Idaho 4H horse program requires helmets

Bingham County held its annual 4H horse show Friday, but this year things were a little different. Helmets were required for all participants. Idaho is one of the last states to adopt a helmet requirement for its 4H program.

“It’s for safety…,” said Scott Nash, 4H extension educator.”The University of Idaho is in charge of 4H and they want to make sure we take care of risk and liability issues, and just keep the kid safe.”

Falling from a height of 2 feet can cause brain damage. Riding a horse puts a rider at about 8 feet.

“From experience my sister had a bad head injury one time,” said Katie Tomazin, a 4H club leader.”It was a miracle that she didn’t die or have any lasting problems. If she had had a helmet, she would have been just fine. There’s just a lot of crazy dumb accidents that can be avoided with wearing a helmet.”

This was the first year helmets were mandatory for all riders at the show. This includes parents and leaders warming up horses.

“I think a helmet is something you need to wear all the time,” Tomazin said. “Otherwise, it’s like playing Russian roulette, if you’re just going to wear it for the horse show or at a 4H meeting or at a fast event. Because you can’t ever pick which time that you’re going to have an accident.”

Statistics show that over 46 percent of all horse-related injuries happen when riders aren’t participating in an event.

“I used to hate the helmets but then I went on a roundup where I was forced to wear one and actually got bucked off, it pretty much saved my life,” saidJesslyn Nelson, a 4H club member.

Kids at the show say they are more confident riders when wearing helmets. The only downside was looking less like a real cowboy.

“So it doesn’t look as cowboy as a western hat but the helmets didn’t deter from the show,” Tomazin said.

The state horse 4H competition will occur Sept. 4-5 at the Eastern Idaho State Fairgrounds.