The importance of a body protector at all times

[Wagtail]

I think that there are very well considered views from people on both sides of the argument. I could see how a BP which is not correctly fitted or adjusted correctly by the rider, could cause injury in itself. Some of the ones I tried on felt too hard and bulky and I could see how they might dig into a rider if they fall in a particular way. So I think it is important to get one correctly fitted, and one which does not make you feel constricted.

 

[happyclappy]

I
I do get the impression that some people who tried the older type and found them restrictive have not tried the newer makes which if correctly fitted should not restrict movement or cause any damage if you fall off.

i base my experience o trialing within the last twp months when i found several new light ones very uncomfortable and restrictive and correctly fitted by a qualofied fitter. i still plan on getting and wearing on.

 

[TrasaM]

i base my experience o trialing within the last twp months when i found several new light ones very uncomfortable and restrictive and correctly fitted by a qualofied fitter. i still plan on getting and wearing on.

Hope you find one that suits I promised OH that I'd always wear mine when hacking and I went out without it last week and felt very guilty
Mine does feel like a straight jacket when I first put it on but it softens in minutes and then I forget it's there.

 

[JFTDWS]

Riding is about assessing risk .
As I drive about I see people hacking about or a small shows they have all the safety kit on but there positions are appalling their saddle are too straight cut to allow them to develop safe good positions when jumping , they are hacking with there stirrups to long etc etc .
These are the big things that improve safety that get overlooked and yes I do think safety kit can give some poor riders a false sense of security .

Actually I think that's an interesting point. The best thing you can do is not to fall off, or be fallen onto, in most situations. Perhaps some riders would be better investing in training, or altering their own style that safety gear.

Not that I imply anything personal at any individual on this thread, nor imply that some individuals with all the safety gear don't take the precautions above, naturally.

 

[PaddyMonty]

Personally I think people should understand just how much protection any piece of safety equipement offers and in what type of accident before using it.
Air jackets work by providing signicant impact absorbsion whilst holding the spine rigid and supporting the neck. About the only thing a body protector does is provide some impact absorbsion and even that is limited.
Stating injuries would have been much worse if not wearing one is pure speculation. I have fallen off literally hundreds of times during my 39 year riding career, most of it pre any proper safety equipement and have yet to sustain any serious injury, non recoverable injury.
When my son was kart racing I looked long and hard in to the effect of wearing a neck brace. There was absolutely no evidence that they either helped or hindered yet to the uneduacted (me until researching) they seemed like a very good piece of kit.
For me BP falls in to the same category for general riding. Air jacket makes a lot more sense if any protection is required.
Personally I'll just accept the risk so for me a BP certainly doesn't have any importance at all times.

 

[I*HM]

I used to wear mine religiously. I'd wear it for hacking, schooling, competition etc but tbh recently I have become more selective about when I wear mine.
I have issues with straigtness in my back when I ride and I think it went undetected for a long time as my BP masked it and made my back look and feel straighter than it was. I want to mind my back and I know this perhaps sounds contradictory but I find schooling (providing I feel safe on the horse) without a BP gives me a better shot at it as I can work on straightening and correcting my back in the saddle. When it comes to schooling, I spend more time in the saddle than falling off (*touch wood it stays that way!*) so to me it seems more logical to work on correcting a preventing more damage to my body from riding with a twisted back (thinking of the wear and tear on my spine not to mention how it affects my position and riding) than the very rare time I would part company with the saddle. And I know accidents can happen and were I to come off and get a kick to the back I might regret my current logic (speculation) but as it is I feel the effects of a dodgy back, which isn't helped by a BP.

However I wear my BP on hacks (90% of the time), when jumping, when riding an unfamiliar horse, for charity rides etc and will continue to do so. In my time in the saddle and around horses, all my injuries would have been neither worsened nor prevented from wearing a BP (in my mind). I find them very hot to ride in (like wearing a steam room at worst ) and at times it can be restrictive and cumbersome.

