# Thrown off for the first time



## StallionSpirit (May 10, 2012)

Hi guys. I am quite new to riding horses, and have been taking lessons in a nearby riding school for about a month and a bit now. I was quite scared one morning when I got to my lesson 10 minutes early. I got my helmet and went to wait for the stablehand to let me lead my horse down to the riding arena, when suddenly Chief (the horse) got spooked or something and reared up and broke the rope he was tied up to, this rope was inches thick mind you. Anyway, I told the stablehand that I hope he wont do that while I'm on him, and she assured me. When we got down to the arena our riding instructor wasnt there yet so we were told we could ride just to warm up our horses, and we are only in beginners lessons mind you. My friends horse was trotting ahead, and I dont know if Chief just wanted to catch up or what, but he started to trot, we were doing well for a few seconds then BAM, into a canter (being in beginners we have only learnt trot), so then from canter straight into gallop and I had no idea how to hold on, as he bolted around the corner I took my chances and landed into a fence and took the fall. I have never been so scared in my life and wish that I had made my reins that much shorter, then maybe I could have pulled him back to walk. I now have bruises all over my body and a possible fractured knee.


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## gigem88 (May 10, 2011)

Sorry 'bout that, hope you heal quickly! Just part of the territory.


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## StallionSpirit (May 10, 2012)

Thank you. I got back on and continued the lesson. Much more neverous but as soon as the riding instructor got there, Chief behaved himself -_-. Just my luck lol


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## verona1016 (Jul 3, 2011)

If you ride English, a grab strap might be a good idea. They're great for anyone with an unpredictable horse. I'm assuming you don't own the saddle, but you can put them on and off pretty quickly. Grab Strap

One thing I learned about spooking/bolting horses when I was a beginner: focus first on staying on the horse, then once you are secure you can worry about stopping the horse


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## Fingerlakes (May 2, 2012)

I hate when that happens? :wink: - have you heard of what they call a "Pulley Rein"? It's something I was taught and works quite well for a out of control horse.


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## Meatos (Apr 30, 2012)

Scary!!! I'm new to horses too and have only been taking regular lessons for about a month. Last weekend, "my" horse tripped or spooked at his poop (not sure what happened) at the beginning of the lesson, and I toppled off. Bruised my hip, but oh well, got right back on. Towards the end of the lesson, my saddle slid off and I went right over with it! Turns out the girth wasn't tight enough, sigh. I still trust my horse as he was cool about the whole thing and he is a pretty sage horse, but like you, I just don't have the skills yet to a) process what's happening mentally and not freak, b) manage to stay upright, and c) bring the horse back into a walk all at the same time. And yours certainly was no minor hiccup!! I would have been terrified. Hopefully your knee isn't fractured and heals up okay.

Falling off a horse is definitely an ego killer, but I guess it's a good thing to get out of the way in a sense even though you really learned a hard lesson in horsepower! Next time you see a horse acting up prior to a lesson, I would trust my gut and reserve the right not to ride the horse that day and see if you can choose another one. If you don't feel safe going into it, you'll never relax.


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## mildot (Oct 18, 2011)

Good on you all for getting right back on.

The only time I have not remounted after falling or getting bucked off I was physically unable to walk.


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## PetoftheDay (Mar 21, 2012)

Glad you got back on. This is just one of those things that it is good to get it over with - like one's first fender-bender once you get a driver's license. It's gonna happen eventually, and now you don;t have to worry about it too much. Hope your knee isn't actually broken, be careful with it for now!


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

StallionSpirit said:


> Hi guys. I am quite new to riding horses,It went to wait for the stable-hand to let me lead my horse down to the riding arena, when suddenly Chief (the horse) got spooked or something and reared up and broke the rope he was tied up to, this rope was inches thick mind you. Anyway, I told the stable-hand that I hope he wont do that while I'm on him, and *she assured me*.


Spooky horse AND having a bad day.


StallionSpirit said:


> My friends horse was trotting ahead, and... Chief...bolted around the corner...
> I took my chances and landed into a fence and took the fall.


