# Most Impressive, Accidental Thing You Have Done



## Tianimalz (Jan 6, 2009)

LOL!! My story is pretty similar. I took my mare out for a ride... bareback, a long ways from home. Well fate would have it my neighbors were out that day; and when Indie saw those other horses she spun around SUPER fast and sent me flying to the side. I caught my knee on her high withers, and wrapped my arms around her neck and hung there like some kind of Spider girl prop before pulling myself back up.

Felt proud; but I haven't ridden out far from home without my saddle since :rofl:


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## Poseidon (Oct 1, 2010)

I rode a gelding that did this weird hop when he stopped in a friend's saddle that had stirrups that were far too short for me. He ran towards a fence and stopped dead, I came off clumsily, but managed to flip completely around and land on the fence with my elbows around it like I was just hanging out there, reins still in my hands. It was fairly impressive. 

A similar thing happened to a friend with another gelding. He ran full out towards the arena fence, then stopped. Friend went flying over his head, grabbed the top rail of the fence and landed on the other side standing.


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## palominolover (Apr 28, 2010)

Hmmm.. Oh yes =) I accidentally cued a horse to do a pirouette. I didn't even realize what I was doing I was a pretty new rider. My coach just stared at me with a shocked look on her face.


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## Wallaby (Jul 13, 2008)

One time at camp I was leading a ride with a mare that we had never asked to lead before (so we had no idea what her reaction to scary stiff was going to be). We were about to go down a scary trail so I turned to the kid behind me and was like "don't get worried if this horse starts jumping around or something, I've got it" and the kid just stared at me like: :shock:.

The next thing I know, my horse has seen this little puddle in the middle of the trail (and that part of the trail is at the bottom of this probably 4 ft deep ditch-like thing) and she literally jumped straight up side of the ditch, got up there and then jumped this tree stump that was probably 3ft in diameter but not very tall. Then she just walked calmly over to the trail on the other side of the puddle and continued on like nothing had happened.
I was completely surprised by her reaction and since I wasn't expecting THAT reaction, I was super relaxed and stayed on like nobodies business.

I turned around to check on the kids on the horses behind me and they were all just staring at me like :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: :shock: and even the other wrangler at the back of the line was like "WTF?". 

By next day, everyone in camp had heard about what a beast I supposedly was. And no one would believe me when I said that it was completely an accident! So eventually I just went with it and let everyone think that I was the boss-est horse rider EVER. :lol:


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## trailhorserider (Oct 13, 2009)

Hmm. I have a couple, but not quit as impressive as your guys.

The first was back when I lived in the city and boarded my horse and I rode to my house maybe two miles away and was on my way back to the boarding place. There was one road that had some traffic and my Dad was worried about me crossing it, so he drove along side me in the car. So I get to the intersection and I was riding my very hyper Arabian that just couldn't stand still to save his life. The best I could do was turn him in circles and let him moved his feet.

Well, this particular day he wouldn't stand and I couldn't let him get out into traffic so I was handling him the best I could without letting him get off the sidewalk. He did a couple of small rears. I called it his "airs above ground" because they were short Lippizzan type rears, not full-out rears.

Anyway, afterwards Dad told me he didn't know I could ride like that! I wasn't trying to impress, just keep the horse out of the road. :lol:

Then another time I was riding a friend's spooky mule and we were going down the trail and it just jumped like three feet directly sideways. I somehow stayed perfectly centered and my friend was like "wow you have a good seat!" :lol:


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## QHriderKE (Aug 3, 2011)

Well, my most recent one was when me and my mother had to cut out a LONGHORN cow and calf from the pasture and bring them home. Me being the dip-schmuck I am, I decided to ride my 3 year old. It turned out, we had do to several high speed chases through the pasture and such, so I was pushing my 3 year old more than she's ever been pushed.

I made the silly prediction that the cow and calf were heading to a low spot, so let my 3 year old run. Well well well. She had a crap ton of speed. We finally got it done and what not, but she really improved in just her general attitude after that day.

I guess the point of that novel was to say that it was an accident that I took my 3 year old, and it was impressive because even my mom thought it was going to be a gongshow, and it actually went better than we all thought.


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## RunJumpRide (Sep 29, 2011)

When I went to run Specs on barrels for the first time since we bought him, which was like a month or 2 & he was pretty green when we bought him. A few of my friends were around and watching. He was unsure of the arena, because he'd never been into it before so he completely sidepassed through the gate, then I turned him around and we ran the pattern pretty decently (even though his oast oxner-slash-breeder said they never trained him on the barrel pattern)... My friends were like "Man you bought an awesome horse!" and I just kinda went along with it .


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## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

I also accidently taught my horse to be ridden without a bridle. I tend to ride with a lot of leg and seat. One day, I just gave my horse her head and she turned and stopped without bit cues. I refined it a bit, and now I can take her bridle off and ride.

My trainer once taught my horse to accidently rack in place. My horse was being lazy and wanted to step pace instead of gait properly at a slow speed. My trainer gave her a strong squeeze and some nudges, driving her into the bit. My horse started to do a "passage" in gait. It was really neat looking.


I "accidently" trained a horse to stand for mounting recently. I was originally teaching her to stand tied politely. Every time she pawed or struggled, I yelled, "STOP, sttttaaannndd..." I learned this verbal cue from my trainer, who uses it any time she wants a horse to ground tie.

The next day, my trainer is trying to mount this horse. This horse has been historically very difficult to mount; she doesn't stand still well at all. The horse took a step, and my trainer told her, "STOP, stttaaannnddd..." The horse stood perfectly still for my trainer to get on. :lol: Two birds, one stone!


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## ThursdayNext (Oct 18, 2011)

My folks didn't let me take riding lesson, because they are not horse people and did not understand. The BO at my friends' lesson barn understood and let me walk the horses out after the lessons to cool them down. This was before the era of lawsuits and stuff, things were different and it wasn't an issue that I didn't have a release.

So one day I had untacked one of the OTTB that they'd retrained for jumping, and I was walking him out bareback + bridle, and a dog someone had brought along shot into the ring barking its idiot head off and chasing the horse. Which took off at a canter (my first canter! bareback!), causing me to hunker down on the horse's back and grip him good with my knees, which made him go faster, and the next thing I knew, we took a jump.

