Jessica Jahiel's HORSE-SENSE Newsletter Archives

Helmet cost and helmet safety

From: Roo

Hi Jessica!

Are some ASTM/SEI helmets safer than others? I've been seeing more and more of those $500 "skunk stripe" GPA helmets, and some folks swear that they are justifiable because they are a lot safer than the $50 schooling helmet and $100 show helmet that I ride in. I know the horse world has its fads and fashions, and the GPAs are the must-have fashion item (I see that the other less expensive brands are now making lookalikes in the $70 price range) of the moment, but are they really safer?

I just had a look at the Dover website, and see that they are now selling a new GPA "all carbon" helmet for $1449.99 (!!!)

I know if I knew I could have a safer brain the money would be worth it and I'd find a way to pay for it, but I think these might be fashion and status symbols more than anything. Do you know for sure?

I hope you are well, and I'm looking forward to reading your new book.

Be well. As always, Horse Sense *rocks*!

Roo in VT

Hi Roo! Great to hear from you, I thank you very much for the kind words about HORSE-SENSE, and yes, I do know for sure. Helmets that have been approved by ASTM/SEI have passed the tests and meet the current safety standards, full stop. There's no reason - other than the ones you cite - to pay $100 or $200 or $500 or more for an equestrian safety helmet. You can buy an approved schooling helmet for less than $30. I have a certain amount of sympathy for people who may have to buy special helmets because they have an existing injury or a particularly odd head shape, but nobody should be making claims that costlier helmets are by definition "safer," because that's just not true. As long as they're approved, they are AS SAFE as other approved helmets.

Very expensive helmets may perhaps look prettier or be more fashionable, but we're talking about SAFETY here, and that's an entirely different issue.

Actually I would prefer to see people buying the inexpensive helmets, for two reasons. First, why should they waste money on costly helmets and imagine that they're buying "more protection" when they aren't? Second, what are the odds that an extremely expensive helmet will actually be binned and replaced as soon as the rider has a bad fall? I'd guess that the $25 or $30 schooling helmet is more likely to be replaced in a timely manner - today's riders are sufficiently clever and well-educated to feel that they've gotten their money's worth after a single crash in a schooling helmet. Do people who wear the super-expensive helmets - or buy them for their children - run out and replace them instantly after a crash? I don't know. I hope they do, in which case their children will be as safe as any other children who ride, and the extra cost can be put down to affectation or status-seeking or some such phenomenon. But if the riders and parents who buy the super-expensive helmets DON'T replace those helmets when they should, if the much greater expense of these fancy helmets tempts them to look at a helmet after a fall and say "Well, we don't SEE any damage so it must be fine," then the extra-expensive helmets could possibly be contributing to a higher risk for the riders who wear them... But that's venturing into the realm of psychology and speculation, so I'll abandon my digression and come back to your original question. ;-)

As long as your helmet meets or exceeds the current ASTM/SEI standards, and as long as it fits you properly and is adjusted properly, and as long as you WEAR IT, it shouldn't matter whether you paid $15 or $50 or $1500! Your friends are, of course, free to spend as much as they like on their helmets, but don't let them convince you that their heads are better protected than yours.

For more information on tested, certified helmets, and for a list of helmets that meet the current standards, visit the SEI web site at www.seinet.org.

You may also want to visit our very own TRUE HELMET STORIES page: www.horse-sense.org/stories/, where you'll find - in addition to all the stories from readers - a source for the "Every Time, Every Ride" educational video on head injury prevention, a downloadable PDF on concussion (also available in text format), and a list of TRUE HELMET FACTS reprinted with permission of the AMEA (American Medical Equestrian Association).

Stay safe!

Jessica

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