Horse bolted with me on main road - would what you have done?

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mar2505

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Typical, just got my confidence to a really high level, hacked out alone the previous day, a big thing for me. Went for a hack and coming down road home there was a bang and mine and companions horses bolted down road in blind panic. I could not focus just remember the noise of the hooves. Eventually managed to pull up but after a considerable distance. Trouble is this is not like my horse at all never happened before and now I am terrified it will happen again. Confidence is at zero now. The other person a complete novice just laughed it off and said put it down to experience. They not affected at all by it.
What would you have done different, did try to pull on one rein but had no effect at all.
 
The other person is right, it was a one off, there was something that scared the horses, they weren't being malicious. Focus on the fact that you stopped them, and your horse hasn't done it before... Chin up.x
 
Well done. You pulled up, nobody is hurt and you live to tell the tale. It doesn't get much better than that, so dust yourself off and kick on. Well done again, don't give up now!
 
Unfortunately, its not a simple 'do this and you'll be fine' answer. I'm sure you know a nervous rider makes a nervous horse, so you both need to work on building confidence.

More training in a safe environment- ménage, fields and non traffic areas. Setting challenges for your horse to make him engage his brain before reacting to the unexpected. The mounted police do a lot of spook busting and confidence boosting exercises which enable the horses to face demonstrations and missiles etc. Micheal Peace does some work with them so have a look for ideas.

The other thing is to ride, ride and ride. The more your horse sees, the more experienced he becomes. Get out and about, go exploring, even ride down little cul de sacs and generally just get as many miles on the clock as possible. Go with a rider and horse that are calm and unflappable if possible. Even box up and do a toll ride in a country park. Anything to make your horse think, enjoy new places while having the safety net of a babysitter.
 
Poor you that must have been terrifying, with sudden panicing like that you aren't ready to act so suddenly, and if another horse does it as well its all or nothing.If you think the other horse started it being up front, then I would ride up front when you go out with them again, it will give you a head start in gathering up your horse if the other horse takes off. There isn't a lot you could have done, as least it didn't go wrong.
 
As you've said, it wasn't like your horse to act in that way, and there was a definite incident that caused it. The thing with horses is, they're flight animals and will run if scared, that's just a fact. I would just keep hacking out with a steady horse or two who are calm and sensible, and go on quite hacks if you can until you get your confidence up. I really wouldn't let this incidence affect your confidence though (I know, easier said that done).
 
You need to be clear in you mind about what actually happened, and the reason for it, and not blow it out of proportion.

Did horse bolt, or piddle off? (Sounds like a piddle off, bolting horses don't stop).

A loud noise startled the horses - and we know that they are not machines so these things can happen. We should always be prepared for the unexpected.
 
Thanks all , amymay - he did bolt. Covered about half a mile and the marks on the road certainly prove it lol. Car drivers all came to a halt, I just could not believe he had it in him. Can barely get him to trot sometimes.
I just keep thinking what if........ Then confidence goes shaky again.
 
Its not easy to stop a horse from bolting, well done you for stopping.

This reminds me of an incident in Richmond Park when I worked at Stag Lodge 1981 - We had a horse call Cavan who was notorious for napping home. Get 10 minutes onto the ride and he turned and went home. He had a Fulmer snaffle and still he did it, well one day they put me on him as I was the instructor taking the back marker.
Well 5 minutes up the hill on the way to Pen Ponds he turned and went down the hill with me tugging and pulling one rein, before we got back to the railings just inside the park, now I am strong in the arms through years of working and training and I literally pull both hands on one rein till I actually had the bit in one hand pulling and pulled him into the railings which stopped him the bit was still in his mouth obviously as a Fulmer but I was leaning right forward up his neck. He was a solid horse I seem to remember he was around 15.2 ish.

With a napping horse/bolting it does help with a Fulmer snaffle, but since yours has never done it , my guess its a one off.
 
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mar2505 said:
Thanks all , amymay - he did bolt. Covered about half a mile and the marks on the road certainly prove it lol. Car drivers all came to a halt, I just could not believe he had it in him. Can barely get him to trot sometimes.
I just keep thinking what if........ Then confidence goes shaky again.
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A horrible experience for you and I am glad you're safe.

There is, though, a difference between a true 'bolt' and a 'running away with'. I've been run away with a fair few times in 40-odd years, but been 'bolted with' just twice. The 'running off with' times have been because I didn't have mental or physical control over the horse I was riding. Ridden horses should have in-built training that accepts that the human on their back may be an idiot at times, but that generally they are able to convince half a tonne of prime meat that to obey the human is the sensible thing to do, even if they're unsure. Sometimes, in the case of being run away with, this argument gets lost with the winner being the controller of half tonne of prime horse flesh ie the horse ******* off when it decides, on balance, that the human is wrong.