The lessons should be on *quiet horses.* Your complaints should be limited to, _"why is my lesson horse so dull?"_
or
_"How many more lessons do I have to walk-trot?"_


StallionSpirit said:


> *I have never been so scared in my life*.


No scared ENOUGH. I wouldn't trust THIS horse or THIS stable after this.


StallionSpirit said:


> I now have bruises all over my body and a possible fractured knee.


Most of us try VERY hard to be careful enough around our 1,000 lb animals to NOT get hurt.
Your stable and instructors and the help are supposed to be taking care of your safety, within reason. Falls happen. Bolting should not happen bc you don't know enough yet to ride it out, or to ascertain that your horse is not relaxed and might throw you.
I taught lessons for 10 years and my lesson horses did not:
--buck
--bolt
--rear
--bite
--kick
Don't go back there. Lots of stables offer lessons for awhile, then stop, then start again. I advertised against the local stables (my competition) who did this cycle over and over again. If this happened to your child, you'd scream bloody murder. Why do you care less about yourself? =/


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## Palomine (Oct 30, 2010)

Corporal brings out very good points. I too taught and never had a horse that would have done this, and it is never a good idea anyway to have several beginning riders in an arena at one time.

For that matter, I always worked in round pen for a while. Too much can go wrong when have a bigger area to act up in. 

You are definitely in need of someplace different to learn, as I would not go back to this place.


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

And, if I read this correctly, they were warming up the horses in the arena without the instructor present. a big no-no in my book. 

If this kind of thing happended a lot then I would definintely leave that place, but if it was a very rare occurance, I might give them another chance.


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## Houston (Apr 15, 2012)

tinyliny said:


> If this kind of thing happended a lot then I would definintely leave that place, but if it was a very rare occurance, I might give them another chance.


I agree. Horses are a prey-type animal. Even the most "bomp-proof" and level headed of horses can have off days I believe. But if this is a lesson/beginner's horse we are talking about, it should be minimal. 

I know that as a beginner it can be difficult to spot mistakes and deficiencies that would make a barn unsuitable to take lessons at. But if the horses spook or act up like this often I would look into switching barns.

When I first began riding I took lessons at a place that, on the surface, seemed popular and knowledgeable with many "good" horses. However the instructors were young and rude, and the horses only knew one thing- to follow the lead horse on a trail. They were difficult, spooked a lot (I got thrown from a horse that took off with me on him), and had no manners. Kids got thrown all the time, even on trails with people who knew little about riding. At the time I couldn't see that this wasn't normal until I decided to check out another barn out of curiosity. Glad I did! It's where I ride now and they are awesome.


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## Corporal (Jul 29, 2010)

Tiny, I thought about this over the weekend, and I thought I should add something to this thread. When I was taking Hunt Seat lessons in the 1970's, the stable where I rode offered boarding, lessons, school shows AND rentals. They let me pay for lessons _and _pay for a lesson horse to practice on solo, on Saturday mornings. This was common. The lesson horses were well behaved, and got BETTER than well behaved bc of the lessons. 
They same thing happened with my horses that I trained for/gave lessons on. They just became safer and safer with every lesson that I taught. I did this same with MY riding academy bc I needed teenaged babysitters who, in return, got extra riding/practice time.
In the day and age of numerous justified and spurious lawsuits when people get hurt, I am ASTOUNDED that places like described above can continue to afford to stay in the riding academy business. I am well aware that people have used riding lesson programs to fix their problem horses. Nothing new, but it seems like it is becoming the norm.
We talk a LOT here about style and our opinions of good or bad trainers, but I am more concerned about training a trustworthy horse. I am astonished that it's okay to wish new RIDERS, not new horse OWNERS good luck on that bucking/reaing/bolting horse bc "everybody learns to ride it out." They are renting the horse for the hour lesson. If Budget Rent-A-Car started renting cars, not maintained correctly that caused accidents, nobody would give them any business. _(My apologies to BRAC.)_


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