Does my helmet look like it sits too high on my head?

[shadesofbay3]

sorry for the crazy looking picture that i edited, just trying to preserve some level of anonymity here lol

for whatever reason i feel like my head looks really long with my helmet on, but it doesn’t look like it sits incorrectly on my forehead

i’ve been a fan of the charles owen ayr8 forever, but when in the market for a new helmet recently i wanted something with MIPS and didn’t like the CO models.
samshield was out (no MIPS) so i settled on One K… i thought it fit but now im not too sure?

my head is slightly angeled to the side in the picture, i was taking a photo with my horse

[goodhors]

Do you have any extra hair up under the helmet? That helmet testing project said putting your hair up under, affected protectiveness, in fit of the helmet. I have since taken my ponytail down when wearing a helmet.

The line on forehead does look alright, as you said. Is your chinstrap actually snug? Eyebrows move up and down if helmet is rocked forward and back? These were Pony Club guidelines when checking the riders before they went out. We saw WAY too many loose chinstraps on kids because they saw that fashion in pictures of winning riders. Loose fit chinstrap is not going to help keep the helmet in place when you fall off.

Not familiar with the MIPS helmets yet, to know if they fit differently.

[shadesofbay3]

yes, to all your questions about it fitting correctly

I do admit that I wear hair up under my helmet, although it is just a short ponytail (meaning that it will affect the fit of the helmet probably, but it shouldn’t affect the look that much I wouldn’t think)

edit to add - The science may not fully be behind MIPS yet, but it does make me feel better lol

[dmveventer]

There’s plenty of science behind MIPS if you’re concerned about that. Equestrian helmets are late to adopt it but it’s been around for a while now in other sports. It only comes into play in certain impact scenarios so it’s not going to prevent all head injuries, but it does help. I also won’t buy a non-MIPS helmet now that the technology is widely available.

@goodhors

Not familiar with the MIPS helmets yet, to know if they fit differently.

MIPS does not change the helmet fit. It’s just a thin layer of plastic that goes under the liner, if you aren’t looking for it you’d never even know it’s there.

The research on wearing your hair up is also mixed. I believe it was the VA Tech scientist who noted that if the hair is evenly distributed and doesn’t impact helmet fit (ie. not too much hair and no lumps in the helmet) then it can actually act similarly to a MIPS layer by allowing the helmet to slide a little on impact. If you have a ton of hair or don’t distribute it evenly under the helmet then it causes problems. I personally have moved away from putting my hair up under my helmet since it’s too hard to keep a consistent fit with different hair styles/lengths, so I fit the helmet to my skull which I know won’t change, but I don’t think people who wear their hair up are necessarily unsafe as long as they take proper fit into account. I also don’t like wearing my hair down in a ponytail for safety reasons either so I get wanting to have everything tucked up out of the way.

To answer the original question OP, your helmet looks fine. Possibly a touch high but if it feels like it’s sitting deep enough on your head I would go by that over the looks. Helmets just look awkward on most people IMO (myself included) even if they fit correctly. If there are no pressure points, it doesn’t move around when you shake your head, and generally feels secure then you’re probably good.

[CanteringCarrot]

I can’t do OneK helmets. I feel like they perch on my head. It might look fine, but to me it doesn’t feel fine, especially if one is used to a helmet that fits on and around your head more. So maybe you’re feeling the same thing?

It might be sitting a wee bit high.

[shadesofbay3]

what do you ride in?
I might try to wear my hair down today and see if that makes a difference, but I feel like that is so messy

[CanteringCarrot]

Many years ago I was all about the hair in the helmet, but since then I’ve just done a low ponytail or bun. I now prefer that over my hair in my helmet. You get used to it.

I found the Tipperary Caledon to fit deeply, but I didn’t like it for other reasons, so I’m back to my Uvex. I have a Perfexxion (no MIPS) and Uvex Exxeed.

Even that’s been frustrating because my Perfexxion fits me better than their MIPS models (Exxeed and Exxential).

I love MIPS in theory, but I’ve tried 7 MIPS helmets now that just haven’t fit as good as my non-MIPS Uvex. So I’ve stuck with that mainly. It’s not “pretty” but it fits.

[shadesofbay3]

therein lies another problem for me! My nearest local tack shop that is really well Stocked is about 2 1/2 hours away and it’s just so hard to find a day that is completely free to just get all the way up there to try on helmets! Doing the whole order try on and return to Smart pack or Dover is such a PITA!

another reason to quit my job and be a stay at home horse mom lol

[CanteringCarrot]

Yep! It’s the same thing for me. I understand the frustration.

I’ve heard that Fairhill Saddlery does virtual fittings and a few people have found a suitable helmet that way.

The “MIPS Pretection System Equestrian Helmets” group on Facebook can be somewhat helpful too.

[Xctrygirl]

@CanteringCarrot

The “MIPS Pretection System Equestrian Helmets” group on Facebook can be somewhat helpful too.

This is the group I started and the group can be very helpful when you ask the right questions.

There are very good helmet fitters who do online fitting through Fair Hill Saddlery

You can get a sense for which helmets people who had the same previous helmets as you are in now and what they like or don’t about the various options they considered.

You can talk to people about the best tack store choices near/ closer to you and if they were helpful with a helmet search or if it was better to buy online and do online fittings and returns. Side note, if you have to manage returns yourself, www.pirateship.com and UP ground have made things SO MUCH cheaper/easier

If you go to Facebook and search “MIPS Equestrian Helmets” you will find the group.

And @shadesofbay3 there is actually SO MUCH research on MIPS it’ll knock your socks off.

Helmet technology

I am friends with the MIPS folks and the conversations we have had have been so illuminating. They are light years ahead of the safety testing done by most other helmet brands before Back on Track/Trauma Void brought the EQ3 model to the market.

I would highly recommend looking into all of the helmets made with MIPS technology.

Emily

[shadesofbay3]

honestly i think even if there was only a 50% chance that it were helpful (and there appears to be research showing it’s far more beneficial than that) i would still never get a helmet now without MIPS. coming from someone who has had 2 concussions and my mom (not a rider) suffered a brain injury. your head is just not something to play about