Alberta to allow turban-wearing Sikhs right to ride motorcycles without helmets | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Alberta to allow turban-wearing Sikhs right to ride motorcycles without helmets

A few years ago I remember at least 10 sikhs at wonderland, daggers on their side getting ready to ride backlot stunt coaster and people were refusing to ride with them.

Where is the limit when it comes to religion, why do we bend over for these people when we've had these rules in place for decades? Why am I not allowed to walk into a movie theatre with a sword on my waist?

Another example of many is how they changed the rules for RCMP to allow them to have beards and wear turbans instead of the traditional uniform hat, and all police departments followed suit

Let the 20 Sikhs in Alberta ride without turbans, just don't bring it over here
 
I wonder how insurance will work for these people. Have a little off and suffer a life-altering brain injury that would have otherwise been a scuff on a helmet; surely the system would make it financially untenable to ride without a helmet. Or is that discriminatory too?

Personally I hope that their individual insurance rates will reflect the added risk they are taking, that would seem fair, but I doubt it would be much of a deterrent for a lot of Sikhs. I watched a video a while back featuring the Brampton Sikh Motorcycle club and it's a bunch of guys trailering brand-new Harley Electra Glides and other expensive bikes to a parking lot and riding them around in circles. If they have the kind of money to spend on a new Harley to ride in parking lots I'm willing to bet the increased insurance premiums aren't going to deter them.
 
Personally I hope that their individual insurance rates will reflect the added risk they are taking, that would seem fair, but I doubt it would be much of a deterrent for a lot of Sikhs. I watched a video a while back featuring the Brampton Sikh Motorcycle club and it's a bunch of guys trailering brand-new Harley Electra Glides and other expensive bikes to a parking lot and riding them around in circles. If they have the kind of money to spend on a new Harley to ride in parking lots I'm willing to bet the increased insurance premiums aren't going to deter them.

A lot of them are heavy in the dope game, they arent just haulin regular goods on those trucks


Canada is so PC if i said its against my religion to pay insurance, I could probably get away with it.
 
when I rode to Indianapolis for MotoGP, I really enjoyed to ride slowly in local without helmet (no helmet law in Ohio, Indiana and some states)
but I saw some dudes without helmet on freeway, that's another story
 
fast forward 100 yrs and Trudeau's great grandson, now prime minister , will apologize to the Sikh community for taking so long to allow turban cyclists nation wide......
 
As many have said, either have a law or don't have it; there shouldn't be religious exemptions.

It should be amended that if you ride without a helmet you forfeit OHIP and insurance benefits, we should not pay to care for you when your religious choice requires you to receive round the clock medical care for life.


My seat-belt sometimes wrinkles my shirt, where do I get an exemption?

I saw some non Sikh lidless riders in Manitoba a few years back and was told that a doctor can give you an exemption letter on medical grounds. That can be tweaked just about any way you want if you shop around.

Re OHIP: This is Canada. We don't leave injured people at the side of the road.

Extra Insurance: Ride without and if you crash see OHIP above. Also it puts the insurance company on thin ice if they ask the applicant's religion.

The really big bills come afterwards when you need to be spoon fed for the rest of your life. Also diapers aren't cheap. You might be a hunk, cool dude or babe now but your sweetheart may fall out of love with you when you no longer have a face. Changing a diaper is a turn off, not foreplay.

What is the cost of taking care of a zombie for a year. Multiply by 40. What sort of up front lump sum is needed to cover that?

There's a lot of fact in this topic but it has racial undertones.

Let's add some other nonsense to the pot.

Even in the more helmetless USA they can't force you to wear a lid but can force you to wear a seat-belt in a car. How does that make sense?

I can be turned back from working at an oil refinery or chemical plan if I forgot to shave. Stubble interferes with respirators needed in case of toxic gas releases. If your religion says you can't shave you get a job somewhere else.

You can't legally attach a a GoPro to a helmet. Can you attach one to a turban?

Risk assessment: There is a risk to riding without a helmet but also to letting kids race dirt bikes. The later is more questionable. So why are we beating up the Sikhs?

Is it against the Sikh religion to wear something over their turban or is the law change being proposed because suitable helmets aren't available?

Does a Sikh have to wear a turban or is it just a way to manage their hair? My understanding is they aren't allowed to cut it. Women riders with long hair wear helmets and deal with it.

B.C. has had the law for a number of years. What is the cost history for related rehab?
 
Last edited:
I hope the Sikhs who want to wear a helmet are not pressured not to wear one. Also one member stated lets keep the racial undertone out of the comments.
GTAM is a all inclusive forum for all riders. Lets stick together.
 
It's a personal choice based on religious beliefs. I say, do whatever you want, it's your life.
Myself, I choose to wear a full face DOT Snell. Some riders prefer a skull cap, which really provides the bare minimum protection if you go down. That's cool. Not my thing.

Sent from my [device_name] using GTAMotorcycle.com mobile app
 
the THOUSANDS of morbidly obese grain fed harley riders are a much bigger drain on health care than a couple of sikh motorcyclists who may or may not get a head injury
 
Who cares?No one cares about all the beanie riders,which is the same as riding without a lid really.As was said previously.This is Canada,nobody is left at the roadside.
 
Guys there are two really great plus sides to this! I don't know about you but I am not a fan of religious zealots. I think you'd have to be a very zealous religious person to want to wear a turban instead of a helmet.

The ones doing this will either:

A. Live and get educated; possibly realize their god won't save them from the holy asphalt of doom.
B. Die or become a vegetable.
C. They won't learn **** and think god saved them.

2/3 (66%) of the above scenarios results in one less religious zealot.

Bring this law into Ontario too please >=)

And for those saying "but herp derp my tax money".......guys did you forget that we ride motorcycles and have a far more chance of using our health care system (how many of you broke your clavicle?) Also I know a lot of you older folk smoke which ends up costing a lot more than instant death scenarios due to most cardiovascular diseases being a slow, long, incredibly painful death that results in a lot of treatment (instantly dying is cheaper.)
 
^^ was kinda thinking along the same lines
there is something Darwinian about this

like lawn darts
they should never have been outlawed
 
This is a freedom thing. Honestly, it is stupid to not wear a helmet BUT I highly doubt anyone here wears head to toe leather, chest protector, etc and only rides a 50cc trail bike in a closed parking lot. It's kinda comical that anyone would care if they wear helmets or not, and then climb on their own bike (like a crotch rocket) and pull stunts like we hear about daily in the moto world, or as others have stated, look at the open face helmets out there. Bikes have risks. So does skiing, being fat, drinking, etc. We need less laws on items of personal choice, not more.
 
This is a freedom thing. Honestly, it is stupid to not wear a helmet BUT I highly doubt anyone here wears head to toe leather, chest protector, etc and only rides a 50cc trail bike in a closed parking lot. It's kinda comical that anyone would care if they wear helmets or not, and then climb on their own bike (like a crotch rocket) and pull stunts like we hear about daily in the moto world, or as others have stated, look at the open face helmets out there. Bikes have risks. So does skiing, being fat, drinking, etc. We need less laws on items of personal choice, not more.

Leonardo-DiCaprio-Clap.gif
 

Back
Top Bottom