Re: Helmets

[CMKSAGEHIL@aol.com]

Like several other posters, I don't really like to wear a helmet.  And like
several other posters, I would sure hate to see rules that would interfere
with my freedom not to.  And like Steve, I have not come off a horse in a long
time, and I attibute that to lots of things--always going to a ride with a
well-broke horse, riding defensively, anticipating trouble and avoiding it
before it hits.  I also realize that those things do not GUARANTEE that I will
not come off sometime--they just stack the deck in my favor.  I voluntarily
wear a helmet.  I was not in the first wave to adopt helmets (I grew up on
horses as a kid, and rode helmetless confidently for a lot of years, including
the vast majority of my career endurance miles) and I gave a lot of thought to
it before I decided to do so.  I have neck problems, and find weighty things
on my head intolerable, but some models are pretty darn light and I find I CAN
tolerate them.  What finally made me start wearing a helmet was not the risk
to my own head, but the realization that because I am somewhat high profile in
this sport since I manage and vet so many rides and wear so many other "hats"
that new folks may copy what I do.  I see A LOT of green folks come off of
horses, and they sometimes come off frequently.  The newbies tend to copy what
us oldsters do, right or wrong.  If I save (or protect from permanent injury)
even ONE life because someone copied the fact that I wear a helmet, even if I
NEVER again come off of a horse, then it is worth it.

Heidi