Does falling off bother you?

Yes, I hate falling off, and I hate the idea of falling off.

Mostly becasue I have never had an "easy" fall. I've always ended up really hurting myself.

But I have very poor balance, or perception of balance, as a result of a head injury I sustained after falling off when I wasn't wearing a hat 20 years ago.

Consequently I often feel unbalanced, even if I don't appear to be. I find it very difficult to do any kind of no stirrup or rein work, as they help to "anchor" me in the saddle. I start listing to one side as soon as I close my eyes, even if stood perfectly still, so most tips and tricks people use to improve their balance don't work for me!

My last fall was only about a month ago, though it was the first for 6 years. Although the fall itself wasn't too bad, I did hit the ground with rather a clatter, and was lame for almost three weeks after :rolleyes:
 
No, it doesn't bother me. I only ride one horse, my own, who has pretty much exhausted her box of tricks over the years. Saying that, I'll probably go flying this evening! I can't afford to be scared so if I've fallen off I make sure to get straight back on. Luckily I haven't broken any bones yet.

I usually fall off jumping so we're having plenty of lessons and practice so we stick together.
 
I've fallen off loads lately and I feel like the fear of falling off is worse than the actual falling. When I fall I just get back on but I think it just affects my confidence really thinking what if I fall off and get hurt. It's silly because I think being nervous is the thing that makes things worse/makes me fall.

I think I'm more scared of near misses though. My last one I was being cantered away with with no stirrups motorbiking around corners, I was way more scared then than I ever have been from falling.

Just the silly what if thoughts :o
 
Depends on the fall! My two falls at a show were more annoying because I'd spent £17, just to fall off! So the actual falls didn't bother me.

However, when Ned slipped and fell on the road, I was shaking for ages after. Just the thought of us both falling scared me!

And yes, agree with PleaseVenus! We got spooked by a dog and ended up in a bush. I was terrified! And when a car nearly hit us too...much more scary than actual falls.
 
Not bothered too much but then I try to minimise the risk by riding my own horses or very well schooled horses.

Managed to rattle my brains and break a thumb a couple of weeks ago so gave myself a few days to let my head settle then went out for a canter. OH sometimes thinks I'm daft not to be bothered but then I worry about him riding a motorbike.

I think falling off when the horse loses the plot without apparent reason bothers me, but when I can work out what went wrong, its ok.
 
Yes! Only because each fall has become more and more painful and takes me longer to recover! And it's not so much the falling off, it's the lack of control. My last fall was three weeks ago (first fall in four years!) and it was on a fresh, sharp TB that ditched me. It definitely knocked my confidence and when I rode him again, got an instructor to give me a lesson and he tanked off with me again! Thankfully I stayed on but horse was unimpressed that he didn't manage to ditch me and hurtled around faster and faster around the school (at one point I thought he was going to jump the gate!) Glad to say I no longer ride that horse... :D but boy do I wish I was 10 year old that still bounced!
 
I took over my daughters big horse when she went off to University and he has a mean buck in him, was doing ok, getting to know each other slowly, having lessons etc etc and then one quiet Sunday morning i took him along with another down the lane for a little amble.

Coming past a field with two horses in it, they proceeded to gallop round, screeching and the big lad just bronced and bronced until i flew off over his head landing bum, shoulders, back and then head onto a concrete path, breaking my hat :-(. He is 16.2 so quite a way to fall, it really shook me up but i realized i had made a error with him by letting him stop. So off i start again, slowly, building things up, 18 months passed, i even started jumping lessons - woo hoo.

Two weeks ago today, he bronced me off again, this time going into canter, again over his head and landing in the same way, i am sore (have never been right since the last episode) and my confidence has taken another dent! Again, the mistake was mine, should have put him in front, lessons learned eh!

Thought i would go back to square one, but surprisingly just a small step back, can't decide whether i am brave or stupid, hmmm stupid i think, but tis in the blood.
 
It never used to, I used to fall off constantly mostly due to the kind of horses I was riding. I used to work for a woman who rehabbed problem horses and ponies and got thrown up onto anything that arrived at the yard, often to be swiftly thrown back off again :D I used to find it much easier to dust myself off and jump straight back on but following two nasty falls, one of which permanently damaged my knee, I'm a lot more cautious. I find my confidence takes a little knock each time I fall now. Doesn't take long to build myself up again but I do get frustrated with myself because I never even used to think about it.
 
