PONY CLUB INCIDENT REPORTS By Sarah Andres
The United States Pony Clubs is considered a leading organization in equestrian safety. USPC was the first national organization to require wearing helmets with chinstraps in all mounted activities back in 1983, and USPC assisted in development of the ASTM equestrian helmet standard F1163 in 1988. In order to track equestrian injuries occurring during its activities, USPC began asking volunteers to complete a questionnaire on competition accidents back in 1980. Currently, USPC requires club, center and regional leaders to complete an Incident Report form, found under the Safety Tab on the website, when ANY incident occurs at a Pony Club activity. This form should be completed whether the incident appears to be only a minor bump or a significant injury that requires a trip to the hospital. Many clubs/centers/regions fill out the form when someone is seriously hurt, but minor and non-injury incidents are also helpful to know about.
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DISCOVER USPC
Summer 2021
USPC requires completion of Incident Report forms for both members and non-members at all official USPC activities. In addition to a rider falling from a horse, reports should be completed for unmounted incidents as well. In order to gather as much information about an incident as we can and from different perspectives, multiple people who witnessed the incident can assist in the filing of a single report. Information requested on the forms includes age, gender, certification level of member, type of activity, description of incident, description of injuries, what protective equipment was being worn and other possible contributing factors. Submitted Incident Reports are reviewed by the USPC National Office and the Safety Committee to look for trends and patterns of incidents and identify ways to reduce the risk of injury. Filing a report also allows for additional follow–up with club/center leadership and members, including providing USPC Return to