The BO missed the bit with the dog, and just saw me rocketing around the ring bareback at a canter and taking a jump. He ripped me a new one, right up to the moment that someone managed to get through to him it was an illegal dog that had started the whole thing, and then he turned his wrath on the dog owner. Scared me out of a years' growth, that did. But dangit, I made it on a canter and over a jump bareback, and didn't hurt myself or fall off, and didn't hurt the horse either.


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## pintophile (May 18, 2011)

I think last winter I was on my younger mare, and dad came roaring past on the snowmobile. Well, she was being stupid that day (it was cold and windy), and she literally bolted about 20 feet sideways in one huge leap. I didn't so much as lose my balance, and I think I impressed the heck out of my dad.

On that same mare again, last winter, we had access to an indoor arena and I was on her bareback cooling out at the far end. Another rider's horse in the arena spooked at the snow scouring on the walls. It took both of us by surprise and the mare again jumped 5 or 10 feet sideways. I was bareback and again, barely even lost my balance. I felt so pro after it :lol:


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## LoveTheSaddlebreds (Jul 9, 2009)

I was at camp one year and was very new to jumping (about 9 years old) and we were in the indoor playing with this saint of a QH gelding, Cody. we had a contest to see who could mount him bareback (he's 15-15.2hh and we were all under 5') and I got on him first so I got to ride first. (that was the first impressive feat) then, my trainer's son asked if I wanted to jump bareback and I figured he meant over the 1" cross-rail so I said yes. He took the leadrope (cause cody was just in a halter and lead) and made him trot. To my surprise, he trotted him straight to a 2' jump. I freaked for a second, but after I cleared it, I had earned all my bragging rights with the other campers. That was my first time jumping that high, too xD


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## Prinella (Jul 12, 2011)

When I was young and indestructible I used to take out a lot of trails. We'd get bored and one of our favorite boredom busters was to throw a leg over the saddle and ride 'side saddle' one day the boogeyman attacked and the normally dead quite horse I was one shot forward at a fast trot then fell into a canter I was riding up the side of the line and everyone assumes I'd done it on purpose. In fact I was ****ting myself. But I learnt to try and canter 'side saddle'' .

This year I won 2nd place in the fancy dress at the heavy horse show riding a clients fjord and highly impressed the judge but trotting around in not a terrible frame aside in a dressage saddle. The girl that won first place seriously deserved it riding a 3yo whod been under saddle for 6 months in full medieval knight get up complete with chainmail lance and flag.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## 888vegas888 (Jun 23, 2010)

Okay heres a good one...

I was schooling this little green colt once, working on his lead changes. He would ALWAYS buck, all the time. So we had a good rythym going, and the second I stepped out, he bucked. And when I say buck, I mean completely upright bronc buck. Somehow, my left hand planted into his wither, my right hand planted right smack between his ears. I pushed off his head and did a cartwheel, miraculously landing right in front of him. I managed to avoid getting trampled by pivoting directly to his left side and hopping back in the saddle. All of this happened while we were still in motion... He never did pick up his left lead, though. :lol:


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## HarleyWood (Oct 14, 2011)

well these are all Very interesting, and i have a few. 

me and my friend were ridding her horses , her new barrel horse about 15.3hh, and i was riding her Jumper, english, WP horse, about 16.2hh he could have went to world or something in jumping and was really good. but anyways they were in for a few days because it had rained and everything was muddy so we desided to, we rode indoors some and then desided to go outside in their leads to the back pasture. we were in there and we crossed the 6foot stream. and we saw her mom pull up and took off. we tryed ot slow down before the stream but my horse desided he was going to jump it and hers desided he was going to just plow through it. we made it across and he was so proud of himself as we cantered ot the barn. covered in mud, we trot through the door and through the isles and into the arena like nothing happened. at supper we asked if she saw us running the pasture she was shocked at what we did.

earlyer that day we were in the arena and just messing around bored so we desided to play simon says, and we are playing she says simon say to sit on their butts and kick them. so im like okay sounds easy. i kick him and he bucks as he does it i slid forward a bit and grip with my legs. and luckly stayed on.

we play cow horse with her pole horse and when i rode a moreison we would run awound trying to escape and sometimes woul dhave to make it to the door to leave the arena!

thats all i can think of ride now, we always do crazy things.


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## newbhj (Jul 31, 2011)

Going for a simple change while warming up and getting a flying change instead. I've done flying changes easily ever since then. 

I was jumping a jump with a pretty tight turn to the next jump, the horse jumped huge and I lost both my stirrups and landed on his neck. I managed to haul myself back into the saddle and grab my stirrups all while remaining at the canter and making the next jump and finishing the course. I felt so pro lol


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## QHriderKE (Aug 3, 2011)

One thing to add, at this years first rodeo, after 2 years off from barrel racing, I went in there like a pro, made a lovely first barrel, gave my mare the boots and went for second... until she spooked at the freshly harrowed ground. Lost both of my stirrups, somehow got around second, and finished my pattern. with no stirrups. Got a 23-something. Lawl.


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## breezy17 (Mar 21, 2011)

Your stories are so good! I once got an accidental leg-yield at the canter.. I oversteered a circle and my horse had to step over some poles! 
Also, I am just proud to say I stayed on through my first buck


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## gaelgirl (Mar 3, 2011)

So I was on a trail ride with a big group, and I was riding this mare, who I'd never ridden before. The ride was down to the beach for some fun, and then back to the barn. This little trek happened to cross a few puddles. On the way there, we had no issues. She just went across no problem. On the way back, we got to the first puddle (maybe 2 ft wide and 2 inches deep) and she decides no way is she walking through that horse eating bog. I kiss to her to get her going and she leaps this mud pit like it was a jump. I had never jumped before (or since) but I managed to stay on, and play it off like it was no big deal.


