So would you have dismounted?

current boy-no, i would have let him exit sharp right and just gone with him as he is very kind and wouldnt be bucking etc trying to dislodge me.

previous 3 horses yes i would have tried to slither off, 2 i would have tried to hold and think they would stay with me on the ground, the mare i would just have let go as she would flip over occasionally and it wouldnt have worked to try and hold on.
 
twiggy2 said:
Well that all depends on the horse, I 'try' to have a relationship with my horses that is strong enough that with guidance they are happy to deal with pretty much anything with me on the ground, in the saddle there is trust but if a horse is panicked enough that it will do something stupid I would rather be on the floor and let go.
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Agreed :)
I do see where Moomin is coming from, there are definitely people on my yard from the school of "never get off because the horse will think it has won" whereas I don't think of it as winning and losing at all... sometimes it 's more appropriate to hop off if it gives the horse more confidence as a learning experience, or as a self preservation tactic like this!

My younger horse is unpredictable and non-responsive to the rider when she sees something she thinks is terrifying - I think with time and practice that will improve but in the meantime I'd see absolutely no value in staying on for the sake of "winning" and risking some hideous injury in the process :D
 
poiuytrewq said:
I’ve done the gate latch stirrup one. Sadly I couldn’t unhook as the horse completely freaked out. I did manage to bail out myself and eventually got the girth buckles undone. One broken saddle tree :(
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That was what I could see happening if I didn't act quickly. Unfortunately landed with my leg straight rather than bent and did untold damage to my knee that took an operation and a year rehab to resolve. Thoroughbred just stood there attached to the gate watching the human writhing on the ground with detached curiosity.
 
I completely knacked my ankle jumping off my horse when my saddle slipped (I hadn't done girth up tightly) after he spooked at some pheasants and whirled round. If I'd have just fallen gracefully I probably would have been fine! That said, in that environiment, if I had time, I prob would have tried to dismount if I could, either that or cling on and hope for the best
 
No, I would have clung on, and it looks like the horse calmed down quickly enough and stayed in the arena once that little awning thing stopped rolling. I would think it's quite reassuring to see your horse regain its composure so quickly.

Panics like this are a bit of a common occurrence where I ride, especially when we're in the indoor school: branches scraping and slapping the polycarbonate panels and birds deciding the swoop down onto the sand in front of the horses. On average, I'd say one fall through a panicked horse every three sessions in there. Sometimes there won't be a panic for three weeks in a row, then in one session there will be two or three panics.
 
I would have stayed on . Getting off would be telling the horse, its every man for himself now. Not an ideal way to reassure him.
 
I've seen enough injuries from emergency dismounts to consider it not always a foolproof damage control method.

I'd have stayed on mine, but that's because I know that would have been ok (we'd have spun and run away but not got far).
To me it also depends a bit on the set up where it is happening, if it is secure leaping off is a bit different to if it isn't.
 
I think in a big arena, as that appeared to be, with plenty of room, I'd have stayed on board and hoped for the best. Arch might spin and run a bit in those circumstances but I'm pretty sure he'd stop within a few strides and neither he nor monty would do anything worse. M's reactions aren't very horse like, he tends to freeze and shake so I'd like to think he'd just stand still unless it was heading directly for him.

Archie in particular, I feel much safer on board than on the ground, he's just so strong if he's got a cob on, I can hold him better if I'm on him. M is generally fine both on the ground and on board. The worst danger with him is he'd fall over while trying to get away. I've known him 17 years and nobody's ever fallen off him, just fallen over with him!
 
I’d have stayed on, i think it’s safer to stay on than to jump off quickly.

It’s why I like a horse to have a good shoulder, I want a horse in front of me :p
 
Get off??? I don't think my reactions are fast enough! I have no doubt the Appy would have spun, bucked and left me on the floor to be squished by a big tent.

The Ardennes would be 1/2 way to the next county leaving Ardennes sized holes in every fence and hedgerow along the way. I'd still be on board because my legs have to stretch so far around him that getting off is a bit of an effort.
 
I would have stayed on. I'd much rather be on top of a horse in a scary situation than underneath it! There is no right or wrong answer but when she jumped off her horse was gone ... luckily she was in a contained area (and I like how it stayed within the boards, lol!) but had that been on a road or something .. game over potentially!

ETA - She didnt even try to hold on to it when she jumped off! Erm ... not cool luv, not cool!!
 
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I needed to watch the video again to see what the problem was.

