in my opinion, anyone who rides without an approved helmet is stupid. there, i said it, but it’s true. why risk your life for fashion??? haven’t we all read enough stories about people’s lives being saved because of a helmet, or those who regret NOT wearing one? if it weren’t for my helmet, i could be dead right now, after my green TB threw me into the rail (headfirst) nearly two years ago. bump on my head through my helmet, and concussion. so anyone who decides that they don’t need a helmet, are you invincible? do you never fall off? accidents are accidents, you know. it’s your dumb decision if you don’t want to wear one, but if you have a bad fall and end up dead or have brain damage, you’ll be wishing you had worn one.
The excuse for not wearing a helmet because “they are not used to wearing one,” doesn’t hold much water with me either.
It doesn’t matter how good of a rider you are…anything can happen at any given moment.
But, we cannot impose our morals/values/beliefs on someone else just because we think wearing a helmet is the right thing to do.
I hope the trainers the child was referring to stay safe without their helmets. To each his own.
I ride with one. The youngsters are not “safe” yet and frankly, I don’t think I want to ride without one ever again.
Thank you Kryswyn! 
“If you have a $50 head, wear a $50 helmet”
“If your head is worth NOTHING, wear NO helmet”
And as for old fogeys, I am in my mid 40s, and I have ALWAYS worn a helmet. Granted, the helmets I wore as a teenager would now be considered an “artcle of clothing”, but I Certainly DID “grow up wearing a helmet”.
I don’t think the GPA helmet is SEI-approved… Of course, I could be wrong, but when surfing through the Dover Saddlery catalog this afternoon, I noticed that while most of the helmets – include the Troxels – had a note that read “**SEI Approved,” the GPA did not. If you’re really worried about fashion, you MIGHT want to look into the Lexington International helmets (or whatever they’re called). I think certain models are approved, and I know that they certainly don’t have the “mushroom-head” appearance of such helmets as the Troxels. I’m loyal to my Troxel Legacy, however. Lucky for me, I haven’t “tried it out” yet (the ONE time I did fall, I somehow managed to keep my head off the ground – I had a velvet cover on it, so if my head touched the ground even for a moment, that clay would have stuck in the fabric for sure!), but it is very comfortable and fits very well. I’ll admit that having a nylon strap so tight on my throat is a little uncomfortable at first, I soon become oblivious to it and it doesn’t bother me in the least. I guess it’s kind of like when you first tighten the girth on a horse.
I can’t think of any good reason to not wear a helmet. With cars, everyone wears seatbelts and has airbags in the dashboard ready to unfold and save the day in the event of an accident – why not protect your brain when riding? How can you neglect your BRAIN? Not only does it signal your arms, legs, fingers and toes to move, and allow you to see, smell, and hear, but it makes you BREATHE, and it makes your heart pump vital blood to all parts of your body. It makes your lungs expand and close to take in oxygen and release carbon dioxide. If your brain is severely damaged, none of these things will happen. Quite simply, you will die, all because you were too vain to have a helmet on your head when your precious skull needed it most, which can be anywhere and anytime. Think of it that way.
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Sandy M:
[B]Here’s a good one for you all: My old eventing trainer was schooling a horse one day. WHen she finished, she realized she was late for an appointment, and the horse’s owner had just arrived, so the owner said, “Go, I’ll groom and put my horse away.” The trainer jumped into her car WITHOUT REMOVING HER HELMET. Two blocks away, a car ran a stop sign and plowed into her. She was thrown into the windshield, despite her seatbelt (small car); She walked away with a mild headache and bruises because she had still had that helmet on.
Perhaps we should never take them off??? (Not an anti helmet statement: Just an acknowledgment that merely walking down the street can be dangerous.)[/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
As a person who bumps into things on an almost daily basis, I second that idea! LOL!
