do any of you NOT wear seatbelts in the car? (or have family or friends who don't?)

[ash_schwin]

I drive my car to the gym at 5AM (1.5 miles away) to get my morning workout at which time I do wear my seatbelt. On the way back, I am guilty of not wearing my seatbelt as I am usually very sweaty and don't want to wear my seatbelt on my drive back home since there isn't ample time for it to dry out by the time I am done showering and dressed up to get to the office. I know it is a probably a lame excuse but reading some of these stories have now got me rethinking my strategy and will start wearing my seatbelt on the drive back home from the gym.

For every other time I am behind the wheel, I am 100% wearing the seatbelt and expect all my passengers to do the same.

[mjr24]

Honestly, I’m bad, I rarely wear them. Luckily my children haven’t picked up my habit. I’m trying to get better about it…..I do put it on if I’m in inclement weather.

When I was 17 or 18….which was like 1998, the Lincoln Navigator had just been released. I tried crossing a 3 lane highway. There was a car turning in the closest lane to me and I thought it was safe to cross to the median. I didn’t see the Navigator in the middle lane going 50 MPH in my little Pontiac Grand Am. I had a split second where I saw him coming but before he hit me and I leaned into the passenger side of the car. My driver door was smashed in pretty good towards the center console of the car.

My poor thinking said that if I had been wearing my seat belt that day I would have been seriously hurt because I wouldn’t have been able to lean over towards the passenger side of the car. I ended up just having a few pieces of glass stuck in my arm from the window breaking but that’s it.

It’s a stupid reason and not really based in reality since it’s obvious seat belts save way more lives. I guess by now it just makes me feel uncomfortable wearing one because I haven’t for so long. I probably need to work harder on breaking this habit.

[noemon]

I can't drive without a seatbelt. I was raised in Greece where not wearing a seatbelt is a pastime. Most of my [Greek] friends never wear one. From the group of 7-8 guys, only 2 of us wear it consistently and force the others to do so as well while in our cars.

I have coded it out due to using harnesses while on track but I can't start driving if I am not strapped in with something.

[jessejericho]

I can't think of many things more humiliating than dying (or being horribly injured) in a car accident because you "don't like wearing a seatbelt".

[Raimo5]

Originally Posted by jessejericho

I can't think of many things more humiliating than dying (or being horribly injured) in a car accident because you "don't like wearing a seatbelt".

Getting run over by an airplane is even more humiliating!

[nerdogray]

Never thought I'd see seatbelt shaming become a problem. All you seatbelt elitists, enjoy your cloth strap prisons. I will remain free.

[unluky]

Originally Posted by nerdogray

Never thought I'd see seatbelt shaming become a problem. All you seatbelt elitists, enjoy your cloth strap prisons. I will remain free.

LMAO right? I mean I wear mine 98% of the time, but still - Holy Moly. I literally know a guy who is a seatbelt nazi - which is fine. But don't get in other peoples car and start telling them what they should and should not do.

But my favorite part is - is he a anti-helmet guy and rejoiced when my stated replead their helmet law.

I just can't make those 2 things make sense in the same person. But to each their own.

[zx10guy]

People can do whatever they want. But I think a good group of us are here because we enjoy the performance aspects of having a BMW car. To me not belting up is leaving a free mod on the table. I can tell when the seatbelt helps me stay planted in my seat when I'm taking turns/corners at a decent pace. Heck, you don't even have to be driving at chrome bracelet speeds to feel the affects of having a seatbelt around you.

With that said, I've always buckled up since learning how to drive. My mom wasn't so diligent. We got into a real nasty car wreck when we were T boned at a high rate of speed. She wasn't buckled in and got launched into the windshield. She ended up with a nice egg sized knot on her forehead and was knocked out cold for a while. I don't know how long she was unconscious because after the fire department extracted my parents from the car I rode to the hospital with my dad who was more seriously injured. You would think this would have changed her mind about wearing a seatbelt. Nope. My brother was driving one of the family cars and my mom was in the front passenger seat. Well, my brother was driving tired didn't react fast enough to the stopped car in front of him and he rear ended that car. My mom again got launched forward and hit the windshield. She didn't lose consciousness but did get a nice knot on her head again. Also she cracked the windshield. Only after this is when she started to wear a seatbelt.

