When you fall off....

C

Cash

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what do you do??
As in, if you haven't hurt yourself too badly, no broken bones etc?
Was just thinking about the last time I fell off...got into the arena, mounted up, was walking round on a loose rein, went to tighten my girth and TB reared fairly dramatically..as i had my leg over the saddle flap coz i was girth tightening, and was not expecting it AT ALL...i fell straight off (actually turned out he was a bit sore round his girth area, he wasn't just being naughty, he was in pain
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poor boy)
....then about 10 minutes later, I started crying....
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I found it really embarassing, as i never cry when i fall off- i am more the jump up, have a laugh, get-straight-back-on type, as i think most teens are..
However, saying that, I have seen people of a similar age at HOYS and the British Open do the princess act, throw down the whip and march out, leaving pony haring round the ring
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Thoughts?
 
If I fall off I think I am back on my feet before I hit the ground
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Far more concerned about catching neddy then weather I am injured or not!
 
jump up straight back on, even with rather bust ankle
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soon discovered that when I attempted to trot but still had quick canter without stirrups!

and given the last one, worry about pony and shout at mother to stop walking him back to the box as I can't see how he is whilst slightly wondering why my arm feels a bit odd and insist first aider follows me to the box so that I can check the pony!
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(needless to say he came out of it better than me)
 
Well the last time I fell off was quite recently trying a new horse. Its the first time I'd fallen off for 25 years (I'm a very average rider, but have very impressive stickability).

Anyway l was sitting on horse relaxed and chatting to owner after doing the riding stuff. Then horse took fright at something the owner did, reared, span and then repeated. I flew off. Just wasn't expecting it

First thought was my hand hurts (broke it
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but now fixed again
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), then felt
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for having fallen off. Then next thought was 'don't think I will be buying that one
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said goodbye to owner and drove about a mile and stopped and had a ciggie as felt very shakey.

I think I mostly feel embarrassment tbh
 
Ahh see I am lucky in that respect as my old horse would NEVER run off, would always wait patiently for me to dust myself off
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(if we were at home that is- going cross country= wouldn't see him for dust!!) Not really sure about the one I have ATM- have only fallen off him once **touches wood frantically**
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I jump up and get back on before anyone asks if I'm ok then i can continue - I will never forget the time I hit my head and didn't get up quick enough so missed out on the XC although I was fine!

The next time I fell off was in a water jump, doing a jump in I was straight back on and didn't even trot a circle before jumping the skinny straight ahead. Everyone thought it was hilarious but at least I got to finish!
 
funnily enough, i did this today out on a hack. I jumped up so quickly, my bum didn't even get wet.
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Got back on and just got on with it. Was;t hurt or anything though, just my pride a wee bit dented. That's waht happens when your ex racehorse does and impresion of a polo pony turning on a sixpence.
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Last time I came off was at a couple of runners who came erm running round the corner straight at Ellie who objected strongly by going up and sideways. Cue me going out of the side door to land on back/bum still hanging onto reins
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Got up and had to drop the stirrup by about 5 holes to scramble back on which wouldn't sound so bad if she were 16hh or something but she's a 14.2hh
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and I'm 5'7" ( I put it down to shock
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) Rode back to the yard and told her Ellie's owner about it and had to laugh about it
 
[ QUOTE ]
what do you do??
Thoughts?

[/ QUOTE ]

You obey the law of gravity just like any other object.

The ground hardens in response to objects landing on it.

How hard you hit the ground depends on the age of the object hitting the ground, like cheese, hardness increases with age.

How long you spend moaning and writhing on the ground depends on how many people are watching.

How quickly you get up depends on who is there to catch your horse.

Ground encounters are usually followed the next day by an inability to get your socks on your feet, or your legs in your trousers.
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
what do you do??
Thoughts?

[/ QUOTE ]

You obey the law of gravity just like any other object.

The ground hardens in response to objects landing on it.

How hard you hit the ground depends on the age of the object hitting the ground, like cheese, hardness increases with age.

How long you spend moaning and writhing on the ground depends on how many people are watching.

How quickly you get up depends on who is there to catch your horse.

Ground encounters are usually followed the next day by an inability to get your socks on your feet, or your legs in your trousers.

[/ QUOTE ]


Love it and its oh so very true
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I have always been told to get straight back on, have fallen off loads with my first pony who was knick named the bucking bruncoo, hence I have a fairly good seat and now rarely fall off and have only fallen off once in last 15 years (which was my own fault). I will probably now fall off my 17hh and hurt myself after this as its quite a way to fall compared to a 12.3.
 
I get back on because it's the LAW isn't it. We have to get back on, this is what is drummed into us. If I had my way, i would just cry my eyes out refusing to ride for a while... But I get back on and try and get on with it. I try my absolute best to laugh and make jokes as this does lighten the mood for me. I have fallen so many times with my mare and the thing I hate the most is not the actual fall but the fact that I have to get back on do whatever it was that made me fall off!
xxx
 
It's hard to get back on while you're lying on the road with the back of your head smashed like an egg and blood pouring everywhere and the Air Ambulance trying to land and your bloody horse has legged it up the road to a dodgy T-junction and your YO who was riding out with you has had to take off Annie Oakley style to catch said runaway ned and when she gets back she tells the handsome Air Ambulance Dr that I am a year older than I was. It's SOOOOOOO true that the ground gets harder as the rider gets older!
 
I fell off loads years ago and think I cried once - when I thought my mum was going to kill me for dirtying my new jods (I was 6 at the time).

