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Gerri
Platinum Member
 England
4211 Posts |
 Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 12:30:20 PM
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Yesterday there was a guy riding a horse with NO HAT!!!!!! it infuriates me that people can be sooo selfish and soooo stupid Having nearly died from a fall AND wearing a hat, it just makes me go cold that people can be so reckless with thier lives and it would give the poor horses bad press as well when we had our own yard I would not let anyone ride anywhere on the estate without a hat and if they did not like it then they were told to leave Sorry but the trouble is nothing awful ever happens to people that take unnecessary risks, its always the people who take every precaution and it just makes me so mad.......okay rant over
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Ryu
Bronze Member
62 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 12:59:51 PM
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Isn't it up to the individual? As long as they are old enough to make their own decisions and not riding on your property. The only person who will die is him surely. It doesn't seem a lot of difference to someone who smokes or rides a cycle with no helmet or crosses a road.
Sorry I do feel strongly that we can interfere with other peoples' life choices a little bit too much.
Personally I almost always wear a hat. |
Edited by - Ryu on 17 Nov 2011 1:01:04 PM |
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sab2
Platinum Member
8467 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 1:15:52 PM
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| Gerri i am with you on this one, horses are very unpredictable no matter how bombproof we think they are, life is too short to put yourself at risk, and its not only yourself you are putting at risk, but it will effect the loved ones you leave behind. |
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 1:56:27 PM
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Strange, but I often ride without a hat bareback, but always when I have tack on. I am doing this on my own farm so it is nobody elses problem.
I can understand your anger Gerri but I don't understand the selfish tag you have applied to this activity. If you mean that I might cost money via the NHS there are a lot of people taking more serious risks and causing danger to third parties. |
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alison
Platinum Member
Wales
1810 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 2:47:26 PM
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I normally wear a hat, but on quite a few occasions when riding around the fields on a Summers evening will ride without a hat. Would only do it on a trusty steed but I also often ride my bicycle without a helmet it's my choice.
Alison |
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Pasha
Platinum Member
England
3622 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 2:56:34 PM
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I used to sometimes ride without a hat and then I read a question on another forum that really hit home for me, it was "would you want your boyfriend inserting your tampons for you?"...
No I wouldn't want to inflict caring for me on my boyfriend or anyone in my family if I could avoid it at all... the other day I clean forgot to put a hat on and no one at the yard said a word! When I had finished and went to take my hat off and realised I'd ridden without it I was mortified and asked my friends to let me know next time... just goes to show how comfortable modern hats are when you don't even realise you're wearing them.
It is personal choice, I agree! I CHOOSE to protect myself as much as I can  |
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Edited by - Pasha on 17 Nov 2011 2:57:48 PM |
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Callisto
Platinum Member
6905 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 3:11:21 PM
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I spent my entire teenage years only wearing a hat for competing, hunting and pony club (and even then it was without a chin strap, because that was uncool, and anyway it was only a bit of elastic so wouldn't have helped much anyway),I ended up underneath my pony several times, but by sheer luck emerged completely unscathed. I wouldn't ride without a hat these days and certainly not on the road, but I assume any adult who makes the choice not to has weighed up potential consequences. If I took my horse down to the beach I probably would go hat free, I spent 10 days trekking across the mountains on a horse in New Zealand wearing a bush hat - my choice. It may be a cockeyed attitude on my part but it wouldn't occur to me to wear a cycling helmet - but that is also my choice, and I would probably take exception to being told I had to wear one.
I did insist my children wear a hat at all times when mounted.
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  Zahkira (GR Amaretto x Taffetta)
Linda
East Sussex |
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hazelcat74
Silver Member
472 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 4:14:37 PM
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| My mum drilled it into me from a very young age to never ride without a hat and I never would, but I know in some countries it is common not to wear one,surprises me to see pics of the Queen riding without one. then I know people today who won't ride without body protectors but having grown up never using them I dont use one. It is always better to wear a hat I say but there is no law so it is up to individual choice. |
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gem@oakmeister
Silver Member
421 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 5:59:09 PM
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I think when the only person at risk is yourself (whatever you are doing) then it should be your own decision as an adult what precautions you take. I also feel quite strongly about being told what I should and should not do in my own life.
Having said that I nearly always wear a hat, but never a body protector, they make me feel restricted and less able to move with the horse should it throw a tantrum. There is risk in everything we do and I think the best person to assess personal risk is yourself. |
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Kharidian
Platinum Member
England
4297 Posts |
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Kes
Platinum Member
England
1819 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 6:36:39 PM
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I think it's slightly selfish to ride out (incl roads) without a hat, if you came off and hit your head your injuries are most likely going to be a whole worse then if you had been wearing one. In that situation the people around you (could be complete strangers) have to care for you and hopefully your horse, had you been wearing a hat there may be a better outcome. Your head is the one part of your body you really don't want smashed into the tarmac or hit by a shod foot, even if your hat got smashed to bits imagine how bad it would be if it hadn't been there.