But I think whatever about the arguments for or against wearing them, riding is a risk sport. Regardless of whether you wear a BP or not, every time you get on a horse you are risking potential injury. If wearing one gives you ease of mind or not wearing one means you are happier in the saddle, so beit. As long as you're not breaking any rules (ie competition regulations, yard policies etc) I think it should be down to personal preference.

 

[Booboos]

Another thing to consider OP, which I only realised from reading about the odd accident on here, is the quality of your arena fence. I don't use my arena for turn out (too bloody expenssive!!!), strength in that respect is not an issue, but I have a young daughter who may want to ride so an enclosed space seemed important, so we put in a very flimpsy fence. The posts are merely placed in soil, no concreting and the planks are thin and break easily. The hope is that if someone fell on the fence the whole thing would collapse more easily and be less likely to cause an injury.

 

[Daytona]

See this is the kind of ignorant viewpoint which annoys me about BPs. I don't wear one all the time, despite having had bad accidents, because I do not see them as a necessary bit of kit every time I get on a horse - fair enough you do, but don't condemn everyone who doesn't share your viewpoint as ignorant

Calm down calm down, annoyed, ignorant..??


We if one had saved you breaking your back you might see it as "necessary" horse riding is dangerous - end of..! 20 times more dangerous than motorbikes according to statistics . What protection each individual chooses to take is their choice. It's called risk assessment. Who mentioned ignorant..??

I never wore one , my family bleated on at me for years I was like yeah yeah what ever.. Untill I was lying in a hospital bed. That changed my view forever, won't change everyone though but I would hope most, as that's what self preservation should do, also now I value being able to walk so i will protect myself as much as I possibly can. Before I always thought

Won't ever happen to me...

As I said I won't even get on a horse without both BP and my air jacket on. I actually have a very safe wee mare, only way I think if fall from her now is if she trips over, drops dead under me or some other freak accident - but never say never , so this is why I wear them

Also I find my BP very comfy, holds my chest in which I prefer, never hits my saddle , or makes me feel restrictive. It did when I first got it but I soon got used to it and now I don't even notice it.

 

[khalswitz]

I think that there are very well considered views from people on both sides of the argument. I could see how a BP which is not correctly fitted or adjusted correctly by the rider, could cause injury in itself. Some of the ones I tried on felt too hard and bulky and I could see how they might dig into a rider if they fall in a particular way. So I think it is important to get one correctly fitted, and one which does not make you feel constricted.

My BP was well fitting and well adjusted when I was having my neck xrayed thanks to wearing it. It was also well fitting when it injured my coccyx. My A&E doctor blamed my BP in both scenarios. However, I can imagine I've been unlucky in the types of falls I've had, and can imagine that in falls on things like solid fences or onto the road it could help prevent injuries like broken ribs especially.

On the comfort side, I imagine modern ones are much more comfortable than my ten year old one, so despite feeling restricted in mine I can accept that modern ones are more comfortable. However a BP is like any piece of safety equipment, like say a seatbelt - it will probably decrease likelihood of certain injuries and save you in certain situations, but could equally cause injury in another situation.

I understand some people feel better wearing them, but like Daytona says horseriding is dangerous - and for me if I think too hard about it I wouldn't ride!! A BP won't save you from the bad ones, so I try to enjoy it while I can and hope for the best! Nothing to do with thinking it won't happen to me... More like not dwelling over the fact that everyone dies eventually...

 

[Spencer93]

I wouldn't be here writing this if it wasn't for a body protector. At 10 years old I came off in a lesson and the pony went straight over the top of me flat out. I was in hospital for a long time but was very lucky. I had a horseshoe shaped scar on my stomach for a long time where the impact had gone through the body protector.

