# boolting away, how to stay on?



## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

Well today I was on my first bolting horse! I am very grateful I didn't fall in the process, but any tips on how to "almost" make sure, or at least enhance your chances of staying on? Frankly, I wish to keep my little record of never falling. :-|

So basically in detail, what happened was this:

Coco was let out in the morning and she ran like crazy apparently. The stable hand told me she would be very calm because of that. Well I was sort of happy she wasn't. I don't like "molo" horses who are energy-less. She was pretty energetic and I had to often slow her down at the canter. The end of the lesson came and I always walk her with my feet out of the stirrups, and with long reins.
It was getting cold and windy so my dad proposed to close the big arena windows. He had to turn this thing to make them go up but it made lots of noise. She was ok at first but then we were parallel to the window and I suddenly felt her tense up...

I immediately knew she was going to bolt.. I was looking down at her and I saw her hesitate, then do that weird sideway footing and then she RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN to the other corner of the arena. My feet were out of the stirrups (I think that might have helped my balance a little actually), and I didn't have control of the reins (or not all because as I said before I gave her some rein). 

Well as I felt her beginning to bolt, I quickly gathered the reins, but only got them fully after she started to gallop. I was lucky I naturally fell backward when she took off because that helped me to bring her to a stop. (I naturally lean a little forward for balance you see), I know, very bad, but I was actually working on keeping my body and shoulders more back with my trainer today.

So ya it was a little scary, and during that 3-4 second gallop I got a cramp in my leg lol :lol: so I was trying ever so hard not to fall off. :wink:

Thanks for any tips or bolting stories you might share! I was lucky this time, and she generally is a really sweet girl, so i want to make sure I am prepared if I ever fall on a more frisky, naughty little guy who won't stop like she did.


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## MrsRobinson (Mar 22, 2011)

That can be really scary. I remember when I was a teen, I used to ride this manic little pony who would tear down the hill at a flat gallop and then screech to a halt at the bush at the bottom! Of course, I would keep going, every time, without fail, landing in a heap opposite her. She'd hang around till I got up and then take off up the hill when she was sure I was ok. I only rode bareback, so going that speed downhill meant I wasn't really thinking about anything else but staying on - I had had a 17hh bolt on me a couple years before and head up to the stables, so I dismounted at a flat gallop and broke my arm.

Hindsight is such a wonderful thing! What I learnt: emergency dismount is only for walking! The aim is to stay on and stop your horse and yourself at the same time. And with my manic friend, there were major respect issues that should have been dealt with before I even got on her. My husband's cousin trains horses and she has taught them to stop when the rider leans back. That would have been useful.

As for what to do when they bolt... relax and sit back (that's what I keep telling my daughter), and a one reign stop is about the only thing I can think of. If the rear end has no power, they're only going to spin around in circles...


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## haleylvsshammy (Jun 29, 2010)

When a horse bolts on me, I do a one rein stop. I try to stop with my seat, legs, hands, etc before doing the one rein stop because sometimes they are acting silly and just get a little excited, and are still very responsive to your cues. Remember, though, after you do a one rein stop, continue your ride like nothing happened. In fact, I usually go right into a brisk trot to get the horse's mind off of bolting and back into work.


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## CJ82Sky (Dec 19, 2008)

i'm glad you stayed on and were okay but as for never falling off i'd say that the more you ride... eventually it's gonna happen  hopefully when it does, it's a minor one!

i used to start horses for the track so bolting was just another speed that i got used to. in all honesty the best thing to do is sit up, sink your weight into your heels and seat (obv having stirrups helps as far as heels lol), and if necessary use a pulley rein. depending on the speed/terrain, i'm hesitant to pull the horse in a circle because it can cause a horse to fall down if the horse isn't balanced, is frantic, etc. so just be sure that if you do attempt a circle that you're safe about it (i.e. fine in an arena or level ground, not so good on a hill).


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## CJ82Sky (Dec 19, 2008)

oh and i've also found that steady pulling is not as effective as tug/release. it's a lot easier for a horse to brace on the bit and/or ignore it if it's a steady pull back as opposed to tug/release (repeat lol). most racehorses are trained to grab the bit and go so steady pulling for some horses will just make them go faster.


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## Northern (Mar 26, 2010)

I agree with CJ82Sky; careful of trying one-rein stops at a gallop!

One thing to try & remember is to ride the horse as fast as it goes, meaning, don't brace up against the movement, but relax in the energy.

Of course, our inborn instinct is to crouch & grip.


