United States Eventing Association

Riders4Helmets To Host Second Helmet Safety Symposium

Lexington, KY (July 11th, 2011)—The popular helmet awareness campaign Riders4Helmets will be hosting the 2nd Riders4Helmets Helmet Safety Symposium on July 23rd, 2011, at the Kentucky Horse Park (theater room), Lexington, KY, from 8.30am to 5pm. The symposium is being sponsored by Tipperary, Troxel Helmets, Charles Owen, Samshield, Ovation and Equestrian Professional.

The Helmet Safety Symposium has been organized to bring together representatives from various corners of the equestrian world to discuss the importance of wearing helmets, rider safety and to improve helmet designs, rules and more. The event will provide a series of lectures and panel discussions throughout the day. Many in attendance will also sit on the panels, including equestrians, representatives from the helmet safety testing authorities, helmet manufacturers, equestrian organizations, and neurosurgeons. The chairs of the meeting will be Dr. Craig Ferrell, physician to the United States Equestrian Team and Chair FEI Medical Council, and, Lyndsey White, co-founder Riders4Helmets.

“We are very excited to be hosting the 2nd Riders4Helmets Helmet Safety Symposium and to see it continue to expand,” said Lyndsey White, co-founder Riders4Helmets. “Since US Olympian Courtney King Dye’s accident in 2010, awareness of the importance of helmets has grown significantly and we are delighted to be bringing together individuals, corporations and organizations all in one place, to continue important discussions of equestrian safety related to helmets.”

Symposium topics will include the following: Expect The Unexpected, A Parents Perspective On Helmets, Traumatic Brain Injury in Equestrian Sport, Helmet Use In Equestrian Sports – We Are ALL Role Models, A Strapping Success: Understanding and Promoting Helmet Use with Performance Psychology, Current Helmet Rules – A Discussion, and, Cowboy Hat To Cowboy Helmet: The Transition. Speakers include: Equestrian Sports Psychology Consultant Tonya Johnston, Neurosurgeon Lola Chambless M.D, Barrel Racing and Extreme Mustang Makeover Competitor Mary Miller Jordan, USEF CEO John Long, and, a special video presentation by US Olympian Courtney King Dye. To view the full symposium agenda and speakers, please visit http://www.riders4helmets.com/2nd-riders4helmets-helmet-safety-symposium/.

A fashion show sponsored by Equisafety and Equestrian Collections will be held during the lunch break of the symposium. Models will wear items from the UK based Equisafety high-viz apparel range, in addition to the Riders4Helmets logo wear collection available through equestrian retailer Equestrian Collections.

Attendance to the symposium is open to any member of the public, but individuals who plan to attend are requested to either pre-register in advance, or, will need to register upon arrival at the symposium. To pre-register, please visit http://www.riders4helmets.com/2nd-riders4helmets-helmet-safety-symposium/.

For information on sponsoring the Helmet Safety Symposium, or, for more information on the Riders4Helmets campaign, visit www.riders4helmets.com or contact [email protected]. You can also follow the campaign at www.facebook.com/riders4helmets and http://twitter.com/riders4helmets. Riders4Helmets logo wear is available for purchase at www.equestriancollections.com with all proceeds supporting the campaign.

Riders4Helmets was founded in early 2010 after Olympic dressage rider Courtney King Dye was seriously injured in a riding accident. King Dye, who remained in a coma for a month following her accident, was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident and continues to undergo rehabilitation. The goal of the Riders4Helmets Campaign is to educate equestrians on the benefits of wearing a properly fitted and secured, certified helmet.