How big is the cherub Jessica? Walking? Turning the dishwasher on, and off yet…
Seriously, as much as I loved my Miata I had to do nearly as much to my hair (before riding with the top down) as I did when showing! I have very long, and fine hair. A spontaneous topless thing could result in a terminal tangle situation. TTS! I can’t imagine cutting it though, in many ways it’s easier than short hair, wash it, in the pony tail or just brush it out and it’s done! I never use a blow dryer or any of that other stuff.
What is going on with your horse? What about all the proposed moves?
Please excuse my ignorance, but what is a GPA helmet??
Medievalist, good question LOL. I have no idea why, but I think some people actually DO cut the straps off their helmets! 
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>OMG, you have a convert here AAJumper. I have never worn an approved helmet but reading that story has convinced me. The older I get and the higher I jump, the more I think about what could happen.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
CONGRATULATIONS Margaret!!! :: pats Margaret on the back::
By the way, I have the Dover Saddlery catalog, I can look up that helmet for you. When/if I find it, I’ll let you know!
[This message has been edited by Checkers324 (edited 11-30-2000).]
For all that don’t know, I’m a junior rider – I’m 15. My trainer’s first question when I talked to her over the phone for the first time was: Do you have an approved helmet? Under her supervision, we bought a helmet for me, deciding that the Troxel Grand Prix Gold would be the one to get, though it was more expensive. She wouldn’t let me ride in the unapproved I had then.
But, with all the falls I’ve taken, I can’t see how I would’ve survived without a harness. I’m glad I got my approved with a harness … I never ride without it, anymore.
Except sheepishly! once at a horse show I had a baseball cap and it was raining outside, and I’d been wearing my helmet when we were getting the horse tacked up, but somewhere I must’ve pulled it off. When it started raining, I grabbed my baseball cap and put it on and ran inside with my horse and saddle. I tacked up my horse, got on, and -completely- forgot I wasn’t wearing my helmet … I even took a few jumps when my trainer ran up waving it at me. Thank goodness I didn’t fall off.
TB_33
JumpJockey:
Great question !!! The Brits have backed off on their criticism of US ventilated helmets, with ASTM helmets approved to be worn by rules of the British Horse Society and the British Pony Clubs. They allow three helmet standards, PAS 014 (British) EN 1384 (Euro) and ASTM F1163. Believe it or not, US helmets are selling by the container load
(tractor trailer) in both the UK and Europe.
To quote Jane Davies of the Mark Davies Injured Riders’ Fund in the UK, “despite the opinion of some of the British manufacturers, England is not full of pikemen lurking in the forests waiting to skewer riders through the vent holes in their helmets”.
Over 30 years ago the SNELL FOUNDATION in the US, writer of standards for motorcycle and bicycle helmets, began to keep statistics on helmeted crashes. In the first 20 years, there was just ONE penetrating injury to a helmet. It was worn by a cigarette boat driver (those incredible speedboats which go over 150 mph, I believe) who was tossed out of his boat and run over by it. The propeller gashed his helmet, but it really didn’t matter, since he was already dead from hitting the water, which is like hitting stone at those speeds.
I have been reading studies attentively for the past 20 years, and have never heard of another documented case.
And BTW, no, the GPA is NOT ASTM/SEI Certified, but it does pass the less strict EN 1384.
As we speak, an internationally recognized independent testing lab in the UK is doing comparison testing on helmets of many lands and standards, and will be safety rating them by some kind of star system, I imagine like the ratings done by Consumer Reports here in the US. Their report is due out before the end of December. If anyone would like a copy of their 1997 report (40 pages, very technical) which compared the British PAS 015 and ASTM F1163, or another they did in 1999 comparing helmets for crushability and performance on “soft” surfaces, email me directly at the address above and I will be glad to send them to you. I’m sure that the new one due shortly will be well publicized, if only by wounded cries from those manufacturers on both sides of the ocean whose products do not score well.
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by largeponylover:
However, if you go to any grand prix warm-up ring or most professionals barns, for that matter, you will most definitely see these pros riding in baseball caps or no helmet at all.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have tried extremely hard from saying this, but if all the pros jumped off a bridge, would you jump off too?