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## PaintLover17 (Jan 3, 2011)

When I bought Amber a year ago she was a speed demon under saddle and didn't want to listen to anything her rider said. I was working with my trainer on teaching Amber that canter does not mean run as fast as possible with your head in the air and Amber was getting pretty mad at having to listen to me. Some horses buck or rear when angry, but apparently Amber shakes. So here we are cantering quite quickly when she does a full out shake without skipping a beat! My trainer laughed so hard and said she had never seen a horse shake while cantering before. Said she looked like she went up on her tip toes to do it! It was the oddest feeling but I somehow managed to stay on, although I did smack my wrist on the horn (still riding western at this point) and get a nasty bruise. She's did that a few times again after but thankfully she respects me now and hasn't recently! I'm still not sure how I managed not to loose my balance all those times!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Spotted Image (Aug 10, 2011)

We was boarding a friend’s horse, and agreed to help guide them in his training. This was a green broke horse, and 19 year old beginner guy plus his parents and younger sister. They was riding one day, my niece, my dad and my mom standing their helping, but Chief the horse was refused to move. We decided it would be best to have me hope on him and try to correct the problem. I finally got him to move an half circle when he stopped and reared straight up. I rode it our and decided to ask him to turned and go back to where everyone was, when he reared straight up again and I had to look for a escape route. Not thinking I kicked my feet out of the stirrups, push my self off and him and he this stood their rearing, while I landed on my feet behind him, moved to his side and pulled him down. After that we told them, the horse was too advance for them, they can pay us a training fee or take the horse to a trainer. I get it all the time that I did it to impress the guy who got on my nerves. It wasn’t planned or videoed, but everyone told me it was a movie scene. 


We had an ex-racer prue “Standardbred” that I normally rode with a group of mostly walkers. My dad and I took a trail ride alone, and my dad was racking our walker at a faster speed (King racks faster than most walkers), I was holding the Standardbred at the same speed, which was at a rough pace, when all of sudden she got really smooth and I told my Dad to look over and see what gait she was doing when he did he almost fell off laughing, our pacer standard bred, was high stepping racking, copying the walker. We had people watching her and if I played rode a certain way, beside King (no other walker) at a certain speed, she would high-step rack, we even had people watch (walker breeders) and sure enough it was a rack. She was around 18 years old at this time and at 21ish we decided to retired her to a slowly pace home. 
Same Standardbred and Walker, my dad and I decided to race around a circle at the local trails, when we did one lap neither horse wanted to stopped so we passed our trailer, when my horse got another gear all of sudden again she was 18 or 19 years old at this point, when she got a half lap ahead of him she did a roll-back all of sudden to our trailer. I didn’t get unseat at all, she had spunk and speed at 22 years old and would out last our walkers, we rode her 11 hour mountain trail rides with her still full of energy, but we knew at 22 years old, her bones and heath needed a slower life, and we are heavy trail riders.


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## DraftyAiresMum (Jun 1, 2011)

The most impressive thing I think I've done by accident was sitting Aires' "spook" when a mare we were following kicked him in the face. 

We were walking back from our first "real" ride in the arena (meaning our first ride that lasted more than thirty seconds...I had fear issues) and my friend was on the ground walking next to us. We came up to the trainer taking one of the horses out of her stall to use for a lesson and she convinced me to ride behind the mare so Aires would get used to following a horse for when we trail ride. Well, this mare and her neighbor (another mare owned by the same people) are notorious haters, but we figured it'd be okay since Noel led trail rides all the time and everybody (horse and human) loves Aires. Apparently not this time, though. Noel pinned her ears and backed up real fast toward Aires as we started following them. We weren't even that close...maybe 10 feet. Anyway, next thing I know, Aires starts backing up to get away from Noel, then as she goes to kick him, he half-rears to get out of the line of fire. She still ended up catching him on the bit (no injury, thank goodness!). At the top of his little rear, he spun to the right and took off at a fast trot. 

Now, this may not sound very impressive, but considering I had serious fear issues until this incident, I was pretty impressed with myself, as were my friend and the trainer. They thought I'd freak out, but I was laughing. For what it's worth, the fear issues stemmed from being randomly and without warning bucked off a black and white paint mare a lady at the barn asked my friend and I to help her with.


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## WyldBlu (Nov 12, 2011)

just thought of another time. I was out riding with a friend..me on my 14.3 H arab mare (who was about 17 at the time) and her on her 16+ H thoroughbred x race horse. We were trailblazing up the side of a hill...she ran up to the top. I was not as brave or crazy as that, and wanted to take it a bit more cautiously. After all, I could not see that much ahead of us as there was brush covering the ground. My friend, now at the top was yelling something down to me, which I could not hear at all. 
Suddenly, my mare started trotting then doing a sort of slow canter..up the hill, she wouldn't listen to me to slow and I didn't think it would be too safe to pull her head to the side with one rein on this hill. I gave her, her head and grabbed a handful of mane. Then I saw what she apparently saw before me. There was a gap in the hill...too large for her to step across. I had never jumped in my life...but I was left with little choice. Keep in mind that I was in a western saddle. Just as she was about to leave the ground, I did my best to imitate the jumpers I had seen at the numerous shows I had seen. I stood up in a sort of crouch, a bit over her neck, tucked in my stomach to avoid the horn and dropped my hands to give her as much rein room as she needed.
My friend who jumped competetivly at the time was clapping as I got to the top. She said I did a perfect 2 point jump (whatever that means) and looked like I had been training for that. lol. 
It was actually amazing. It felt more like my mare flew over it, and I don't remember ever feeling her touch ground. It was so smooth and fun...and I was well impressed with myself for keeping it together and not coming off of her.


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## Brighteyes (Mar 8, 2009)

Another thing to add: my horse has a "stop button". You can touch her tail and she stops from any gait. It started out as a fluke; I leaned back to brush something off her butt and she stopped. My friend thought it was so funny that we kept reinforcing it. I now have a real stop button!


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## Pyrrhic (Dec 11, 2011)

I used to have a black Andalucian gelding with black mane down past his shoulders and he was used in TV work. I was riding him in an indoor school and there were a lot of people in there as lessons had just finished. He spent 10 minutes doing canters, sliding stops and rearing on the spot. 

