Helmetless motorcycle riders and ATV riders seem to be a sort of warm weather phenomena.

They start coming out in force about the time the June bugs come out. And like June bugs, some of them never live to see fall.

Ask any helmetless rider why he or she doesn’t wear a helmet.

Down on the farm, the ATV rider may say: “Man, we’re in the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer. I’m fixin’ to ride over the meadow and through the woods, bounce along the deer trails and pigpaths, then roar into the pasture, spook the cattle, and maybe head to the ole’ swimmin’ hole.

“Wear a helmet? On an ATV? C’mon, dude, get real. Too much of a hassle. And besides, ain’t nuthin’ gonna happen.”

Well, mostly, nothing does happen.

Mostly.

But, sometimes, something does happen.

And when it does, it can be bloody and painful. That’s your blood, your pain, your broken bones. And your teeth littering the ground.

Ain’t much fun, dude.

You’ll get various answers, but the responses all have one unspoken thread: No one thinks they’ll get hurt – much less die -- from not wearing a helmet.

It’s a version of what I call immortality blindness. We all realize that someday we’ll die, but it’s not going to happen right now.

No one ever thinks they’ll die from their own mistake, and mostly, they’re right.

Mostly.

But for those who are wrong, perhaps in those final nanoseconds of life, in crisis time when milliseconds move so slow there is time for thought, they realize they’re only hours away from the shiny steel table, the power saw screaming as it rips into chilled meat, and the embalming fluid.

Of course, many riders say wearing or not wearing a helmet is an individual choice that affects only the rider.

Of course, the facts show the opposite.

When a cyclist or ATV rider has a wreck, it sets in motion a chain of events whose ripples spread to touch many people.

A law enforcement officer, paid by tax money, may investigate the crash. Volunteer first responders, unpaid and investing their own time, may be called to the scene. A county-supported ambulance service may take the survivor to a nearby hospital. A helicopter and crew – paid for by the hospital’s patients or whatever public funds from taxpayers it may receive – may fly the victim to further medical attention.

If the victim lives, his medical bills may be paid by money which comes from the premiums insurance companies charge their clients.

If the victim becomes disabled, taxpayer-supported programs will guarantee him a disability check for the rest of his life.

If he or she is unable to pay the medical bills, some of those bills may be paid by federal taxpayer-funded programs.

If the victim dies, burials costs will be paid by the next of kin, or by insurance money -- which of course comes from money insurance companies charge their clients.

If there is no next of kin, and no insurance, the county may have to bury the victim at taxpayer expense.

In short, whether the victim lives or dies, he or she has left an emotional legacy of torn feelings, tears of friends and relatives, and emotional trauma that may last a lifetime.

The victim’s wreck is cranked into insurance industry death and injury projections, thus making it that much more expensive for another cyclist to afford insurance.

Racing cycle drivers, race car drivers, racing boat drivers, who pilot speeding objects all realize there is no guarantee against death.

But they realize their chances of living through a crash are better with a helmet than without it.

They care enough about their brains to give them the best protection money can buy.

Next time you crank that cycle or ATV, perform a death-defying act before you ever get on it:

Buckle that helmet on.