Nervous Riders - What Incident Sparked your Riding Nerves

I rode a lot when i was younger, mostly pottering on hacks I wasn't that advanced or experienced, but I was never nervous or scared on or around horses. For me it was when I started having lessons about 2 years ago after like a 20 year break from riding.Because I was heavy I had a shire horse who was about 18hh. He was very nice and I rode him every week for a month.

About the 5th lesson he cantered off with me and wen't round and round the school, it took me ages to stop him. He didn't buck or nap or anything really bad, my daughter and her RI said I looked very calm and had a good seat and all but as I looked down to the floor from this great height I thought about what would happen if I fell and broke my leg, who would look after our horses, drive my daughter about (she didn't drive at the time) and all that so I admit I made that my last lesson.

I admire you rider-types but I am most happy in the support crew role if I am honest
 
some horrible stories here, I can understand them all, I was once a very confident "ride anything" type of rider, since having children that kind of tamed but about 3½ years ago my confidence was crushed after hacking out with a young girl on my yard on my normally very very well trusted TB gelding, something spooked him, he took off full pelt just running scared we crossed a major road at full pelt with the young girl on her pony in tow, we ended up on a very large open common area bolting blind, luckily thank god the girl managed to pull her pony up but we continued for some time before he started coming back to me then to top it off he did a huge series of broncs (had never bucked before) and threw me over his head, I was unconscious for a short time, horse ran back to yard, young girl I was with in the meantime had rang yard for help so a group of people had come out in cars looking for us, horse made it home in once piece, I unfortunatley was not quite so lucky, I had broken my ankle, and wrist and had a huge swelling on my brain (I was wearing a hat and riding boots but no body protector) I was puking blood and had a very badly bruised coxix (SP), all in all I was in a pretty bad way, but when I came round first words out of my mouth was asking where my horse was and if he was ok and was the young girl/her pony ok (the guilt was horrendous that her mum had trusted her out with me and I had let that happen but she was so brave).

It took me a very long while to get back in the saddle and then took a small tumble which knocked me right back again, brough back all those horrible memories and again I didn't ride for another year, I have only just in the last couple of weeks go back on again and now i've ridden twice in a week and feeling pretty good and enjoying it again.
 
I cant believe there are so many nervy riders. I thouht I was in the minority.

My nerves started when I learnt to ride and used to ride a very forward going pony. The riding school knew I wasnt happy riding this pony but kept putting me on him. Then latterly when I had my grey gelding, he had a huge jump on him and would jump the moon for you but he also had a huge buck to match and if he wanted to would get you off. So that didnt help really.
 
I was trying out a horse and walked 5 steps it bolted ran over a 6ft bank and across open moors.
I was frozen with fear and I still get nervous in open spaces because of it.

Then the seller had the cheek to ask if we were still interested :mad:
 
I was launched off my big horse in a lesson when my instructor dropped a pole on the wet sand behind her, when I looked up from the floor I realised that my foot was stuck in the stirrup, the mare took one look at me, turned and went for it but luckily my boot, chap & spur came off and were left hanging in the stirrup. I was so lucky, just a couple of broken ribs but it freaked me out thinking what could have happened.
Then a few months later I was hacking a 4yo in company and he took off down a steep hill, skidding all the way, I thought I was a gonner then too but luckily managed to stay on and stop.
So now, although I have a lovely horse to ride, I can usually find a good excuse not to, I make myself so mad for being so pathetic!
 
Having worked with horses for 13 years and re-schooling them and backing youngsters I must have been very lucky that I never came off. If I did come off I didn't hurt myself anyway.
I bought a little TB gelding to bring on, he was a bit of a rescue job and very skinny.
The first time I sat on him it took me about 1/2 hr to get on. The 2nd time took almost an hour to get on but as I was halfway on him he took off broncking across the school. I came off the other side and landed on my elbow which I dislocated and broke.
After that I became really nervous about getting on a horse. The first time I got on my friends horse after my accident I was shaking like a leaf and it took me ages to even put my foot in the stirrup. Then I couldn't make myself get on him even though he was standing still and I knew he wouldn't do anything.
As soon as I was on him I was fine, but it's the initial bit of swinging my leg over than makes me feel nervous.
I even backed Axel myself and made sure he was well trained and not likely to move while I was getting on and even now 6 years later I get nervous about getting on. Once I am on I am absolutely fine!
 
