Little Rant !!!

T

tubby1

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 August 2010
Messages
333
Visit site
Sorry probably been said to death , but here goes why oh why do people still think it's cool to ride without a hat!!!! There are teenagers on my yard who ride in the school with hats then ride their horses to the fields in head collars with no hats. Do they think they have iron heads ? I'm fed up telling them to put their hats on, even their own parents don't seem to bother!!!! I would stop my daughter riding if she didn't have her hat on. Rant over :o
 
I don't think its cool to ride without a hat.
Sorry to ruin your cliche.

Adding onto that, I know plenty of women in their 30s/40s that don't wear hats, is that different? At what age DO you develop an 'iron head'?

I'm very bored of stereotypes :o

ETA - my mum rode our pony up to her shelter in a head collar without a hat on the other day, something I wouldn't do? Not everyone is the same as on your yard obviously!
 
We ride too and from fields sometimes. At the end of the day it's personal choice and if you think about it this time 100 years ago no one had hats our body armour. On of mine I would never do that on but the others yep.
 
Elsiecat my apologies I realise that there are lots of sensible teenagers & daft adults . My point was that I don't think anyone should ride without a hat regardless of age. It just so happens at my yard it's the teenagers.
 
Until they or someone they know is seriously hurt, theyll probably not really care, when theyve seen someone they like unconscious, ventilated, with a serious head injury after a severe fall, hair shaved and stitches from top to bottom, tracheostomy in their throat and catheter bag by the side of their bed, theyll realise it to late.
While it may be personal choice, a severe head injury to someone has a ripple effect among, frends, family, so its a personal choice that can effect many
 
I always wear a hat - apart from if i'm riding my mare back to the stable from the field (its about 50ft!)

I know she will never do anything to harm me - I let my 2yr old god son ride her! And I only do it if i have someone walking next to me holding her with another leadrope. :D

TBH i think it depends on how confident you are and how well behaved your horse is!!! :p
 
tubby1 said:
Elsiecat my apologies I realise that there are lots of sensible teenagers & daft adults . My point was that I don't think anyone should ride without a hat regardless of age. It just so happens at my yard it's the teenagers.
Click to expand...

Accepted :D

It's all down to personal choice at the end of the day! What really cheeses me off is seeing people with hats ON but undone :confused: If you fell off that'd hit the ground well before you.. Whats the point in wearing it at all if you don't fasten it?:o
 
Sorry, I can't resist.

Kajabe, your mare may well never do anything TO harm you. Doing something that DOES harm you as a result of reacting like a horse is a completely different thing.

And yes, those with well-behaved horses are less likely to sustain injury but it is a LIKELIHOOD. Confidence makes you more likely to get on board. What happens after that is unconnected.

All of the above is fairly basic and straightforward.

To those who point out we didn't ride in hats 100 years ago, we also didn't have an NHS the rest of us pay for, apart from anything else.
 
Thanks for your replies , I understand that it is personal choice but no horse is completely trustworthy they are after all animals that are ruled by their natural instinct. I totally agree with Marydoll & think if you had experienced the catastrophic effects that head injury can inflict not only on the sufferer but also the surrounding family & friends people would never ride without a hat.
 
I always have a hat on, even though I trust my horse 100%. A friend of mine died after her horse spooked and she fell on her head - her hat was undone and came off before she landed, and her spine was pushed into her brain.

Personal choice what people do, of course, but I prefer to try and keep my brain in tact (such as it is :D)
 
TBH i think it depends on how confident you are and how well behaved your horse is!!!
Click to expand...

Not really :confused:

The use of a hat does not make a person any more or less confident, neither does it account for the behavior of the horse.
 
Always have mine on and make sure children do.

Its personal choice but no horse is 100% and accidents happen. Too late when your head has been smashed to a pulp.
 
LollyDolly said:
Not really :confused:

The use of a hat does not make a person any more or less confident, neither does it account for the behavior of the horse.
Click to expand...

I agree.

I was a very confident rider until a horse I had just bought reared vertically and went over with me. We hadn't even left the yard when this happened and we both came down onto concrete - my head hit first and I know that without my hat I would have been injured a lot worse than I was. Even with my hat I had concussion (and broken bones) - not pleasant. I always wear a hat now no matter what or where.
 
kajabe said:
TBH i think it depends on how confident you are and how well behaved your horse is!!! :p
Click to expand...

Confidence doesnt decrease your risk of landing on your head if your horse spooks or bolts :confused: and even the best horses spook, just look at the spooks in the dressage arena at Greenwich.
Being a confident rider doesnt stop you from being thrown either, just ask Mary King, clayton Fredericks and Nick Skelton, all confident fantastic riders, all have came off in riding accidents outwith competitions, Nick was trying a horse that bucked him off when he broke his neck, Clayton came off schooling a youngster that had been going well, spooked, bronked, took off and they both landed on the floor, Mary was thrown schooling, they all had their hats on though! They know theyre not infallable
 
I ride without a hat at home - I'll hold my hands up and admit that. And I ride horses that I really shouldn't without one as well - ie tb's just back into work after holidays & freshly broken ponies.

