SWAN LAKE PALACE PLEA
ALMOST two weeks after the stack the scooter is permanently parked in the garage. Discovering the helmet was later dumped in the car boot, that was a surprise. Not so much the blood but the small dent on the side.
More surprising was later at the Broadwater Parklands, watching the riders along the paths. Almost all of the cyclists wore helmets. Few scooter riders had protective gear.
Your columnist rarely journeys into the personal life but join me on my brief ride prompted because a mate had a rare one-hour window for a catch-up at the tavern.
The most sensible transport option seemed to be to ride down on one of my youngster’s mini scooters and organise for a lift home.
My wife, Lauren, in what would prove a critical moment found me exiting at the gate.
“I hope you are going to wear your helmet,” she said.
Another friend would bluntly make this observation. “At least we know there is one adult in your household”.
Riding down the road in our quiet cul-de-sac, checking the brakes, smooth.
A quick turn to the right is the down run on main road. The best option is the footpath.
There is no warning, or a chance to get your hands forward. Some days later, when your mind wanders, you might hear the ringing of a single bass drum beat. This is the thud from landing.
You rip your shirt off to stop the bleeding, call home on the mobile phone. Your GP at the Hinterland Medical Centre at Nerang performs some excellent repair work. everything seemed
More sobering than not having the beer was realising what might have happened from the force of the fall without a helmet.
A stormwater drain in the middle of the footpath had a small gap, disguised by grass clippings. The wheel of the scooter was pinned tossing me forward and fast.
Back to the Parklands, thinking about the accident and the scooters are travelling as fast as bikes. A Google search reveals they can reach 25km/h.
A study by Waikato University considered hospital data and surveyed teens, finding injuries were escalating while only three per cent of riders use protective gear.
The recommendations were kids under eight years needed supervision by adults. Riders at night should not be using roads or footpaths. There was no reference to 56-year-olds.
Further searches show in NSW for child accidents during 2014-16 there were 60 fatalities and 20,000 kids hospitalised, most of them due to falls.
A check of Queensland laws finds only a recommendation to wear protective gear. A copper told me: “We’d like to police it but we can’t. It’s only cyclists who have to wear a helmet.”
My research shows when you are catapulted off a scooter, you bounce off your nose.
If you wear a helmet, you will quickly heal and within three days your sense of humour will return.
My only future teenage venture will be to my dentist who has recommended braces so he can stabilise, straighten and fill in a gap, almost as wide as the one on that pavement. BUCKINGHAM Palace has been asked to intervene in the Black Swan Lake saga at Bundall. Email correspondence from the British High Commission suggests Herman Majesty’s Swan Marker was contacted by a Coast resident wanting to stop council from filling in the lake for a car park.
“As you may know, Her Majesty’s Government has a particular interest in the welfare of swans,” British High Commission Menna Rawlings wrote. “Unfortunately, we are not in a position to intervene in Australian local government matters. I sympathise with the plight of the local fauna, and would hope that you and the local community take steps to ensure safe and sustainable relocations of the swans.”