Please wear your cycling / bike helmet!

My training week has been disrupted somewhat this week... it's a long story (I'll try to abridge a bit). On our way home from nursery on Wednesday evening we had to avoid 'lads' cycling all over the cycle path, one threw something at me, I reacted and in the process of braking violently the bike flipped over. My two year old daughter in her chair landed on her helmet, I crunched my left leg, we were both left stunned.

I was left feeling a pretty stupid daddy for how I reacted (I can never work out the various effects adrenaline has on me), and my daughter was left feeling bemused and in pain. We made it home and reported the 'lads' to the police for what good that will do (I had no description and little detail to offer). After making the call I was left wondering how to perhaps approach the local council about this kind of situation that often arises at that point of the cycle route.

Brilliantly just after the accident some kind people stopped to help us and offered my daughter some water once we'd eased her out of her seat having first checked her neck. In the end I was very, very grateful my daughter didn't end up hospital after our bike crash. She only suffered grazes and bruises, while her bike helmet was broken in three! All in all just bl**dy glad we had helmets on, ever since I've felt like tapping non wears on the shoulder and telling them our story.

Ironically this all came barely a week after I found this video online and posted it up on facebook for my friends to think about. Please view James' appeal if you have a moment, but most of all "Please wear your cycling / bike helmet!".

A personal appeal from James Cracknell - Use your head. Use your helmet