I am slightly ashamed to say that I now never wear one, I feel restricted and uncomfortable in them and yes I have tried newer models. If I had kids I would make them wear them but for adults I think as long as people know the risks it is their choice. I know if an accident like my one as a kid happened again without one I would be dead but I ride because I love the freedom and I don't enjoy riding with a BP. So I'll take the risk

 

[Tnavas]

Every fall I've ever had (in 50 years) has injured limbs, hips, face, hands or feet. A body protector wouldn't have lessened my injuries. Of course, BP's can protect the back and trunk but for me, personally, unless required by the venue, I feel safer without because I'm not restricted.
I also am able to choose what horses I ride these days which does lessen the chances of injury to a degree.

Agree with this.

The majority of riding injuries affect the limbs. I find a back protector extremely restrictive but don't object if pupils wish to wear them.

One thing I would like to add and will probably be shot down in flames.

If a rider is constantly falling off then they need to have some serious lunge lessons with no stirrups to improve balance. I have a couple of kids I know several riders that fall off at the drop of a hat, they could all do with taking some intensive lessons. The majority of falls are a result of poor position than the horse being naughty.

This statement exempts falls as a result of horse falls and aggressive bucking.

I have extremely strong self preservation instincts, I refuse to fall off unless something is really dramatic, consequently I have been quite badly injured when I have come off.

Falling off should not be considered an expected consequence of riding, but being violently ejected does happen.

 

[Biska]

Put my BP on again today after this thread appeared! Happy I did, even over a bulky rain mac....Mr Spooky decided to cart me off very fast down the school out of canter from his super scary corner and I was lucky to still be on board 100 twisty metres later...not at all nice but so glad I wore the BP. I could have been dumped on the gate or the fence in a heartbeat! Aaaargh......coming back to riding after a massive layoff is not easy!

 

[khalswitz]

Agree with this.

The majority of riding injuries affect the limbs. I find a back protector extremely restrictive but don't object if pupils wish to wear them.

One thing I would like to add and will probably be shot down in flames.

If a rider is constantly falling off then they need to have some serious lunge lessons with no stirrups to improve balance. I have a couple of kids I know several riders that fall off at the drop of a hat, they could all do with taking some intensive lessons. The majority of falls are a result of poor position than the horse being naughty.

This statement exempts falls as a result of horse falls and aggressive bucking.

I have extremely strong self preservation instincts, I refuse to fall off unless something is really dramatic, consequently I have been quite badly injured when I have come off.

Falling off should not be considered an expected consequence of riding, but being violently ejected does happen.

This. I tend to hang on if at all possible, which I feel my bp restricts - and excepting a few dirty stops and explosive rodeo style flight attempts on my current horse over the last six months, I haven't fallen off in about five years - despite working breaking and bringing on youngsters, reschooling 'problem' horses and retraining rehab rescue horses at a rescue centre in that period.

We had lots of blips including bucking, rearing, a true bolter, a horse fall, lots of refusals, spooking and young horses tripping - but I'm pretty good at sticking tight. However in that period I think I wore my bp twice outside of XC, and on both occasions got decked.

Totally agree re limbs as well. Most of my bp-less falls have injured limbs, my worst injury of the last year being my hip. I've never been trampled or crushed other than my legs, and have had two bp related injuries. So personally I don't like them!! However I think when going through the learning period where you do expect to tumble a few times, they certainly can help.

Interesting, though, when teaching kids I did notice a difference in stick ability between those in bps and those not. Whether the bp caused this, or it was those with less stick ability who opted to wear them, I don't know - but certainly was a trend.

 

[Daytona]

Agree with this.

The majority of riding injuries affect the limbs. I find a back protector extremely restrictive but don't object if pupils wish to wear them.

One thing I would like to add and will probably be shot down in flames.

If a rider is constantly falling off then they need to have some serious lunge lessons with no stirrups to improve balance. I have a couple of kids I know several riders that fall off at the drop of a hat, they could all do with taking some intensive lessons. The majority of falls are a result of poor position than the horse being naughty.

This statement exempts falls as a result of horse falls and aggressive bucking.

I have extremely strong self preservation instincts, I refuse to fall off unless something is really dramatic, consequently I have been quite badly injured when I have come off.

Falling off should not be considered an expected consequence of riding, but being violently ejected does happen.

