You may have fond memories of flying down a steep, snow-covered hill with nothing but a trash can lid and a prayer, but after an increasing number of accidents (and two deaths in New York last month), the Massachusetts state government is weighing a bill to make helmets mandatory for sledders under 12. “Sledding, we take it for granted sometimes,” says State Senator Senator Steven Panagiotakos, who is sponsoring the bill. “But it’s a very dangerous activity in that there can be very serious injuries if something goes wrong.”
While medical experts agree that parents would be wise to make their kids put on helmets before they hurtle past trees at high speeds, some officials question whether its feasible to police the activity. There’s also a financial downfall to abandoning the traditional “sled at your own risk” philosophy. “Unfortunately, the more you regulate it, the more likely you are to incur liability,” said a Massachusetts attorney. “If you say, ‘Sled here, in these marked lanes,’ and something happens in those marked lanes, the city’s in trouble.”
With 3,000 kids a year suffering serious head injuries from sledding, would mandatory helmets for children be a smart move, or just another case of the government spoiling something fun?
[Photo: AFP]