It has always bothered me that trainers and pros don’t set a good example for young riders, such as yourself. To think that a child’s parents are not only failing to encourage the use of an approved helmet, but are advocating the use of no helmet at all disgusts me.
I used to not wear a helmet, except when jumping or trail riding. For whatever reason (I don’t question, LOL!) I started wearing it again.
Also, at my new stable that I am moving to, (this is not the reason I started wearing it again) they have insurance, but only if you are injured while wearing a helmet while riding.
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ChildsHnt:
I think everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and they should be able to make their own choices.
As a minor you have some choices that are yours to make, others that are, bottom line, up to your parent or guardian to make a final decision on. I don’t think a ten year old, or necesarily a fourteen year old kid can comprehend the realities of a severe cranial injury. Heck, I was in my late twenties when I finally realized that I would die eventually and I wanted it to be later rather than sooner. Life is a crap shoot but there are things we can do to minimize the risks.
Driving a car is probably the most dangerous thing that we all do. When I was 13 my English teacher told me to look around my class, he said that by the time I was 30 two of us would be dead; one from a car accident, and the other from any number of reasons. He was right. Two were dead by the time I was 30. Don’t drive drunk, don’t ride in a car with someone who is, be a defensive driver, don’t speed… do all these things and tragedy can still strike. Does that mean you shouldn’t be careful and take precautions? No, of course not! The ones who died might not have.
If they are passing the rule, it shouldn’t just be for juniors. I hear of more adults falling off than juniors! I’m NOT saying that kids ride better, sure some might, but your age is irrelevant in my opinion. If they’re making kids wear approved, the adults should also have to.
Childshunt you are so right about this, and I think this is the big mistake the AHSA has made. I believe that the new rule should be “effective Dec. 2001 ALL riders at AHSA sanctioned horse shows, in all events/classes must wear an ASTM/SEI Approved helmet, properly fastened during both the classes they participate in and schooling on show ground facilities.” I think that responsible show managers should adopt this immediately, because when the ineviteable lawsuits arrive as mentioned in previous threads, those that have been pro-active will at least have some ground to stand on. If the AHSA won’t pass it the show managers should.
Your brain is YOU. It sits on top of your neck like an egg, and the shell (your skull) that protects it isn’t nearly as thick as we wish it was. From your brain comes all. Commands to your legs, arms, torso. Taste, smell, hearing, and smell. All that we define as human. It would be a pity to lose all that just because you were afraid that you’d look less fashionable. There are a number of riders here, Coreene for one, that learned the hard way how important it is to wear an approved helmet.
Every time, every ride.
[This message has been edited by ChildsHnt (edited 11-27-2000).][/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
And as I know quite well things happen when you least expect them too but I am not going to waltz around for the rest of my life in a steel bubble complete with airbags. I have had the great experience of being in over 6 car accidents none of which have been my fault.
Do i still drive, yes. Do i wear a seatbelt, yes. Why do I wear a seatbelt, not because i fear accidents but because it is habit. I fear airbags more than anything, but according to the government they will save my life. I do think there are certain instances where people who have not been wearing their seatbelts have saved them (i realize that this does not outnumber those who have been saved by them) and I also think that there are certain instances where people with helmets have fallen off and survived as there have been people with helmets who have not.
I love that you all are watching out for me and everyone else but shouldn’t adults be allowed to form their own opinion and make their own choices if provided with information on the topic? If I feared everything that could possibly happen to me I don’t think I would ever leave my house . . I know a lot of you see it that if I can prevent something why shouldnt I?? I have no problem that you all make that decision for yourselves but as an adult I don’t want anyone making it for me.
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by ClemsonRider:
[B] The excuse is that they are adults that are allowed to make their own decisions. I fully believe that they know its not as safe as other options but that is their choice to take that risk, besides Large pony lover never said she rode without a helmet. Adults are adults and should be allowed to make their own decisions . . . juniors should wear approved helmets. However when they reach “maturity” know about all the consequences and safety issues arent they allowed to take their lives into their own hands??
