Some Thoughts On The Virginia Tech Helmet Study
The results are in and they are… quite surprising. The Virginia Tech Helmet Lab released the results of its study on 40 equestrian helmets, ranking them in safety, impact and concussion risk. The top three safest helmets, which underwent 12 impact tests in the lab, come from a wide range of price points and brands. The Champion Revolve X-Air MIPS helmet, retailing at $460, had the best score and star rating of all 40 helmets in the trailblazing study. But the No. 2 and 3 spots were the $58 TuffRider Carbon Fiber and $50 IRH Equi-Lite, respectively.
The study is truly the first of its kind of equestrian sport in America. In 2018, a Swedish insurance company performed a similar test on 15 popular helmet brands. Here are some of the key takeaways from the Virginia Tech study.
All helmets included in the test meet ASTM certifications and many were equipped with MIPS technology. But the study focused on impact as it relates to concussion risk. Factors like crushing were not considered. So this doesn’t mean that MIPS and other ratings for helmets are not worth considering. They just weren’t factored into this specific test in the overall study.
Many of the most popular brands in horse sport right now, including Charles Owen, One K and Tipperary models, scored in the lower half or middle of the road of the rankings. While that may feel like a disappointing investment, it doesn’t mean these helmets aren’t safe. What it does mean is that the risk of concussion prevention could be higher in these types of helmets than other brands on the market. All in all, that is good information for all riders to be armed with, and to consider before making their next helmet purchase.
Perhaps the best news to come out of this rigorous research is that you don’t have to spend top dollar to get a safe helmet. Some of the biggest surprises were low-end price point helmets had some of the top ratings. Hopefully these findings will help us continue to make helmets with the highest standards that are affordable to all equestrians.
This hot take originally published in the Heels Down Spark in December 2022. Get more conversation starters in your inbox every weekday morning by subscribing to the Spark now.