Ha ha yeah was gonna say what about if horse bucks so hard he does a handstand , that's what my boy used to do, I've been thrown near on 15ft once, someone watching said he was actually totally vertical, surprised the naughty thing never actually went right over on himself. My BP / air jacket really saved my bacon once coming off that lad. Not sure which bit helped most but I suspect it was the air jacket.

 

[JFTDWS]

For the record, standard body protectors are not designed to protect the spine under most circumstances. They are designed to protect against internal injuries and protect the rib cage to some extent. Back protectors is a misnomer, and people shouldn't labour under the belief a Bp will prevent spinal damage.

 

[khalswitz]

Ha ha yeah was gonna say what about if horse bucks so hard he does a handstand , that's what my boy used to do, I've been thrown near on 15ft once, someone watching said he was actually totally vertical, surprised the naughty thing never actually went right over on himself. My BP / air jacket really saved my bacon once coming off that lad. Not sure which bit helped most but I suspect it was the air jacket.

My boy has done that too - not nice. I have gotten that I can stick on one like that, but when he starts firing them off in a row he decks me. He also does the four feet off the floor, back end up and twist rodeo style bucking - basically he could have an alternate career as a rodeo horse, and since having him I think I could make some money at the rodeos mysel!!!

My hip injury from last summer was getting rocket launched in the school... But I always seem to hurt my limbs rather than trunk, maybe because I got trained to fall 'properly' by my ex racing trainer boss, so as to protect body, back and head...

 

[Booboos]

I think people should be a bit cautious about making personal or anecdotal statements about the likelihood of injury, the causes of injury and the efficacy of BPs. While the choice to wear a BP is a personal one, safety data about riding is not a matter of individual opinion.

While injuries to the extremities may be more common in riding accidents, injuries to the spinal cord are far more serious, with 41% of spinal injury patients in one study resulting in tetraplegia and a further 24% in paraplegia for example (http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/39/11/2441.short). So while the rider may be less likely to injure her spine in a fall, when the spine is injured the consequences are life changing.

Furthermore in comparison to other sports riding causes a disproportionate number of spinal injuries (41.8%) as opposed to rugby (16.3%), diving (15.3%) and Gaelic football and hurling (9.6%). Again spinal injuries tend to have grave consequences, either complete or partial neurological deficits. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11845-011-0730-4#page-1

Not enough people chose to wear BPs to be able to come up with statistics on whether they help prevent injuries or not.

 

[blitznbobs]

But is there evidence that bps stop spinal injuries? Cos I doubt there is most spinal injuries are caused by twisting motions of the fall which a bp would not prevent - unless you can show me otherwise. Bp are designed to stop injuries from things striking the chest mainly (as in a rotational fall horse hitting chest - thus causing a fatal injury...

 

[Booboos]

I think I fairly clearly said that not enough people chose to wear BPs to be able to come up with statistics on whether they help prevent spinal injuries or not - that is the conclusion of numerous studies. Equally though there is not enough evidence to show that BPs fail to prevent injuries - if there isn't enough evidence it cuts both ways, we can't say there is no evidence to show they help but nake assumptions that they don't help. That is all I am saying, that people should be careful about making claims with no evidence in an area where injuries can be life changing.

Do you have a reference for the claim that spinal injuries are caused by twisting motions?

 

[Jnhuk]

I have been riding and living with horses for fifty years and have yet to hear of death by impalement so I will take my chance .

When I did an equine specific first aid course, the trainer had some gory pictures to demonstrate various injuries. One was of a chap impaled on an XC upright- not a thin one either more akin to a telegraph pole type strainer. Also a result of his pictures, I will NEVER wear a ring near horses or horseboxes from all the de-gloving piccies. He was full of bizarre stories!

 

[RunToEarth]

For the record, standard body protectors are not designed to protect the spine under most circumstances. They are designed to protect against internal injuries and protect the rib cage to some extent. Back protectors is a misnomer, and people shouldn't labour under the belief a Bp will prevent spinal damage.