Didn't fall off for about 18 years then fell off recently and was really shook up - didn't cry but did feel very embarrassed.
Then a month ago I fell off jumping - I'd had two near misses earlier in the week and so when I came off I just burst into tears in frustration at how crap a rider I was! Got back on though and jumped some more fences without coming off!
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I last fell off 2 years ago - twice in one week. Once out hunting - in front of everybody - woops, but it wasn't anybodys fault - the ditch bank gave way under hoof and we skidded on belly. I got back up as quick as I ever will be and ran UP HILL to get horsie - practally vaulted back on, VERY impressive for me. Only when someone said was I ok I realised I had cut my lip and had temporally lost my looks!!! (still conitinued for another hour before I gave in).
Then I fell off on the road, very bruised and as horsey galloped home I couldn't do much. I did sit and pray she would be ok - iam not religious but I did do it. I then had to walk back, very shakey. Luckily Meg was ok - a few scrapes, but she did mend. (All she did was spook at a PUDDLE, but I was being a numpty and slid off western style calf roping look alike impression!!)
And yes, I do cry - I get shocked easily, I will never change.
 
I apologise to my horse who is standing around, yawning, a few yards away with an expression on her face that clearly says 'Oh good grief. She did it again.'
 
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
what do you do??
Thoughts?

[/ QUOTE ]

You obey the law of gravity just like any other object.

The ground hardens in response to objects landing on it.

How hard you hit the ground depends on the age of the object hitting the ground, like cheese, hardness increases with age.

How long you spend moaning and writhing on the ground depends on how many people are watching.

How quickly you get up depends on who is there to catch your horse.

Ground encounters are usually followed the next day by an inability to get your socks on your feet, or your legs in your trousers.

[/ QUOTE ]

So, so true - even if I'd never thought of myself as cheese before! If only I could be brie or camembert and get softer and runnier with age
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Definitely get back on if physically possible - as Russoheidi said, it's practically a law!
 
If I am ok I will get straight back on even if just to have a walk around, I often fall off jumping so i try to get on and pop over a jump even if it's tiny just so I feel better. When I broke my ribs and cracked my pelvis at the rs I somehow got back on, walked one lap of the arena and then couldn't get off - oops!
 
I generally try and get back on, however there have been a couple of occasions where I have been too shaken/ injured/ concussed to get back on straight away, so I try and calm myself and the horse down by leading it about and talking to it or by giving it a big hug (that time I was too injured to walk and by hug I mean... holding onto the horse for dear life so I didn't have to put any weight on my injured ankle!) However saying all that I do always get back on...just sometimes not for a minute or so (it is really hard to concentrate on remounting if you are shaking as much as I do when a fall has scared me!)
 
Normally I get up, bow to the onlookers (there always seems to be some when I come off), get back on and try hard not to do an encore.
Only twice I haven't managed this. Once was a rotational fall of horse where I woke up in the ambulance, the other was out hacking I popped a few XC fences on route, got it very wrong and Yep, rotational fall. Both of us got up but we each seemed to be leaking red stuff from various openings. Horse was lame so a long 2 mile limp home on foot for both of us (before mobiles).
I suppose in 45 years riding only having 2 serious falls is not too bad. The other 100 or so were just embarrasing.
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I get up as quickly as possibly and hope no-one has seen me.
Last time was jumping at a show when my horse stopped and I didn't! Not only was it in full view of everyone around the ring, but the photographer caught it in slow motion
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If you fancy a look, we are just before the bottom of the page - its obvious which one is us!

http://www.active-images.co.uk/eventimages/Leigh%20Show/26/index.htm

(disclaimer - he normally jumps very nicely and the pictures of us jumping the fence before the incident in no way reflect our normal style
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)
 
Last time I wipped out the mobile to warn OH that the horses were loose on the road and run (OK hobbled/run) back to see if my friend was OK...but that was a bad one even by my standards!!!
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Normally just grab ponio and get back on... I've had enough falls not to care
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Only had two bad falls..... 1) I was 7 and fell off my pony SJ and got my hand caught in the reins and he dragged me.... hospital trip number one!
2) I was 12 and fell off my pony XC and cracked my chin open on the fence.... hospital trip number two!
 
I fall off fairly frequently and it is inevitably followed by a stream of rather filthy language and a quick sprint to find said horse who has probably legged it back to the yard.
 
I prefer not to!!!

I think we all need to master the art of flying as described by the great Douglas Adams:
“...there is an art, or rather, a knack to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss...Clearly it is the missing, which presents the difficulties...One problem is that you have to miss the ground accidentally. It’s no good deliberately intending to miss the ground because you won’t. You have to have your attention suddenly distracted by something else when you’re halfway there, so that you are no longer thinking about falling, or about the ground or about how much it’s going to hurt if you fail to miss it.
If, however, you are lucky enough to have your attention momen-tarily distracted at the crucial moment by, say... a bomb going off in your vicinity, then in your astonishment you will miss the ground completely and remain bobbing just a few inches above it..."


(and yes I realise I have just classified my self as a total nerd/geek with that quote =) )
 
Straight back on and make the bugger that ditched me work (my mum always had me straight back on so it's stuck with me, I thank her for that)
The exception being when I dislocated my hip - that would have been a bit hard
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Apparently I am quite comical when I fall off as I roll and then bounce to my feet and run after horse, get straight back on with a steely resolve to not let that happen again.

Luckily I have only had two nasty injuries and even those didn't affect me bouncing up luckily

It must be an awful feeling if you know you have injured back/neck/head though.
 
I am now very careful when I fall off ever since I fell off a few years ago got back on finished jumping a course and then realised I didnt know where I was, what day it was, whose horse I was on or why I was on it. (It was my own and I was at Home yard) it could have been very dodgy so now I sit and see how I feel first ..Oh and of course yell "ignore me is my horse alright!!"
 
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