Seatbelt save

[ernokaikkonen 0]

This sort of came up in "General skydiving discussions", in the "CYPRES save"-thread:

If you were saved by seatbelt/airbag in a traffic accident that was clearly your fault, would you reconsider driving a car?

(edited to add emphasis)

[rgoper 0]

good point! i was actually saved by a seat belt once. and as i drive the busy roads, i utilize this extra piece of safety equipment, well because i think it's safer, and because it will cost $165.00 USD for NOT wearing one in the states, texas anyway. so you'll either "buckle up, or get wrote up" the troopers have no sense of humor! that's really not true, just before coming to saudi the 23rd of last month i got stopped going 165 mph in a 70 mph limit, and the trooper let me go with a warning for not having a front license plate...go figure!

--Richard--
"We Will Not Be Shaken By Thugs, And Terroist"

[CrazyIvan 0]

Few years ago I was involved in a car accident, it wasn't my fault BUT, I can say my seatbelt saved my life, a lady ran a stop sign, she was doing ~60 mph in a 25 mph zone, she hit me on the passenger side, sent me to the other side of the road, I crashed on 2 parked cars, my car was totalled, the injuries I got were minimal, my friend, who was in the passenger side was also lucky, and we BOTH were wearing seatbelts.

My awareness has enhanced ever since.

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Blue Skies and May the Force be with you.

[Ricx 0]

Though I've owned quite a few motors, I've only written off the one!

Come round a corner a wee bitty to fast and try'd to play around with it at the same time, I'd never slid a car before until that moment, then woosh! the car well over slid, so I compensated ( a little too much and quickly!!) then shot off the road, hit a dyke, went over the fence behind the wall and rolled the car down the field a few times.

Came out of it with no marks, scrapes, brusies or anything. I was wearing a seat belt at the time as I always do and I'm glad for it.

The accident did make me want to become a stunt man at the time, as it was really buzzing and I was unhurt. Would have done it again if I could rig the car with a roll cage and stuff! sadly it was scrapped! though it was a nessesity!
I must admit, I found it hard to get a saftey team together and find anyone willing to give me their car, even if it did get filmed and sold to dodgy soaps to use for their action sequences! He He!

[skygal3 0]

I had 2 nasty accidents within weeks of one another-one was my fault the other was a moose and the seatbelts saved me from it being even nastier each time...unfortunately, after the moose incident I did for a while not want to drive. That had to do more with moose though than seatbelts...wear them! My first collision was so strong that I broke the buckle. Imagine what would have happened to me if I didn't have it on. I had bruises for weeks, but I was unscathed.

[Sassy 0]

About 5 1/2 years ago I was driving home from work one afternoon. A lady on the other side of Loop 1604 around San Antonio lost control of her car, came across the median and hit me head on. We were both going abut 70.

My car (1990 Montero) went up in it's front head and rolled 5-6 times before landing on the passenger side.

Her car (1994 Mazda Protege) was pretty much in shreds.

I had my seat belt on and get guarantee you it saved my life. And I walked away from that accident with nothing but seat belt burn where my dress did not cover the top part of my chest.

She had one of those automatic seat belts where the shoulder part is hooked to the door but you have to put the lap belt on. Well she didn't use the lap part. Upon impact her seat released and laid flat, she was thrown out of the back of her car from under the shoulder harness. She was airlifted and remained in ICU for over a week. I was told that if she had used the lap belt her injuries would have been a lot less severe.

So USE your seat belts and if you have an auto one use BOTH parts.

/e ends rant

Sassy

[fudd 0]

Well, first of all I would not have a car to drive anymore

I don't think I would stop driving though, but then again I've driven daily for more than 8 years (as log as I've had my license) without any accident of any kind so far. No speed tickets (pure luck!!!). Some parking tickets (I hate those nazis!)

Answer: Reconsidder driving myself, probably not stop driving cars.

But it's a bit different than the cypres thing.
I think I would stop skydiving after a cypres save if it fires before I started to pull handles.

There are only 10 types of people in the world. Those who understand binary, and those who don't.

[TequilaGirl 0]

I had two nasty accidents about 6 months apart (non of them were my fault) - my seatbelt broke during the first accident - and that actually saved my life.....

[ozthebum 0]

I totaled my Jeep once while running away from the cops (long story), but for self punishment I didn't even ride in a car for 2 years. Keep in mind I was stationed in South Dakota and regularly walked 2-3 miles to work and back in the dead of winter (-50 was a regular temp). I could never tell someone that walking instead of driving is the way to go. If you need a car, then you need a car.

Oz

[skybytch 273]

Every car accident I've been in has been the other guys fault.

Worst one was when the guy made a left in front of me on a highway and I T-boned him. The seat belt did a number on my left shoulder (doc said it was "seperated") but it also kept me from going through the windshield - people that saw the car were amazed that I wasn't headed off in the ambulance instead of sitting on the side of the road trying not to walk over and beat the crap out of the dumbshit who caused the accident.

I ended up not driving at all for over a month after the accident; took that long to get the insurance money to replace my wheels plus I was pretty nervous about driving at all. I became a far more defensive driver after the accident than I was before it.

[hookitt 1]

I was Driving a Toyota Pickup. I'll leave the details out but the end result was A rather abrubt parking job behind the ass end of a Lincoln. I believe I was slowed down to around 45 maybe 50. It buckled the front end in a big way and It was dificult to open the doors to get out. I was able to start it back up and Grindingly pull it to the shoulder. The lincolns bumper was scratched. Thank GOD (or what/who ever) that it wasn't a Geo Metro.

Bruised My knees against the dash,had a good case of whiplash but surprisingly not too bad. I could feel the impact of the shoulder belt for quite a while. I think My insides were jiggled around a bit.

I've been debilitated a whole lot worse from some parachute openings. However with out the seatbelt I'm sure I would have crushed my knees on the dash, ribs on the steering wheel, hit my face on the steering wheel on it's way to the windshield.... Enough on that, you get the idea.

I bought a new car.

My grammar sometimes resembles that of magnetic refrigerator poetry... Ghetto

[jessd 0]

I would definitly still drive. I always wear my seat belt too. I was in an accident 11 years ago - fractured my skull and broke 6 teeth. I was a passenger in the car. I did not have my seatbelt on at the time. To think that I possibly could have avoided all that pain if I had my seatbelt on... Not to mention the numerous surgerys to repair my teeth. 11 years later and I am still dishing money out to keep replacing caps etc...

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away..."

[DZBone 0]

Can't not drive! I would have to move into town or something, otherwise spend all day walking to the nearest convenience store and back for groceries!

Will always wear a seatbelt and am a facist about it with other people in the car. My car ain't no damn democracy either!

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If you hadn't read this, would it have made a sound?

[airforcebabe 0]

You would half to be CAZY not to wear a seat belt!