When I was a first responder, I remember two calls vividly. One involved a kid/pediatric. The family was T-boned at a high rate of speed when the mother was making a left turn at an intersection. The impact was so severe that the car was launched from the intersection and ended up on the opposite side about 25 feet away. In the collision, the mother's son was ejected from the vehicle. My unit was about to report in for the end of our shift when we got the call from dispatch to see if we were available to respond to the wreck. We picked up the call. Let me tell you the sadness and the pain having to console the mother knowing full well her son wasn't going to make it when the medevac flight crew was doing chest compressions on her son as they were moving him into the chopper was just gut wrenching; especially when I had to lie to her that her son is going to be ok so the mother would calm down for the sake of her daughter that was also hysterical.

Second call was a single car wreck where the driver was operating the vehicle drunk. He was driving at a high rate of speed and hit a patch of black ice. The car got launched in the air after hitting a snow bank and hit a tree in the air before landing in the same yard of a house. I remember seeing the marks on the tree which were a good 6 feet in the air. The driver was still in the vehicle. The passenger wasn't so lucky. The impact broke out the passenger window where he was thrown out the now windows less door. While in the process of being ejected, his head made contact with the tree where his jaw acted as a lever arm that yanked his head forceably backward. That trauma tore the carotid artery in his neck. He landed a few feet away from the car in the yard. I wasn't working him but the driver. The other responding crew that was working the ejected passenger said they could see the passenger's neck inflating out every time they did chest compressions as he was in full cardiac arrest.

This may sound callous but I would hope for those that don't wear seatbelts and are involved in a car wreck that it's either minor or you're outright dead. Because the collateral damage of the injuries that can result from not being belted in with a severe collision can be life altering....not to mention the people around you that have to deal with it from an emotional and financial situation.

[Coupsoup]

Originally Posted by 2heeldrive

My best friend's 22 year old daughter refuses to wear a seatbelt. She leaves it buckled and sits on it, to fool the car. Claims it is uncomfortable. I think she just doesn't like being told what to do.

She is Mensa level smart... and yet won't wear a seatbelt.

Yeah it's definitely not an intelligence thing. I've just seen enough crazy shit on the roads that I'm not going to let someone else's phone addiction kill me. Simple as that. It's not me I'm worried about causing the accident, and I'm sure as hell not going to check out because of something as simple as a seatbelt.

As to the comfort argument. Just wear the damn thing every time and you'll stop even noticing it's there. Unless you're like 400 lbs then you got other issues you need to deal with that aren't the seatbelts fault.

[Hit_Apex]

It's a sign of not trusting God and will be scored against you on judgement day. Same with health insurance. This thread is doing a great job at identifying sinners.

[SnowCover]

Originally Posted by Hit_Apex

It's a sign of not trusting God and will be scored against you on judgement day. Same with health insurance. This thread is doing a great job at identifying sinners.

I want to continue to believe in god, but I'm finding it very hard do so. During the last 4 and half years, I lost one close family or friend almost every 6 months. All passed away unexpectedly for one reason or another. I am devastated by each and every loss. Or is this how god is punishing me for all the bad things that I did when I was a young lad 30 or 40 years ago? I don't even like to pick up the phone when my old friends are calling me because the conversation frequently start with "are you sitting down? you know who just died last week?"

[bangbangninergang]

I always wear a seatbelt. Just not worth the risk not to and it feels so weird without one on. Feels like you're driving naked! Wrap it up boys!

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by Hit_Apex

It's a sign of not trusting God and will be scored against you on judgement day. Same with health insurance. This thread is doing a great job at identifying sinners.

[///MPhatic]

I always wear my seatbelt, but I have the chime coded out. No one is allowed to be in any of my cars without their seatbelt on.

In the Lotus I wear it even if I'm driving to the end of the driveway. It's a promise I made to myself before purchase because the car is so fragile. My driveway is 3 car lengths total.

BUT...

It's fair to say that I'm aggressive driver, which some would consider rude at times (please get out of THE way, not MY way, just THE way).

And I have disabled the driver and passenger airbags on my Lotus. I rarely have passengers, but there is a nice big sticker that reads...

[Gemini562]

People who refuse to wear seatbelts must also think walking barefoot on broken glass is a "free foot massage." Really embracing that rugged lifestyle.
So, you think you’re stronger than the laws of physics? That’s a flex. Personally, I like to let gravity do its thing without launching myself into the dashboard, but you do you.

[dizz81]

I went a long time not wearing a seatbelt. Then someone ran a stop sign and my head smashed against the roof liner just above the windshield.

A little lower and I would have been a much worse off than just a headache and spinal pain for awhile.

After that I started always wearing my seatbelt and don't start driving until my passenger has it on as well.

[tturedraider]

Originally Posted by SnowCover

I want to continue to believe in god, but I'm finding it very hard do so. During the last 4 and half years, I lost one close family or friend almost every 6 months. All passed away unexpectedly for one reason or another. I am devastated by each and every loss. Or is this how god is punishing me for all the bad things that I did when I was a young lad 30 or 40 years ago? I don't even like to pick up the phone when my old friends are calling me because the conversation frequently start with "are you sitting down? you know who just died last week?"

Just a quick answer to your question. No, God is not punishing you, but it’s true the world is fallen and not as originally designed. That will change one day.

[KevinGS]

Originally Posted by SnowCover

I want to continue to believe in god, but I'm finding it very hard do so. During the last 4 and half years, I lost one close family or friend almost every 6 months. All passed away unexpectedly for one reason or another. I am devastated by each and every loss. Or is this how god is punishing me for all the bad things that I did when I was a young lad 30 or 40 years ago? I don't even like to pick up the phone when my old friends are calling me because the conversation frequently start with "are you sitting down? you know who just died last week?"

Snow, I know you know death is inevitable. So if you have friends and family dying as adults, maybe alter your perspective...maybe be grateful that they lived their lives well into adulthood. Many never make it past the age of 20 for a whole host of reasons, so think of anything beyond the age of 20 as a gift, "bonus days".

If you're upset about adults losing their lives, you'll really be depressed when you think of how many parents on earth have lost their young children or teenagers for a multitude of reasons (murder, suicide, drug overdone, car accidents, strange accidents, cancer, starvation, war...the list is endless).

Hec, if we tracked God's intentions by who dies and when, then there would be so much evidence not to believe in an all-merciful, all-powerful God....with so much pure suffering and utter misery so many people on earth go through (with many of them innocent young children).

So, don't measure whether there's a God based on what God's doing to you, as if God owes personally owes you anything...look beyond yourself. Instead, look at what has happened and what is happening on earth to others and measure God's existence or God's prescribed traits based on that.

Maybe there is no God. Maybe there is. But if there is one, God owes us nothing...for if God does, he's failed MANY...in the trillions, over time. Failing you is just a drop in the bucket of the misery and suffering people have endured for centuries and centuries.

[BeEmVe]

Originally Posted by SnowCover

what's even more shocking was that a lot of parents let their little kids ride around without carseats or booster seats!(which should be criminal, IMHO)

In most states it is criminal for minors not to be wearing a seat belt. In many states it is also criminal for adults not to be wearing a seat belt. However, how it gets enforced may be a primary or secondary infraction.

Originally Posted by Hit_Apex

It's a sign of not trusting God and will be scored against you on judgement day. Same with health insurance. This thread is doing a great job at identifying sinners.

Note my location, I'll be fine in hell. Most of my friends will be there too. In fact, "In Hell I'll Be in Good Company"

[Llarry]

Originally Posted by tturedraider

I agree with this. In all honesty, besides the safety issue, a primary reason I wear one is the security it gives of holding me in the driver’s seat and I need that for the way I drive. Lots of people would call me an aggressive driver. I call myself a focused, purposeful, and intentional driver. Basically, I never drive like I’m on a Sunday afternoon stroll. I always drive like I have somewhere to go and I’m not interested in taking my time getting there. I’m not rude and I follow the rules of the road pretty strictly, I signal my intentions every single time, I don’t weave in and out of traffic, but I drive with purpose and I don’t dilly dally.

I think many of the members on this board drive like you do. As I've aged, I've slowed down a bit, but basically drive in just the manner you describe.

[SnowCover]

Originally Posted by Llarry

I think many of the members on this board drive like you do. As I've aged, I've slowed down a bit, but basically drive in just the manner you describe.

to sum it up, we drive like native German drivers, or at least we aspire to be?

[pbonsalb]

Live Free or Die is on the license plates in NH, which has no seatbelt law for adult drivers or helmet laws for adult motorcycle riders.