After seeing too many kids biking on the W&OD Trail without helmets, bike safety lawyer Doug Landau took matters into his own hands. With matching grants from the Virginia Trial Lawyers Foundation and a bike crash client (who also happens to be a triathlon champion), huge boxes of Bell Helmets and bags arrived at the Landau law Shop for distribution to Herndon students.

The eager sixth graders at Hutchison Elementary learned about “using their heads,” protecting their brains and were then custom fitted for complimentary bicycle helmets. With the “hands on” help of Dr. Paul Aravich from Eastern Virginia Medical School, Herndon Bike Patrol Officers from the Fairfax County Police Department, and bike safety lawyer Doug Landau of the Herndon law firm Abrams Landau, the students got rubber gloves and were encouraged to hold and touch real human brains, skulls and spinal cords. The focus of the program was making good choices, including the choice to wear head protection when cycling, skate boarding, roller blading, long boarding, mountain biking and other wheeled sports. According to the Virginia Department of Health, bicycle helmets, when worn properly, reduce the risk of a serious brain injury by almost 90%. The Herndon school children were encouraged to wear a helmet when biking.

In order to protect children riding their bikes to school, for fitness, for fun and on the W&OD Trail, Doug Landau hopes to visit other Reston, Herndon and Oak Hill Virginia area schools. If you or someone you know would like Mr. Landau to come to their school to discuss bike safety and traumatic brian injury, please e-mail or call us at ABRAMS LANDAU, Ltd. (703-796-9555).