Hello Riders4Helmets,
The pictures of my 2004 equestrian accident are pretty yucky (graphic) but they need to be posted to educate people.
NOTE: I was wearing a helmet and might not be here today if I was not wearing one.
The story is: I was cantering down the long wall of the arena, my horse spooked at ice sliding off the roof and took off. I hit a steel post that was in the center of the indoor arena and then hit the frozen ground. For some reason, the people threw out my helmet immediately after the accident otherwise it would have been good to examine it for impact analysis.
I sustained a head injury (will have deficits for the rest of my life) a broken nose, broken elbow in two places, leg damage that will never ever be pain free and of course, psychological damage. I am LUCKY to be alive and have only started riding again late last fall 2011. If these images help save even one life, I will be very happy to have shared them.
Kind regards, Elizabeth
My hat is off to you Elizabeth that you had the guts to ever get back on a horse again after that accident. My stomach turns over just looking at those pictures and I hope your story gets across to all those super confident people who figure that couldn’t possibly happen to them! Goood luck and good riding.
Thank you for sharing your pictures. Our family forwards these stories and pictures on to all of our friends…..some that still don’t wear helmets. Thank God YOU were wearing a helmet! We wish you all the best!
I have started back riding after about 2 years. I’am going to get me a helmet and put a western hat over it. This will also kept the sun off and the cowboy image HAHA