Everyone thought it was amazing. He was actually be a total &%!$

Wish I still had that level of confidence to deal with that though!


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## Horsesdontlie (Mar 11, 2011)

One time I was competing with Jake at the towns yearly rodeo/gymkhana. I was coming home from doing speed barrels (Three barrels in a line, weave first two, turn around the third, weave back), Jake was hauling and he had loose rein. At that point we were coming around the second barrel, Jake already had a right hand bend, and had his nose pointing towards the right of the barrel in front of us, so I gave no thought to try and direct where he was going. This was about after 3-4 years of showing, he knew the course. 

Well a stride out from the barrel Jake snaps his attention from the side of the barrel TO the barrel. I feel him gather up underneath me as he took a bounding stride towards the barrel, I had a split second to think "Oh ****" before I threw myself into two point and gave him his head as he lifted up off the ground. 

Other bystanders told me that we looked like it was fully intentional, Jake's clean tuck as he jumped, my two point and release, they said that the only reason the barrel went down is that Jake hit the end of the tie down on his landing and barely nicked the barrel with a hind hoof. 

I was laughing so hard I almost fell off, the announcer paused for a few minutes before telling me I was disqualified. I didn't care, it was hilarious. For years after I had people asking me "Hey is that the jumper? Are you the one that jumped the barrel?" No one had ever seen anything like it before. ;-)


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## Equestrienne92 (Oct 26, 2009)

I was riding my trainer's personal horse in a lesson, a large thoroughbred. After riding around the arena for a bit, my trainer set up a trotting pole for us. Well Dirty Boy decided it would be more fun to jump, and leaped over it with plenty of room to spare. 
I'm sure he looked lovely but I was caught off guard and barely managed to stick the landing. 
Silly horse.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## SunnyDraco (Dec 8, 2011)

I would have to say that the most impressive, accidental thing that happened to me was while I was out trail riding a very green 3 year old filly. She had about 30 days under saddle, and had never dealt with gravity's pull on long steep downhill drops under saddle or any other time growing up. We came up to the top of a long steep drop, started walking down while I leaned back to remain upright. With every step, she gained momentum and speed (I was trying to get her to slow down). Soon enough we were trotting, and then cantering through the sage brush. It felt like we were doing a version of "The Man from Snowy River" minus jumping over fallen logs. After getting her sideways on the slope, she finally did come to a stop. She was kind of nervous from running downhill for the first time in her life, I reassured her and took purposeful pauses on the rest of the downhill areas. It also happened that we were riding with her trainer, and we all had a pretty good laugh about my downhill plummet. Never have cantered downhill before or since, but that is because we always practiced walking down any hills, especially steep ones 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Saranda (Apr 14, 2011)

Oh, I've got one too! Not too much of an accident, though, but I was quite proud of myself that day, lol. I was trotting with a very nervous and easy to spook arab mare in the trails with a group of other riders, us being at the end of the group. Suddenly the horse in front of us jumped sideways for no apparent reason and the mare I was riding spooked and started cantering. Mind me, I was not that good of a rider back then and had cantered only for a few times. As she started cantering, I felt that my stirrup is falling off - the whole stirrup and its leather coming off the saddle - and I managed to grab for it, catch it and strighten myself back in the saddle, all thing done with the opposite hand. Just as I had caught the runaway stirrup, the other one started coming off, too, so I had to get it back in place, while still cantering and keeping the mare on the road, trying to keep her from running past the other horses. AND, just as I had finished the business with the second stirrup leather, one side of my leadrope that I was using as reins came open by the knot at the halter, so there I was - cantering with a frightened horse in a forest, with one stirrup, the other one swinging in one hand, and holding to one rein. Honestly, I was not prepared for this  , but I still managed to calm my lady down and come back to barn in one piece.


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## boldstart (Oct 11, 2009)

the most impressive accidental thing I've ever done is said on two massive rears bareback.

before this happen only ever had two horses ever rear up and fallen off both. has just moved interstate and was trackriding (only been doing for it about a month) when went down to the beach with four horses. at the beach we just wade them in the water for an hour and we dont wear helmets, vests or boots.

the trainer never said the horse rears when you try to bring this young filly back in (if i had of known, I wouldnt have ridden it). anyway, all was good and started heading back in. my filly starts pawing in the water and I have her a hefty kick, she jumped forward and started pawing again so I kicked her again. as I kicked her again the rider next to me goes 'she rears, GIVE YOUR REINS!' my reins were already at the buckle and the next thing I know she dpes a massive rear up and I must have leant forward, give my reins and hold onto the mane. she landed and I was 'thank god thats over' so I squeezed her forward again and she goes up again, this time almost flipping over and when she landed had only shifted to the side. she then walked in like an angel and everyone clapped because nobody sits her when she done that and I was the inexperienced one in the group.

this again was bareback, no pad no nothing and even since then i am much braver around horses that rear and know how to handle situations like that better.


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## fkonidaris (Jan 26, 2012)

When I was younger, I went to camp and got matched up with an OTTB who was only off the track for about 3 months. I, at the time, was still a fairly green rider. Not a good match. Sooo, first day of camp we went on a bareback trail ride (my first trail ride and firs time bareback). Well, my mare decided to bolt through the woods, race past the other horses and keep going. I'm hanging on for dear life, scared out of my mind, as my horse jumps fallen logs, trees, creeks, and....the gate at the end of the trail. Somehow, I managed to stay on and my instructor thought I rode her like that on purpose...yeah right!


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## BlueSpark (Feb 22, 2012)

I have a good one! It was spring and I was riding one of the best horses in the barn, a appy gelding that was a fantastic trail horse, 19 years old. We were riding along with a feild to our left and a slight hill(3') up to a gravel road on our right. he saw an unfamiliar rock in the feild and side stepped right, forgetting about the incline. He couldnt get his feet under him fast enough and he fell completely over onto the gravel road. while he was falling I stuck out my right foot, stepped out of the saddle and walked across the road! I found my self standing there, watching my horse get back up.:shock: It was one of the weirdest things


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## aqharyder (Jan 25, 2009)

I think my most impressive accident was when my WP horse and I were learning trail. My trainer wanted to get him desensitized, so he had me carrying around all kinds of things and shaking them, going over stuff, etc. 