OMFG! I think she did very well given the circumstances; as an "older rider" I'm not sure I'd have been able to get off quick enough TBH to have been able to do any good anyway! These things take time LOL.

I think my instinct would have probably been to try and stay up top and steer the horse away from where the thing was billowing, i.e. upwind of it. That way we'd both hopefully stay safe.
 
Definitely not! It would never ever have occurred to me to get off - the possibility of the horse getting loose and hurt would be far greater. Very irresponsible of her to let the horse go like that as well......

Other factors would also include the fact that my guys are all 17hh +++ and the likelihood of me ever getting back on would be limited.

also, they've all got great fronts, so it's much harder to fall off - bit like sitting on fast moving Chesterfield sofas.....
 
TBH, I'd have been on the ground before it was even my decision.

I have a 13hh pony who is more comfortable with a friend he can see. I think I would be more responsible to get on the ground & let him see that I was not afraid. Not irresponsible in my mind.
 
My mare is happy to wear a tarpulian as a tent, but one blowing towards her?

I did throw myself off last year when the cows started cantering and bucking down the hill behind us. She was happy for me to be by her side then, far happier than I would have been in the saddle!
 
I haven't read the whole thread, but I don't think that was an intentional dismount. I've fallen off like that in the past from a big spook - landed on my feet. Luckily I did keep hold of the reins but that's just what it was - luck. And mine was for a dog, not a sodding great tent.
 
soloequestrian said:
I haven't read the whole thread, but I don't think that was an intentional dismount. I've fallen off like that in the past from a big spook - landed on my feet. Luckily I did keep hold of the reins but that's just what it was - luck. And mine was for a dog, not a sodding great tent.
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^^ This is what I was thinking. I have "dismounted" my mare several times, unintentionally and later people have said "well done for staying so calm and getting off" ... All I remember was a haze of panic and then somehow my right leg made the decision to swing over and there I am on the ground, either holding or not holding the horse depending on the situation. Let's call it unconscious dismounting! :lol: My gelding, otoh, I think I would instinctively stay with. We look after each other. My mare only ever looks after herself!
 
I wouldn't have been fast enough to dismount so I would have fallen off. I don't understand people saying she shouldn't have let go of the reins. She would have been dragged if she had held on to them.

I've bailed out on occasion when it was the safest thing to do (on a bolter while it slowed down looking for the exit to a field, for example). This horse was a blind panic bolter so it was much safer to bail out before it started galloping again.

Also if rolling off seems a better option than a potentially awkward fall, I'll do it. I suppose because I've never been hurt doing it I've no problem doing it if necessary.
 
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At one time I would have said no, never dismount, ride it out and do your best to stay in control.

I am now older, fatter, less flexible and have much reduced core strength. I know that now I would dismount as last month I hired an indoor arena in lovely warm weather and was slightly surprised when it started to rain. My rising 5 mare was also surprised, but all was well, if a little antsy.

Suddenly it stated to hail, BIG hail. The noise was incredible on the tin roof. The mare sat down, I was dismounted before I even knew it, but it was me dismounting not falling. I know that as it took 3 attempts and she twice moved before my creaky joints had got my right leg over the cantle. :eek::o:D

So, yes, these days I would have been dismounting!


ETA - when I came out of the arena the venue owners were laughing, said the hail storm was incredible and they were imagining how it would have "livened the job up" in the arena!
 
I don't trust horses' self preservation instincts anyway. In my experience mine are better. ( Experiences with the blind panic bolter have reinforced this)
 
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soloequestrian said:
I haven't read the whole thread, but I don't think that was an intentional dismount. I've fallen off like that in the past from a big spook - landed on my feet. Luckily I did keep hold of the reins but that's just what it was - luck. And mine was for a dog, not a sodding great tent.
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I thought that initially, but looking closely, I think the horse didn't spin until after she'd started her dismount. I think it was deliberate, and incredibly fast.

I'd have stayed on because I can't move that fast!
 
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When I first saw it on FB I thought she'd fallen off, but couldn't quite understand how!?, it didn't really compute that anyone would have decided to get off AND let go of the horse in a field.
 
I think she did incredibly well to react that quickly.

I don't think I'd have got off, but I definitely wouldn't have turned the horse away either like some are suggesting.

#1 recipe for disaster = turn the horse AWAY from what it's afraid of and give it the chance to ****** off? No thanks!

In that specific situation I would have done my best to steer hard to the left and have the marquee bypass us.
 
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