British Dressage - Issue 6 2020

Page 17

HATS AND HEAD SAFETY.

GET AHEAD

RIDING HATS HAVE COME A LONG WAY IN RECENT YEARS, AND THE LATEST DEVELOPMENTS MEAN

T

THAT DRESSAGE COMPETITORS CAN COMBINE STYLE WITH SAFETY, JANE CARLEY REPORTS.

he contribution to safety made by the latest headgear is now widely accepted in the UK, confi rms Claire illiams, Executive Director of the British Equestrian Trade Association (BETA), with 98% of riders stating that they wear an approved standard hat. Over the last 10 years or so, the most significant research into hat sa ety has been in relation to rotational motion and the effects this has on the brain, suggests Helen Riley, brand manager or Cham ion a ety. “Development of test methods to measure rotational motion have sadly lagged behind, which may have caused a delay in bringing products to market which protect from this ty e o in ury. owever, at Cham ion we have been researching and testing for this type of accident scenario for quite some time and have recently added a new layer of protection to our existing high performing helmets, in the orm o the latest I technology ulti Im act rotection ystem and all research and testing data indicates that it is highly beneficial or rider rotection.” The Revolve range of helmets from

Cham ion are tri le certified to A , ,A F and carry the itemar and I mar as well as incor orating I technology. Charles wen mar eting director Ale ure e lains e launched our fi rst helmet s ecifically designed to include I technology 18 months ago and researched the technology for many years previous to this in our in house testing acility. he I system was invented in in weden by ans von olst, a neurosurgeon and Peter Halldin, a researcher from the Royal Institute o echnology. I is designed to add protection against rotational motion (or kinematics) transmitted to the brain from angled impacts to the head, which is how most riders fall. Rotational motion is a combination of rotational energy (angular velocity) and rotational forces from angular acceleration that both affect the brain and increase the ris or minor and severe brain injuries. I added rotection system has been proven to reduce rotational motion when implemented in a helmet by redirecting energies and forces otherwise transmitted to the brain.”

I ta es the orm o a slim additional hidden liner that is incorporated inside the riding helmet, Ale e lains. his low friction layer enables your head to move mm in all directions, which has been proven to reduce the rotational movement to the brain and therefore injury (particularly concussion and traumatic brain injury). The core idea behind I is to simulate and enhance the brain s own rotection system, which uses the principle of the brain being able to slide a little bit against the s ull.” hile I has been available in other ty es of helmets (such as cycling and snow sports) for some time, it is still a relatively new concept in the e uestrian field, Helen points out. “Education is paramount to help consumers understand the benefits that this extra layer of rotection offers on top

ABOVE: THE LATEST GENERATION OF SAFETY HEADGEAR FOR RIDING INCORPORATES MIPS TECHNOLOGY, WHICH OFFERS ADDED PROTECTION AGAINST ROTATIONAL MOTION TRANSMITTED TO THE BRAIN IN A FALL. RIGHT: THE CHAMPION REVOLVE RADIANCE MIPS HELMET.

BRITISH DRESSAGE // Issue 6 2020 // 17


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