Well, one day he handed me a garbage bag full of cans. The minute I had it in my hand my horse started shaking, and I knew I was in trouble. Well, I started to drop the bag and realized two of my fingers had punched through the plastic and it was stuck to my hand. My horse started to spin at about double the speed of a rainer. I don't know how many rotations we went around, but the bag finally came loose and flew off, and somehow I was still on my horse. My trainer came up grinning from ear-to-ear as he was so impressed with my courage and not letting go of the bag - I was going to tell him what really happened but I was so out of breath from it all I couldn't even speak, so I just left him believing how "brave" I was :wink:


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## tempest (Jan 26, 2009)

I have a story very similar to aqharyder's. I was trying to desensitize Rocket to some trail course items. I had picked up a plastic bag full of empty pop cans. As soon as I picked the bag up, Rocket half-reared, turned while rearing and bolted into a trot. I seriously don't think that horse knew that he could go faster than a trot when he got scared. He was a ten year old Amish cart horse. Trotting was all he knew. After about 30 seconds I ditched the bag and then he immediately slowed to a walk. 

Another time I was warming Rocket up in the practice arena at the fairgrounds and a helicoptor was trying to land in the airfield. The farigrounds are right next to an airport. We were moving away from the airport when Rocket realized a big, scary, loud metal bird was flying right at him. He half-reared, my helmet slammed into his neck (I was a little dazed). I seriously think he sat down, and then whirled around to face the helicoptor. My RI congratulated me on turning him around to face the helicoptor, but really Rocket faced it himself. I didn't turn him around. After looking at the helicoptor he was fine, just a little shaken up, but he didn't bolt. I was so proud of him.

One last Rocket story. I was attempting to get on him bareback (we were still working on standing while being mounted), when he decided he was going to move off while I was half on him. I was situated in him like Little Creek was when he first rode Spirit in Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron. Kind of half hanging off him with my right leg thrown over his back. Rocket then decided to trot straight towards the wall. I had two options because I knew that Rocket was going to turn and follow the wall as he always did: 1) I could slide off now and avoid injury or 2) I could stay on and get scraped off on the wall. I chose option 1. I slid off, stuck the landing, and acted like a gymnast who had just completed her uneven parallel bars routine. My friend comes running out and says "Are you okay? All I saw was you half on him and him trotting off! That was awesome!"

Miss that horse. Good times, good times.


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## PaintCowgirl (Jan 2, 2012)

i was about seven or eight and went with brother to look at a potential competition cutting horse for him. i was looking at the other horses when he rode and when i walked back to arena to see him, brother says "you want to ride", of course i said yes. brother says "hes got a gas petal but the breaks work" the owner was a bit nervous because this was a hot horse and i was a kid. brother assured him i was born on a horse and would be fine. so i got on...... lets just say i pulled the breaks tooo hard and i quickly rode my first seated stop! brother says my eyes were as big as dinner plates! the horses owner told my brother he was right, i was born on a horse! ha!!!! brother didnt embarrass me (we are close he knew what my riding exp was) and when we got in the truck he looks at me and says "you didnt mean to do that did you?" 
we bought him and i couldnt wait to get him home and seated stop him for everyone else to see, i just thought that was the neatest thing!


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## Lis (Oct 29, 2009)

I was having a jump lesson with the YO on a little pony who can be a little bit of monkey about jumping. Nothing nasty just ducking out if he gets the chance but he'd already tried it earlier in the lesson so I cracked him down the shoulder to get on with it and we went fine. We were flying around the first part of a course when he decided to refuse a fence we weren't even aimed it. Suddenly he swerved to the right and somehow I managed to hook my leg on his belly and stayed with him. Tried it once more then got over himself and went properly.

Today I was riding one of our newer additions who is afraid of pretty much everything including the contact and your legs so it's all about trying to go steady as she tries to bolt away from you. Today we were trying a canter in one half of the school while everyone else was at the bottom end of the school. It was going fine until she suddenly napped sideways and bolted to the right which is her worst side as she leans in something chronic. Lost both stirrups, trying to steer between everyone else and get the mare to calm down without using the reins. We ended up almost crashing into another horse to stop. It looked very impressive I'm told as she swerved round while I had no stirrups and we're going headlong across the school.


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## trafo (Sep 12, 2011)

Had a pretty dumb morning once. Saddled the horse, got on it, did some warming up stuff and suddenly ... flipped over to one side together with the saddle. Turned out that I forgot to tense the girth properly. It was really weird feeling - everything is fine, you sit deep in the saddle, with the both feet firmly in the stirrups, and all of a sudden you are down 90 degrees - still sitting deep in the saddle, with the both feet firmly in the stirrups... Even after I hit the ground, I could not figure out what had happened, only when saw the horse with the saddle on his stomach


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

I was getting a jump racehorse fit. he was one of the spookiest horses I have ever had the joy of riding. He was frightened of his own shadow (he wasn't really but it was a good idea to spook at it!) 
I had just come back with another rider when his owners turned up and asked if I would give him a canter in the stubble field at the end of the drive. The other rider went back to the stables and I rode William up the bank off the lane, into the field. As I was doing so, I was pulling my stirrup leathers up. 
We were walking along the hedge and I was doing my second pedal when William stood on a hen pheasant which immediately screeched and flapped. William went sideways about 8 feet, in one leap, leaving me in mid air. He landed and stood on the cock pheasant which made even more noise than his wife. William was back under me as gravity took a hold and I landed, very inelegantly on his back!
His owners saw very little of his faster work because they were laughing so hard.


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## PintoTess (Aug 18, 2010)

We were in the indoor arena at school the other day and were making the horses lay down. Well as Julian went to get up I stopped him and made him sit! Im like, wooops but thats pretty cool!


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## Western2English (Oct 26, 2011)

I was leading my weanling in a Halter class and we were walking to the judge and all of a sudden he starts doing this INSANE spanish walk ( like an extended walk x 70). The judge looked at us like we were crazy and he has his head tucked way back and looked very studly. When we got to the judge she says, " Are you sure he's a gelding?" jokingly and then says " I bet that took you forever to train him to do that." I nodded absently and after the class was looked at my mom and was like lmfao!


