Fantasy_World
Well-Known Member
QR I agree that hat wearing is personal choice. Myself personally I have never even sat on a horse without one. Fair enough riding a sane horse in a school on a soft surface carries minimal risks as there is less chance the horse would spook and if it did the horse would hopefully be contained within the confines of the school.
Now let's take riding on a road, along a track for instance. There are numerous things that could spook a horse, even the most sane horse in the world could have an 'off' day or have the wind up his or her backside. What then? What IF ( and I say if before someone starts quoting the statistics of riders falling from horses and so on) but as I was saying what if that rider falls off. What if that rider falls awkwardly on his or her head? What then? With no protection whatsover the brain would only have the protection of the bone of the skull. Ok I hear you all say well for millions of years the skull has done just that and has been protecting the brain's of men and women for centuries. Man ( and woman) has ridden horses long before riding hats were invented, and some still do. However I have a few problems with that. The horse of long ago is nothing like the near perfect equine beast we have today. Today we look after our horses(perhaps too much in some cases). Feed them different sorts of grain, feeds, supplements and so on. All of which affect our horses temperament, stamina, agility and overall physique. Long before the term 'feed' was ever invented our horses were fed grass ( grazed) or else hay and in later years oats, barley and bran ( like today). We didn't fill them up with performance enhancing feeds, or try to produce horses that could either race, jump or ballet their way through competitions.
There is also the vast difference between the terrain of years ago to now and the modern tarmaced or concrete jungles. I think for most of us even a hack to the nearest bridle path ( unless you are very lucky) involves crossing a road at one point or another. Roads are dangerous not only due to the hardness of the surface for either horse or rider during a fall, but also because the average horse rider has to negotiate safely around the millions of vehicles that drive along the British Highways every day. Vehicles and their drivers who don't always have the patience or understanding for horses and their riders.
As our roads become busier and busier and the bridle path numbers reduce more riders than ever find themselves riding along roads, some of which are accident hotspots. Earlier this year a lady's horse was killed outside a yard about 5 miles from my yard. The lady was wearing a hat and that is probably what saved her from an otherwise nasty accident.
It may be personal choice not to wear a hat. However if the riding is taking place on roads or across bridle tracks in which a rider could be dragged for miles then I think it is foolhardy not to wear one.
This may be an emotive subject for some and it may feel like the 'wearing a hat brigade' are being a tad forthright in their views at times but is only because we are looking at the bigger picture.
You only get one head and one brain for life. A broken bone can be healed whereas a broken head is more difficult to mend and brain damage is irreversible. Once you enter the word of la la and her companions that is it. You may not be aware of how you are feeling and may not even have any memories or understanding of your mental ( and in some cases physical) abilities before your accident.
Hell knows you may not even remember the accident. You may not be able to speak but don't worry the damage to your brain is such that you won't even know what speech is, let alone be able to spell it. You won't even mind dribbling your saliva down your chin and those half chewed bits of cottage pie that you almost vomited down your chest.
No you won't be aware of anything much really and that is of course assuming you are not dead already or lying hooked up to a machine that will keep you alive until it is decided that you are bed blocking.
You may not be aware of all what has happened to you since that dreadful day when Monty decided to spook out of character one day along the road (or along the bridle track) and towed you for about half a mile before finally stopping and some innocent bystander who came to your aid who nearly vomited when they saw parts of your skull and brain tissue matted in your hair.
No you are the lucky one.
You don't have to see all that. All that you have become. But all those around you do. Your family, your friends, your work colleagues. Your mother praying for the day to have her daughter back to how she was. A daughter or son wishing that mummy could read them a story just like she used to before.
Let's not forget all the people who helped you to even live ( if you can call it that). The ambulance driver, the paramedic, the doctors, nurses, theatre staff, physiotherapists and other professional persons committed to trying to help a person in your situation following severe trauma to the head.
Yes my post is emotive and it is because of the many reasons listed above why I choose to wear to hat when riding, especially when not in a school.
Yes I could quite easily be knocked down by a bus tomorrow, the next day, or the day after that and so on. But I take my chances when crossing a road. I stop, I look and listen and then cross when safe to do so. Wearing a hat when riding is my green cross code. It gives me peace of mind ( pardon the pun) that my head will be afforded some protection if I fall to the ground.
I am not trying to tell anyone what to do. We all live by personal choice and we are all individuals but please try and think for one moment of your head and for those whose lives you would destroy were the worst to ever happen.