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## apachewhitesox (Dec 9, 2010)

I agree with CJ82Sky. Good on you for staying on  

Just thought I would add a story. My first time owning a horse out by myself in a big paddock, I had never been faster then a trot on a horse before. My little mare Pepper decided she felt like running back to the house. Prior to this I had been lucky to ride a few times a year. I managed to stay upright and balanced for a few strides but then I just lost it and ended up hanging of her side one leg over her back and my arms wrapped around her neck. I rode like this for the next 50 metres or so until she stopped outside the house. My sister came out of the house laughing and said I could get off, as I found out I was only perhaps 30 centimetres from the ground. Pepper just stood there waiting for me to get back on the little turd. I think it would have been an interesting video, my sister wreckons it was the funniest thing she had ever seen 

I have since learnt how to stay on a bolting horse.


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## CJ82Sky (Dec 19, 2008)

one way to correct a chronic bolter if there's room and it's safe (i.e. in the ring, in a large field) is to ride the bolt out of them. obviously this does NOT work if the horse is heading towards / into a barn, fence, or other immovable object.

anyway fo a chronic bolter i ride the bolt out of them in that i let them bolt, and when they eventually run out of steam, i ask them to gallop on. usually the horse is like wtf?! i thought we were done! worked like a charm for a perch cross we used to have here who had learned by bolting he could intimidate his rider and get out of work. thing was he wasn't very fast, nor was he very energetic so i quickly figured out that his bolt was only so far lol. he tried that with me once and rather than get in a tug of war with a nearly 1800 pound horse, i put my leg on and started kicking to go faster. poor horse was like hey wait! that was MY idea - if you actually WANT me to go faster this isn't so fun!!! he promptly came back to a trot to which i made him gallop (hand gallop - we were in the ring - he'd do this in the ring usually) a few more laps around the ring. he never tried bolting with me again. he tried a few times with other students but i told them what to do and he very quickly decided that bolting was a bad idea that resulted in MORE not LESS work


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## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

Thanks a lot guys! How do you do a one rein stop exactly? You just pull the nose into the inside or outside shoulder?


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## bubba13 (Jan 6, 2007)

I think one-rein stops are extremely dangerous and can easily pull a horse over on its side at a high speed, breaking its neck (or yours!)--and thus I won't advocate a one-rein stop.

Instead, I lift up on one rein and attempt to gradually circle the horse. I don't pull straight back, and I don''t pull straight out, either. The goal is a big, wide, slowingly spiraling-in circle, which over time checks the horse. If you've ever done any sort of lateral work in your lessons yet, it's sort of like that. Tip the nose in, do a sort of give and take on the reins, and ease to a halt. But be firm, of course. Sit down and deep; don't panic.

For future reference, you should never leave your reins so loose that you can't immediately pick them up to a reasonable tightness.


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## Northern (Mar 26, 2010)

The story about the bolting Percheron is a great & funny example of the tool of reverse psychology!


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## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

> For future reference, you should never leave your reins so loose that you can't immediately pick them up to a reasonable tightness.


I will keep that in mind. Thanks.


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## CJ82Sky (Dec 19, 2008)

Northern said:


> The story about the bolting Percheron is a great & funny example of the tool of reverse psychology!


yeah he's a big lazy tart and when he realized it got him more not less work he was like hang on here.... this isn't what i expected! lol!


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

In the situation you were in, I would first focus on getting myself safe and grabbing the reins and my stirrups, but I think I would have read the situation and done this earlier before the bolt happened, or it would have been in progress. 

Once you are secure, try to make it stop. Like pumping the brakes in a car, on and off with the reins, and steering to avoid dangerous situations. As you were in an indoor, there is not any place for the horse to go, but if you were out, I would have see sawed the face until the horse stopped. Not ideal, but a bolt it not ideal either. 

Others might disagree with this, but this is what I would have done, and I would not attempt a one rein stop at high speed.


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## PaintHorseMares (Apr 19, 2008)

AlexS said:


> ... but I think I would have read the situation and done this earlier before the bolt happened, or it would have been in progress.


Yes, and often overlooked. Always be aware of what's going on around you. Anticipate and be prepared without being tense or nervous.


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## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

> but I think I would have read the situation and done this earlier before the bolt happened, or it would have been in progress.


I agree with that. It was my first bolt, so even tough I felt it coming I was sort of processing it in my brain and only realized when she took off that... oupsy, must gather reins, must gather reins!!!

From now on I'll definitely always hold more rein at the end of the lesson when we are relaxing, and now I know for sure what it feels liked when a horse is on the verge of bolting, so I won't wait to gather those reins immediately!!!



