Do you wear a hat hacking?

Anyone under 18 years of age who chooses to ride on my property must wear a riding hat. For anyone over 18 years of age it is their choice whether they wear one or not. That is standard in the country I reside in. As a rough estimate of riders in my area, probably around 5% of riders wear hats when mounted.
 
Because of my job I have witnessed lots of people with head injuries (both horse related and otherwise), with some of them unfortunately being fatal.

I would never ever dream of riding without a hat (and the chin strap done up!) or even riding a bike without a hat. I find people who do go without them reckless and ignorant. Horses are flighty, unpredictable animals, no matter how 'bomb proof' we believe them to be.

I am not sure of the reasons why people don't wear them- is it more fashionable or perhaps they just don't want to ruin their hair or get a sweaty head- all of which seem utterly ridiculous when you're in an intensive care department on a ventilator in a medically induced coma.

Sorry if this comes across as harsh but I feel those that don't wear them need a wake up call!!
 
Always. And having been thrown by someone else's horse in the fence around our school, breaking 3 ribs in my back, the "don't bother in the school" doesn't cut it with me either.

I worked my horse bare headed this morning, I am stuffed with a horrendous summer cold and am struggling to catch my breath. I lunged. Even then, I still wore gloves..
 
Yep. Having broken three hats over the years hitting the floor (or a fence in one case) I reckon that's three fractured skulls I've saved myself. I do believe in personal choice for adults but don't want anyone to have to scrap my brains off the road. Yesterday I was hacking with a friend and her horse stumbled and fell (at walk). She didn't come off and he scrambled up unscathed but it could have been very different.
 
Always.

I didn't as a child as wasn't the "done thing" back home ... bloody glad I never fell off on my head as a child! Thankfully by the time my horse slipped unpredictably and fell on me resulting in a head injury, I'd already started wearing a hat!
 
Always, for two reasons:

1) I have a brain in my head and would quite like to keep it there; and 2) If I didn't I would be chucked off the yard as a bad example to younger riders. Fair enough.
 
Old timers here will recognize this :cool:

Cantering at speed on hard-ish ground. Dizz went left, I didn't.

I had a hat on.

The lighter coloured sweep, bottom left, is the bleed. It's rather sobering listening to two surgeons debating drilling a hole in one's head :eek:




Brain didn't work properly for ages, i.e. months, afterward. Tears. Scared. Confused. You name it, I felt it. Never really knew from one hour to the next how I'd be feeling. At one point, if D hadn't been with me, I'd have sat down and cried because I couldn't figure out how to cross the second half of a road. On another occasion I walked in front of a taxi. I couldn't remember people, or work; my moods were all over the shop. It was not a good time.

And no, most definitely no, unless one is a hermit, does it only affect the individual.
 
I always do. I have ridden a few times in Canada without a hat and felt naked. I rode whilst in Australia and actually bought a ventilated hat whilst I was there as I didn't want to use hats from riding schools etc that had been used by other people and you don't know what's happened in them.

My horse quite often trips while just walking along, he just doesn't pay attention, and one day he'll trip worse than usual and I'll come off. He also has a dirty stop into jumps and I nearly came off the other day when he did it. But I always wear my hat now. If I plan to ride abroad I will take my lightweight ventilated hat with me.
 
Inthesticks said:
For me, its a stupid question and I would answer it with.. I wear a hat when I am riding my horse full stop...

However, for the second time in 3 days I have seen riders hacking out with no hat, so I am wondering, is wearing a hat a dying safety precaution or are the people I see out hacking without one...incredibly dim..??.:confused:
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Yes I will always wear one, the only time I went out for a ride with a cap is I had a blonde moment and thought I was wearing one but it was my cap duhh lol.

I have had accidents in the past which brings to light the importance of them.

The way I look at it is, riding can be a dangerous sport at the best of times. I got bolted off with by a ex race horse in 1979 17.2, he got in a race on a ride with another, the two of us (me and other student) trying to stop but to no avail. Prince of Orange decided he would go under a 6ft.2 tree which I sadly would not fit under. I got pulled off by a branch and my hat which in those days was elastic strap. So even in hottest days I would never hack out without one.:)
 
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A good friend of mine was very sadly killed instantly last year when she was hacking out her bombproof cob, he spooked and she fell off, her hat was undone and flew off before she landed, head first on the kerb :(

I always wear a hat but i feel ill if i see others hacking without now :(
 
Yes, I did forget to put it once and only realised when I had gone about half a mile down the road. I got off and let Celt home to get my hat.:)
 
MrsMozart said:
Old timers here will recognize this :cool:

Cantering at speed on hard-ish ground. Dizz went left, I didn't.

