Do you wear one every single ride? If not, why not??

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Every ride. I'm 38, been riding since 12. I spent 20 years jumping, so we had to wear helmets. As an adult, I was so used to wearing one, and was still jumping, so, it stayed with me. When I changed to dressage, well, it was still habit. And my dressage horse has caused me to replace it on numerous occassions (okay, I have two brand new ones on stand by as we speak).

I, like many of us, make my living, which allows me to have my horses, using my brain. I consider it a good insurance policy to keep my noggin working....

I don't think it's necessarily vanity that keeps people from wearing helmets. Nor do I think that having people in magazine shots wearing or not wearing helmets influences people unduly. If I can recall the study properly, the average person who will sustain a life altering head injury, is somewhere over 40, been riding for ages, and not wearing a helmet, on a well broke horse. It can happen to anyone. Once my horse tripped at the canter and put both our heads into the sand. Another one tried to jump a puddle and a oxer, again, both in the dirt.
Yes Barbara, every single time, without fail!! And I'm probably a bit thicker in the head than most of the rest!!!lol
I always wear a helmet when riding and lunging. Why?Because I only have one brain and I want to protect it as best as I can. As a nurse I see the effects of brain injuries and it's not pretty. Also I know my horse can be unpredictable at times. I have ridden many reliable horses and still I wear my helmet.Actually one of those "predictable" horses who never spooks took off on me for the first time yesterday and I nearly hit the ground- was able to hang on. So it goes to show even the most predictable horses have their moments.
I ride with a helmet every single ride.
When I first learned to ride in South America over 50 years ago there was not a helmet in sight. But when I started riding seriously 40 years ago the helmet went on, and stayed on. That was the great thing about hunt seat, at least hunt seat riders were expected to protect their brains! Nobody else did back then except for race jockeys.
I do b/c I know I don't know it all about the horse. Horses are like people which can be unpredictable on a day to day basis. I live in FL and I thought I might want to share this:

To use or not to use a helmet? (under FL Law) I forgot I can't add external links to barnmice, but basically to sum my link: people under the age of 16 have to wear a helmet unless they are competing in a show. (forgive me if I miss out something). This was recently passed due to the death of a child b/c she was not wearing a helmet.
I wish a helmet had more sun protection..... but yes, I always wear a helmet when I ride... as totally ugly as they are. I would wear a full motocross helmet with an eye shield if it wasn't too stupid and a mouth guard too..... I think motorcycle gear for horseback riding would be cool....
I do, and I'm proof that you can teach old dogs new tricks. You see, I'm 46 and I've been wearing a helmet every ride for only about a year. Why now? Reason #1: I started giving lessons and was smart enough to require helmets for my students. Kind of hard to enforce if I wasn't willing to wear one myself, so I put one on every time I got on to demonstrate. Reason #2: My 15yo daughter was taking a few spills from a new horse. Could I really expect her to wear a helmet when I didn't? Reason #3: A riding buddy told me her story; she was in a coma for several days after a head injury as a teen (no helmet). Now she wears one all the time. I guess you call that positive peer pressure. I might add that I'm still on the first one...seems when I fall, I always land on my butt!!!
Happy trails!!!
I always do. I am a student at a Riding Instructing Facility, so it's required. But, I do think it is really important. I've face planted before, and it would've hurt A LOT more if I didn't have my helmet on. Horses, as wonderful and amazing as they are, can sometimes be inpredictable. Which is completely and entirely normal, but you can't always expect "the usual", even from a 20+ year old retired school horse.
And plus, there are some pretty nice looking helmets out there, I think it looks cool! =)
I always, always, always wear a helmet. I forgot to take my helmet to the barn a couple of weeks ago and fortunately was able to borrow my girlfriend's helmet as she wears the same size as me and wasn't using it at the time. If I hadn't had access to her helmet, I wouldn't have ridden. Not worth the risk.
I always wear a helmet, with the exception of when I'm competing upper level horses, when I often wear a top hat, but that decision is driven by the horse I'm riding - with some I still wear a helmet.

That doesn't make a lot of sense, considering that I had a fall 13 years ago just like Courtney King-Dye's, with the same results. I was riding my PSG stallion at home in my own arena, and he tripped and fell. I remember him going down, and nothing else, and I spent months recuperating from the brain injury. I've had a lot of injuries over the years, but that one was the only one which really scared me, and I've worn a helmet ever since. I'd worn one riding your horses, on trail rides, on the road, and of course over fences, but I too thought I was fine on a steady horse at home....live and learn!

I had a longeing accident 21 years go, but was wearing a helmet, so while I severely broke my shoulder I did not have a concussion or head injury, and I hit the ground so hard from 4 feet in the air that I'm sure I would have had a head injury had I not been wearing the helmet (moral of the story: let go of the line!).
I always do now. Never did 10 years ago riding dressage as I got hassled if I did wear one, eg: arrr ya think ya going to fall off & of course thoughs pretty caps are the fab. Well I fell off (rode the horse to the ground), BIG TIME but.............I was wearing a helmet & still have it as proof as I would of been dead if not wearing it as the doctor said. Half of the helmet is stil,l 10 year ago covered in sand, horse flipped over on me & yes you do see stars******. Just starting to learn western & most people DONT wear helmets,Im not liking the flimsey western hats for show days but I will always wear a hard helmet every single ride & every horse no matter how hot it is its not worth it.
I wear my helmet for every single ride. I had a bad accident where I was thrown into one of the metal pillars supporting the covered arena a few years ago, and I would more than likely be seriously injured if I had not been wearing a helmet. As dorky as they are, I would rather be safe than sorry. However, I plan on wearing my top hat soon, I want to wait until I have mastered all of second level, and when I ride in championship classes and at nationals!

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