MelBambra
New User
Having recently visited the www.adidas.com website (which may I add is generally excellent), I was very disappointed by what I seen. An online promotion for the Missy Elliot collection, with said celebrity in pictures and video footage sitting astride a horse, whilst she was not wearing a riding hat!
As a horse owner and competitor I am more than delighted that the Equestrian sport is getting so much media attention at the moment, following the recent success of Only Fools on Horses and of course Zara Phillips winning the BBC Sports Personality of the year.
However, yet again I see another mindless example of a high profile celebrity flaunting the need to look cool over safe.
With nearly 4 million horse owners in the UK and a great number of these being junior riders, I see no clear reminder to the youth that it is actually illegal for anyone under the age of 14 to ride on a public road without a riding hat!
Missy Elliots campaign is yet another amongst many that condone riding a horse without a hat. With around 3,000 accidents occurring each year involving young people riding horses on our roads (source: www.BHS.org.uk), I am still shocked and stunned that this practice carries on.
Many lives have been saved by wearing riding hats; too many unfortunately will have not. I totally realise that riding is a risk sport (having sustained many an injury myself!) but one thing is clear I would no sooner get on a horse without a hat than I would drive down the street without a seat belt!
It doesnt end with Missy Elliot and Adidas however, many adverts are still being run in specialist equine press featuring riders without hats. How on earth are the BHS and other organisations meant to promote safety when media campaigns and promotions carry on in this manner?
The impact these campaigns can have is nearly as bad an effect as say, David Beckham smoking a cigarette. Now that would NEVER happen in the media, so why should this?!
As a horse owner and competitor I am more than delighted that the Equestrian sport is getting so much media attention at the moment, following the recent success of Only Fools on Horses and of course Zara Phillips winning the BBC Sports Personality of the year.
However, yet again I see another mindless example of a high profile celebrity flaunting the need to look cool over safe.
With nearly 4 million horse owners in the UK and a great number of these being junior riders, I see no clear reminder to the youth that it is actually illegal for anyone under the age of 14 to ride on a public road without a riding hat!
Missy Elliots campaign is yet another amongst many that condone riding a horse without a hat. With around 3,000 accidents occurring each year involving young people riding horses on our roads (source: www.BHS.org.uk), I am still shocked and stunned that this practice carries on.
Many lives have been saved by wearing riding hats; too many unfortunately will have not. I totally realise that riding is a risk sport (having sustained many an injury myself!) but one thing is clear I would no sooner get on a horse without a hat than I would drive down the street without a seat belt!
It doesnt end with Missy Elliot and Adidas however, many adverts are still being run in specialist equine press featuring riders without hats. How on earth are the BHS and other organisations meant to promote safety when media campaigns and promotions carry on in this manner?
The impact these campaigns can have is nearly as bad an effect as say, David Beckham smoking a cigarette. Now that would NEVER happen in the media, so why should this?!