I think that is my issue with them - I injured my vertibrae whilst wearing one and it was when I wore a BP not fully understanding what they were for.

I think people who wear their BPs religiously have slightly altered their riding to accommodate the kit and like getting into a car without a seatbelt, riding without one would just feel odd.

I have to work on getting used to being in one for a while!

 

[Wagtail]

When I did an equine specific first aid course, the trainer had some gory pictures to demonstrate various injuries. One was of a chap impaled on an XC upright- not a thin one either more akin to a telegraph pole type strainer. Also a result of his pictures, I will NEVER wear a ring near horses or horseboxes from all the de-gloving piccies. He was full of bizarre stories!

Good point. I haven't worn a ring around horses for over 15 years and that includes my wedding ring.

 

[Tnavas]

It is interesting the number of people who scoff at the no jewellery rule that Pony Club have.

I remember being told the gory story of a rider losing an ear lobe when her ring sleeper caught by a branch.

Another gory one was the rider who broke their leg badly after the whip stuffed down his boot got caught up as he fell off his horse.

We can get over dramatic about safety, how many of you ride on a contact in walk when out on a hack? One of my pupils lost her mother when they were walking around the paddock, her horse tripped and crushed her. ACC in NZ did a survey of equestrian injuries and the majority happened when riders were walking as concentration wanders.

 

[TrasaM]

I still claim that the second fall I had onto Tarmac would have resulted in broken ribs had I not had my BP on. The only way to prove this however is if someone wishes to replicate the fall without a BP to see if their ribs survive the impact.
You'll need a 16.2h TB spinning at speed and loosing his footing with rider still on board for the landing

 

[Skib]

I still claim that the second fall I had onto Tarmac would have resulted in broken ribs had I not had my BP on. The only way to prove this however is if someone wishes to replicate the fall without a BP to see if their ribs survive the impact.
You'll need a 16.2h TB spinning at speed

Me too - twice onto tarmac from spin in canter. The second time in my 70s.

I bought a bp when I started to hack and soon wore it every time I rode. Over 12 years riding, I fell off a number of times and havent been hurt yet in spite of my age. But there is no control group is there?

Until this thread, I knew of no other adult riders (apart from equally elderly OH) who always ride in bps. Wearing one makes me feel eccentric so I dont think it will become the norm.

And wearing mine doesnt make me casual about falling. Quite apart from knowing people who have been killed riding, each fall means the massive expense of replacing my hat!

 

[JFTDWS]

I think people should be a bit cautious about making personal or anecdotal statements about the likelihood of injury, the causes of injury and the efficacy of BPs. While the choice to wear a BP is a personal one, safety data about riding is not a matter of individual opinion.

While injuries to the extremities may be more common in riding accidents, injuries to the spinal cord are far more serious, with 41% of spinal injury patients in one study resulting in tetraplegia and a further 24% in paraplegia for example (http://ajs.sagepub.com/content/39/11/2441.short). So while the rider may be less likely to injure her spine in a fall, when the spine is injured the consequences are life changing.

Furthermore in comparison to other sports riding causes a disproportionate number of spinal injuries (41.8%) as opposed to rugby (16.3%), diving (15.3%) and Gaelic football and hurling (9.6%). Again spinal injuries tend to have grave consequences, either complete or partial neurological deficits. http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11845-011-0730-4#page-1

Not enough people chose to wear BPs to be able to come up with statistics on whether they help prevent injuries or not.

I agree about anecdotal evidence on both sides of the argument, but I'm curious where you get the idea that bps might be protective against spinal injuries - as far as I'm aware they are neither manufactured or designed to that aim, nor marketed as such.

As with any safety gear, the emphasis is on the manufacturer proving benefit, rather than assuming it, so it is actually fairly reasonably to state that there is no known benefit until proven otherwise.

Lots of riders wear bps to event, lots of RSs insist on them for jumping - I would be surprised if there isn't enough data to do some form of crude meta analysis is if someone really wanted to.

