I know this has been done a lot but why I think you should...BPs

OskyWoskyPonio

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In our pony club you are not allowed to go SJ or XC without your body protector even for clinics.
I only wear mine for SJ and XC now but thats due to me having taken some nasty tumbles whilst jumping due to horse being green (could probably get away with not wearing one now as he's much better) but still my mum and dad feel happier if I wear it and so do I knowing that I am offered more protection by wearing it than not
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Also I had a nasty riding accident whilst put on a hack in October 2007 when my horse flipped and landed on me and I had to be air lifted to hospital. I remember thinking before we left the yard that morning for our ride that I couldn't be bothered to wear my BP as it meant taking my coat off and putting it back on again. However, I did and am so glad I chose to! After the fall the paramedics were worried I might have serious head injuries but luckily I didn't as I wore my hat but they were also worried about cracked ribs etc. I do have musculo-skeletal problems in my ribs now which can make breathing extremely painful when I put myself under a lot of strain (e.g. lifting lots of heavy things) but I consider myself lucky seeing as It could have been SOOO MUCH WORSE had I not been wearing my BP!!
So that is my reason for wearing mine and why I encourage other people to wear theirs. Like many people, I thought I knew my horse pretty well and it wasn't really his fault it was just slippery undefoot
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It's the same when I see people riding without hats
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They always give the excuse 'I know my horse well and s/he won't do anything' well you won't be saying that if something were to go wrong and you were left with serious damage to your brain which could have been prevented if you had taken literally seconds to place your hat on your head and fasten it up before getting on...
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It doesn't make you cool or uncool wearing either a hat or a body protector and they aren't fashion, they are just there to protect you...and ok, so it may not look as smart wearing a BP over or under a competition jacket at shows but it's worth it if it will help keep damage to you, should anything happen, to a minimum especially as many horse get very exciteable in a show environment.
Sorry rant over!
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just a subject I feel pretty strongly about seeing as I have had experience of how they can really help you and prevent things from being much worse!
I'm not saying you have to, that's a decision for you to make yourself but this is just why I think you should and I hope that even if it means one person thinks twice about wearing their hat or body protector then it has been worth it
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Hot chocolate and cookies (sorry i'm not quite ols enough to open the wine!
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) if you managed to hang on through my ramblings!
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Glad you're in one piece now, albeit a bit battered.

I'm all for safety
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. I have the pictures of the bleed on my brain to prove it
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And for anyone who thinks I'm harping on, I don't care
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. If my 'going on' makes just one person put a hat on or wear a BP, then it's been well worth the going
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I totally agree with all the above, I too have rib problems after having been thrown off and stamped on. I too had my BP on at the time and I dread to think how bad I would have been without it.
 
I'll have to find the pics of my arm and what was left of my BP.

To cut a long story short if I hadn't been wearing it I would have had at least a BP's depth injury horizontally across my back. Right the way across.

My arm was mostly severed in the same accident, so I don't think I'm being dramatic if I say I don't think I would be walking now had I not had it on.

Having said hat they are a pain in the backside and so cumbersome that I only put one on for special occasions lol!

Wouldn't it be lovely if you could get your arms down by your side and not be boiled alive in them?

If that were the case I would wear it a lot more!
 
I have to agree that they are rather warm and it would be more helful if they were as flexible as possible in order to allow people to 'tuck and roll' away from the horse in the case of a fall
Looks like i'm not the only person who has found that they can make a big difference
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Good for you!!
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I have one - I finally got rid of my old Rodney Powell which didn't fit properly (9 years ago it was the best on offer) and got a new airowear. It is a much better fit as it has been designed for women (and I have a reasonably large chest!) and after the first couple of minutes don't know i'm wearing it.

I work in Neurology units so am more than aware of the damage that can be done or prevented by using a body protector and a hat. Like everything prevention is better than cure.............
 
Pleased to hear accident wasn't as bad as it could of been
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I always wear my BP out hacking, I fell off and was dragged behind galloping pony and ended up with a dislocated hip, If I hadn't been wearing my BP I would hate to think what damage I could of sustained
 
I love that comment 'I know my horse well enough to not need my hat'
Yeah? But can you guarantee that a bird wont fly out of a bush? A car wont tear ar%e up behind you and slam into you??? No?? Hmmm
I have been ranting on and on at these posts too and I'm even boring myself!! BUT if the ranting gets through to just one person who falls off and is saved from severe injury then its worth people thinking that I'm a boring old fart!
 
I must be very lucky in that myself or anybody I know has every really had a terrible accident where wearing a body protector would have actually saved them from serious injury.
This has caused me to be a bit blase about them but reading on here has made me realise that I was wrong.
 
Seahorse your not wrong. You do what is best for you.
I think thats what is the underlying issue between the No BP'ers and the BP'ers. Some of us...ok hands up me....was a little miffed about people saying that putting a leadrein child just walking in one was a waste.
As far as I am concerned gaining peace of mind is never a waste. She may never fall seriously but it puts my mind at rest and installs more confidence in her.
People really need to live and let live.
 
Guess what? I bought a BP as I had my recently backed home-bred youngster, back with me! Do you know what, I didn't put the BP on on that fateful day when he tipped me off whilst I was (trying and trying...) to mount him. BTW the BP was professionally fitted, so there should not have been a problem with it.

I fractured 2 vertebrae and the head of my femur in 7 places.
The femur bit ain't relevant, but the other injury is!
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I should say (no excuses) that I found the BP incredibly uncomfortable (yeah, I know!!) and hit the cantle and made me feel unstable because of this.

Why, oh why didn't I wear it on that fateful day? - because I was stupid...end of!!
 
Sorry to hear about ur accident Doris68 but - if a protector fits you correctly then it doesnt hit the back of the cantle. Thats just what i mean about getting them fitted - it seems something thats not getting done correctly. Such a shame as it puts people off wearing them.
 
I am always in a quandry about wearing a BP, I always always wear it for any jumping however small and I used to wear it religiously all the time, but I now don't wear mine for hacking/schooling. I find that if George spooks or shies if I have mine on then I have a tendency to fall off because I can't relax / balance in the saddle as well and last year I fell off him on a hack and I wasn't able to roll up to save myself and I landed flat on my back and really hurt myself. Of course I have no way of knowing if it would of been worse without the BP it can be a difficult to know what's best.

By the way my BP has been properly fitted, doesn't knock the cantle etc.
 
My YO's life was probably saved by her BP - she fell XC but hung round her horses neck and then dropped in front of him. 16.3hh of hunter went straight over the top of her, and with the BP on she still lost 70% of her liver - I hate to think the damage that would have been done without the BP. I was 10 when she had the accident, so it provided a very good example of why I should always wear a BP!

When I was younger wearing a BP was never really an option - I didn't get on without one on. I complained a bit when I got to my teens (thought it was uncool!) but carried on wearing it, which was probably sensible as both of my SJ ponies were prone to dumping me. Now, I don't wear one SJ as I feel safe without it. I've had Murph 6 years, fallen off him maybe 10 times, and have only been hurt once (damaged coccyx) and I was wearing a BP that time. I find now that my BP does affect my riding a bit - it is probably a bit small, but there is little point in me buying a new one when I spend 9 months of the year away from my horse, do maybe 10 SJ competitions a year, and the last time I went XC was 3 years ago. That said, I wouldn't dream of going XC without one, and I would put one on if I were riding a horse I didn't know / trust. And I would never even dream of riding without a hat, and i can never understand people who do. Even the 2 year old I babysit for puts a hat on before being held on Murphy at shows!
 
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