Re: maybe we should talk about helmets for a while...

[Lynette Helgeson <helgeson@lansford.ndak.net>]

Hi everyone,
You know I have been riding horse since I was five. I learned on a black
shetland pony. She was the most orneriest horse. She was always trying
to dump us, so we made a game out of it. We would get her in a bucking
mood and would time each other to see who could stay on the longest
bareback. (It would terrify me if MY kids did that!) I trained my first
horse to ride when I was 14 and have been training my own and others
peoples horses for the past 26 years. I have had some broken bones, but
I have never hit my head. I consider myself lucky or blessed. But after
the discussions and experiences that people have talked about helmets on
this list, I know that I may not continue to be so lucky. I have 5
horses of just my own stock to get started this spring. I will be
wearing a helmet, not only on the green ones but on the well broke ones
too. I will insist that my children wear helmets. I know that I will be
the first and only one to wear a helmet in my saddle club on trail
rides. 

So, I just want to thank everyone who took the time to write about their
experiences to show me how stupid and wrong I have been. Thanks :-)

Lynette
Weathers been nice. In the 20's. Not bad for January in ND. 

George & Cinda Stillings wrote:
> 
> I have a good friend that is alive today because of a Troxel helmet. Her
> horse spooked on a rocky trail and ended up on top of her, she had
> serious internal injuries but no head injuries. The helmet was destroyed
> and it took them over three hours to airlift her out. This happened
> Thanksgiving weekend, according to her doctors she might be able to
> return to work in six more weeks. The only reason she started wearing a
> helmet was because of her grandchildren, she wanted to set a good
> example.
> Cinda