On July 24 the U.S. Equestrian Federation board of directors convened for a special meeting during which they approved an amendment to the protective headgear certification rule change, which was originally approved during the mid-year board meeting in June. With this amendment, the rule change will have an effective date of Aug. 1, 2023.

This rule change expands the list of acceptable international testing standards for equestrian protective headgear by accepting, in addition to the U.S. standard ASTM F1163, the British standard (PAS 015), the European standard (VG1 01.040) or the SNELL Foundation certification as acceptable. By moving the effective date up to Aug. 1 (from its original effective date of Dec. 1, 2023), competitors can take advantage of the expanded options almost immediately rather than waiting until the start of the 2024 competition year.

“The additional testing standards are comparable to or exceed the ASTM F1163/SEI standard and will allow more helmet options to competitors at USEF national competitions,” said Dr. Stephanie Bonin, principal and senior biochemical engineer at MEA Forensic Engineers & Scientists and chair of ASTM Equestrian Helmet Task Force.

Additionally, the list of accepted international testing standards and corresponding certified quality control labels for equestrian protective headgear have been posted on the USEF website rather than within the USEF Rule Book to allow for making future updates to the list without having to undergo the timeline associated with the rule change process. Click here to reference the international test standards list.

If you have any questions about this rule change or the types of protective headgear approved for use at USEF licensed competitions, please contact Katlynn Wilbers at KWilbers@usef.org.