Seriously, What Happened to Helmets?

Independence Isn’t the Same as Invincibility

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The day after Christmas, my neighborhood looked like a COTA test track run by Haas peewee drivers who just figured out how to steer. Kids on brand-new bikes, scooters, and sketchy electric whatevers were flying down the street on their maiden voyages. I was driving through thinking, How fun is this? Quickly followed by, Didn’t Santa deliver helmets, too?

At first, I figured it was post-holiday bliss—a one-day free-for-all. New gear, empty streets, sugar highs. Made sense. But what looked like a fluke turned out to be business as usual. Not wearing helmets wasn’t a glitch—it’s the norm now.

I’m not talking about the occasional kid who “forgot” their helmet in the garage—or wherever helmets go to be ignored. I’m talking about a full-blown, helmetless uprising.

These kids—many clearly unfamiliar with the capabilities of their shiny rides—are zipping around like stunt doubles in a Fast & Furious movie, weaving between sidewalks and roads, blowing through stop signs, cutting blind corners, and wobbling at speeds better suited for the Tour de France.

I’m not sure how I missed it before. But since then, I can’t unsee it. Every weekday at 3:30, the school bell rings, and our suburban streets turn into a high-speed, low-awareness obstacle course. Dozens of kids, heads completely unprotected, launch themselves into traffic like it’s a group trust fall. Except no one told the drivers they are participating.

Did I miss the memo where helmets became optional? Was there a TikTok trend I somehow skipped? Because just a few years ago, helmets weren’t “suggested.” They were expected. From age 4 to 16, every visit to the pediatrician followed the same drill: stranger danger, gun safety (we’re in Texas), and “wear a helmet—no exceptions.”

And now? It’s like parents have collectively decided: You know what? Brains are probably overrated.

But we know better.

We’ve learned more about traumatic brain injuries (TBIs) in the last decade than in the previous century. We now understand that even mild concussions can have long-term effects on developing brains. We’ve watched football, cycling, and military communities reckon with the irreversible toll of repeated head trauma. So why are we acting like our kids are somehow immune? (See: CDC, NIH, Boston University CTE Center.)

But here’s my real issue—