It's easy to crack your head open
Potholes. Car doors. MBTA buses. Oblivious drivers. Slow pedestrians. As anyone who bikes in Somerville knows, the streets provide an endless amount of obstacles and hazards. One little mistake can land you in the hospital with a smashed noggin.

Every year, 700 people in America die from bicycle-related injuries, and about 500,000 end up in the hospital.

In sleepy rural communities you may choose to ride with the wind in your hair—though it's not advised—but in Somerville, if you're not riding with a helmet you might as well be playing Russian Roulette.

$10 helmets at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates
To encourage people, particularly children, to wear bike helmets, Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates, at 40 Holland St. in Davis Square, is offering $10 helmets to anyone who stops by.

You don't have to be a patient at Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates to get a helmet. The offer is available all year long, but May is National Bike Safety Month, so now's the time to take advantage of the offer. Besides, the prime biking months of summer are around the corner.

16 or under? Wearing a helmet is the law
Massachusetts requires any child 16 or under to wear a helmet when riding a bike or using inline skates, scooters or skateboards.