Joyce Esernia, Scottsdale, Arizona.

Riding résumé: Esernia competes in reined cow horse in AQHA and NRCHA events aboard her 9-year-old Quarter Horse gelding Oaks Dual Rey. She began her life with horses at the age of 10 working as a trail guide in northern Virginia. After high school, she took a break from horses to attend college and pursue a career, but resumed riding in her mid-30s. Upon relocating to Carmel Valley in central California, Esernia started riding at a barn with a reined cow horse trainer. “She introduced me to working cows, and I quickly became infatuated with the sport,” Esernia recalls. Why she rides safe: About 20 years ago, Esernia’s husband was perusing a health newsletter and came across an interesting claim: Horseback riding without a helmet was considered just as dangerous as riding a motorcycle sans helmet. “It was hard to argue with that,” Esernia says. “So I started wearing a helmet back then, when I was trail riding.” When she began learning to ride cow horses, however, she didn’t wear head protection. “I was practicing for a gymkhana competition, got bucked off, and ended up in the hospital with concussion syndrome. If I even slightly turned my head, the whole room spun. It was hugely disorienting—as if I were looking through a kaleidoscope with only slivers of vision. I couldn’t turn my head or stand up for a week.” Doctors assured Esernia the spinning sensation would subside, but if her head ever took another blow she’d likely suffer permanent damage. “And that was it for me. I feel extremely lucky for my recovery, and I won’t take that risk again.” Dirt-wise: “A lot of people assume it’s safe to ride in an arena without a helmet because you’re on soft dirt. Take it from me, it’s not so soft when you’re pile-driven into it,” she advises. Best helmet advice: Get past worrying about how you look. “I know that’s sometimes hard,” Esernia says. “When I see my show pictures, I cringe—I think I look like a geek in my helmet, but that’s just the way it is. But helmet shapes and styles have improved in recent years; they’re not as bulky as they used to be. You might be surprised that they’re lighter and a lot more comfortable than people think.” Clever comeback: “On vacation I rode at a rental stable where a couple of wranglers teased me for wearing a helmet,” she recalls. “One even made a crack that wearing a helmet is a sign of an insecure rider. I just smiled and said, ‘You only need to wear a helmet if ya got brains to protect!’”