All profits from the evening will go to the Brooke Hospital and the Mark Davies Injured Riders’ Fund

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Start Time: 19:30 for 8pm start
Date: 9th March 2012
End Time: 22:30

Start Time: 19:30
Date: 5th March 2012

Start Time: 19:30
Date: 6th February 2012

The Draw took place on Wednesday 21st Dec at the Irwin Mitchell offices Leeds and the our congratulations go the winner, Mrs E Russell of Holmfirth. Thank you to everyone who took part.

A HUGE THANK YOU TO Diane for all the support she gives the fun with her wonderful work please see http://www.dianehnnchen.co.uk/ for more of her work or see her stand at HOYS and Olympia this year.

Today’s riders are able to achieve the requirements of an elegant turnout and rider safely. Modern, improved materials and designs provide a range of riding hats that combine elegance with high levels of rider protection. So what should you expect from a modern riding hat and its purchase experience?

Personalised fitting service

Even the safest hat is useless – not to mention uncomfortable – unless it fits correctly. So BETA trains retailers and tack shop staff in the construction, correct use, fitting and maintenance of riding hats – specialist information they can pass on to you when you visit their saddlery shops or show stands. BETA-trained retailers are also conversant in the latest safety standards. First, select a retailer that has a wide range of stock and most importantly, staff who have been trained to provide a professional hat fitting service. Look for a retailer displaying a BETA Safety Course Certificate and ask for the member of staff named on the certificate to guide you in the selection and fitting of your new hat. Or go to www.beta-uk.org to find out your local BETA hat fitting specialist.

You can also use the BETA phone app, which can direct you to the nearest store offering this service.

To obtain your download, log on to: Apple Store itunes.apple.com/gb/app/beta-directory/id393334362?mt=8 or iTunes itms://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/beta-directory/id393334362?mt=8

Secondly, before your visit, phone ahead just to make sure that the appropriate members of staff will be available at the time that you intend to visit. Then allow yourself enough time so that you are not in a rush. Arriving half an hour before they close or when you need to leave for the school run is not going to help you or the retailer.

If you have a competition jacket that you particularly want the hat to match, take it with you. Also consider how you wear your hair. If you compete with your hair in a bun or attach a false bun, have your hair like this when the hat is fitted. Also be mindful of changes to your hair e.g. the addition or removal of hair extensions will make just as much difference to the fitting of your hat as would the fitting of your horse’s saddle when a bulky saddle pad was removed. If you ride with your glasses on, then have the hat fitted while wearing them. Talk to your retailer, ask questions and understand the purchased garment, its function, correct storage, care and replacement requirements.

Expect your retailer to measure your head before selecting a range of hats to try on. Be patient as this will involved placing a number of hats on and off your head. Also be prepared for the fitter to gently move the hat while it is on your head as well as feeling around its sides. This is to gauge the closeness and suitability of its fit. When the hat shell has been correctly selected the retention harness will then be adjusted. This is every bit as important as riding your horse with an adequately tightened girth! If your riding hat is not correctly held in position it cannot provide you with the correct protection in the event of a knock or fall. Ask your retailer about the correct care and maintenance of your new purchases as well as when to replace it. Remember the hat will, in the event of a trauma, act as your heads crumple zone. The inner shell will compress as it absorbs the energy of your fall, thus protecting your head. It will not “re-inflate” or be able to provide the same level of protection again even if it does not show any sign of damage externally to the velvet covering. Be grateful that it has done its job and replace it after an impact.

