In other news

We were supposed to have a horse in today, but the jockeys refused to ride due to the fact that Turf Paradise only has a half-assed, crap-tacular $500,000 insurance policy to cover them.  I don't blame them.  Their job is obviously very high risk, but they shouldn't be financially ruined if they have an accident.  Anne, who became paralyzed after a horse fell on her only two weeks ago, is ready to go to a rehabilitation facility now, but the $500,000 coverage has already been exceeded.  This can obviously affect the quality of the facility that she is able to go to, something that she shouldn't be required to worry about right now.  Even though missing the race is a pain, I'm proud of the riders for standing up for Anne and themselves.  Click here for the Daily Racing Form story.

*On a good note, the owner of the horse we had in is the father of one of the riders here, so he isn't going to be too upset about not running.

On the dressage side of things, I FINALLY got my new One K Defender helmet yesterday!  I was like a complete crazy person, checking the tracking number every ten minutes to see if it had been delivered yet.  We also ordered some stuff for the barn (pretty excited to get the Back on Track no-bows too), but it was my helmet that my nerdy self was getting all spastic over.

So happy! Don't mind my tired and haggard look, it was a long day. Plus, I'm just not a photogenic person.

I haven't gotten to ride in it yet, but I loved it the second I put it on.  Okay, so I'd already tried them on before, but didn't LOVE them until I got mine.

I ordered the regular Defender in black matte.  I wasn't interested in the built-in sun visor/glasses thing and I'm really not much for sparkles (crystals) on a helmet that I'm going to be using for everyday. Also, with as dusty as it is in Phoenix, I wanted something easy to clean. Plus, at just over $200, it didn't give my other half a complete heart attack. I didn't have to argue my reasoning for spending a bunch of money on something, for once. *sigh* No $900 custom Antares helmet for me.

I have a GPA, tried on Charles Owen and Samshield.  One K were the ones that I liked best.  It fits my small, oval head really well (my beloved GPA was just a little tight on my forehead).  It is really light, has plenty of padding, and I could feel the breeze that was blowing coming through the vents.  The removable and washable/replaceable liner is definitely a plus!  I love the looks of it and could/probably will show in it some.  My ABSOLUTE favorite part about this helmet is the harness and chin strap.

 I guess I need to explain that I am a complete psycho about any thing tight being anywhere near my throat.  If something is tight, I can not stand it and can't stop gagging.  I usually don't button the top collar of my show shirts unless they are really loose.  My stock ties have to be damn near big enough to fit a Hulk sized creature and I have a skinny neck.  Turtle necks are the devil to me!  So I've always worn my helmet in the unsafe manner of having my chinstrap way too loose.  It was either that or risk vomiting all over my horse.

The harness on this helmet is well padded and angled just right, so that the chinstrap is more forwardly placed and not laying into your neck.  The padding on the harness is enough that the chinstrap doesn't need any, taking away bulk in that area.  Its super easy to adjust.  I could actually put it tight enough that the helmet can serve it's purpose and not freak the hell out!  Thank you design geniuses!

Anyway, that's my initial report on the One K Defender.  I'll let you know if I change my mind about it.