet. I couldn't find any evidence it had been compromised by the fall. There wasn't even a scratch, nor could I find any broken plastic trim pieces. Now I found myself looking directly into the face of a quandary. I knew the wise thing to do would be just replace it, but it is less than a year old and I really like this helmet.
I emailed Heather about what had happened. She responded, "Sounds like there's a new helmet on the way." Fortunately, later as I was looking the helmet over again yet again I found where that piece of plastic came from. Mine is a modular helmet and the little plastic tongue I'd found was one of the posts which secures the chin bar to the rest of the helmet. I say fortunately, because I was leaning toward just sort of pretending the drop hadn't happened. I don't think this would have been a very strong choice.
When I got home tonight I did two things. I ordered a new helmet and I got my GMAX back down, cleaned the faceshield, and refit the fogEvader to my face. I know it was the smart thing to do, still....
- 35F/2C and cloudy for the ride to work.
- 51F/11C and mostly cloudy for the ride home.
It would have personally been a very tough choice....I'm glad that you chose what you did.
ReplyDeleteI can be so frugal at times and at other times will spend money for things I want but don't need. I've no doubt it was the correct choice.
DeleteBest to be prudent and err on the side of caution.
ReplyDeleteAs hard as it is to let the helmet go when only a year old, your head is priceless.
Maybe you can use the old helmet as a planter on your balcony. I am thinking of doing that with my old Scorpion.
Before I can us the old helmet as a planter I'd need a balcony or at least a patio. Alas, I have neither.
DeleteI dislike it but even if mine fall off a bike, Pete cuts the straps the minute we get home. Decision made :)
ReplyDeleteYou'd think with my history this would have been an easy choice. Looking back on it I'm surprised how difficult it was.
DeleteGlad you made that choice, because the inner shock absorber was probably toast. My HJC was toasted when I was attempting to take it off the useless helmet hook on my bike and bobbled, it smashed on the concrete and toasted the face shield. It was officially done after that fall. They say even a fall from 3 feet will ruin the helmet. Your Heather is a wise woman and I am glad you bought a new helmet for your melon.
ReplyDeleteIf it was just me I would keep on wearing the slightly bumped helmet :)
ReplyDelete