Buying a riding hat

[BestZebbie]

My almost 6yr old DS has taken up pony riding, for his birthday I’ve had an offer to buy him a riding helmet of his own - currently he borrows one at the stables but obviously that is an additional shared-touch object to think about and he’d probably enjoy the ‘belonging’ of arriving ready to go.

I believe his hat size is currently 6 1/2: 6 7/8 wobbles.

Riding helmets look quite expensive, is there actually any point in buying one at this age (he is obviously still doing very very basic things whilst led, not competitions etc) and how long should I expect one to last before he grows out of it?

Please go to reputable shop and get properly fitted a good saddlery will fit it correctly and offer follow up care. This comes from a mum who’s 6 yr old came off and pony kicked him in the head which would have ended up with a terrible outcome if he hadn’t had a well fitting hat and body protector. There’s no price on safety as far as I’m concerned

My daughter started riding just before lockdown and we went and had a hat properly fitted. It was a very formal process with paperwork. You absolutely do need a well fitted hat - whether you get your own or use the schools. ( getting your own is obviously preferable even without Covid). I’m pretty sure they won’t let you ride without one. No pony is completely 100% bombproof - they get startled or freak out at the most innocuous things or they just trip.

I don't think OP is saying that she will let her son ride without a hat - which is 100% inadvisable - just that she's thinking it might be worth continuing to hire one from the school rather than buying his own. The school hire hats presumably are properly fitted to each child and meet all relevant safety standards (if not RS insurance and BHS accreditation would be invalid) - I can understand your point of view OP the RS ones should be perfectly safe, but hats are not that expensive in the scale of things and it is nice to have your own, the insides of a hat can get quite sweaty and icky so it's not that nice to have to share and also with your own you can be absolutely sure it's been well looked after, it's always possible that a careless child has dropped one of the hire hats onto the concrete when the staff's backs are turned. Plus if you get a jockey skull style he can then use his own 'colours' for the silk which is fun for little ones. But if you think he's due a growth spurt in the next few weeks then no harm in waiting - a child's hat should last maybe a year, but of course if they suddenly shoot up then they can start to pinch which isn't good!

Yes, don't worry, he doesn't go anywhere near a horse without a proper hat on! I'm glad that your son's accident was minimised by the equipment, Grumpbum123.

It is indeed just a question of "should he get his own" as opposed to using the communal ones which belong to the stable.
If the hats generally last the best part of a year before being outgrown (all things being equal) then it does definitely seem worth doing - I just had no prior concept of how rapidly head diameter changes in children. :-)

There are some good adjustable hats on the market, this could be an option? They have a dial in the back and you just move it accordingly.

Or there are hats that have a liner system where you buy a hat shell and then different size liners. I have a Samshield for competing in with this system, it was expensive but really comfy.

I have an adjustable Champion hat which I use for everyday schooling. Wasn't too expensive and it fits lovely!

We actually had to try a large number of hats on before we found a make that fitted. It wasn’t the size but the shape that was the problem. I don’t think that the riding school staff would be necessarily knowledgeable enough or diligent enough to do that. Plus they need to be stood right next to your son ( obviously). I’m not sure how the inside of the hat would be sterilised either.

I’m quite surprised that they are still loaning out hats. Both the riding schools we use have stopped this for the foreseeable future.

Definitely better to have your own. Some makes will fit better than others. I worked my way through about 4 different brands before finding one that fitted me.

It's a good idea to get your own for him, they need to be replaced every 3-5 years anyway regardless of whether they are grown out of. Just check the standards are correct as if you go somewhere like decathlon ( not recommended) they sell some which do not meet the standards for riding school/ pony club or do not have the kitemark. Fixed peak are fine when younger but aren't allowed for cross country ( solid jumps) but that won't be an issue for a few years.

We still loan hays but they are individually disinfected between riders and then are out of use for 72hours whilst drying

My almost 8 year old has his 2nd lesson this week and the stables have said if we book his next one while we're there they'll give us a 10% off voucher for their on site tack shop so we'll be getting him properly fitted to purchase his own hat. He seems really keen, he loved his first lesson and hasn't stopped asking when he'll be going again so I'm hoping he'll enjoy it for a long time to come. A skull cap is around £60 plus a silk so although not pocket money, it's still cheaper than a helmet for my oldest son who does go karting and that was our first purchase for him after the kart. Covid or not, I'd rather have my own hat than have one that hundreds of other people have had their heads in 😂