Tom,
I'm not disputing the guys personality/talent/general all around niceness/whatever. I enjoyed watching him play. I was happy when they won the Superbowl. I was impressed that even with his sudden fame, based on interviews that I saw and whatnot, that he didn't have an ego the size of Pittsburgh.
BUT......................he obviously needs a hard dose of reality. Motorcycle helmets were invented for a reason. He was requested by his coach not to indulge in that kind of behaviour, and even said (this is a quote direct from the cnnsi article)
"He talked about being a risk-taker and I'm not really a risk-taker. I'm pretty conservative and laid back, but the big thing is to just be careful," Roethlisberger said at the time. "I'll just continue to be careful. I told him we don't ever ride alone, we always ride in a group of people, and I think it makes it even more safe."
Now that has to go down as one of the dumbest comments I've ever read. He's not a risk taker, yet he drives the worlds fastest street bike without a helmet. And according to him, driving in groups makes it "safe". WTF? Somebody, anybody please explain to me the thinking behind that logic. Driving in a group of 2, 10 or even 300 isn't going to save you from the other crazy a$$ drivers on the road (or in this case a 62 year old woman, which makes me think of that South Park episode with all the town's seniors out driving to "Old Country Buffet). Beside, if he only drove in groups, where was said group when this happened?
Here at home, it is the law that you must wear a helmet while riding your freakin'
bicycle, no matter what the age, no matter where you are, not just a motorcycle. Why? It's the same as the seatbelt law. It's for public safety.
So you may criticize me for being too harsh, perhaps because you have a personal connection with Big Ben, but what he did ranks among the dumbest things I have seen a pro athlete do. He showed no regard for himself, his teammates, the fans or the god-given talent that he was blessed with, and thumbed his nose at all of them by refusing to wear a helmet (whether it was law or not). For that, maybe having his career ended by his stupidity might be the wake-up call he so obviously needs. And maybe, just maybe, somebody else could learn from this and maybe now the state will re-instate the helmet law. So please, don't accuse me of being jealous (that would imply I would want to be in his position, which I don't, neither post or pre accident) and don't call my comments "busch" league (that would imply I wrote them while drinking "Budweiser"...
) . The comments weren't directed at you, so there is no need to take them personally. I am simply stating my opinion, and I didn't say that I wished he would never walk again or died or anything along those lines, because THAT would be "bull****" as you put it, but I do hope he learns from this.....
