motorcyclist dies in helmet protest

Bareheaded rider participating in the tour in protest against mandatory helmet laws was killed when he was thrown behind the wheel in Onondaga, New York.
Philip A. Contos, 55, of the parish, New York, was organized to visit the Onondaga chapter of American Bikers aimed towards Education (COMBAT), a police state said on Sunday.
Contos hit his brakes and began fishtailing and lost control of his 1983 Harley Davidson. He shot over the handlebars, hit his head on the pavement and was taken to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse, New York, where he was pronounced dead.
State police say that evidence at the scene and information from the treating medical expert indicated Contos have survived if he had been wearing a helmet as required by state law.
Asked about the apparent irony of death Contos, statewide president of COMBAT, Thomas Alton, said: "We are going to higher risk and accept it. ... This man was an experienced rider, not a novice. He made the adult decision. A complete solution go right, he went in. "
Another New Yorker, who had been a motorcyclist for 50 years, Joseph Costantini, said: "I would never ride without a helmet -. Even in a state that says you do not need me to understand where the protestors are coming from, because ultimately a matter of choice. For me, I would wear a helmet, no matter what. ... It must feel great to ride without a helmet, because sometimes it is uncomfortable. ... I'm sure his family will not be happy. "
Motorcycle helmets has fallen from 67% in 2009 to 54% in 2010, according to a press release issued by the Governors Highway Safety Association.
"This is another sad and tragic example of where we have lost someone due to lack of a helmet," said Jonathan Adkins, communications director for the union.
According to Alton, the majority of motorcycle accident due to inexperience and the drivers do not see the motorcycle when switching bands or bends.
FIGHT New York, Inc. is the organization of the memorial "in honor of the man who was riding for freedom and risked their all for freedom," he said. The official date yet to be determined.
The annual number of deaths from motorcycle has more than doubled since the late 1990s to 5290 in 2008, based on a report published by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.