> Yes, and often overlooked. Always be aware of what's going on around you. Anticipate and be prepared without being tense or nervous.
> ​


She's such a calm, sweet TB I really didn't think it would bother her... or at least until she bolted. I suppose it was because she was a little frisky that morning. But I'll definitely be more aware in the future. I now see that all horses are too unpredictable and it's best to be cautious and prepared at all times.

I'm glad this was a learning experience, without it being a painful one.


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## Northern (Mar 26, 2010)

Yes, never losing one's guard is so key! Once, after a session with a greenie, & he was pretty much at a halt, I relaxed on his back (bareback) & it was then that he decided he had to spook/pivot, & I went off.


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## jumper25 (Dec 23, 2009)

I'm not too good with advice but I thought I might share my own bolting experience!
Last December I was at a clinic and riding one of my trainers 4 yr olds named Ace. He was very green and horses coming up behind him or even from the side just freaked him out when he had a rider on him. So the first time I was riding him someone trotted to quickly up behind us and he just panicked and went from a straight trot to a full out gallop somehow managing to throw in some bucks at the same time! This lasted for maybe 45 seconds to a minute before I was finally thrown off and he galloped away. The next day I was put right back on him and one of my friends was riding another young baby who was bucking and shying at everything. Straight away Ace bolted AGAIN! This time he galloped out of the school scraping me through trees then turning towards the 1.15m metal gate blocking off the stables. At this point I had tried my one rein stop but it was like he couldn't feel it at all. I kept thinking "okay the gate is going to stop him" but that crazy horse actually jumped the gate! And he was just a baby! I actually stayed on over that jump and he continued galloping turning towards the paddock fences. But right before he tried to jump it he changed his mind and swerved and I face planted into the mud, sliding into a bucket of water. 
After riding Ace I decided how much I hate bolting!


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## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

WOah! :shock: Good for you for surviving that! I think I would have emotionally and physically died from those 2 experiences. I'm lucky I was on Coco who quickly calmed down and stopped after a few seconds, and not on Lollipop. She would probably have thrown me off and ran for a good half minute around the arena.


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## jumper25 (Dec 23, 2009)

Haha! Thank you! All I wanted to do afterwards was get back on my own girl! I still can't believe that you've managed to never fall off though! I lost count years ago of how many times I've fallen.


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## Hidalgo13 (Dec 24, 2010)

Well I've only been riding for 2 summers at one barn (where I rode an ancient QH mare) and now it's been half a year at my new stable where I started to ride regularly. SO I basically haven't been riding for all that long. I have a feeling I will get my chance to fall soon because it's the second time I almost fall in the course of a few lessons. The horses at my barn are wonderfully trained and have lot's of potential, but are young and a little spooky at times.


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## pep (Mar 30, 2011)

Good job staying on  

I've been on ALOT of bolting horses and I only fell off once when when the horse bolted and then did a rodeo buck and crow hopped sideways.

My most recent bolting expeirience was on that same horse (16.2hh) and he gets scared really easily (he bolts at least once every 4 lessons) and this time he bolted because he got surprised when he saw another horse and I lost my stirrups (my instructor likes me to keep them longer for flat lessons cuz I have a habit of being lazy and making them too short so is easier to keep heels down) so anyways I lost my stirrups,he crow hopped and was in a full blown gallop (he's an ex racehorse, he's andulusian and part tb) right towards another horses butt and i was half way off the saddle hanging on with just my leg and trying really hard to stop him cuz that other horse loves to kick and I had a really loose rein so that he didn't start being spazzy and I finally got him to stop luckily because I was about to fall. And uh yeah 


The end?


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## CJ82Sky (Dec 19, 2008)

how is an andalusian tb a racehorse?! in nearly ever recognized track the horse has to be a race breed, not a cross breed.


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## pep (Mar 30, 2011)

Idk don't ask me. It's not my horse. It's what they told me. But it definatly wasn't a high class race horse. All I know is that it was in racing idk wheather they were just training it to be one or if it just did small races or what. He defiantly acts somewhat like a racehorse though.


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## pep (Mar 30, 2011)

Sorry for my bad spelling


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

Hidalgo13 said:


> From now on I'll definitely always hold more rein at the end of the lesson when we are relaxing, and now I know for sure what it feels liked when a horse is on the verge of bolting, so I won't wait to gather those reins immediately!!!



Glad you were not more hurt too! I ride on a long rein all the time. The thing we love about riding bikes over horses is their free will. You just need to be on it, in a moments notice, I am a stressed kind of person, my Hubby is on a 3 second chilled out delay. You need to just be on it and seeing it as soon as something goes a bit off and be able to react.