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## Cassia Sidra (May 8, 2012)

This isn't all that impressive, but... I was riding a spooky, green mare around the ring while a guy was leading his girlfriend on an old, unflappable gelding. The mare was doing fairly well, so I clucked her up to a canter. She proceeded to kick up a clod of dirt and completely lose her head, whereupon she took off at a gallop and nearly ran straight in to the aforementioned gelding. (He didn't seem to be paying a bit of attention to the whole ordeal.) She swerved to avoid him and my feet came out of the stirrups somehow, so I instinctively tightened my legs around her to stay on... Needless to say, this did not help matters at all. Fortunately, I managed to stay on a freaked-out Fox Trotter in full gallop around a sharp turn with no stirrups. (I proceeded to flop out of the saddle when she stopped, but you take what you can get.  )


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## minstrel (Mar 20, 2012)

I've got two:

First was in an equitation class, my horse was very overexcited and had absolutely no brakes. We were doing our individual show and when we picked up canter, I could feel him dying to gallop off. I held onto him, but when it came to changing to rein and asking him to come to trot to change canter lead, he wasn't coming back to me. Nearing the corner of the arena, I shifted my weight to change direction, hoping he'd come back trot to change, and he instead did a beautiful flying change. We placed second in the class, my instructor (who was watching) reckoned it was because of the change, she say it looked really nice despite the fact I had no control whatsoever!

Second was our first ever cross country together, I wasn't really sure how he was going to react to the various jumps. We came to the staircase, and he launched the first step, with me losing both stirrups. The second step I lost my balance and on the third I went flying onto his neck. Fortunately, he decided that continuing to canter down the hill (which was the opposite direction from the trailer) wasn't that appealing, and he turned straight after the staircase to gallop back up the hill. If he hadn't, I'd've landed on my face, but thankfully the uphill let me get back into the saddle, get my stirrups and point him back in the right direction, to the gasps of the fence judges. 

I nearly came off him once more in that round, when we had just come out of the water. He had done the water beautifully, which had surprised me as he;s usually a massive wuss about getting his feet wet. So, we came from the water to an in-and-out, but right before it was a puddle just off the the left. He did a massive cat leap sideways right in front of the jump, and I lost both stirrups, but managed to ride him at it and go through both parts of the jump with no stirrups. I felt like a boss that day...


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

My mare wasnt what you'd call a gaming horse as her heart wasn't really in it. Spur of the moment entry I put her in keyhole. The gods must have wanted me to win because she ran down with good speed, buried her tail and did an incredible roll-back over her hocks and ran like a scared rabbit for the finish. We won with a wide margin for time. As soon as she rolled over her hocks I knew our time was the best. What a feeling!!


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## LoveTheSaddlebreds (Jul 9, 2009)

Saranda said:


> Oh, I've got one too! Not too much of an accident, though, but I was quite proud of myself that day, lol. I was trotting with a very nervous and easy to spook arab mare in the trails with a group of other riders, us being at the end of the group. Suddenly the horse in front of us jumped sideways for no apparent reason and the mare I was riding spooked and started cantering. Mind me, I was not that good of a rider back then and had cantered only for a few times. As she started cantering, I felt that my stirrup is falling off - the whole stirrup and its leather coming off the saddle - and I managed to grab for it, catch it and strighten myself back in the saddle, all thing done with the opposite hand. Just as I had caught the runaway stirrup, the other one started coming off, too, so I had to get it back in place, while still cantering and keeping the mare on the road, trying to keep her from running past the other horses. AND, just as I had finished the business with the second stirrup leather, one side of my leadrope that I was using as reins came open by the knot at the halter, so there I was - cantering with a frightened horse in a forest, with one stirrup, the other one swinging in one hand, and holding to one rein. Honestly, I was not prepared for this  , but I still managed to calm my lady down and come back to barn in one piece.


^Something like this actually happened to me once, too. I was filling for a Children's hunter class with a basket-case piebald mare named china. With her, if your seat isn't DEEP and your arms aren't falling off trying to hold her, she'll bolt at jumps. I can have a very quiet, relaxed deep seat when I want, so I can keep her at a slow, controlled canter (when she's in the mood). SO we had done the first four jumps and were coming around the turn off the diagnol for the final line, and I feel my stirrup leathers starting to fall. Just before this, I'd actually put on new leathers and apparently didn't secure them well enough. They flopped down, and I used my toes to hold the irons. I started slowing her to try and stop, realizing I'd be DQ'd for no stirrups, BUT the darn mare felt my increasing grip to hold the stirrups and took off for the line (it didn't help that the line was also towards the barn..) needless to say, we needed a few hunter circles more than standard, but the owner of the mare was very pleased with me xD


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## Sharpie (May 24, 2009)

I was taking my boy for a cool down walk in the field behind the barn, bareback after some arena work. He was getting irritated with me not letting him run back to the barn like he wanted and after the second or third time I shut him down he jumped about three feet sideways and then bucked. This set me forward and a little sideways. He then got that big QH booty under himself and bolted to the barn at a dead run. Luckily the field gate was open. When he came to the front fence, he did a tight little 10m circle to the right and stopped dead. Luckily I can now say I have run my horse bareback without falling off, turns and all.


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## LynnF (Jun 1, 2011)

I was jumping a little QH mare the other day and had set up a line of bounces, we were going through just fine until she got it in her head to take the last two fences at the same time. They were set up about 10 feet apart and she cleared them both without knocking a rail. I knew this mare could jump but holy crap I was not expecting that.


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## Oxer (Jul 9, 2010)

oh man i have a fun one! 
My gelding i was leasing was a keen jumper. we were jumping down this grid and were supposed to halt at the end of the line. There was a huge meter fifty oxer about 8 stride out... so i wanted to make sure we were good and stopped before we reached that monster of a fence. Needless to say he had it in his head that we were gonna go for it, so i panicked and turned him in to the 5 foot concrete retaining wall with a grass embankment on the other side, in an attempt to get him to stop. He instead jumped it. Right up and over and then raced up the grass embankment. I was 9 at the time. hahaha! It ended up in the newspaper cause the press was there taking pics of all the kids riding. I thought i was pretty cool after all that.


