June 13 Notebook
June 13, 2006 05:33 PM | General
June 13, 2006
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – From all reports it appears Ben Roethlisberger is a lucky man today. The quarterback of the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers was seriously injured in a Monday morning motorcycle accident in downtown Pittsburgh.
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| The motorcycle Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers' quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was riding when he collided with an automobile, is shown on the back of tow truck in Pittsburgh on Monday, June 12, 2006. Roethlisberger was injured in a motorcycle crash and taken to a hospital Monday morning, and a pool of blood was found at the accident site.
AP Photo/Keith Srakocic |
The 24-year-old quarterback suffered multiple facial fractures and was in serious but stable condition at Mercy Hospital after undergoing seven hours of surgery. He was not wearing a helmet when his 2005 Suzuki Hayabusa collided with a car on Second Avenue near the 10th Street Bridge. According to Pennsylvania law, riders 21 and older can choose not to wear helmets.
But today, the message most seem to be getting from Roethlisberger’s misfortune is that you need to wear your helmet when riding a motorcycle.
“I don’t really want to mess with that stuff,” said West Virginia University senior linebacker Bobby Hathaway. “It’s pretty crazy not having a helmet on and doing something like that.”
“It probably wasn’t his best decision,” added fullback Owen Schmitt. “I guess him and Terry Bradshaw got into an argument about it. He probably wouldn’t have had to get reconstructive surgery on his face if he was wearing one.”
Schmitt says he owns a little 50-CC pocket bike that he rides around campus.
“It goes about 40,” he said. “It’s something you just take around in the parking lot or something.”
Being a Green Bay Packers fan, Schmitt says he would have been upset if Brett Favre would had gotten hurt riding his motorcycle during the off-season.
“I would be mad if I was a Steelers fan,” Schmitt said. “They had just won a Super Bowl and they have a chance to do it again so who knows how he’ll respond? I’m sure having your head go through a windshield doesn’t feel too good.”
Sophomore wide receiver Jeremy Bruce rode bikes when he was in high school and he says he would never consider getting on one without a helmet.
“I don’t care if it’s not the law you have to wear a helmet at the very least,” Bruce said.
Senior offensive guard Dan Mozes admits football players are risk takers by nature, but says you can still take precautions and reduce some of those risks.
“You can’t live your life in a bubble,” he said. “My dad rides bikes and he lives in Pa and he wears a helmet. By wearing one it could have saved what happened to (Roethlisberger's) head and his face -- or even his life.”
Roethlisberger’s accident isn’t the first time a professional athlete has been injured riding a motorcycle. Cleveland Browns tight end Kellen Winslow Jr. tore knee ligaments during a 2005 motorcycle accident that caused him to miss the entire season. In 2003, Duke All-American guard Jason Williams suffered serious injuries to his leg and pelvis after crashing his bike. He has yet to make a full recovery.
According to Mozes, West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez hasn’t spoken specifically to the team about the dangers of riding motorcycles without helmets. But the coach does talk frequently to his players about making the right choices and the consequences of not making the right decisions.
Mozes thinks local high school coaches may start demanding their players stay off them.
“Especially in this area, kids who ride motorcycles their coaches may not be allowing that,” Mozes said.
It would seem simple for states to mandate the use of helmets, but some politicians say wearing helmets are detrimental to tourism.
“You can wear a half-cage helmet at least,” says Schmitt. “I think a lot of it has to do with style.”
“I think every state should have a law regarding helmets -- they save lives,” Mozes added.
Of course the irony is that while Roethlisberger’s job requires that he must wear a helmet, it is perfectly legal for him to ride his motorcycle 65 mph on the Parkway East without one.
“It’s not like he did anything wrong -- it was just a freak accident,” Schmitt said. “But at the same time I guess you have to take precautions.”
As for West Virginia’s Patrick White and Steve Slaton, Mountaineer fans can breathe easy. Neither own motorcycles. Slaton says he once rode on the back of one with his older brother but he was wearing a helmet.
“I had to,” Slaton said. “My mother wouldn’t let me ride on it without one.”