When I was young I was out hacking with our riding school group, I was on the naughty pony! Nearly home he charged past the rest of the ride, bucked me off and I was knocked unconscious - got away with a couple of scrapes only. I didn't hack for about 6 years after that! it took lots of convincing and being allocated the beginners horse :o to get me out hacking again! Didn't stop me riding the naughty ones in the manège thou! :D

More recently(5 months ago!) I came of a horse and broke my leg badly. My leg has not healed well enough for me to get back on yet - but have no idea how I am going to be. :(
 
Oh dear =( I really shouldn't be reading this!
I'm not properly nervous at all but I do have the odd what-if moments and have found in the last few months I wouldn't dream of doing things I happily did a couple years ago, even though now I am so much happier with my riding.

I think this is just a combination of growing up and riding lots of unpredictable horses I didn't know (trying out shares) - there have been a few broncs and being tanked off with!

I also took a massive knock to my jumping confidence when a massive ex-eventer took a seven foot leap over the third part of a triple - twice! First time I was winded on the pommel but was determined to get it right and second time I just fell about eight feet on my back and shoulder onto a rocky school surface. Not a hospitable job but a lot of back pain and a huge knock to my jumping confidence - I sound so pathetic next to all of these horror stories but every jump I'm waiting for the cat leap now, even though I've worked hard to be able to sit it.

Also my old loan pony rushed through an only slightly open gate, wedging one of my knees into the metal bars and the other round the side of a fencepost. She just kept trying to run forward with me wedged in this position, would have broken my leg had I not managed to wrench her back just enough to swing the gate open.

Feel sooo lucky compared to all of you poor people, thirteen years in the saddle and only scrapes and bruises!
 
ElliePinza said:
I have always been a nervous rider. 4 years ago you wouldn't get me over a jump.

Since then I have realized that I can actually channel this into having fun. I have a pony who has really built up my confidence jumping, yet still has enough spirit to keep me on my toes.

I am still absolutely terrified but am now jumping 3ft courses on my pony and loving every second of it :D
Click to expand...

You wouldn't think it from your signature, your jumping seat is lovely!
 
Mine is/was when going XC, When I was about 13 I used to share a horse. I loved him to bits but he was very Jekyll and Hyde - one minute great and the next a real monster! I used to take him XC and when he wanted to he could jump the moon, one day though he just threw in the towel and started dumping me - it got to the point where very time I went XC I ended up in A&E, nothing too serious, mainly getting knocked out and ending up with concussion until the last time where I damn nearly broke my back. The way it happened meant that if I had broken it I would have never walked again :eek: After that I just gave up.
I started doing XC again last year after 12 years off, was absolutely terrified but for all my mare can be a cow she LOVES to jump so I knew she would look after me, now I am planning some small (50cm!) u/a ODE's this year.
 
For me, it wasn't just one event that knocked my confidence, but a series of them. I started as one of those kids that you throw on any pony/horse and off I went. I loved going fast and jumping high. I was about 14 at the time, had been riding for years and we had gotten an off the track Thoroughbred (first horse). He was very underweight and had bad Lyme Disease at the time. As he bulked up his personality changed. He took off with me on several occasions, and I ended up falling off and breaking my wrist. Once that healed I was still perfectly confident, and after a lesson one day we were walking back to the stables and he got a piece of baling twine wrapped around a back hoof. He bucked and I fell on my head and thank god I was wearing a helmet or I would've broken my neck. I was a bit nervous after that, but I continued on. The final straw came when we were warming up for a horse show and a car alarm went off next to him. He took off bucking and I eventually fell off onto my hip with a concussion and compressed hip. After Mum shattered her ankle (same horse) Dad said it was the final straw and we sold him.

I don't jump anymore as I still experience a lot of anxiety even thinking about it. We now have a been there done that Quarter Horse who I wouldn't change for the world. Mum and I are both still nervous (her moreso) but because we've both switched to strictly practising Dressage our nerves have dramatically decreased. I think it comes from the fact that when you do dressage you have so much control.

Biccies for making it this far!
 
When I was 16 my horse for no apparant reason (long rein cooling down in walk with nothing to spook him) reared verticle and fell straight on top of me breaking my back. Ever since then I have been incredibly unsure when riding and get nervous for no reason - its taken me over a year just to be able to get on my current horse without having a complete panic attack and breaking down in tears (he did go through a stage of bucking me off for no apparant reason which didnt help!) :)
 
Being bolted with a loan horse I had 8 years ago (for two months, then it went back). I have mostly got over my fear now, but I know my horse and have worked hard to feel confident again. It's a terrible thing to be scared! I have only started enjoying hacking in the past few weeks, even though I have hacked out a lot since getting my current horse.
 