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## SorrelHorse (Apr 9, 2009)

Well,

The first year I was allowed to put first rides on colts (AKA Being a crash test dummy :rofl There was this one horse who had been sacked out beyond belief but was never quite....all there upstairs. :'D

I got on and was ponied around for a little bit, then they let go around the arena on my own. I didn't really plan on going fast, so I let him trot around the rail. Next thing I know, the colt is off to a bucking, kicking, running panic over something (Trainer says he spooked, I think he just wanted me off his back. :lol Well at one point he made a HUGE buck and even though at that point I was going to fall off, the colt tossed me right in the direction of the rail so I quite literally just stepped off O.O I didn't really even comprehend I had done it until everyone was staring at me.


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## Clayton Taffy (May 24, 2011)

My youngest child ......






Oh you mean with a horse.....ops!


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

I was 19 and showing out in front of the fellas on my 16.2HH TWH mare while they were sittin them little QH's. I decide to take a fast rack out of the arena and down the side of the drive. Well there was a telephone pole with a guide wire. My mare decided this was a fine time to teach me a lesson. She went close enough to the wire to clear it but not close enough to allow me to clear. I did a couple revolutions around the wire til my feet hit the ground, my mare racking right on down the drive. I yelled whoa and she stopped. I told her come to me, and she came back. I mounted back up and went to the barn. 

I heard later from a friend it wasn't impressive, I was such a stuck up show off. I ate a slice of humble pie that week LOL.


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## Adam (Feb 6, 2012)

First riding lesson. WOW! LOL 
I went to the barn and told the trainer I had very little previous riding experience, and had never been on a reiner before. He happened to have a stallion named Junior saddled up (VERY tallented open horse) so he puts me on him. I manage to get him out to the center of the indoor, and we mess around with turns, backing, basics of rein management, whatnot.

The trainer tells me to take off into the right circle, and trot a small circle. Well, I cued Junior in what I thought would be a trot, and he launched into a pretty quick lope. I had never loped before, and was not sure exactly how I cued this, but away we went! I managed to guide him thru the circle, but in my panic I had been squeezing him with my legs, diggin in my heels. He read this as 'GO FASTER!', which he obliged.

We got going too fast for me to hold him inside the small circle, so we went large, and I managed to make it most of the way around. We got parallel to the back wall and I just couldn't get him to turn on into the circle. I dug in deeper, and he read it as 'WOOOOHOOOOO RUNDOWN!!!!'.

OMG he went into a gear I didn't know horses had. As we rocketed across the 200' arena at an amazing rate of speed, I suddenly remembered I had no idea how to stop. So, recalling what I'd seen the Lone Ranger do in days gone by, I sat back, somehow let go with my legs, and whispered 'woah'. 

All of a sudden the back of the horse fell out from under me. I'd never sat a reiner stop before, let alone one that slid 15 foot, but by God I did, and after all the dirt settled down there stood Junior, with me climbing off his back. I walked him back over to the trainer, handed the stunned man the reins and wandered over to the bleachers to sit down. I'll never forget 30 minutes later walking by him while he was on his cel, telling someone 'Man, I $h!t you not, this old new guy came in and rode Junior like some freakin PRO!'

I love reining!


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## tempest (Jan 26, 2009)

Adam, that's an amazing story. You had me smiling and laughing the entire time. I'm still smiling.


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## BubblesBlue (Jun 29, 2010)

These end poles :rofl:











And this, isn't very impressive since I can't jump but it's hilarious.


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## SorrelHorse (Apr 9, 2009)

Heidi's like "SHE'SCOMINGFORMEIKNEWIT."

Selena would just bite me :rofl:


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## Rascaholic (Oct 4, 2010)

SorrelHorse said:


> Heidi's like "SHE'SCOMINGFORMEIKNEWIT."
> 
> Selena would just bite me :rofl:


This made me LOL.


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## Skyseternalangel (Jul 23, 2011)

My refusal to fall off of my horse. I had gone over 8 months solid of pure sticking my butt in the saddle solid riding.. through the spooking, veering, motorcycling, excited gaits.. and leaning over to open gates on trails. 

It was a lesson day and my mom had something going on so I had to walk 2 blocks, hop on the metro, stay on for 8 stops, change metro cars, stay on till the very end, get picked up by my friend and she'd drop me at the barn.

It was quite the journey from "suburbia" to "ghetto" but I didn't care. Met some interesting people in my horse get up.

So I get to the barn it's around 9am or so march straight out to pasture and Sky greets me at the gate. Groom him, and begin to tack him up and take him outside. Well I was so distracted that Sky managed to clamp down on my thumb because I shoved it too far into his mouth. Bloody Mary it hurt sooo bad, but I was so stunned at possibly being late for my lesson I sucked up the pain and finished tacking up. My trainer was due at any minute!

So here I am, tired as heck from the trip, my thumb throbbing, leading my horse outside. I skip lunging because there's just no time so I hop on my horse, we start going around the rail and pass the blue barrel that's always there. He acknowledges it with a slight turn of his head and a sideways glance and I press him on forwards. I warm him up on a nice loose rein, then we pick up the trot.. 30 minutes has passed and no sign of my trainer but Sky is still fine so we take a nice walking break and work on stopping. He's great, the arena is a little slick so I decide not to canter him. Well 2 hours passed and my trainer finally showed up. She apologized profusely as there was an emergency and she couldn't call. That's fine by me. Sky and I are super duper warmed up (I did more walking than anything) but he was in a really good place, nice and relaxed as was I.

