Why you should never take safety wear for granted!

30 Jun Why you should never take safety wear for granted!

Our ambassador Jodie Campbell and her husband Fraser tell us of their experiences of accidents they have had and why they believe safety wear is so important.

Being an ex point to point jockey I have had many experiences first hand in the importance of safety wear.  I could talk about several situations I have been in but one race that comes to mind that is extremely relevant to talk about during BETA safety week is a fall I had at Warwick.

I was riding in a fast paced 2 mile 4 race when the horse I was on took off outside the wings, causing it to land head first on the top of the fence and cause me to have a rotational fall.  This in itself is dangerous enough however I landed heavily under the horse was then  continuously knocked by the other horses in the race.

Due to the safety equipment I was wearing I managed to walk away from that fall with only a concussion and bruising, however I was very lucky not to have had more serious injuries and beleive that safety should never be an after thought when it comes to horses, no matter what the activity. It really is a life saver!

Fraser 

In my 20 plus year’s experience I have had my fair share of thrills and spills and safety is something I take really seriously when on the yard and competing.

A couple years back when my horse, Lincourt Max, was still showjumping, we took quite a heavy fall at Blair. We were having a really nice round until we met a dodgy stride on the way into a combination. This caused us to well and truly crash the 2nd part. I crashed head first through the poles closely followed by poor Skinny, we both came out unscathed, but my hat took a massive knock! If i hadn’t been wearing it, or just as importantly, if it hadn’t been fitted correctly I know the outcome would have been much worse!

Correctly fitting safety wear is invaluable when your life is so precious! No matter how well you know your horse, accidents can happen and preventing injury is far better than having to cure it.

Jodie