New ex racehorse

[CTBecky]

Hi I've recently joined the world of horses again after a 10 year break. I have loaned an ex racehorse that has been out of racing for 5 years and has since been doing cross country and show jumping etc with his owner. Since I have had him he's been a pleasure. Very calm natured and steady. Exactly as his owner described. However when I took him out yesterday, at the start of a canter, I lost my stirrup and he bolted. I lost the other and he got faster. I stayed on for as long as possible trying to calm him but I just couldn't. We were fast approaching the end of the field and so I turned him as I was worried he wasn't going to stop. I fell off the side. We caught him and I got back on and he was totally calm again. I'm not going to lie, it frightened me and I'm battered and bruised (and very lucky!) But I know I can't blame him as being an ex racehorse that is in his blood. I just want to avoid it happening again! Advice welcome.

 

[Morgan123]

Sorry to hear that! Must have been scary. There are two things really to think about here:
1) was he truly bolting (this sounds silly but it's important in thinking about how to deal with it). In a true bolt, you're literally completely out of control, the horse is panicking and things like pulling the reins, shouting, whatever, would have no effect whatsoever - just like being on a train and trying to stop it with your reins. If you did have SOME impact but he was ignoring you, that's more running off, and is easier to deal with. If it's a true bolt that's a very serious issue and you need to talk to the owner!!
2) What do you think the trigger was? Did he seem scared because you lost the stirrup? Was he just enjoying himself and running? If he was scared because you lost your stirrups, then definitely the way to deal with this is for you to build up the trust with eachother, so do lots of stuff in the school and small hacks with low ambitions to start with, gradually building up. If he was running off out of fun, then I'd suggest doing hacks with schooling, and get someone to show you how to bridge your reins, and instead of just riding make sure that he's really listening to you; aim just to hack in walk to start with, and adding in circles and things where you can, ask him to halt every so often, leg yield if you can etc. Then add in trot, but just small sections of trot at once and making sure you stop when you want!

Were you hacking alone when this happened? What did the owner say about it?

 

[criso]

Could he have been upset by you being unbalanced by losing your stirrup. I have had that happen to me a couple of times and none were ex racers but a sensitive horse can be upset by a sudden change in balance.

Once a stirrup leather broke as I was going over a jump, as I was out of the saddle I slumped to one side, the sudden shift in weight upset the horse who sped up and bucked and I came flying off.

The other thing to bear in mind is when you lost one then both stirrups you may have started gripping with your legs to stay on, there is also a natural tendency to lean forward. In this position you are then unintentionally telling the horse to speed up so even if you were using the reins you are giving mixed signals.

It may be worth seeing if you need to shorten your stirrups for hacking out compared to your schooling length. I hack at between my schooling and jumping length but may go to almost jumping length if I was planning a lot of canter work.

 

[CTBecky]

Thank you for your replies! I think it was a combination of a few things. There's a main road that runs next to the bottom of the field. It's not close but it does create noise. He was a bit prancy previously when I walked him through that bit, and so in hindsight probably not the best place to start a canter up the hill away from the noise... He could also have mistook it for a gallop (I've discovered that by reading other threads!) That combined with losing both stirrups in quick succession and gripping probably spurred him on. I literally couldn't stop him though. Tried to hold the neck strap to take off some pressure, but as he was going so fast, I had to grip tightly so as not to be shook off! He slowed at the top of the hill but again that unbalanced me and tipped me forwards and he was off again. I was out with a friend and her horse couldn't keep up. I know it was rider error as his owner said he's never done it with her before. I believe her too. My plan is to school him a lot and go right back to basics. I will also shorten my stirrups when I'm hacking. And keep off the canter work for now. It's just been such a shock! I did want to share him with my mum but I'm worried as whilst she can ride, she's also rusty and never really did any schooling - she was just a good rider out hacking.

 

[Charlie007]

A few years ago I had the most bombproof exracer ever. A friend rode him round a field, she said she could ride, she couldn't!! She set off in canter, wobbled, lost her stirrups and the horse just went. She came off and I caught the horse. He never took off before and he never took off after the incident. I can only assume that it worried him that she was unbalanced, after all he had been ridden by jockeys and good riders all his life. I would say this is a possibility with your horse x

 

[CTBecky]

Yes you're probably right. I'm so upset with myself that it happened. I hope it was just a blip. Big lesson learned!

 

[CTBecky]

I've ridden all kinds of horses since I was 5, and in my teens spent time breaking ponies, so I'm definitely experienced. Unfortunately im most probably more rusty than I thought!

 

[meesha]

Could you have caught him in the mouth by trying to balance with the reins? If you haven't had him long just remember it takes months if not longer to get to know a new horse and build trust and a bond

 

[CTBecky]

Quite possibly.. Although I do remember my instinct was to grab the neck strap. It was all a bit of a blur. I tried so hard to stay calm and steady him with my voice, but I think my lack of core strength meant I was gripping with my legs instead of balancing and bringing him back in control properly. He was so quick off the mark he took me by surprise and then it was down hill from there (literally!)

 

[Morgan123]

Well done, it sounds like you had all the right thought processes (keep calm, steady with voice, etc etc) anyway, so that's a fantastic start - and also you didn't completely panic AND now you're looking for advice - Well done you, it's scary when these things happen! And your reaction counts for a LOT. Also it's great that you're looking for answers and things you can change, rather than just blaming him or being scared.

I think your plan of going back to basics for a while is sensible and makes sense, just give yourself incremental steps. I had a pony that took off with me once when I first got him and it was really a bit of a misunderstanding on both parts, never happened again once we got to know eachother better. Hopefully this is the same for you - it sounds like it! Good luck!

 

[CTBecky]

Thank you all for your support. I'm going to ride him this afternoon and see how he goes. A little bit in the school and then a walk around the field. If he's calm I'm going to take him back up to the hill and walk him up it. Wish me luck

 

[Morgan123]

Good luck!!! Remember to breathe - I always find singing songs (Disney songs work best!!) is fantastic to calm you both down ;-)

 

[CTBecky]

Did it! He was very sensitive to my leg (understandable!) so I took it very steady and kept minimal contact. Every time we turned a corner in the fields he fizzed a bit, but I just kept calm - lots of half halts. By the end he was walking on a long rein. Totally relaxed! He never once tried anything - just as I thought I had given him the wrong signals. Now we iust need to learn to trust each other and continue to get to know each other. I think we're on the right track now thanks again all - excellent advice and support! Xxx

 

[Clodagh]

Do you know how to bridge your reins, like a jockey? That might be useful as it will be what he understands.

 

[CTBecky]

I googled it earlier today my friend is a jockey too and I'm seeing him next week so he's going to show me

 

[soulfull]

Do you know how to bridge your reins, like a jockey? That might be useful as it will be what he understands.

Just curious, wouldn't this make him act more like a race horse and be more likely to 'go' ?

 

[Clodagh]

I don't know, I thought it might be worth a try. I used to bridge my reins on my hunters and as it makes you stop pulling them they tend to settle.

 

[CTBecky]

He does seem really sensitive in the mouth and so any contact bothers him at the moment. I'm going to try a different bit and see if that makes any difference. But I have learned that the softer and longer I am the more relaxed he is