Lancefield’s Alison Noble is riding high – on and off her horse.
The 13-year-old’s idea for a memory foam helmet insert that molds to the wearer’s head has been selected as a winner in the national Samsung STEM competition Make My Idea.
Alison’s idea is one of only three out of 5000 entries being developed into a 3D prototype.
The keen horse rider said her idea came from the challenge of finding a helmet to fit. She said helmets that were too tight caused headaches, but bigger helmets could fall over riders’ faces.
Alison’s mother Kim, who also rides, said they knew of people whose helmets had slipped when they fell off their horse, causing them to break their nose.
Alison spends a lot of time wearing a helmet as an endurance horse rider.
She is Australia’s number one endurance rider in the junior division, having competed against riders up to 17 years of age.
Kim said Alison had been asked to qualify to represent Australia at the world championships when she reaches the minimum required age of 14.
Alison is currently nursing a broken leg from falling off her horse, but she says she can’t wait to get back in the saddle and see what’s next on the horizon.
