Michelle Rioja was reported by the Salt Lake Tribune to have died at the scene of a tragic scooter crash. It appears that Rioja may have abruptly turned her scooter to the left in order to avoid a line of parked cars. The abrupt turn caused the scooter to flip and Rioja somersaulted over the scooter and hit the pavement. Unfortunately Rioja was not wearing a helmet at teh time of the crash.

With the skyrocketing price of gasoline it is not hard to see that scooters are going to become more and more popular. I have written before about the rising tide of scooter crashes. It is essential that you wear the right gear but more importantly attend a motorcycle safety riding class before ever going on the street. I think a lot of scooter riders forgo wearing the correctsafety equipment because they think they are not going to be going that fast and think little will happen even if they are in an accident. Ms. Rioja was only travelling at an estimated 10 to 15 mph when this accident occurred. Could a helmet have saved her life?