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We Are Flying Solo

January 4, 2013

Courtney King-Dye Reflects On Two Years Post-Trauma

When people scoff at my narrow-eyed helmet criticism, when they say, we're just walking, we're just trail riding, we're just working on the flat, he's a pro...I still choke.  But don't take my word for it.  Take to heart the grave words of Courtney King-Dye, an Olympic competitor, after two years of hard work following her head injury when her horse tripped in 2010.


Courtney from Riders4Helmets on Vimeo.

15 comments:

  1. Such an inspiration! Wish I had half the courage she has...

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  2. Wow.

    There aren't even words. She was one of the best.

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  3. Agree completely! What an amazing woman she is.

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  4. When I see someone riding without a helmet, I think of Courtney. My hope is that her message reaches those riders.

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  5. I hope so too, Kelly. She is very courageous to step up and become a spokesperson for helmet use. It would be far easier to just disappear.

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  6. Courtney is a classy, courageous woman. I loved seeing Charlotte DuJardin riding and accepting the Olympic gold in a helmet.

    No one wears a helmet where I live - except me. I get mocked but I don't care. My brain is dysfunctional enough without adding the effects of a traumatic brain injury. ;D

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  7. Me too, CFS -- I can't imagine my brain any more messed up than it already is!

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  8. Courtney sounds just like I did 2 yrs post-TBI. I, too, had no damage done to the cognitive sites of my brain, but others are not as lucky. Some have no memory, at all, or cannot solve the simplest of problems. Those who scoff the wearing of helmets need to realize that: some of the damage done by a TBI is permanent. You don't go through some recovery then return to your old self. Your old self is GONE. Twenty-eight yrs after my TBI I still have a "head injury accent", not as bad as Courtney is now,but it is there. She will improve, no doubt, but there will be things that she'll never do again. Point that out to anyone foolish enough to do without a helmet just because, "Oh, I forgot it," or "I'll just be on for a second."

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  9. Agreed whodunit -- someone I love has suffered brain trauma (unrelated to horses or falling) but his memory is completely gone. You don't just wake up fine one day. There is no going back, you can only move forward and try to rebuild.

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  10. Thanks for posting this... there are not enough words to convey how courageous she is to be so public with her hardship and pain. It kills me to watch folks ride without a helmet...

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  11. I just had someone argue with me about helmet use. Typical cowboy attitude, and his whole thesis was, "Well, bull riding is the most dangerous thing, and even though they wear safety vests they don't wear helmets. Therefore, helmets are not necessary." I kind of wanted to throttle him. Seriously, if you're that dumb, well, good luck to ya because you're gonna need it. ;-)

    I will admit that I for a while I was one of those idiots. I had spent my entire riding life @ a barn that required helmets 100% of the time, no exceptions. Then I moved and I was riding @ a private barn and I got drunk on freedom. And with my old horse I thought, "Oh, he's 22, I'm not going to fall off him." As he was bucking and cavorting around like a cracked-out 2 year old. Yeah, good thing I wasn't killed by my own stupidity, because I clearly had it in spades. Now, I am a safety fiend and will not sit on a horse without an approved helmet, no exceptions.

    Yep, I made it full circle. And I'm lucky that I did, because for a while there I was seriously tempting fate. Now, I realize that my fried, fuzzy, messed-up brain is a blessing and I would like to keep it inside my skull and at least semi-functioning.

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  12. Thumbs up, Frizz! And actually, a growing number of bull riders DO wear helmets, including face guards!!

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  13. I have seen this before. So powerful...such a strong message. Thank you for sharing.

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  14. I have gotten so bad I literally feel sick to my stomach when I see someone riding helmetless - at least in H/J land. I guess I'm so used to Western and Saddleseat folks helmetless that it doesn't really register. But flatwork or ESPECIALLY jumping helmetless makes me cuckoo bananas. And forget about kids doing ANYTHING on a horse without one! I'm sorry I even let my kids on pony rides where the ponies were tied to a carousel without helmets!

    I just Do. Not. Understand. people who won't wear one. My own dear friend frequently skips it when we trail ride and I HATE it. I do not want to be the one scraping her brains up off the ground while phoning the paramedics. It's about enough to make me quit riding with her, but I don't know how to broach the subject - again, yes I've tried - without her getting defensive and angry at me. *sigh* Her horses are the only chance I get to ride these days... guess I'm selfish.

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  15. I know what you mean -- people often tell me, "It's my choice." But they never think about what happens to the people that love you when you suffer a TBI. Well, I know EXACTLY what happens now and it is DEVASTATING to anyone who loves you or cares about you. So do it for them!

    As a side note, since I now board at a walking horse farm, I fully expected 100% bareheads and I gritted my teeth. But you know what -- everyone under 18 MUST have a helmet on, even if just fetching a horse from the pasture. And even some of the adults wear them. IN A WESTERN SADDLE *insert boggling eyes here* Probably 20% but that's a start!!

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