Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Seatbelts, Do you wear them, or not !

Jilles Villenueves car (1982) dissipated its energy through destruction , but he still defied his 6 point racing harness
to jettison- become airborne. ( freeze video at 20 sec to see him)

FIA faced stiff opposition from drivers about mandatory wearing of seat belts, as a result the rules on belts
were lapsed and tardy....the much safer six-point harness was not in F1 until mid-1970's.

In cases like Roland Ratzenberger 1994 at Imola, being held by a harness vs flying out - would make zero difference.

My grandfather told me:

"The one's who don't wear a seat belt -
Are the one's who wear a sheep belt."

Hope your friends heal up well, but I think they made a bad decision. I used to have my kids convinced the car wouldn’t go into gear without the belts being buckled. Buckling has saved my life or limb several times

Old 70

I always wear a seatbelt and feel weird not wearing one. Years back the WSP had a public infomercial where a state trooper said he’d never cut a dead person from their seatbelt which maybe for him was the truth but in reality I’ve cut many dead people out of their seatbelt. That doesn’t change the fact that seatbelts save lives. I still don’t like the law that requires ADULTS to be required to wear one just like I hate helmet laws for adults. The idea that it saves the taxpayers is pure unadulterated bullshitt since everyone is required to maintain vehicle insurance and usually also have private insurance.

Children are an entirely different matter and I believe they should be required to wear one at all times when underway. My son is just starting driving and if I catch him not buckled then he loses the privilege of driving. My trucks my rules.

I have been on many calls where there’s no doubt that the seatbelt saved grievous bodily injury or death. Seatbelts significantly reduce the likelihood of ejection and those are never a good outcome.

I cut one guy out of his seatbelt but his head was absent from his body. He fell asleep, over corrected and his head went thru the sun roof while the car skidded a hundred plus yards on its roof. It looked like someone painted an 8 inch red line across the hiway where his head was ground off.

Most motorcycle accident fatalities wouldn’t have changed the outcome either way.

To all who don't wear them, thank you. I work full time as a flight nurse. Sometimes it's exciting to go on a "good" call.

Yes. Every time.

I lost my brother in a low speed head-on with a cement truck. It happened in his neighborhood at a combined speed of about 25 on an icy curve. He was wearing his belt. It damn near saved him. The bruises on his shoulder were a testimony to that fact. He lasted a week, but the swelling in the brain was too much. His Jeep Cherokee did not have airbags like the following model year did. 80,000 pounds of cement and steel was about 20" over the line. It doesn't take much. It happened 11 years ago today.

I believe it is an aortic tear. Body stops, internal organs continue moving forward (i.e. the heart) stretching and sometimes tearing the feeds to the heart. When I was a reserve cop we worked a wreck on a sunny Saturday afternoon. Simple fender bender, left turn in front of someone else, speeds maybe 30mph. Both parties out of their cars and talking when we arrived . One driver wasn’t wearing a belt but said he was OK. Refused medical attention ride to hospital which was literally 500 yards away. He just wanted to go home and rest.

Yep - you guessed it. We get a welfare check callout to his residence a few hours later. Bring the meat wagon, boy done died- bled out internally. An afternoon in the hospital instead of going home changed his fate forever.

There can be government laws that serve no legitimate purpose. Seat belt and helmet laws are not in that realm. They are common sense safety laws that save lives every day and have a minuscule negative effect on our personal freedom. It is one thing to have the freedom to do something stupid that can harm you. But it is another thing when your act of freedom costs the rest of us money in extra car and medical insurance costs or hurts those we love. Others might consider this the price of freedom, not me. So on my end I do not want my kids to even think they should have the freedom to not wear a seat belt or a motorcycle helmet.

Seatbelt and helmet laws are a revenue maker.

Wear them all the time, and make sure all passengers do as well.

Try to, and do wear em most all the time now, first time in 55 years, back last fall when a OHP Trooper fastened my belt for me and said, it may save your life, I saw true concern in his eyes.

I was headed to the Doc for a CT/MRI? scan for a rorotor cuff tear, couldn't have fastened that belt if I tried.

Agreed..

But my son and his wife always wear theirs - and always wear helmets on the bike.. Bless 'em..

We have a lot of comments on helmet laws. I've heard many guys say the wear them on the highway but not in town (where legal). That's backwards. If you lay one over at 60, most likely you're toast helmet or not. In town at low speeds is where they'll save you. At 20 mph, hitting your head on a curb or pavement is going to do some real damage.