I learnt the hard way, it was a very hot Summer and I was jumping. Long story cut short the horse flipped over almost clearing an oxer, I woke up later on in A&E. |
    
Carole & Kes, West Sussex. |
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mollydog
Bronze Member
United Kingdom
55 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 7:03:13 PM
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Fine, ride without a hat if you chose to...BUT make sure you don't expect the NHS to bear the cost of your treatment if you
fall of a damage your head.
Riding without a hat and riders who do not thank traffic for slowing down, both make me very angry.
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Quarabian
Platinum Member
Wales
4340 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 7:25:36 PM
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| There are a lot worse things that people do to cost the NHS money. Like smoking, over eating, taking drugs, driving too fast and too close to other cars, binge drinking, riding off road mountain bikes at breakneck speed down hill (often without care and attention for other bridlepath users, not training their horses properly in the first place, not exercising at all, playing football!!!! or other sports. I could go on but you get the message. |
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Pasch
Platinum Member
2277 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 7:53:24 PM
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I have been riding hatless for ages since I was 18(hats compulsory in schools for minors)and even before on hacks as a teenager.Nothing beats the wind in your hair and it gets very hot if you are out in summer for 2 or 3 hours.Then last year a dear friend and excellent rider fell from a small and apparently easy horse,broke her head,underwent a very long operation and it's a miracle she's still alive.
Now I always wear one,and it's true the new hats are so light and comfy you forget you have them on,although they can still make you sweat on hot days.
Like Quarabian I think it's up to the individual,horse riding is in itself a risk so should we all stop to avoid NHS paying our medical bills?If you feel like that,then a risk insurance is better. |
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mollydog
Bronze Member
United Kingdom
55 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 8:04:10 PM
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| Originally posted by Quarabian
There are a lot worse things that people do to cost the NHS money. Like smoking, over eating, taking drugs, driving too fast and too close to other cars, binge drinking, riding off road mountain bikes at breakneck speed down hill (often without care and attention for other bridlepath users, not training their horses properly in the first place, not exercising at all, playing football!!!! or other sports. I could go on but you get the message.
Yes, they all make me angry too
To be serious I see it a bit like wearing a seatbelt, a small thing to do which makes something we know does have risks a bit safer. I know my hat has saved my head from a good bashing a few times. |
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Kes
Platinum Member
England
1819 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 9:28:45 PM
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I really can see both sides of this post for all of the reasons stated, but my view is more based towards my horse. If you do take a tumble the difference between wearing a hat and not wearing a hat can mean injury and/or unconsciousness or being ok and maintaining control/regaining control of your possibly loose horse. Not trying to be provoking here, just my thoughts but it's something that worries the hell out of me.
Another point; if you look at British Dressage there is a cut-off between riders who have to wear a safety hat and then those who can wear a dress hat. Are they simply implying that when horses and their riders get to a certain level of training there is a guarantee that horse won't misbehave/be unpredictable, I don't think so. |
Carole & Kes, West Sussex. |
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SuziQ
Gold Member
England
922 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 10:03:16 PM
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| I think the cost is not a physical one or necesarily one to the NHS, I was hit by a car when I was 13, 20 years ago!! Riding at the time in my dads high vis jacket, very unfashionable at the time and my riding hat.. i went head first through the ladys windscreen. I was very very lucky, my pony and i walked away from a potentially tragic accident. The reason that we did though was due to another tragic incident that didn't end so well..a close family friend hit a girl riding her horse, he was passing on the opposite side of the rode and the horse spooked at something and threw her into his windscreen, whilst he had slowed down the combined forces where more than her skull could take.. she didn't survive and he was dragged through the courts for reckless driving, he may have been going 15 ish miles bearing in mind he didn't have to overtake her, he suffered terrible depression and eventually lost his job, it took him many years to get over what happened that day. Luckily for me my mum had a simple rule after, no hat no riding! |
Everyone in my life brings me happiness, some by arriving others by leaving. |
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Vik1
Platinum Member
1711 Posts |
Posted - 17 Nov 2011 : 10:28:36 PM
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I think its a personal choice to wear a hat. I personally always wear one cos a) my horse is stupid and b) I feel vulnerable without one. I dont cycle but if I did, I think Id wear one too cos traffic is alot worse now than when I was younger. Plus I am more safety conscious. I see it as reducing the risk.
I have fallen off and cracked my head. I wasnt unconscious but almost. I have to admit, one of main thoughts afterwards was 'thank god I was wearing a hat'.