I have had a head injury, nothing to do with horses and while I know horses are unpredictable . . so is everything else in life. . . cars, other people, guns etc etc. I prefer to live my life out how I choose with the choices that I make so at least when I die i will have been happy no matter how short my life was.
Flame away
[/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
No flames. Just faulty logic. THEY are adults but they are also solely reponsible for the welfare of their minor child and as such they are putting HER in jeopardy by being ignorant. I totally disagree with you. Once they had a child, the situation changed. They are being selfish and arrogant.
December 2000, p. 112. I will buy an approved helmet for showing.
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Meshach:
[B]A lot of accidents that I have read about in this thread and in the PH article really have to do with either not wearing a helmet at all OR wearing an unapproved helmet without a harness properly fastened or no harness at all. Curious to hear if any accidents/injuries occurred out there with an unapproved helmet properly fastened that did not come off when falling?
Also, I would think that even an approved won’t help as much if the harness is dangling or off when you fall.
[This message has been edited by Meshach (edited 11-29-2000).][/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
I had an accident July 15 of this year. I was wearing a non-approved helmet, fastened, and it did not come off. I crashed on a hard grass field and was knocked out instantly. As my horse got up his hoof hit me in the face, but I was already knocked out. You can see in the video (yes, someone was taping this) that I hit the ground and flopped like a rag doll. Then my body flops after I get kicked…it was obvious I was already out. I don’t remember anything…not even my entire course that I rode prior to the fall (it was on the last fence).
I vaguely remember the first few hours at the hospital, although I was apparently conscious right after the accident, giving information to the paramedics, etc. I have NO recollection of being on the field for over a half hour after crashing.
What do I remember? My first memory after the accident was my trainer in the hospital, explaining to me what happened. And she was horribly upset…I could see it in her eyes. She thought I was DEAD when she saw me lying as though I was lifeless on that field. And when she realized I was alive, she worried that I would have brain damage. She was so upset that she thought about not training anymore, if I didn’t recover.
THAT is the type of profound impact these types of injuries can have on OTHER people. So for those who don’t care enough to make the extra effort to protect themselves, PLEASE think about the effect an injury will have on others, not just you. It’s not about giving up something you love with a passion, it’s about putting something on your head!
Sorry for the ranting, but if it could convince just ONE person to wear an approved helmet and avoid having to go through what I did, it’s worth it. I learned the hard way, and I hope that I can prevent others from having to learn the hard way too.
On a side note, I have been wearing a Troxel for schooling at home for at least 5-6 years. I used to be the only one, and was a little bit embarrassed because of the way it looked, but I wore it anyway. One by one, the people I rode with bought Troxels…they loved how lightweight they were, and how they had vents. Now almost every single person at my barn wears a Troxel (the plastic ones) for schooling. I guess I started a trend!
One of the girls at my barn wears an approved Troxel and rides around with the strap in her mouth or dangling loose by her ear. HELLO! What good would that do???
<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by MargaretF:
[B]OMG, you have a convert here AAJumper. I have never worn an approved helmet but reading that story has convinced me. The older I get and the higher I jump, the more I think about what could happen.
I tried on one of the GPA helmets at Dominion the other day but I looked like a mushroom in it. I think I am going to get one of the ones like Mark Leone wears, but I can’t think of the name of it. It has a brown leather harness…[/B]<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>
YAY! And you know what? I crashed over a stupid 3’3" oxer because I was trying to win a speed class…it wasn’t even a big jump! On the subject of brands, the GPA actually isn’t approved by SEI/ASTM yet. Yes, it’s probably better than the standard unapproved, but it’s still not quite to the level of the approved ones. I got the new Troxel Exeter, and found it comfy (I wore it for several hours at my last show) and it is also pretty slim looking. Many of the new approved helmets are not mushroom looking at all…but you do have to try on a few to find the right fit.