Sorry for a really long post. I feel quite deeply about this to be honest. I am a people person and care very deeply about children in particular, even those that are not my own and when any accident happens that effectively separates a child from his/ her parent(s) and not necessarily through death it upsets me.
Caroline
Now let's take riding on a road, along a track for instance. There are numerous things that could spook a horse, even the most sane horse in the world could have an 'off' day or have the wind up his or her backside. What then? What IF ( and I say if before someone starts quoting the statistics of riders falling from horses and so on) but as I was saying what if that rider falls off. What if that rider falls awkwardly on his or her head? What then? With no protection whatsover the brain would only have the protection of the bone of the skull. Ok I hear you all say well for millions of years the skull has done just that and has been protecting the brain's of men and women for centuries. Man ( and woman) has ridden horses long before riding hats were invented, and some still do. However I have a few problems with that. The horse of long ago is nothing like the near perfect equine beast we have today. Today we look after our horses(perhaps too much in some cases). Feed them different sorts of grain, feeds, supplements and so on. All of which affect our horses temperament, stamina, agility and overall physique. Long before the term 'feed' was ever invented our horses were fed grass ( grazed) or else hay and in later years oats, barley and bran ( like today). We didn't fill them up with performance enhancing feeds, or try to produce horses that could either race, jump or ballet their way through competitions.
There is also the vast difference between the terrain of years ago to now and the modern tarmaced or concrete jungles. I think for most of us even a hack to the nearest bridle path ( unless you are very lucky) involves crossing a road at one point or another. Roads are dangerous not only due to the hardness of the surface for either horse or rider during a fall, but also because the average horse rider has to negotiate safely around the millions of vehicles that drive along the British Highways every day. Vehicles and their drivers who don't always have the patience or understanding for horses and their riders.
As our roads become busier and busier and the bridle path numbers reduce more riders than ever find themselves riding along roads, some of which are accident hotspots. Earlier this year a lady's horse was killed outside a yard about 5 miles from my yard. The lady was wearing a hat and that is probably what saved her from an otherwise nasty accident.
It may be personal choice not to wear a hat. However if the riding is taking place on roads or across bridle tracks in which a rider could be dragged for miles then I think it is foolhardy not to wear one.
This may be an emotive subject for some and it may feel like the 'wearing a hat brigade' are being a tad forthright in their views at times but is only because we are looking at the bigger picture.
You only get one head and one brain for life. A broken bone can be healed whereas a broken head is more difficult to mend and brain damage is irreversible. Once you enter the word of la la and her companions that is it. You may not be aware of how you are feeling and may not even have any memories or understanding of your mental ( and in some cases physical) abilities before your accident.
Hell knows you may not even remember the accident. You may not be able to speak but don't worry the damage to your brain is such that you won't even know what speech is, let alone be able to spell it. You won't even mind dribbling your saliva down your chin and those half chewed bits of cottage pie that you almost vomited down your chest.
No you won't be aware of anything much really and that is of course assuming you are not dead already or lying hooked up to a machine that will keep you alive until it is decided that you are bed blocking.
You may not be aware of all what has happened to you since that dreadful day when Monty decided to spook out of character one day along the road (or along the bridle track) and towed you for about half a mile before finally stopping and some innocent bystander who came to your aid who nearly vomited when they saw parts of your skull and brain tissue matted in your hair.
No you are the lucky one.
You don't have to see all that. All that you have become. But all those around you do. Your family, your friends, your work colleagues. Your mother praying for the day to have her daughter back to how she was. A daughter or son wishing that mummy could read them a story just like she used to before.
Let's not forget all the people who helped you to even live ( if you can call it that). The ambulance driver, the paramedic, the doctors, nurses, theatre staff, physiotherapists and other professional persons committed to trying to help a person in your situation following severe trauma to the head.
Yes my post is emotive and it is because of the many reasons listed above why I choose to wear to hat when riding, especially when not in a school.
Yes I could quite easily be knocked down by a bus tomorrow, the next day, or the day after that and so on. But I take my chances when crossing a road. I stop, I look and listen and then cross when safe to do so. Wearing a hat when riding is my green cross code. It gives me peace of mind ( pardon the pun) that my head will be afforded some protection if I fall to the ground.
I am not trying to tell anyone what to do. We all live by personal choice and we are all individuals but please try and think for one moment of your head and for those whose lives you would destroy were the worst to ever happen.
Sorry for a really long post. I feel quite deeply about this to be honest. I am a people person and care very deeply about children in particular, even those that are not my own and when any accident happens that effectively separates a child from his/ her parent(s) and not necessarily through death it upsets me.
Caroline