I had a hat on.

The lighter coloured sweep, bottom left, is the bleed. It's rather sobering listening to two surgeons debating drilling a hole in one's head :eek:




Brain didn't work properly for ages, i.e. months, afterward. Tears. Scared. Confused. You name it, I felt it. Never really knew from one hour to the next how I'd be feeling. At one point, if D hadn't been with me, I'd have sat down and cried because I couldn't figure out how to cross the second half of a road. On another occasion I walked in front of a taxi. I couldn't remember people, or work; my moods were all over the shop. It was not a good time.

And no, most definitely no, unless one is a hermit, does it only affect the individual.
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OMG Mrs M thank god your ok now :)
 
I don't usually ride with a hat; never have. I know everyone in the UK is very fierce about this, but really it is down to personal choice and in very many cultures it is just as normal to ride without one. My day to day work with horses means riding without safety gear (demos, stunts and general film work), I'm 54 years old and not dead yet.
 
How about:


you have only one shot on this earth - the brain is a very complex part of you. So much stored in it - memories of loved ones- animal and human.


Is it really worth risking loosing all those memories and jobs prospects or life changing events to not wear one?? .

And possibility of ending up brain dead or in a wheel chair??

My friends at Stag Lodge Riding School in London thought it was fine to not wear a crash helmet went out with her b/f.

2 hrs later she was in hospital with brain damage and lived in a wheel chair and with one of those type talk machines. I will never forget her face when I saw her for the first time after the accident. :(
 
Cortez....
I'm sorry but that has to be one of the stupidest things I've heard!!

Never say never with horses, no matter how an amazing rider you think you are, your head won't win in a fight against the hard ground....
 
Nowadays with all the different shaped, lightweight, well ventilated hats available, why wouldn't you? They keep the sun out of your eyes, branches from hitting you on the head and might just save you from brain damage if you were to fall off. I can't really see any downside anymore to wearing one tbh, though I could with older hats which often gave me headaches and were uncomfy. So yeah, i wear a hat when hacking and in the school. My friend said today "urgh, I'm not looking forwards to putting my hat on (with the heat)", but it was one of those velvet show hats. I never feel like that about my riding hats anymore, why are people not buying the comfiest, modern hats? :confused:
 
Dusty85 said:
Cortez....
I'm sorry but that has to be one of the stupidest things I've heard!!

Never say never with horses, no matter how an amazing rider you think you are, your head won't win in a fight against the hard ground....
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I'm not particularly stupid, actually, but I have ridden all my life, fallen off as and when, and generally choose not to wear a hat. You probably do choose to wear one, great! Much of my work with horses requires me to wear historical costume, which does not consist of a protective hat. If I am at a competition venue or suchlike that requires a hat, then I will wear one, if given a choice then I will not. I do not live in the UK where it is the norm to always wear a riding hat; probably the majority of riding in the world does not involve a safety hat - different from you, but it is my choice and none of your business, frankly.
 
Cortez said:
I don't usually ride with a hat; never have. I know everyone in the UK is very fierce about this, but really it is down to personal choice and in very many cultures it is just as normal to ride without one. My day to day work with horses means riding without safety gear (demos, stunts and general film work), I'm 54 years old and not dead yet.
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Well done for staying alive ! my friend was just 26 years old
You are not invincible :(
 
Cortez said:
I'm not particularly stupid, actually, but I have ridden all my life, fallen off as and when, and generally choose not to wear a hat. You probably do choose to wear one, great! Much of my work with horses requires me to wear historical costume, which does not consist of a protective hat. If I am at a competition venue or suchlike that requires a hat, then I will wear one, if given a choice then I will not. I do not live in the UK where it is the norm to always wear a riding hat; probably the majority of riding in the world does not involve a safety hat - different from you, but it is my choice and none of your business, frankly.
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Howver, the title of this thread asks "Do you wear a hat hacking?", not "Do you wear a hat when wearing traditional costumes at re-enactments"

Each to their own,
 
Toffee_monster said:
Howver, the title of this thread asks "Do you wear a hat hacking?", not "Do you wear a hat when wearing traditional costumes at re-enactments"

Each to their own,
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I don't do re-enactments, I do demonstrations at an historical property in Ireland which involves hacking through a 400 acre park. I do not wear a safety helmet whilst I do this, nor at any other time when I am not required to do so. That please you better?
 
