Helmets and Driving accidents

[Twisting]

Wearing a helmet isn’t optional for me, and I have been using my old riding helmet, but I am probably going to upgrade to one of the MIPS helmets. This got me thinking though, Are riding helmets really the most appropriate helmet for driving? Are the kind of falls or crashes you see in driving comparable to those in riding? I can’t really see myself flying forward over the front of the cart, though maybe if the horse went over something the cart couldn’t. It would seem to me that sideways falls from a cart roll over would be more common.

What kinds of falls or crashes are most common in driving?

[RMJacobs]

I don’t know what is most common, but the only crash I had was being hit by a car. I flew out of the cart and landed on my back. I was wearing my equestrian helmet and had no injury to my head at all. The rest of me didn’t do so well. But as long as I don’t have a concussion, I feel like I can get over just about any other injury (or learn to live with it, as in this case).

I actually almost flew over the front just once. My pony put his tail over one of the lines, and I reached forward to flip it back off just as he stumbled. We were going down a steep hill, and I should have just waited as I mostly drove him on voice commands anyway. I really thought I was going to land between him and the cart. Luckily I caught myself. He recovered from the stumble, and looked back at me as if to say “what the heck are you doing back there?” I wasn’t supposed to be driving him then as I was recovering from a bad injury (not horse related), so I would have been very embarrassed if I’d hit the ground. I was glad I was wearing my helmet, and very glad not to put it to the test.

Rebecca

[DMK]

I’ve learned it can be from the strangest of things. One of our club members was bounced out of the carriage while out on the trails (a root, I’m guessing), and she unfortunately fell in just the wrong way that even a helmet wouldn’t have helped. Just devastating to her family.

[sk_pacer]

Get the best helmet you can get. Falls from carts are usually to the side or out the back and head injuries are inevitable at some point in time (just ask…more minor concussions from hitting a hard track than I can recall). Always wear your lid when driving, it is just that much safer and if you must drive on pavement, I suggest you add a vest. .