Re: RC: Helmets

[Teddy Lancaster <teddy@runningbear.com>]

Applause from another rider who REFUSES to wear helmets!!!!  I have had MANY falls and I am NOT perfect, but like you, I weigh
the risks and choose the best one for me.  I am PRO-CHOICE!!!! (That includes seatbelts, too)

Teddy

"guest@endurance.net" wrote:

> k s swigart katswig@earthlink.net
>
> Okay, I'll admit it.  I don't wear a helmet when I ride
> endurance.  For me, I consider the risks associated with wearing
> a helmet to outweigh the risks associated with not wearing
> one.  It has nothing to do with not wanting to mess up my hair.
> (I wear a hat all the time at ride, since I consider direct
> exposure to the sun to be a real health threat, so my hair gets
> messed up anyway...and remember...I am the one who said I could
> wait until I got home to take a shower...even for a week long
> ride :)).  AND, _I_ know how to fall off of a horse without
> hitting my head (nope, can't count the number of times that I
> have fallen off, so I am not one of those people who is of the
> opinion that "it can't happen to me.")
>
> The risks associated with wearing a helmet are related to the
> fact that wearing a helmet both makes your head bigger and it
> makes it heavier.  And that heat builds up inside.  And while
> seat belts in cars are not also without their risks; a far better
> analogy would be to compare helmets with air bags...safer for
> some people in some situations, deadly for others.
>
> Most of the people I have asked at endurance rides, why they
> don't wear a helmet also don't care about their hair.  Most of them mention the heat, the weight, and "wearing one is like
> wearing a magnet." :)
>
> The horse sports for which I do wear a helmet include Polo
> (a sport in which you don't have to fall off to get smacked in
> the head) and steeplechasing, where knowing how to fall off
> without hitting your head doesn't keep the other guy's horse
> from coming over the jump and landing on you.
>
> And, personally, I consider the chances of sustaining a head
> injury while breeding a stallion (standing on the
> ground next to him) to be greater than those while riding
> endurance (but I don't wear a helmet for that either).
>
> What I ask other people is, "Do you know that helmets are recommended?"  And if they ask me why I don't, I will tell
> them, and then they can decide for themselves.
>
> kat
> Orange County, Calif.
>
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--
Teddy Lancaster
American Endurance Ride Conference # 139422
- Member since 1974
6000+ career miles

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Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak;
Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.

-- Winston Churchill
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