Body protector and a promise kept.

TrasaM

TrasaM

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I've just got back in the saddle after a two month lay off due to breaking my collar bone and having it pinned. I'm new ish to riding so it came as a shock to my family when I got broken. Having realised just how worried they all were I made a promise that in future I'd wear my BP..the one I wasn't wearing when I fell off:rolleyes: So yesterday I decided it was time to man up and don said protector. I put it on and thought this is uncomfortable and it was pressing on my collarbone and felt hot and restricted. I very nearly abandoned it but then remembered that I had promised, so I kept it on. Within a short time it had warmed up and within a few minutes of starting the ride I'd forgotten I had it on and it did not feel either too hot or restrictive. So in future it will be worn on all hacks. I've not decided yet if I will wear it during lessons but I probably should. So if like me you are putting off wearing one for whatever reason I can assure you that you do get used to them and once on and warmed up you will not notice it's on. Might knit myself some arm warmers though so I can limit how much clothing I'm wearing once it gets colder. :D
 
Get yourself a few of the base layer tops that rugby players wear, I find them great for keeping warm without bulk. A lot of the time I'll wear a base layer and a t-shirt under my bp, and if it's really cold pop a jacket on over it.
 
I wish I had been wearing mine the other day,glad you are persevering with it.Setting a good example too!.I never realised how much delicate stuff was under the collar bone till I wrecked it.
 
Good for you. I wear mine whenever I get on a horse, and i've lost count of the times that I have heard people say they don't need one. Usually they are the ones not riding because they have had to take time off for silly falls that may have been less severe if they were wearing one. Sometimes I get the feeling I'm seen as over cautious, but I don't care, horses are unpredictable, and thats that. :)
 
I was wearing mine when I had my fall, or I would most definitely had broken bones. So now I'm stuck with it forever. :rolleyes: I've had to add shoulder protectors because I'm not quite healed yet.

Paula
 
Mike007 said:
I wish I had been wearing mine the other day,glad you are persevering with it.Setting a good example too!.I never realised how much delicate stuff was under the collar bone till I wrecked it.
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Yes I remember..didn't you post about coming off the horse and breaking ribs and collarbone ? How are you healing ? And doesn't it b####dy hurt!
 
I so almost talked myself out of it :rolleyes: but my son left me in no doubt how worried they'd been about me getting hurt again that I though I owed it to them to try to do something to minimise breakages if it happens again:( ok..I know it's more 'when' than 'if' .

Paula. I need to get some shoulder protectors too.. Think I'll look like an American football player when I'm done :D
 
I had so many narrow escapes but when I saw a friend get horribly hurt while we were having a gentle hack I decided to always wear a BP in future. I bought a Kan Teq two years ago and just love it. It is designed for women and has built in shoulder pads. Expensive but cheap when you think about the job it does.:):)
 
TrasaM said:
I so almost talked myself out of it :rolleyes: but my son left me in no doubt how worried they'd been about me getting hurt again that I though I owed it to them to try to do something to minimise breakages if it happens again:( ok..I know it's more 'when' than 'if' .

Paula. I need to get some shoulder protectors too.. Think I'll look like an American football player when I'm done :D
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Oh yes indeedy - numpty city. ;). But I've still got a little dent under my right deltoid (shoulder) muscle, so I really do not need to fall on that again this year.

Paula
 
I always wear a body protector now, even for dressage lessons riding a very sensible horse. I feel weird without it, kind of like driving without a seat belt on!

I event but fractured a vertebrae when bucked off warming up for a dressage test. I don't notice it at all as I am so used to wearing it.
 
Good to hear that you think it is a good idea to wear one. I learnt to ride years ago and returned about 5 years ago after loooong break :) Never wore one until I was given opportunity to go XC on friends horse about 18 months ago and bought one at £130. Hated it and never wore it again. A friend borrowed it and said it was the worst BP she had ever worn.

Since then I have had 2 falls this year. One in Jannuary on a horse that I didn't know at all who had a wee strop when asked to canter, where I landed on my bum and felt my spine crush - ended up weeks later at physio who told me I had dislocated facet joints in spine, took about 3 months and physio and still wasn't 100%. Reasoned that even if I had BP on injury would have been the same.

Fell off again last month when horse ducked out a spread and I went spinning into wing and landed flat on back with huge thud. My back is still sore after that, but I don't think particularly anything wrong except the fact that I am in mid 40's and don't recover well anymore :(. Going to physio next week anyway for a check. However I do think that if I was wearing a BP then I would not have hurt myself at all ......

Decided to go and buy anther BP yesterday - went for an Airowear outlyne - which straightaway felt much less restrictive, although I have only modelled it in front of mirror and not ridden in it yet. I am still not convinced that I will wear it but after reading this thread I think I should - apart from anything it was expensive.

Both my teenagers ride and they always wear one (one has the outlyne hence the reason I went for that one) although I have noticed that as they are getting older the other teenagers in the lesson are choosing to ditch the BP's.

I really hope I can get used to mine!
 