 

[Wagtail]

If a horse trod on your back, I am sure a BP would lesson the degree of spinal injury, JFTD. But I agree, it would not prevent a spinal injury where the spine gets twisted or bent. After some of the posts on here, I am thinking that an air jacket may be best on balance. Hard to say.

 

[Booboos]

I agree about anecdotal evidence on both sides of the argument, but I'm curious where you get the idea that bps might be protective against spinal injuries - as far as I'm aware they are neither manufactured or designed to that aim, nor marketed as such.

I'm curious where you got the idea that I claimed that BPs protect against injuries?! All I said was that people should be cautious about claims that BPs do NOT protect against injuries as there is no evidence either way.

There is no data. Do a google scholar search. Of course merely riding with BPs wouldn't help in any way, what you need is significant numbers of reported falls with BPs (whether they result in injuries or not) to be able to compare with significant numbers of reported falls without BPs (even here usually only injuries are reported so there is little data on accidents that do not need medical attention).

I still stand by the fact that I never made this claim, but have now looked at the BETA specification for body protectors and there doesn't seem to be much support for your claim that BPs only offer protection against penetrating injuries. BETA say "Body protectors are designed to offer protection to a rider by absorbing the high levels of energy created when falling off, being kicked or stood on by a horse" I don't see why this excludes protection of the spinal collum from these high levels of energy. They also quote research that "wearing a BETA Level 3 shoulder protectors can reduce the risk of breaking a collar bone by up to 80%" - I doubt collar bone breaks are the result of penetrating injuries.

http://www.bhs.org.uk/~/media/BHS/Files/PDF Documents/BETA Body Protector Guide.ashx

 

[JFTDWS]

I'm curious where you got the idea that I claimed that BPs protect against injuries?! All I said was that people should be cautious about claims that BPs do NOT protect against injuries as there is no evidence either way.

There is no data. Do a google scholar search. Of course merely riding with BPs wouldn't help in any way, what you need is significant numbers of reported falls with BPs (whether they result in injuries or not) to be able to compare with significant numbers of reported falls without BPs (even here usually only injuries are reported so there is little data on accidents that do not need medical attention).

I still stand by the fact that I never made this claim, but have now looked at the BETA specification for body protectors and there doesn't seem to be much support for your claim that BPs only offer protection against penetrating injuries. BETA say "Body protectors are designed to offer protection to a rider by absorbing the high levels of energy created when falling off, being kicked or stood on by a horse" I don't see why this excludes protection of the spinal collum from these high levels of energy. They also quote research that "wearing a BETA Level 3 shoulder protectors can reduce the risk of breaking a collar bone by up to 80%" - I doubt collar bone breaks are the result of penetrating injuries.

http://www.bhs.org.uk/~/media/BHS/Files/PDF Documents/BETA Body Protector Guide.ashx

Well, your entire post was about spinal injuries, but forgive me if you didn't mean to imply a body protector offers protection to the spinal column. Whilst we're on that score I never said they "only protect against penetrating injuries" - I think you may have me confused with another poster. I stated that there is no evidence that they offer any protection to the spinal column, which is an entirely different ball game, and one thoroughly supported by the (lack of) evidence available via google scholar and other means (and thanks, I have done this many times before).

I'm aware of the data required, but a meta analysis of severity of injuries during falls which did require medical attention could well be performed - whilst this isn't ideal and won't cover falls without any notable injury at all, it would be possible to compare the incidence of spinal injuries in falls requiring medical attention with and without a bp.

 

[JFTDWS]

If a horse trod on your back, I am sure a BP would lesson the degree of spinal injury, JFTD.

Probably would - but that isn't what they are designed to do, nor is there any evidence (other than common sense) that they would. To be honest, my points here are mostly pedantic - they shouldn't be referred to as back protectors (as some have on this thread) and it shouldn't necessarily be assumed that there will be any significant benefit in terms of preventing spinal injuries. Broken ribs, internal soft tissue injuries etc are more relevant.