Mountain Bikers Put Everyone Else at Risk!

Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

"Mike Vandeman" wrote in message
...
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

So now you endorse the extortion and scam of the insurance industry? The
stock market bloat of the HMO and the so-called health industry? $50
aspirins and $1,000 a night hospital beds? How about the "catch-22" of
bloated malpractice insurance driving up costs and further increasing health
insurance premiums? Insurance companies are happily raking everyone across
the money pits!
If everyone cancelled their insurance today, the industry would lose the
fat-cat profit takers and get back to concern for care and medicine.

Sure is heart-warming to know these doctors are in it for the money and not
for the concern of their patients. Waaah. A doctor pulled an all-nighter. I
am so sorry. Especially when "average" people do it all the time with 2nd
jobs just to support a family. I hope he didn't miss his tee-off the next
day!

I am no fan of "socialized medicine". Neither am I a fan of hospitals being
run merely to cover a stock market gain. Insurance premiums should not be
outside the realm of anyone's income.

It is the same principle as applied to movie ticket prices. It is better to
have 500 people and $3 apiece than 60 people at $8 apiece. Lower the
premiums so more people can pay into it and it will cost less for everyone.

BTW - The piece you posted does not mention "mountain biking". It also has
nothing to do with "wildlife". It should read "outdoor recreation vs.
insurance profits".

"Mountain Bikers Put Everyone Else at Risk!" ... where does the article
say that ?



Mike Vandeman wrote:
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Mike Vandeman wrote:
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Were you raped by a mountain bike in your youth?

Fact: North Shore Search and Rescue spends more time, effort, and money
retrieving lost hikers and skiers than mountain bikers.

"Mike Vandeman" wrote in message
...
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are
fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande

Roberto Baggio wrote:

Fact: North Shore Search and Rescue spends more time, effort, and money
retrieving lost hikers and skiers than mountain bikers.

"Mike Vandeman" wrote in message
...
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

Fact: North Shore Search and Rescue spends more time, effort, and money
retrieving lost hikers and skiers than mountain bikers.

Same here, one of the most popular mountain biking areas in the UK. The
local team's busiest year on record was 2005 -
http://www.keswickmrt.org.uk/rescues/2005.htm

88 rescues, all by volunteers, involving a couple of hundred victims.
Total number of mountain bikers attended to? Two. The rest were hikers.

Check out the picture taken on 22nd August.

Can't wait for heir Vandeman to refute this one. My guess is he's probably
been within 500 miles of the area.

wrote in message
ups.com...

Same here, one of the most popular mountain biking areas in the UK. The
local team's busiest year on record was 2005 -
http://www.keswickmrt.org.uk/rescues/2005.htm

88 rescues, all by volunteers, involving a couple of hundred victims.
Total number of mountain bikers attended to? Two. The rest were hikers.

Check out the picture taken on 22nd August.

Roberto Baggio wrote:

wrote in message
ups.com...

Same here, one of the most popular mountain biking areas in the UK. The
local team's busiest year on record was 2005 -
http://www.keswickmrt.org.uk/rescues/2005.htm

88 rescues, all by volunteers, involving a couple of hundred victims.
Total number of mountain bikers attended to? Two. The rest were hikers.

Can't wait for heir Vandeman to refute this one. My guess is he's probably
been within 500 miles of the area.


The ironic thing is that the road cycling Vandeman so heartily approves
of is far more dangerous than mountain biking:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...250223,00.html - 140 cyclist
deaths on the road in the UK in 2005.

In sci.environment,

wrote
on 8 Oct 2006 05:32:30 -0700
.com:
Roberto Baggio wrote:

wrote in message
ups.com...

Same here, one of the most popular mountain biking areas in the UK. The
local team's busiest year on record was 2005 -
http://www.keswickmrt.org.uk/rescues/2005.htm

88 rescues, all by volunteers, involving a couple of hundred victims.
Total number of mountain bikers attended to? Two. The rest were hikers.

Can't wait for heir Vandeman to refute this one. My guess is he's probably
been within 500 miles of the area.


The ironic thing is that the road cycling Vandeman so heartily approves
of is far more dangerous than mountain biking:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...250223,00.html - 140 cyclist
deaths on the road in the UK in 2005.


Compared to 30,000-40,000 deaths on US roadways. (I don't have
comparable figures for the UK motorways.)

--
#191,
/dev/signatu Resource temporarily unavailable

On Sat, 7 Oct 2006 14:46:24 -0400, "S Curtiss"
wrote:


"Mike Vandeman" wrote in message
.. .
Outdoor Recreation vs. Wildlife. Letter in San Jose Mercury-News, 3
Jun 02

We all pay the price for irresponsible risk-takers

I was pleased to note the responsible reporting by Elliott Almond; his
article ``Dangers abound in tricky Cascades'' (Page 20A, May 31) was
on target.

For 28 years we lived close to a number of wilderness areas around
Seattle. Too often the press (and the associated sports industry)
breathlessly lionize risk-taking behaviors like mountain climbing,
motorcycles, snowboarding, skate boarding and high-risk skiing. But
there are prices to pay.

Often many who take part in these activities have no health insurance.
When injured, it is you and I who pay for them, and in some cases this
involves life-long subsistence care. A number of my colleagues have
reported spending an entire night in a hospital ER putting people back
together who had no insurance. They were almost never paid.

Worst of all, other lives are put at risk. Most people have no idea
how dangerous rescues are, especially if a helicopter is involved.
Rescue workers are true heroes, but it is unreasonable to ask them to
risk their lives so some irresponsible risk-takers can get an
adrenaline rush.

It is time to require performance bonds on mountain climbers and those
who take part in dangerous activities. At the very least they should
prove that they have adequate health insurance.

Michael M. Rosenblatt, D.P.M.
San Jose

So now you endorse the extortion and scam of the insurance industry? The
stock market bloat of the HMO and the so-called health industry? $50
aspirins and $1,000 a night hospital beds? How about the "catch-22" of
bloated malpractice insurance driving up costs and further increasing health
insurance premiums? Insurance companies are happily raking everyone across
the money pits!
If everyone cancelled their insurance today, the industry would lose the
fat-cat profit takers and get back to concern for care and medicine.

Sure is heart-warming to know these doctors are in it for the money and not
for the concern of their patients. Waaah. A doctor pulled an all-nighter. I
am so sorry. Especially when "average" people do it all the time with 2nd
jobs just to support a family. I hope he didn't miss his tee-off the next
day!

I am no fan of "socialized medicine". Neither am I a fan of hospitals being
run merely to cover a stock market gain. Insurance premiums should not be
outside the realm of anyone's income.

It is the same principle as applied to movie ticket prices. It is better to
have 500 people and $3 apiece than 60 people at $8 apiece. Lower the
premiums so more people can pay into it and it will cost less for everyone.

BTW - The piece you posted does not mention "mountain biking". It also has
nothing to do with "wildlife". It should read "outdoor recreation vs.
insurance profits".


Did you say something?
===
I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to
humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8
years fighting auto dependence and road construction.)

Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of!

http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande