Abstract: At 8:45 a.m. on October 31, 1998, Employee #1 rode the race horse, China Bend, to the starting gate for her morning schooling. The horse and rider broke straight from the gate and continued down the track or chute for about 70 yards. At the quarter or 3/8 pole, where the chute joins the track, the horse was observed to duck or dip to the right. This action unseated Employee #1, causing him to fall to the surface of the track. He sustained a crushing injury to his spinal cord at the C1-C2 region, and a fracture and dislocation of his cervical spine at the same location. Employee #1 was transported to the hospital, where he was pronounced brain dead at 11:45 a.m. At the time of the accident, he was wearing a Saratoga riding helmet, an ASTM-approved standard for head gear and used in horse-related sports and horseback riding.