MrsMozart said:
Old timers here will recognize this :cool:

Cantering at speed on hard-ish ground. Dizz went left, I didn't.

I had a hat on.

The lighter coloured sweep, bottom left, is the bleed. It's rather sobering listening to two surgeons debating drilling a hole in one's head :eek:




Brain didn't work properly for ages, i.e. months, afterward. Tears. Scared. Confused. You name it, I felt it. Never really knew from one hour to the next how I'd be feeling. At one point, if D hadn't been with me, I'd have sat down and cried because I couldn't figure out how to cross the second half of a road. On another occasion I walked in front of a taxi. I couldn't remember people, or work; my moods were all over the shop. It was not a good time.

And no, most definitely no, unless one is a hermit, does it only affect the individual.
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Mrs M - that is a scary story. I'm sure you had noticed but your brain has a smiley face!

I always hack with a hat on, only time I ride without one is bringing in from the field bareback when the horses are down the meadows. Silly I know.
 
I generally do, but not absolutely always. Wouldn't ride someone else's horse without one.

Riding is a risk sport. I feel quite strongly about the right of individuals to choose the level of risk they feel comfortable with. I don't wear one when carriage driving, and the risks are similar. I learned to ride abroad, where hats aren't even optional - there weren't any.

The worst head injury I had was probably made worse by the hat. I hit the ground, sort of rolling onto the back of my neck, and the 'push' forwards was augmented by the hat. I had some nasty brain-stemmy type symptoms, like hot flushes and palpatations for about a week.

That's not to say that I've not been glad of it a time or two :)
 
I often wonder about the seat security of riders who are so sanctimonious about helmet wearing. While I'm pro-helmets, I do think more emphasis needs placing on not being easily shifted from horses than on having the right head-wear on so its fine to hit the floor, IYSWIM? Cortez is un-doubtably safer all things considered than plenty of riders with hats on, a helmet won't save your neck!
 
I have always worn a hat for riding but when we were riding in Canada (over 10 years ago now!) for some reason I didn't - probably because nobody else did. I know - stupid! Anyway, since becoming a mum I would never ride without a hat. And sadly my good friend in Canada (who never wore a hat) took a bad fall a few years ago. She has mostly recovered but she always wears a hat now...
 
Toffeemonster, so very sorry about your friend. That is tragic.

I posted earlier to say I always wear a hat but I have many friends who are professional riders, who do not. I do agree with Flame that they are very probably 10x as safe as me as they are 100x better riders. (Which by the looks of it would also be true for Cortez ;) ) One of the girls came for a hack with me at my yard and I asked her to wear a hat, which she did. Other than that, I don't comment on their choice. (Several of them also smoke, by the way, which is a whole other question!! And makes me realise that I have quite a few other life choices which are probably non ideal too!!)
 
I passed Anthea Turner last weekend and was pretty amazed to see her hacking her horse with no hat on. Incredibly stupid, celebrity or not.
 
When you think of how thin the skull is and fragile, and in a RTA hitting a windscreen at 30 MPH, and you see the aftermath. Seat belts will lessen the chance of serious injury.,

How is this different than, your head hitting the ground at say 30mph there can only be a bad outcome.

Poor Kim was 23 when she came off the moped she was traveling 20mph and it skidded on a patch of oil.


This person no names mentioned only wears a hat for competing because you have too. Now liveries see him do it and the young ones with their long blonde hair flowing aged 14 - 18 all do it now.


Life is precious - accidents happen - take precautions.
 
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When I was younger I didn't always wear a hat which I now realise was stupid. Now I always wear on whether schooling or hacking & my personal view is that when riding on a public road it should be compulsory. I'm fairly certain it is for motorbike riders and should be for cyclists & horse riders.

I don't expect everyone to agree so I'm not looking for an argument.
 
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