A little TLC…
Riding hats are precision-made items of equipment deserving of good care. So don’t expose yours to extremes of temperature, by leaving it in the sun on a car parcel shelf or in the freezing cold of your tack room. Hats survive wet weather well, but should be allowed to dry out naturally and slowly; never put hats on radiators. Hats should be replaced whenever they have suffered a severe impact with the ground, a horse’s hoof or a fence. Obviously, this mainly applies to falling off and hitting your head, but a hat could also be damaged if dropped on to a hard surface. Try not to leave yours lying on the yard, perched on a gate post, rattling around in the car boot or being played with by the dog. Many makes of hat are supplied in neat carrying bags or boxes. Padded hat bags are also available, while old-fashioned, hardened hat boxes, if you can find one, are ideal for storage and to prevent damage in transit. A handy hook on which to hang your hat outside the stable or where you tack up is ideal, and never goes amiss in the lorry or trailer either. While it’s easy, even enjoyable, to buy a new hat, a head can never be replaced. So why not invest in a spare hat? Standards know-how Generally, the higher the level of a hat’s impact absorption capacity, the more suitable it is for riskier riding activities such as cross country. Hat standards have been developed to indicate levels of absorption capacity against both flat and edged surfaces, as well as additional features such as harness stability and, in some cases, penetration. Riding hat standards are usually composed by a committee, in Europe each country sending its own representative to the European technical committee. European standards are reviewed every five years or following a complaint about efficacy; although a review Does not necessarily lead to a new standard, history has shown that one emerges every ten years or so. These standards may be prefixed by other initials. DIN EN1384 indicates testing in Germany, while the BS prefix shows that the hat has been tested in Britain. Although in theory there should be no difference, some European countries have approved helmets that may have failed if tested in Britain. PAS standards, for instance PAS015 1998 & 2011, are managed by the British Standards Institute (BSI). Other standards seen on riding hats include ASTM F1163: 2004a, the American standard; and Snell E2001 that was developed in America by the Snell Institute. Snell E2001 is a higher performance standard which includes all aspects of PAS015 and ASTM. Quality marks found on riding hats include the BSI’s Kite mark and the SEI – the American equivalent administered by the Safety Equipment Institute. The CE mark, also sometimes found on riding hats, is neither a quality mark nor a standard, but a mandatory declaration under EU law by a manufacturer to show compliance with essential requirements of EU directives. BETA-trained retailers can offer generic advice to help you select any brand or style of hat or helmet. For further questions relating to hats or their fitting telephone 01937 587062 or log on to www.beta-uk.org. The Mark Davies Injured Fiders Fund recommend that you wear the highest standard or specification with either a Kitemark of SEI mark.

When I started, I learned from the Parelli books and DVD’s and travelled to the occasional clinic, which were few and far between.  There were only a couple of British instructors, but we were lucky enough to have some come from abroad to teach.

And then I thought I’d try running some clinics from home, here in Newmarket.  It started with one or two during the first year, and gradually it has become pretty well a once-a-month occurrence.  They vary from one-day, two-day, three-day to five or even six-day sessions. 

I’m not renowned for my cooking skills, but I manage to knock up pasta or quiche and salad for lunch on these days.  And usually all the people who come also bring goodies with them.

If they want to leave their horses overnight, I provide stables and paddocks.  I don’t charge for any of these services, but people like to give something back, so I keep a couple of collecting pots in the kitchen for MDIRF and the Parelli Horsemanship Fund.

I’ve met some wonderful people through this programme and it’s opened up a whole new world for me and my horses.

Summer 5-day clinic here, at Newmarket, with Russell Higgins, a 4 star Parelli Professional from New Zealand

I’m back, alive and free from Malaria, Dengi Fever, Typhoid, Rabies, Hepatitis, Snake Bites…In fact, apart for a mental aversion to using the longdrops I came away pretty much intact (but thinner). And having foregone beer for 6 months (while I was in training) that first beer in Port Moresby was straight out out of the film Ice cold in Alex.

Papua was extraordinary. And the Papuans, despite enormous poverty and hardship are the friendliest and happiest people you could meet. Quick to smile and hard as nails (and that’s just the women!).

A hot, humid jungle, sleep deprivation (we were up at 4.30am every day) and appalling jetlag all conspired to making me feel as if I was hallucinating for the first 2 days. The trekking part was tough – a lot of ‘hills’ in difficult conditions. Tough, but do-able – having said that, I was glad of all the hours I had put in back home trudging up and down the 30 floors of Guy Hospital’s stairwell for hours on end. Every part of the jungle was an Attenborough moment – huge beautiful trees in virgin forest, butterflies the size of birds and birds the size of…well, I’m sure they were big. I didn’t actually see any birds through the canopy but I could hear the little darlings squawking up there. Somewhere.

