Busting the Riding Helmet Myths
We’ve put together this little myth buster blog to make clear up some common safety misconceptions.
Image shown is the Whitaker VX2 helmet in Navy Sparkle, click to shop.
You can only get a riding related head injury by falling off you horse! FALSE
The majority of head injuries are caused by unpredictable events, such as your horse spooking. And even more surprising, 1 in 5 people who are seriously injured weren’t even riding – they were just hanging out around horses or watching someone else.
I fell of my horse and the helmet looks fine so I don’t need to change it! FALSE
When your helmet receives a blow, it’s the inner that can become compressed, therefore losing it’s shock-absorbing qualities. And you might not even know it. So if you subsequently have an impact, your helmet might not give you adequate protection. We recommend you replace your helmet every 5 years – which is the expected lifespan of a helmet.
The more expensive your helmet is, the more it will protect you! FALSE
You may think that by spending more money on your helmet that you are receiving better quality or a higher standard. When in fact you could spend much less on a helmet that has the exact same standard and testing.
Your Helmet Must Have a Kitemark in order to compete! FALSE
A Kitemark is an official kite-shaped mark given to goods approved by the British standards Institution and although many of the approved standards must be accompanied by a kitemark (PAS015, VG1) this is not the case for all of them.
My helmet has to have PAS015 to compete! FALSE
A common misconception is that helmets must have the PAS015:2011 to make them fit for use within disciplines such as British Eventing or The Pony Club, however, this simply isn’t the case! See below the official BETA helmet guidelines for competing.
I could always borrow my friend’s helmet!FALSE
Avoid loaning your helmet to others. Not only will you not know exactly what kind of treatment your helmet has experienced whist the helmet is not with you, your friend may be a different size and could be at risk by wearing an incorrect size.
We hope this solved some of your helmet questions or worries! Remember, if we didn’t answer one of your questions always ask a professional.
Ride Safe - From the John Whitaker Team