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## Lizzie4Brodie (Apr 18, 2011)

depending on the horses speed choose wether to use a one rein ston or make it run if its just bearing down on the rein but not going too fast use a one rein stop but its galloping hell for leather when it wants to stop galloping because its bored dont let it make it keep going until you're ready to stop this makes your horse think that you were in control the whole time! and discoureges it to do it again it doesn't want to be run like that so it stops bolting hope this helps


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

Maybe we should all take lessons from Hidalgo on riding a bolting horse. She did very well and stayed on. Not too many can do that.


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## pep (Mar 30, 2011)

Saddlebag said:


> Maybe we should all take lessons from Hidalgo on riding a bolting horse. She did very well and stayed on. Not too many can do that.


Sarcasm? 
I've been on bolting horses many times and so have alot of people I know and I'm the only one that's fallen off a bolting horse (if it didn't do a rodeo buck I would've stayed on)........ So just wondering if your using sarcasm.........


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## iridehorses (Oct 22, 2007)

At a Dennis Reis clinic recently, he was asked the same question about bolting. What he suggested is to force the horse to run beyond what it wanted to if possible. He said that the one rein stop is very effective but only helps for the moment without curing the problem (obviously he was talking about the chronic bolter). 

I think that in your situation, you should have the ORS in your bag of tricks. You can't just know how to use it but you need to practice it and your horse needs to know what it is. It's very true that you can pull a horse over if you don't do it correctly but it is an effective means of stopping a horse. Some people advocate a pulley stop rather then a ORS.


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## pep (Mar 30, 2011)

When a horse is in a jumpy or spooky frame of mind one of the things to do is after you stop it's bolting or you anticipate it will Bolt you need to keep the horse focused on you and your directions- lots of circles,transitions,extending and shortening strides...etc. (obviously this will not fix the problem, like everybody said you need to force the horse to run more than it wants to) the horse I ride has a habit of bolting and bucking almost every lesson because he is young and jumpy and still a bit green but when he's acting like it I can't make him run more than he wants cuz he's a lesson horse (and I have a feeling people are gunna say "that doesn't sound like a safe lesson horse" but they only let more advanced people ride him) and I'm not aloud to so we keep him busy and focused on me and eventually he is calm.


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## Lenuccia (Oct 3, 2009)

I had a quite frightening experience with a bolting horse once. I was quite a beginner and had gotten to know this man who had some horses and gave lessons. He wasn't really interested in the teaching part but mostly just wanted company for trail riding. Well, one day my fianchè and I went for a trail riding with him and some other persons. I was on an Argentinian pony and my fiancè on an arab mare. Everything went well, I was happy. 

Then halfway this horse guy told me to change horses with another of the group. I wasn't too happy but said okay. And mounted an arab-mix pony. My fiancè and I road side by side while the rest of the group went after us. 
He said "Okay if we trot a bit?" Fine with me. So I squeezed my legs a bit and parted in trot but almost immediately the pony accelerated and started running. I lost one stirrup, the pony was now starting to gallop, and I lost the other stirrup. And so I started thinking "stay calm, stay on the horse" and I tried to figure out how to stop him. I had been told about the one-rein stop but we were on a small gravel road in the mountains, one of those that go up vertically on one side and down vertically on the other. The road went downhill and took a little turn and then uphill. And that pony just kept running! 

I knew that the road would go up, then at a certain point take a sharp turn and go downhill very steeply, so I knew that I had to stop him before that. Finally when the road started going uphill he seemed a bit tired, and luckily on my right side the side of the hill flattened out a bit and I just took the chance to turn him right, but not too abrubtly as to not make us fall. As soon as he stopped I hopped off. He was still full of adrenaline (so was I) but I just held him tight in the reins and thought to myself "Okay, you didn't die, You are fine, just relax, and breeeeathe". 

After quite a bit my fiancè came on the arab mare, he was sick worried and he had tried to hold her back to avoid racing with us. Fortunately he had succeded in it (otherwise I wouldn't be here to tell). He said that he had kept looking at my red helmet and after the little turn and the uphill part he had prayed to keep on seeing it, because that meant that I was still on the horse. And he just saw that little red dot becoming smaller and smaller (About 1 km from him). 

After 5 minutes the rest of the group came and the horse guy sais casually "Everything all right?" He hadn't even noticed. I said "Well, this €%€& pony ran with me. Can I please get on the Argentinian pony again? Otherwise I'll walk". All right, no problem. The other girl was happy to change horses, God knows why. So I got on the other pony and we came home. 

After that we stopped going trail riding with this guy.
Lesson: Never change horse halfway if you don't know the horses. This episode scared me off the trails for two years... :shock:


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