Best moments for me were undoubtedly the informal ’sing-sings’ the boys did. The Papuans seem to have a natural bent to sing harmonies – and our crew of 20 Papuans would, of an evening, amuse themselves by a spot of communal singing. It was like going trekking with Ladysmith Black Mambazo. Heaven for me.

I should warn you that I took about 600 photos so here’s fair warning to get your excuses ready for when I ask you to ‘Come and see my Kokoda Snaps’. Sadly I can no longer duck out of weekend chores by claiming the need to go training. So it’s back to reality for me. Many thanks again to all of you who sponsored me.

Gus and his Papuan porter with the MDIRF t-shirts which have remained. A big thanks to Gus and everyone who supported him in is Fundraising. If anyone would also like to trek and raise funds for the MDIRF please contact Rosemary on rosemary@mdirf.co.uk.

I have ridden since I was young, and am a keen eventing follower so I knew about the MDIRF before I signed up to do the Great North Run. I found out in February that I had got a place for the Run and decided that I’d do it to raise money for the MDIRF as it’s such a great cause because it helps people like me who ride and spend time around horses for fun, as well as professional riders.

While I was already a runner and member of a running club before I signed up to the Great North Run, I had never attempted a half marathon before. The thought of running twice the distance of my normal club training routes was pretty intimidating – I can’t say that I ever finished a training route with enough energy to run straight round and do the route again!

Despite my nerves about the challenge that I’d signed myself up for, I got on with my training and steadily built up the distances that I ran in my long run sessions each week. I was really determined to train hard and do the Run in less than 2 hours, and wanted to do my best for everyone who had sponsored me. I experienced all sorts of extreme weather conditions during my training, from boiling hot days with no wind to torrential rainfall, which made sure I was prepared for whatever the weather would be like on the day of the Run.

Luckily, the Newcastle weather on the day of the Run was good. It wasn’t too hot, and it only rained once. By the time it started to rain I just had 1 mile to go, so it spurred me on to finish quickly. The atmosphere from the start of the Run to the end was amazing and it was really inspiring to see so many people running for different charities too. There were people lining the entire route to cheer everyone on which gave me a huge lift and just added to the atmosphere of the day.

The best part of the Run was the last mile where the route turns down to the coast in South Shields. There were crowds of people, including my parents and sister, lining the roads and hearing them really helped me to get to the finish. I was thrilled to finish in a time of 1 hour 41 minutes and 32 seconds, which was faster than I thought I’d achieve. I also raised £295 for the MDIRF, so was even more thrilled to have raised that amount of money and not let my sponsors down. I know that the money I’ve raised will be put to great use by the MDIRF and I’d like to thank everyone who supported me by donating to this extremely worthwhile charity.

So many people came to help and the vet was there within 10-15 minutes.  My beautiful girl went into shock very quickly and stood as quiet as a lamb.  I managed to hold it together quite well as my main concern was for my horse and I even spoke to the lorry driver who was devastated.

I cannot begin to tell you how I have felt every day since the accident.  Sometimes it seems like a bad dream and I wake up thinking that she’ll call to me when she hears my foot on the gate when I go to feed and muck out in the morning. When you read this, you will be upset and think ‘ I hope this doesn’t happen to me’ but unfortunately these things do happen to us ordinary unsuspecting Horse owners and riders.  To prevent anyone else having to go through any similar harrowing ordeal, please could everyone who rides on any road make sure they wear their Hi-Vis Gear.  It gives Car drivers an extra 3 seconds to see us.  Also a SMILE and a THANK YOU to car drivers who slow down for us will encourage them to slow down the next time they meet a horse and rider.

I know how lucky I am to be here and just want to try and prevent any accident between horse and vehicles on any scale from happening.  Hi- Vis gear may not be very flattering, but like a seat belt, it could save you or your horse’s life. Thank you for reading my story.   

Sent from an MDIRF supporter

I completed the NVQ which was awarded to me in September and I have since got a job with a Pre-School on a part time basis working with the 2&3 year olds.

I have managed to do a bit more riding this year and even won a have a go at polo afternoon with Mint Polo in the Park, it was a very sedate affair but still managed to have a go!”

Phillipa Russell