However, I dont wear a hat working with the horses. Bit stupid when Velvet kicked me in the face a couple of years ago. My face was swollen and luckily she missed my eye but it was the force of it that sent me flying. My head was used as a battering ram into the wall. It was wood, so had a bit of give. If it had been brick, Im sure I would of ended up in A&E. |
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arretonarabians
New Member
Australia
11 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 05:59:38 AM
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I personally always wear a helmet.
The Excuse that 'it gets too hot in summer' doesnt wash with me. If it is too hot to wear a helmet it is too hot to be working your horse. ( Having said that today it is 37 Degrees C)
Injuries happen with or without saftey equipment. Thinking that you are safe because you are wearing a helmet is dangerous.
I had a bad head laceration from the moulding on my helmet. If I hadn't been wearing one it is safe to say I would be dead.
However each to their own. I am sure there are those of you who get behind the wheel after a drink or two. I will not have a drink if I am driving. Personal choice.
Having said that I do plenty of stupid things and I am not perfect! |
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templars
Platinum Member
England
1852 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 07:55:28 AM
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It's a legal requirement for all children aged 14 and under to wear hats (of the appropriate standard) and when on the road.
My personal "no no" is people with long hair who don't tie it up when wearing a hat (like most show jumpers do!!!!!). I hate it and it's a massive safety issue. We saw one young lady, wearing the right hat but with a long flowing pony tail hanging down her back. Yes, it looked lovely and dramatic as it mirrored the horse's tail when they flew over jumps. It didn't look so good lying on the floor, covered in blood and half a yard of scalp when the lady had a fall and the horse trod on the pony tail!
Hats all the way for us, with hair in a net tied up! Sorry - may be me reaching that age where I get super safety conscious but to me it's like riding naked if a rider doesn't have a hat. |
   www.eviepeel.com    |
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Emma B
Silver Member
United Kingdom
412 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 3:29:38 PM
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| hats all the way for me. My dad had a fall this year (not from a horse) just standing and died of a head injury - i spent 3 months in intensive care with him looking at these poor poor people with brain / head injuries realising how lucky I am and I would not jeopordise it by taking any chances. "Just my opinion" |
     
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Gerri
Platinum Member
England
4211 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 5:05:18 PM
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| Okay years ago my friends father who had a string of event horses and very well known(no names given) was riding his horse as he did everyday and he had a fall, was not eventing just out exercising, he suffered serious brain damage and after that they used to empty the swimming pool take the ladder away with him in it with toys etc because thats the only safe place they could leave him when they had to get on with something and there was no one to stay with him, it was heartbreaking to see another friend of mine was werring a hat and her horse tripped on a kerb she fell off and suffered fractured skull, I had a push button ride, had an accident whilst wearing a hat and very lucky to be alive although my left side does not work as good as the right, I have a damaged hip suffer with terrible migraines a legacy left by my accident, so WHY take the risk for even more damage? what about your loved ones when you are reduced to a vegetable, or disabled? and what happens to the horse once you have fallen off? sorry but I think we owe it to ourselves our loved ones and our equines to take every possible precaution to staying safe, having said that I agree there is nothing like the wind blowing through your hair as it blows in the wind and there is nothing worse than your head getting hot and sweaty and the headaches from wearing a hat, but for me I got off lightly with a hat, so there is no contest, I am not trying to tell anyone what to do but being honest it just makes me mad to see ......thats all, sorry I do not mean to offend anyone but cannot help how I feel |
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Libby Frost
Platinum Member
United Kingdom
4711 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 5:11:38 PM
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| Gerri i agree with you, i wouldnt ride ANYTHING without a hat, i suffered concussion after a bad fall ,years ago, and very lucky i wasnt brain damaged as when i came round i had no idea where we lived, what month we were in etc etc, it was only my hat that saved me. |
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george
Gold Member
Wales
1353 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 5:41:59 PM
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I agree, hats only for me please....my OH though drives me insane  I have seen him fly through the air completely hatless  I have told him that I will not ride out with him unless he is wearing one, he has had so many health scares and yet he takes his life in his hands every time he rides (which is often on a newly backed horse) it makes me so mad, I know he was a bit of a mad rider when I met him, taking off down a hill at a gallop and me having no choice but to follow but I have tried to make him behave I just don't think he will ever grow up  |
George xxx
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Gerri
Platinum Member
England
4211 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 6:02:31 PM
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The joke of it is that I fell hopelessly in love with my ex husband at the tender age of 13 years old because I always saw him riding mad horses with no hat and the wrong clothes and thought he was the most wonderful man in the world........years later he is no longer my hero or the love of my life...maybe as we get older the sight of anything that risks life or limb is just unbearable  |
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Gerri
Platinum Member
England
4211 Posts |
Posted - 18 Nov 2011 : 6:04:27 PM
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| sorry meant to say also the only horse that threw him and scarred all his face was my first arab mare and from that day he hated arabs, so I had to get another farrier in to do them |
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Grrrr NO HAT!!!!!!!!
