Hats Save Lives

Bettyboo222

Bettyboo222

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Thought I would share with you all what happened to me on Tuesday. I decided to take the shetland hacking on Tuesday, he was very fresh however I was managing to hold him back and there was no real issue.

As we passed through the wooded part of the bridleway Ted got really hyper and shot off up a path designed for dog walkers, Ted galloped under a branch which hit my hat, I don't really know what happened next as I woke up on the floor with no idea where Ted had gone, luckily he hadn't gone far.

I rode back to the farm sorted out ponies and went home. On Weds I woke up with a terrible headache, dizzyness and nausea, attempted to go to college promptly got sent to hospital. 2 CT scans later and I have got a minor bleed on my brain.

The doctor said that if I wasn't wearing my hat there would be a 80%-90% chance I wouldn't still be here, my hat took the majority of the force. It wasn't a particularly expensive hat, it was a 3 year old charles owen skull cap, but it saved my life.

These things don't always happen to other people, they can happen to anyone, please always wear a hat.
 
Glad you were wearing your hat. Are you going to replace it now ?
My mum came off and got kicked in the head when I was 13, she suffered brain damage and her hat was broken into two. The consultant said she would have been a vegetable if she hadnt been wearing a hat with full safety harness.

I always wear a hat as do my kids.
Hope you are feeling better soon
 
Lucky escape you had there, glad you had the common sense to put one on.
Just as a thought, I personally would write to CO thanking them for making a hat that potentially saved your life. I know that is what the company aims to do - make protective wear - but it must be nice for them to hear of stories how their products have helped, and saved, people.
 
Stories like this are the exact reason why I have never ridden without a hat.

Glad you and the pony are both OK :D
 
I think it's good to get a reminder like this every now and again - hope you're fully recovered soon. I've literally just ordered a new Charles Owen skull this week - my current hat is a bit wobbly and I know that I shouldn't be wearing something that doesn't fit.
 
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Must admit, people not wearing hats is my pet hate. Its all well and good to say its someones choice, but with the NHS, if they end up as a vegtable, we all end up paying for it. I replace my hat every couple of years even if I haven't come off, and it goes if I have. Sounds expensive, but I value both my life, and my ability to function.
 
I'm glad you are OK but look at what one of the top trainers in the sport is saying (from the eurodressage website):confused::

"On his website Ludwig's Horse World, German journalist Dieter Ludwig quoted 63-year old German trainer Johann Hinnemann: "Not the helmet but the top hat is part of the official attire of a rider of the highest level of dressage. There is nothing against wearing a helmet while training but obedience is the top priority of the training of a dressage horse and then a helmet does not necessarily fit in a dressage test."

Just when people are doing their best to promote hats :mad:
 
Big hug OP! Glad you are on the mend - take it easy.

I think I read somewhere about a Dutch company that was designing top hats that were also riding helmets...they looked like a great idea, then I saw the bit about the price and went :eek:
Seriously, why not an affordable top hat style helmet? After all, regardless of how well schooled the horse is, you can't train all of the horse flies...
 
Ouch!! One of the horses at my yard spooked and took someone under a road sign, the horse managed to fit underneath, but the rider didn't! Had she not been wearing her hat, I think it would have been a very nasty accident.

Glad you're alright! *hugs*
 
Exactly, I'm just that I'm still here to tell the tale.

If anyone is interested, I went back today to take a picture of the tree that caused the damage
IMAG0350.jpg
 
Hopefully sharing your personal experience here will help pursued those here who still do not always wear a suitable hat.
Hope you feel 100% soon.
 
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