Currently lying in hospital bed after a fall yesterday , yes it does bit only when I get hurt bad

If I stand up feeling fine I think hey ho let me back on

When I end up in hospital which has happened a lot - I do sit thinking why do I keep doing this to myself

But when I'm better and I seethe boy again and it's all rosy it's long forgotten

Till the next time

In my 20's I was totally gung ho and would ride anything now I'm far more careful and appreciate how dangerous horses can be, I try to minimise the risk and always wear a body protector and a air jacket on my lad

Never helped much yesterday, took to hospital with suspected broken hip

X-ray ok though just lots of internal bleeding into muscle around hip and lower back, bruising and general damage from taking a hard whack on the deck.
 
Nope. It's not too far to fall for me and I always get back on.

For me it's the feeling like I'm going to fall off - if pony is in a bucking mood for example. I feel much more nervous about the POTENTIAL of falling off, which is madness!
I compare it to how scared I am going up the steep incline of a rollercoaster, I imagine all sorts climbing up it, but once I'm at the top I'm fine!
I think I'm just a bit odd though :p
 
It doesn't bother me or worry me.

I came to riding late at 37, 5 years ago, so never had all the falling off experiences as a kid. I accepted that I would probably fall off a lot to make up for lost time and that as I pushed myself to do more exciting things like jumping and cross country, I would come a cropper at times.

Having said that, I do wish I had bought shares in whoever supplies the point 2 gas cannisters as I have gone through LOADS.:D

A lot of my falls are due to my own dappiness and his sense of humour. He is the most unspooky horse, but he will often spook when I am doing something like adjusting my knickers whilst turning round to talk to someone. :rolleyes:

The rest are because I am really pushing myself to get better and do more things. Luckily, I have always just got up and got back on.
 
In my 2 years of riding I've come off once and that was due to the horse tripping. The embarrassment hurt almost as much as the broken collarbone. I got back on after 3 months without any problem but aware that I really didn't want to land on my shoulder again.
So, does it bother me? I think that i block out the possibility. I try to avoid thinking about the what ifs and maybes and am lucky that when I've had to deal with bucks and spooks that I'm so busy trying to do the right thing that I don't panic about it. Might have a little wobble after I get back on terra firma though :o:eek:
 
It wasn't the falling off that bothered me, it was the hoof print in the middle of my tummy that hurt, couldn't move or breath for a minute or three.

Mare was like, oops, sorry, but what were you doing on the floor anyway?
 
Ludoctro said:
Currently lying in hospital bed after a fall yesterday , yes it does bit only when I get hurt bad

If I stand up feeling fine I think hey ho let me back on

When I end up in hospital which has happened a lot - I do sit thinking why do I keep doing this to myself

But when I'm better and I seethe boy again and it's all rosy it's long forgotten

Till the next time

In my 20's I was totally gung ho and would ride anything now I'm far more careful and appreciate how dangerous horses can be, I try to minimise the risk and always wear a body protector and a air jacket on my lad

Never helped much yesterday, took to hospital with suspected broken hip

X-ray ok though just lots of internal bleeding into muscle around hip and lower back, bruising and general damage from taking a hard whack on the deck.
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Glad its not a break and hope you feel better soon!
 
Not if I'm not injured, although quite often get winded and don't want to get back on straight away, would rather lead horse around for a bit while I regain my composure!

Have 'fallen off' once since I fell awkwardly and broke my arm, it was silly as I had been so nervous then thought I'd have a crack at bareback as I was having saddle troubles... Fell flat on my back in the mud whilst getting on and horse walked off haha, so not even really a fall. In a way it was a good first fall to have since injury as it was so silly and I was not at all hurt or bothered!

Nearly came off the other day out on a hack when horse bronced trying to canter, again I was not too bothered but I didn't want to persist with cantering as I didn't want to fall on nearby fence or be thrown into trees, I'd also obviously be worried about the horse and tend to have images racing through my mind about what could have happened, as we have a lot of main roads here, I have fallen off when out before and it was fine but that was more in the country!
 