I do have double standards though as I will never, ever let anyone else ride any of my horses or ponies without a hat on or without a long sleeved top/jumper on. When others are around I wear a hat. At show's I wear a hat when on regardless.

I couldn't ride with a hat on and the chinstrap undone as it would just swing about and annoy the hell out of me! Also totally pointless!

I do need to invest in a "home" hat as the main reason I don't wear one is because I can't be faffed remebering to bring it home and take it back to work every day.
 
EKW said:
I ride without a hat at home - I'll hold my hands up and admit that. And I ride horses that I really shouldn't without one as well - ie tb's just back into work after holidays & freshly broken ponies.

I do have double standards though as I will never, ever let anyone else ride any of my horses or ponies without a hat on or without a long sleeved top/jumper on. When others are around I wear a hat. At show's I wear a hat when on regardless.

I couldn't ride with a hat on and the chinstrap undone as it would just swing about and annoy the hell out of me! Also totally pointless!

I do need to invest in a "home" hat as the main reason I don't wear one is because I can't be faffed remebering to bring it home and take it back to work every day.
Click to expand...

Im sorry i dont mean to offend you, but you come across as a fool
 
I always wear mine but how on earth did I survive as a child (over 40 years ago!) with my old fashioned hat that had a thin piece of elastic that you tied a knot in to keep it on lol ;)
 
My friend with brain damage prob wishes that she had, no body could tell her and this is what can happen and does happen, so I think its very stupid to ride with out a hat. She had a bomb proof horse but did not stop the car going into them and her being dragged down the road by her head. This is all a bit to close to home for me so the only choice you have is do you want to run the risk of being like my friend.if you could see her I am sure those who do not wear one would change their minds, even if you come back to me on this and say it would not.
 
I agree incredibly stupid to ride without a hat.

I vote we take everyone that thinks they are above riding with a hat to the local head trauma unit. They'd soon think twice about riding without one.

Surely anyone that values their health, or even just having an intact skull would wear a helmet?

As Lyndsey White says: 'You only get one brain, and like so many doctors have told us, one concussion is one too many. Every time you hit your head you do damage. You don’t get an opportunity to undo the damage. It’s a one time thing, and it really doesn’t help to look back and wish you’d worn a helmet. '
 
I always wear my hat as do my two girls (6 & 13), in fact they wear theirs to catch their ponies and also when grooming....good practice i say.

I don't understand why anyone would want to risk a head injury?? I value my life and the life of my family too much to be so stupid! ...
 
Re:people not having hats 100yrs ago,I guess there are no statistics as to how many (I'm guessing the vast majority) people died after falling from their horses(especially the ones who landed on their heads)...... Maybe in another 100 years,there'll be equestrian clothing with stitched in airbags or a shirt &jods that inflate/become a shield or something??!? My point is,to look back and use 'how things used to be' as an excuse or comparison is really quite pointless - that was then,this is now. They didn't know what we know now. Those who choose to ignore what we know now,are in quite stupid (and vain) denial.Sorry:-/
 
A lady where I use to live who seemed to actively encourage the teen who shared her cob to ride without a hat...
Incidently they also lamed her poor (old and very lovely) cob probably by over jumping him on hard ground. So no more risk of head injuries but terrible shame as women was in most ways very nice and generous as was the cob.
 
Although I wear a hat, I wouldn't dream of telling an acquaintance to wear one. For over 14's it's still a personal and a culture influenced choice.


Of course wearing a hat lessens risk but if we are to accuse the rider sedately tootling round a menage on a cob without a hat of being selfish, then surely, the rider doing XC on a horse with dubious breaks is more selfish despite wearing a hat ?
 
horserider said:
Although I wear a hat, I wouldn't dream of telling an acquaintance to wear one. For over 14's it's still a personal and a culture influenced choice.


Of course wearing a hat lessens risk but if we are to accuse the rider sedately tootling round a menage on a cob without a hat of being selfish, then surely, the rider doing XC on a horse with dubious breaks is more selfish despite wearing a hat ?
Click to expand...

Agreed, and worse still the people with all the safety gear in the book going out on the road without a clue about road safety with horses that aren't traffic or spook proof.

I always wear a hat, but I will admit that I dont bother much which one. I buy my daughter new ones on a regular basis and the old ones tend to be the ones I pick up :o

Accidents can happen in the most stupid circumstances. The only time I had concussion was when a horse I owned (bombproof) slipped over in walk. My daughter ended up in A&E one new years eve with concussion after practicing vaulting onto a 10.2 pony in a sand school (she missed :D )
 
I wouldn't tell anyone to wear one who wasn't (unless they were riding on my yard or were one of my family!) no more than I'd put the window down and tell someone who is 'sedately' driving along in a perfectly 'safe' car to put their seatbelt on.... but...accidents do happen&often to you,not because of you. When you least expect. Because they're accidents! This argument all goes back to the earlier post; 'You can't teach pork'. About sums it up;)
 
Where does that 'you can't teach pork come from'? And what the **** does it mean?!
Also, as you are all in hat rant, I really need this to be directed at my son on his bike - he refuses to wear a helmet. None of his friends do either. Can't bear it. But he will not listen.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top