I, too, bought a bp after breaking a collar bone last year. It was soo painful and inconvenient. I was surprised at how long it took to recover, I had been told 12 weeks, but it took over 7 months before I was completely free of discomfort. I am no longer a spring chicken and decided I should now wear more protection so I got an airowear(sp) outline. However, I hate to be the person to say so, but a body protector will not prevent a broken collar bone, but it will protect against a lot of other injuries.
 
ZondaR said:
I, too, bought a bp after breaking a collar bone last year. It was soo painful and inconvenient. I was surprised at how long it took to recover, I had been told 12 weeks, but it took over 7 months before I was completely free of discomfort. I am no longer a spring chicken and decided I should now wear more protection so I got an airowear(sp) outline. However, I hate to be the person to say so, but a body protector will not prevent a broken collar bone, but it will protect against a lot of other injuries.
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Hi Zonda..think I was lucky then as I had mine pinned. I think I was advised not to ride just yet. Uumm..yes they might have said that. Memory deteriorating with age :( Am taking it very easy at the moment but yes I am very aware that any fall on my right side will be both very painful and possibly complicated to fix and the BP will not be much help.
 
poppet said:
Decided to go and buy anther BP yesterday - went for an Airowear outlyne - which straightaway felt much less restrictive, although I have only modelled it in front of mirror and not ridden in it yet. I am still not convinced that I will wear it but after reading this thread I think I should - apart from anything it was expensive.

Both my teenagers ride and they always wear one (one has the outlyne hence the reason I went for that one) although I have noticed that as they are getting older the other teenagers in the lesson are choosing to ditch the BP's.

I really hope I can get used to mine!
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Go on try it ..you'll love it. And you have to practice what you preach. They feel stiff at first but it will soften up really quickly. Good luck with the physio :)
 
Got a chance to wear Outlyne BP at lesson ast night. Felt strange at the start when I was on the ground getting horse from stable etc but as soon as I was on board it was fine and by the end of the lesson I had got used to it. I do think it gave me a bit more confidence and didn't interfere with jumping in anyway (possibly that's got more to do with my jumping ability though as I probably don't fold very much anyway LOL)

I will probably wear it now whenever I ride - can't believe the difference between it and the Rodney Powell.
 
The outlyne is amazing and I don't mind wearing it. Body protectors have fairly moved on from when I had a hideous race safe that constantly rode up - 15 years ago!
 
poppet said:
Got a chance to wear Outlyne BP at lesson ast night. Felt strange at the start when I was on the ground getting horse from stable etc but as soon as I was on board it was fine and by the end of the lesson I had got used to it. I do think it gave me a bit more confidence and didn't interfere with jumping in anyway (possibly that's got more to do with my jumping ability though as I probably don't fold very much anyway LOL)

I will probably wear it now whenever I ride - can't believe the difference between it and the Rodney Powell.
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Can't offer any comparison as its the only one ive tried but I love mine and no longer thing it's an encumbrance. And it'll keep me warm in winter :)
 
Meant to say that Physio checked me over and I had dislocated facet joints again - a bit further up this time. He twisted me back into place (ouch ouch) and a couple of sessions later feels much better.
 
I have never ridden with a body protector until now but have had a long gap between riding when I was younger and getting back into the saddle. I honestly didn't think I would ever ride with a body protector as I perceived them to be so restrictive but I am self employed and no-one can easily take my place in the business so I need to be fit and able to work.

I posted on here when looking and narrowed it down to a Rodney Powell or Aeroware Outlyne (I am on the larger size). I ended up opting for the Rodney Powell but really it could have gone either way. I love it. At first it felt stiff but now I don't notice it whilst riding and it has the added bonus of keeping me warm.

Last weekend I had my first fall in 30 years. I don't doubt that if I had not been wearing the body protector I would have had quite nasty injuries as it was I walked away from it relatively unhurt other than where my lady stood on the back of my calf!
 
thehorsephotographer said:
Last weekend I had my first fall in 30 years. I don't doubt that if I had not been wearing the body protector I would have had quite nasty injuries as it was I walked away from it relatively unhurt other than where my lady stood on the back of my calf!
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That's an impressive gap between falls !! Glad you are okay.

It was over 30 years ago that I learnt to ride and I don't recall ever seeing anyone wear a BP.
 
poppet said:
That's an impressive gap between falls !! Glad you are okay.

It was over 30 years ago that I learnt to ride and I don't recall ever seeing anyone wear a BP.
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No they didn't did they? But over the years I've been very much in the "do as I say not as I do" camp in that I've insisted my kids wear bp's whilst preferring to ride without anything myself.

Two things changed my mind. I have recently come back into having my own horse and riding frequently after quite a gap, secondly we have a mounting block made from breeze blocks and the only accident I've had prior to this weekend was a few months ago when I was getting on a young horse from the block and the horse moved. I went down between the horse and the block and the bruising to my back and leg where it caught the block was considerable and very painful.

Years ago we mounted from the ground and thought nothing of it (often hopping about as the horse didn't stand still!). Now I mount only from a mounting block and this made me think since it had happened that once that I could actually be quite vulnerable at the point of mounting and sustain a nasty injury on the fixed block without proper protection.

Add to the above that I have a family who also depend on my bringing in the bacon and BP is really very sensible.
 
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