It depends on the fall. If I can bounce back up with a few minor bruises, not at all. If I'm a bit sore, no, not really. If I'm crippled with pain / limb hanging off / blood everywhere / something left at a strange angle, then yes, it bothers me :o
 
Depends. If I fall off because I'm being a ditsy mess then no, not at all. If I fall off because the horse made it his mission to GET me off then it would probably affect the way I rode when I got back on and I wouldn't be as relaxed on that horse.
 
Absolutely terrified of falling off. I have a herniated disc, so I worry it would mean instant incapacitation, and I worry even more that a fall would mean losing all my confidence - a vicious circle.

TBH my fear of falling / lack of confidence is holding both me and my horse back, which is rubbish. :( On the bright side, I am getting better at being brave, and I've found a way that works for me (baby steps) so at least we're moving in the right direction.
 
I do have a fear of falling off due to family and kids, though I fell off my horse for the first time on Saturday and broke my arm! First ever plaster cast! Got back on though as I was having a lesson at the time. More annoyed at myself than anything.
 
fell off loads as a child, never even got a bruise. Am now 38 and have fallen off three times in five years, broke my coccyxk (sp?) the first time after falling after a XC fence (in front of Lucinda Green - arghh the shame!!), then again when my mare pecked landing over a XC jump and then last year my mare bucked when galloping, lost her footing and slipped over sending us both flying over the grass. That was my worst fall and it gave me a mother of all bruises down my thigh which is still swollen, and it scares me that it could have been a lot lot worse!

I now dont like jumping for fear of falling off and really only comfortable jumping 2ft (!!) and the bucking in gallop has made me a little worried. Its not necessarily the falling off as many people have said its the damage I could cause by falling off. I am a full time mum and if I ended up in hospital or unable to drive for a while my family would suffer a great deal so its not worth the risk. When you are young you just dont think of the consequences...
 
Yes. I had a long gap away from horses and havd been back riding 2 years now. I reckon it is 22 years since I last fell off. I kniw it is going to happen at some point and am dreading it. Bound to hurt much more in my 40s than in my 20s. .... I don't take more risks than I am comfortable with and always wear a bp. And I am now a complete wuss jumping!
 
For me it depends, falling off my laid back lad no because it means I did something stupid and it was my own fault :D He's never tried to get me off and is very genuine when I make mistakes. Bless his heart ;)
On a different horse probably, I'm not a very confident person and I find it hard to pick myself up and dust off after knocks so I need someone to cajole or bully me back into the saddle if I get a fright ;):D
 
Yes it does, it never used to but, following a particularly nasty fall (resulting in me being airlifted to hospital) I have taken a long time to regain enough confidence to enjoy riding my horse again, but the thought that I will, at some point, undoubtedly meet the ground involuntarily again...never leaves me. That said, it doesn't bother me enough to put me off though!
 
Jericho said:
really only comfortable jumping 2ft (!!) and the bucking in gallop has made me a little worried.
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I jumped 1'4" the other night (a single fence) and that was a step forward :rolleyes: :(

And I've never galloped my horse - partly because I spent most of the last two years a) teaching him how to hack alone and with manners and b) having nowhere to gallop, but mostly because if he throws in an exuberant buck at speed (and he might) my confident will have had it.

I wish there was a concentrated version of rescue remedy for humans, a bit like the daily Magic calmer vs the instant :p
 
Never used to bother me, had plenty falls when younger but now over 40....hmmm well, put it this way, last time it was looking likely when i was tanked off with at high speed over stony ground, having lost a stirrup and got unseated as she went for it (sure the so-and-so knew) boy, did I hang on to that mare for grim death, thinking I will not fall, I will not fall, I'm too old to bounce now! I was most definitely more on her shoulder and neck than on her back (thank god she had a long mane which I had handfuls of!) and the horrid rocky ground did not look appealing as it flashed by!
As we headed to a huge hedge by her stable, (it crossed my mind she might jump but then figured she merely wanted to get home a bit quicker) she screeched to a halt and thankfully I was able to stop hanging on, slithered off and landed on my feet at her head, reins in hand. Stylish! :eek:
So judging by the amount of effort I put into not coming off, I'd say yes it does!!
 
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