We worked on stuff as per usual. Then she mentions that she wants me to canter around the rail. Okay, fine by me. Well while I was putting him into a trot, she dragged the barrel from the side to the corner. As soon as we trot by it, Sky freaks out and leaps sideways and then baulks. I try to move him but he isn't budging so finally the trainer (apparently cannot waste time) grabs him by the bridle and drags him over. He sniffs it, seems fine. So we trot around again and he doesn't seem to mind. So I cue the canter and it's really pretty alright, I'm worried about slipping. We get to that corner.................... he books it, veers to the right in such a tight turn I swore he was cutting off a cow. I don't know how I stayed on but I did and he went into a frenzy. I knew pulling on his mouth would do no good and despite saying "TROT, Sky.. TROOOOT. " Over and over, he just wasn't mentally present.. he was panicking. He kept changing directions and began to get even faster, at a near gallop, I was being thrown about like a ragdoll. I started to lose my balance. I remember dropping the reins on his neck, pulling my feet out, leaning down and bear hugging his neck "TROT DAMNIT, TROT!!! TRRRROOOTTT" and at this point my legs flung over (like I do for dismount) and I was hanging on his neck, looking into his eyes telling the goose to trot. Finally I had enough and I dropped my weight down, found the ground and ground my heels into the sand as hard as I could, while jerking on the inside rein "trot trot trot. I TOLD YOU TO TROT!!!!!!!!!" and he finally trots and I stop yanking. He stops and I tell him " DON'T YOU EVER DO THAT TO ME AGAIN!!!!! EVER!!!!" 

Well for everyone watching, not only did I stay on a crazy bolting horse like some cutting cow pro, but I was hanging off the side of his neck, demanding that he trot, dug my feet into the sand to cause resistance when he finally stopped I scolded him for blowing me off!!

I then felt the pain of my thumb, but holy crap I refused to fall!!! I refused to give up my record of not falling off for 8 months. So I literally clung onto it  Didn't know I had it in me, lol

And yes we cantered LOTS to make up for that dastardly attempt to avoid cantering.


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## AnalisaParalyzer (Apr 25, 2012)

Its not really an impressive thing, but something cute alex and annie had the other day 
I was mucking anne's paddock while alex hung out with her at her stall door. She was being bratty, stomping and snorting and demanding that alex go and get her dinner. He says "just make a happy face so I can pet you like a good horse." She gave him a poopie face with her ears back and her teeth out and stomped. He said "fine, I'll just sit here and cry" and he buried his head in his arm and pretended to cry. Her ears went up, she dropped her head to try and see his face, decided he was faking and snorted all over him. The she began to flick her upper lip over his arm like she was saying "quit it faker! Feeed meee!" Alex laughed so hard he forgot about his ear ache. 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## MN Tigerstripes (Feb 20, 2009)

Probably the most impressive, accidental thing I've done is not get killed in my teenage years with all the stupid stuff I used to do on my horses. Second would be not killing anyone else.. Looking back on those days I wonder if I had a subconscious suicidal wish? :lol:


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## PaintedHeart (May 24, 2011)

It's not so impressive compared to everyone else's on here, but once during a lesson we were just doing simple 20 meter circles, working on my riding position, etc. I hadn't been riding terribly long, and had never even cantered yet. 

All of a sudden, the horse I was riding spooks at something and just completely books it to the side... only to find a set of trot poles blocking his way. Jumps the first couple like one big, 3' jump, barrels to the next set and jumps it the same way before I could bring him back into a trot, lol

Not impressive compared to most accidents, but my trainer looked almost as surprised as I felt!


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## LovesMyDunnBoy (Aug 11, 2011)

I was riding my mare I just sold through out drive way while it was flooded to get used to water, and when I would ask her to cross she would side-step all the way around..she did that so much I didn't expect it when she leaped across it  first and last time I ever jumped. She would crash through poles that were only six inches tall, but yet jump a puddle that was 3 feet across just to not cross it. Lol
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## itachan01 (May 22, 2012)

**

Back when I was about 8 or 9 we bought my first horse, little did we know that she was much better trained than we and her previous owner had thought. I didn't know that she could do 4th level dressage moves and at the time I didn't even know that it was dressage that she was doing (never had lessons before) a pirouette! So somehow I accidentally qued a piroette and didn't know it till about 4 years ago watching dressage on youtube! Lol!


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## HorseLovinLady (Jul 18, 2011)

About 6 years ago I was on a trail ride and my horse stepped in a hole and went down on her butt like how a dog sits down. I was able to keep my cool and get me and my horse back up and on our way on the trail. That was my most impressive thing i've ever done as a rider. I already knew it wouldn't do me or my horse any good to panic which neither of us did. :grin:


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## azwantapaint (Feb 5, 2012)

Mine doesn't involve a horse, but it is pretty funny.
We were on the training range shooting live anti ~ tank rockets (shoulder fired type).
I was on the during line, ready to shoot, and my assistant gunner smacked my helmet so hard it knocked my glasses off.
Figuring I was still on target, I let it rip.
Overshot the intended target by 500 yards, and hit a tank dead center kill shot.
I painted rocks in the courtyard for a week after that one, but earned double cool points the next week when I cut a2x4 in half with a machine gun.


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

Mine was just the other day... bareback, at the beach. Picture decent sized waves crashing to the sand and a rider determined to get the horse in the water... and a TERRIFIED horse.

So, he spun around and went to bolt off up the beach. I barely moved, even though I was on a slippery, clipped horse and wearing slippery joddies. Didn't need the neck strap I had on him just in case.

The same happened several times. Now, a few years ago, I had to ride a 12.1hh Welsh bareback for 2 or 3 months straight (didn't have a saddle that fit him) and learned to canter and jump and do everything bareback, including sit some impressive shies and stay on when he pigrooted. But I haven't really ridden bareback much since, so I figured I'd probably lost a lot of it. Apparently not.

Same day I nearly fell off because the same horse turned too tight in the water. If not for my neck strap I'd have been up to my neck or even under water. I swear that water was trying to pull me off my horse :/


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## jumanji321 (Dec 1, 2010)

Mine is probably my second time ever foxhunting. We were maybe about half way through all the jumps when I see this green looking jump between two round bales. I thought it was a coop until I was actually jumping it and realized it was actually a picnic table. Thank god my horse found a great spot and took it like a pro (hello scopey jump)! Yeah, apparently my depth perception was little off that day. It's still my favourite jump at that particular hunt.


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