Centered in the Saddle

I got a new riding helmet for Christmas this year! I was so excited because I honestly did not expect it. I got the IRH ATH SSV, in black with black vents. It is, in my opinion, nice and stylish without being too noticeable. After all, I want people to notice me and/or my horse, not focus on my helmet.

These are my criteria for the perfect helmet:

• Can be used for schooling and showing (hunter/jumper)
• Does not break the bank, but is still good quality and will last
• Makes my head look nice/not humungous
• Safe and will protect my head if needed
• Comfortable
• Adjustable so I can fit my hair inside or not, depending on the day (optional)

Here’s how the IRH ATH SSV holds up:

• Can be used for schooling and showing | Yep! And not just for hunter/jumper. It should be a good cross-discipline helmet, should I ever need one.
• Does not break the bank, but is still good quality and will last | Check. To be fair, I didn’t actually pay for the helmet myself. However, at $169.99, I would say it’s a fair price for a quality helmet.
• Makes my head look nice/not humungous | True. Pics will come. There is no bubble-head to be found around this helmet!
• Safe and will protect my head if needed | I’m assuming this is true. Hopefully I’ll never actually have to find out just how well it protects my noggin.
• Comfortable | It feels like it’s giving my head a hug.
• Adjustable so I can fit my hair inside or not, depending on the day | Nope. But that’s okay. I didn’t really expect that there was a helmet on Earth that could meet this criteria and not be gigantic. I just have too much hair. Good thing I have my trusty RWR No Knot Hair Net for show days, and…you know, regular hair binders for other days.
• Bonus! No helmet-forehead-lines to be seen after riding!

So far, I’ve ridden in my new helmet a few times and have loved it. It’s very comfortable and secure. At first the neck harness/chin strap took a little getting used to, just because I was so used to my old helmet that having new and different straps touching my neck felt weird. (Side note: I don’t like things that touch my neck too much, like turtlenecks or choker necklaces. The late-90s were a difficult time for me in this regard.) I got used to it really quickly though, and now I can say that I don’t notice the helmet at all when I ride, which is the best praise of all, when you think about it.