Warning: Fun ahead -- Safety first, yes, but today's overprotected kids need to live a little

San Francisco Chronicle ^ | 10/19/7 | Peter Hartlaub

[Always Independent]

All the adult road riders and mountain riders I see wear them.

[Awestruck]

I feel awful for your sister..but she should know, we can’t always prevent tragedy, and she shouldn’t feel guilty at all. No doubt she’s a good person who loved her child beyond measure, and I pray she finds some peace someday.

[tuffydoodle]

‘More than once I have seen what happens to children (and other living things - to quote some unknown pothead) in car accidents when they are not strapped in...decapitation is not uncommon. Be the first on the scene to one of those...it will change you.

I am a bear about auto safety and I deeply believe that anybody who exposes kids to any preventable risk in a vehicle is a flaming, make that criminal, a-hole.”

But, but, but I never wore a seat belt growing up and I’m ok!! (don’t you love that argument?)

[tuffydoodle]

I never had a cast, either. On 2 different occasions I had the horse I was riding rear up and fall over backwards on me, I’ve been kicked in the face by a horse, been bucked off a few times, fallen off more times than I can count. 2 people in my town were care flighted to the hospital due to riding accidents. I know people who have been killed by horses. Since I’m so familiar with how much damage a horse can do, I’m ultra careful with my kids around them.

These people that think since nothing bad ever happened to them that it won’t happen to their children, are fools.

[LexBaird]

n the SCA I have had a few women ...

Hey, going to Estrella this year?

[HungarianGypsy]

But, of course! Are you Caid?

[LexBaird]

Yes; we’re allies this year.

[Fairview]

I did a lot of stupid things on horses when I was a kid. I certainly don’t want my kids doing what I did! Fun, yes, but I was a complete idiot. I would kill the kids myself if I ever caught them jumping over sharp objects, for just the reason you mention. Trash themselves if they must, but the nearest horse ER is an hour away (Marion duPont Scott) and there are extreme limits on what can be done to fix a busted horse, as witness Barbaro.

It’s sobering when you see a guy who used to be huntsman at a prominent hunt and a steeplechase rider driving his motorized wheelchair up and down the road. (You may know who I mean since you hunt and the hunting world is small.) He didn’t hit his head, but broke his neck. Unfortunately even a $400 GPA won’t prevent that, and I wish I could think of a way to prevent such neck injuries (a helmet with springs attached to your shoulders??).

[AnAmericanMother]

The day after Christopher Reeve had his fall, I had the same identical fall over a very similar fence (riding someone else's horse who shut off on me!) As I was sliding up the neck you can imagine what was going through my mind . . . but I (1) did NOT have the reins wrapped around my hands (I bridge 'em instead) and (2) I'm a "safety seat" rider all the way, I ride in the back seat on a horse I don't know, so all that happened is I wound up with my arms around his neck and my chin between his ears and then slipped sideways on to my feet.

But it does give one pause. I don't know the huntsman you mentioned, is he in GA? I only hunted once out of GA, in NJ many, many years ago.

I don't think there's any protection for your neck, other than to ride in the back seat and don't take chances on a doubtful horse. My own mare I would ride anywhere, she is dead set reliable. She did fall DOWN with me once, slipping on an unexpected patch of mud on a hillside, but she tucked her front feet and waited calmly for me to get up first.

But necks break on diving boards and on swing ropes, too.