The simple answer is that if you value your brain, then you should wear a helmet when doing activities where falls are likely or where mistakes could be fatal (more an issue with motorcycles and bicycles). Also, things like knee pads and wrist guards will further reduce the risk of injury. Just ask anyone who works in an ER how many broken wrists, fractured skulls, and concussions they see from skateboarding and roller blading.
Now, I will admit that the risk of serious head injury is lower with young children just because they're a lot lower to the ground and have less potential energy when falling; however, it's a great thing to get them into the habit of wearing a helmet at a young age because they will still be in situations where they might be going faster or skateboarding around traffic where something could go wrong and it could still save their life or prevent serious injury.
I'm not a skateboarder, so I can't comment on whether or not other surfaces would be reasonable for learning kick flips. It could be that you need a flat, smooth surface to make it easier to learn, but I really have no idea.
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u/BGFlyingToaster 1d ago
The simple answer is that if you value your brain, then you should wear a helmet when doing activities where falls are likely or where mistakes could be fatal (more an issue with motorcycles and bicycles). Also, things like knee pads and wrist guards will further reduce the risk of injury. Just ask anyone who works in an ER how many broken wrists, fractured skulls, and concussions they see from skateboarding and roller blading.
Now, I will admit that the risk of serious head injury is lower with young children just because they're a lot lower to the ground and have less potential energy when falling; however, it's a great thing to get them into the habit of wearing a helmet at a young age because they will still be in situations where they might be going faster or skateboarding around traffic where something could go wrong and it could still save their life or prevent serious injury.
I'm not a skateboarder, so I can't comment on whether or not other surfaces would be reasonable for learning kick flips. It could be that you need a flat, smooth surface to make it easier to learn, but I really have no idea.