I have always been slightly nervous of not being in control but the first share horse I had was a little star and although he was a bit cheeky and would test the boundaries, he gave me so much confidence. Then I got a share on a 21 year old TB and he ruined my confidence - generally a bit more stressy and if he spooked he'd get himself wound up and wouldn't calm down which made me really nervous cos I didn't trust him enough to believe that he would tank off with me. Fell off him out hacking (and concussed myself) which didn't seem to worry me except in the one particular field. But the reason for getting so nervous on him sounds ridiculous - we were out hacking and some other riders caught up with us (and turned off, didn't overtake us) which set him off in speed walking, head shaking, jogging and generally being overexcitable. Instead of standing on a steep hill he insisted on reversing down it and was basically terrifying me - he walked faster than the horse we were with could trot (not that she was - she was calmly walking along). Never enjoyed hacking after that as I just felt totally out of control, and gave up the share about 5 months later as I just couldn't get past it. Now got my own mare and the fear is still there - slowly building my confidence with her though, and finally cantered her in the arena today for the first time since I bought her in October :D
 
The first dint in my confidence was a complete freak fall out hacking on my own about 16 years ago. We both went down, the horse rolled but luckily away from me but I had broken my collar bone. At the time it didn't seem that big of a deal, I remember being very annoyed that my rein had broke, I also decided that I wasn't going to walk the couple of miles home so tied the rein onto the bit and rode home. More than anything it was friends and families reactions that put doubt in my mind, I don't blame them, my non horsey motorbike riding partner thinks I'm nuts for ever getting on one and is adamant that they are infinitely more dangerous than his motorbike! It was natural for people to be worried and I agree I shouldn't have been on my own.
The final straw was being bucked off 5 years ago and breaking my back. This was the first time in 20 years of riding that I was unable to get back on after a fall. I had the ok to ride again after 9 months but it just never happened, I think mainly because it was my horse that threw me and taking lessons on a quieter horse never entered my head but the fear of getting back on her was too much.
4 years later a friend encouraged me to go for lessons with her as a distraction from a very stressful time at work. I explained to the riding school what had happened and they were brilliant. Sure I was a wreck but I did it. Now I've bought my mare back into work and am also very lucky in that I get to have a play on the same friends beautiful mare who is sharp but incredibly well mannered (better than my crazy 23 yr old!)
In hindsight I should have got back on earlier, I also think that my own pride initially stopped me seeking out a quieter horse to start on after breaking my back, I had always been the kind of person who would get on anything so admitting I had lost my confidence was a big issue.
Things that helped? Learning to not take myself too seriously, trusting my instincts, small victories, enjoying riding again and taking it slow.
A real turning point was when my mare tried to throw me again for no apparent reason and I stayed on, I was a quivering wreck afterwards but I was also elated that I could still sit the bronchs!
I also try and laugh a lot, odd I know but I remembered that was what I used to do when I rode, particularly when the horse spooked or threw the odd exuberant buck after a fence, I laughed and 'whooped' because it was fun. I started making myself do this and now it just happens on its own. I'm still not 100%, I may never be, but I enjoy what I do and isn't that the whole point? Be happy with where you are at and optimistic about where you're going.
 
I think you are all very brave and well done all of you for not only over coming your fears but to be able to open up and talk openly about it on here, that is very brave in itself, Oz :)
 
Some scary experiences here

Mine was when I was trying out a 18YO 16hh TB for share, who was described as a plod.
Horse bolted with me in an open field and on to a road, luckily the road was quiet and we didn't meet any cars. Horse galloped for about 5 minutes before we hit a slippery concrete path the Horse fell over and skidded sideways (with me still on) into a wall, my leg went through the concrete pipe and tore it of the wall. Horse got back up but I had my feet still in both stirrups so I was still on top and he bolted again. Only way to stop him was to steer him into a wall. Didnt realise how badly I had hurt my leg untill the blood started leaking through my jods. I later found out the Horse had been on 6 months boxrest due to a back injury and hadnt been ridden/lunged/turned out. And I was the first person on him.

I gave up for around 4 months, then a friend asked me to sit on her Horse, was very nervy and felt sick to my stomache! I started to cry but I carried on and a year and 9 months later I'm still sharing my Friends Horse, I've yet to canter out on a hack though. But I will get there :) and my friend has been amazing with me, taking me on short slow hacks and being very patient with me.
 
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