In your case, this may well not happen again, but it is something you can work on to prevent by hacking out with a more experienced rider, who will yell blue murder at you about what to do if it DOES happen in future. Please, though, not hacking with a complete novice until you've mastered an 'emergency stop' with yours!


In the case of my last horse, 10 years ago:

I realised in the end that I could never convince him to stop if he decided a ladder-loaded transit was going to kill him, so he went to someone that could. He ran away with me, he didn't bolt. Scary as hell, and one time I hung onto his bit-ring and turned him towards a brick wall to bring him to a halt ...Nearest he came to a bolt, but not quite.

A true bolter will just go. In a straight line. And won't stop or slow down. No argument, or discussion, no amount of skill, nor obstacle (such as a car, hedge or fence or a brick wall) nor horsemanship will stop it. It is, as I have said, (thankfully) rare, but occurs when there is NO connection at that point between the horse's brain and its own self preservation, let alone with its rider. As I said, been there twice never want to experience it again.

I'm sure there are many better qualified than me here to teach you about bridging or crossing your reins or performing a successful one rein stop - (will say with my old one, I had more control with a Market Harborough ...) but good luck and let us know how it's going ....
 
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Why don't you have some hacking lessons to build up your confidence / trust? Good luck! It sounds like it was a one off, stick to hacking with quiet horses too!
 
Can you get a friend or parent to walk out with you a few times now ? Having someone who makes you laugh and takes your mind off the immediate is excellent. Also practise breathing, unclenching your bum and legs and singing!

Ive ridden a true bolt and we went across a main road, through main electric fencing (where we parted company!) and he eventually stopped when he got home - ex racers who'd have em.

Mine took off last year and whilst there was the initial 3 seconds of panic whilst I was getting my brain in gear, having gone from buckle end to mud slinging gallop, I was able to pull up, on a lovely 90 bend thank god there were no on coming cars! I lost my confidence entirely when I came off the ex racer and thought ***** I'm going to be a wreck after that but was actually ok - I think because I stayed and on we were both fine and I was giving myself a stern talking to.
 
As someone else has already mentioned, riding out more in company is probably the best way to build up your confidence. I'm sure I don't need to point out that if you're worried you'll pass it on to your horse!

Fwiw, some horses do take off in fright (and I have a mare who just loves to gallop for fun) and what starts as something like a bolt can settle into just running away, which you can stop. I was bolted with once, not my horse, and it's very different. She only stopped when she ran into her stable door at a gallop... I had a broken collarbone but she was unhurt, bizarrely. Personally I'd have pts a horse like that, especially since she was mostly used for driving.
 
Mine did the exact same thing a couple of months ago and we were on our own. Nothing I did would slow her down. If I took more contact she bucked. She was going too fast to turn her and my voice had no effect. My last hope was that I started rising like in trot and luckily she took note and slowed down to a trot and then I was able to turn her into the wall and she stopped.

It did take me a while to trust her again so I only hacked in company or with someone walking with me for a while. It took a few weeks to get over it.

When we hack alone I always wear my BP. Just in case.
 
Honey08 said:
The other person is right, it was a one off, there was something that scared the horses, they weren't being malicious. Focus on the fact that you stopped them, and your horse hasn't done it before... Chin up.x
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This


As difficult as it may seem, just try to for get.it.
You stopped, no on was hurt.
Horse got scared, it wasn't malicious.
 
My VERY trustworthy mare did this a couple of times as a youngster. Both times she was really scared by something, and once the adrenalin spike wore off, she was fine. Didn't worry me - they are horses, not machines. Now she's older, she'd just jump and turn to stare at the noise/thing, but she's got more experience of the world, and is calmer.
 
I would have thought this could actually bolster your confidence if you think about it in a different way. You had an unexpected event and you reacted quickly enough to deal with it. You also stayed on the horse. Isn't that a good thing? That experience is valuable and it helps you react next time something like that happens.

I remember a time when I couldn't react quickly enough in the right way or manage to stay on the horse :o . The first time I managed to bring my horse to stop, with me still in the saddle, I was trembling but dead chuffed with myself. It's happened again on other horses (I book rides on treks whenever I go anywhere) and each time I just get a buzz out of it and still get excited because it all ended well :) .

Give yourself a pat on the back, recognise it as an achievement and get back in the saddle straight away :) .
 
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