worst falls?

[storm123]

today i had a fall on my little pony,
we were on our way back from the beach where there was a sandy deep stream, my pony decieded to dive in it, he fell over face first, throwing me over and as he got up, he stood on my head and arm!
YES, VERY PAINFUL!



how about yours?

 

[sophiebailey]

I've had two similar to yours!

1) Bailey galloped off with me on a fun ride and tripped, and I supermanned over his head and landed in a heap

2) Riding a friends horse I was flybucked and fell out the side door, and he trod on my arm when I was on the floor

Ouch

 

[Cinnamontoast]

Nothing compared to some I've heard about, but I was bucked off, sailed through the air, landed very hard on my back using my hands to brace. I couldn't hold a glass for a week, terrible it was!

 

[benson21]

I've had 2. First was my very first time cantering! I went for a hack on a riding school pony with a 'friend!', she knew I had never cantered, but decided to go flying past us, my horse thinking Weyhey!!! Dropped his shoulder and I came of over the side! Friend,(who was a nurse) told me to get up and stop making a fuss! Someone else called an ambulance, and it was found eventually that I had 7 fractures in my pelvis, and had broken my pubic bone! Very painful!
And the other was my very worst nightmare! Hit by a car. Broke my back, and will suffer daily for the rest of my life (or so it feels at the moment!)

 

[Tzara44]

Currently recovering from mine! Came out the side door after a very large buck, hit the deck with some force & have broken ribs!! Luckily was wearing a bp otherwise it would have been a lot worse.

 

[dreamchaser]

My worst......coming off at a full tilt mad gallop into half a hay ring left on a bridle path. Hit it side on with my thigh......ouchhhhh......wasn't until OH carted me off to a&e I said I shouldn't have got back on and
blasted the next field. Still.not broken a bone! !

 

[ZondaR]

Last year, I was at a hunter trial, it was fastest round. I was bombing it, definately think I was winning. 4 fences from home, I wanted to land and do a tight turn to the next fence so I checked, checked, checked coming up to the fence. Horse fought me every step and had his head high in the air so he did not properly see the fence and he didn't get enough height (it was a small fence!) and tripped over it. He fell left and I fell right and I was kicked on the way down. I thought I had broken my arm, it was so sore, but I actually broke my collar bone. Horse was fine but so upset he was shaking, poor love.

 

[Shantara]

Horse set off galloping, threw some huge bucks in and I came off. Still suffering 9 years later!

 

[tinap]

Injury wise the worst one the daughter had was showjumping a few years ago, just got striding wrong to a fence (sj), she asked pony to take off, he ummed & thought about putting another in & they kind of plowed through it she moaned her hand hurt, turned out she had broken her right collar bone & left hand so had both arms in slings for a while!!!

Her worst one for scary-ness was this year when she was eventing & the pony got a bit too giddy xc, was tanking but didn't bother to pick his feet up - cue a rotational fall over a luckily small fence, daughter got landed on top of by the (fat) cob, miraculously she was unhurt, he bruised his fetlock & was off for 8 weeks

 

[MrsHutt]

Mine are nothing compared to these, or my friend:

Her lovely mare suddenly died while just leaving the yard for a hack, falling onto her leg. It was crushed and broken into 52 (I think) pieces!! It took 2 years and a number of operations and various bits of metal to put her back together again.

She has just started (gently!) riding again. Brave, brave girl!

 

[mynutmeg]

Worst fall was when my tb took off (not his fault, very long story) at a flat out gallop. I came off at a flat out gallop and landed on my feet (luckily was in the sand school).
I fractured and dislocated both ankles pretty badly.

Hasn't stopped me riding

 

[HBM1]

I couldn't hold a glass for a week, terrible it was!

I think it was a broken horse rider who invented the straw!

 

[ralph and maverick]

Had two when I was little.
1st was riding my pony who was only about 4, she spooked and I come off sideways getting my foot stuck in the stirrup and bouncing on my head, I was only about 6/7 at the time.

Next was when I was about 12 and riding YO young pony he went on full bucking bronco mode then threw in a huge buck and twisted and I finally came off and landed on the fence of the arena scraping all skin off my back, I still remember the pain now!

Probably why I'm a nervous rider now as I gave up for a long time after that :/

 

[MrVelvet]

Reared up on wet grassy slope, went up second time right up and over and on top of poor old me!!

 

[Jingleballs]

I've fallen off loads of times but only had 2 "bad" ones.

First was on a fast hack with a friend, fox ran out in front of us and ponies spooked - right into the path of a telegraph pole which pony ducked to avoid and I came off and wrapped myself right round that pole - luckily I had my BP on and was just bruised but my friend was in tears as she though I'd badly injured myself.

Second was XC schooling, popped a tiny fence and naughty pony tried to spin on landing. I came out the side door but my foot was caught in the stirrup so when I landed I fell underneath him and looked up to see his front hoof coming towards my face.

It left a rather fetching bruise and I still have a lump there more than a year later.

I was lucky though, both times I was able to get back on right away and other than some bruised and pulled muscles I was fine - some of you don't seem to have gotten off so lightly!

 

[JeanetteM]

I've had 2 pretty nasty falls, the first I was riding in an outside arena with post and rail, I caught my foot on the bolt keeping the entrance bar in place, the bolt went through my boot, breaking every toe in my foot and dragged me off the pony breaking my arm

the 2nd, well I worked with horses, but being horsey mad and on holiday I paid for a ride on a beach, I have absolutely no recollection, I remember being stood stock still, the next I'm in the coast guards office, I had no idea who I was, where I was or anything, no one saw what happened but from the hoof print in my hat I was either kicked on the way down or stood on .. it took me nearly 2 years to get my memory back, I still get dizzy, I now have vertigo, blackout in the most of awkward of places, epilepsy and struggle daily, but I still love horses altho I'm hardly around them any more

Always make sure your wearing clean underwear when riding, my daughter loves telling everyone I fell off a horse and split my trousers and everyone could see my knickers

 

[Autumn sonnet]

My worst was years ago when I was young and thought I knew it all . Doing XC on my first pony , coming up to what transpired was a MUCH wider hay rack than I had realised , in a corner of the course which was by a road . As we got up to it , there were two horses on the road , which distracted her , and we ended up grinding to a halt in front of it . Instead of starting again , I kicked her , so she ended up trying to jump it from a standstill , resulting in her landing on top of it , dumping me over her head to end up out cold starfish stylee on the landing spot directly in front of the jump . She meanwhile was literally all 4 legs trapped within the framework of the jump . Instead of doing what my big lad would have done, to throw himself off in a panic and break something dramatic, she put her nose between her knees , somehow disentangled every leg , then hopped off , and stood with her nose on my neck , waiting for the marshals to rescue us .

The only reason I know all this ,is because the whole lot was captured on video . I have no actual memory of the day at all , had a nasty concussion , and a busted collarbone . And some very dented pride , and terrible earache caused by my mother .

 

[starryeyed]

My worst fall was when the horse I was riding spooked dramatically, spun and threw me off, then proceeded to completely trample me and then drag me a fair distance down the road at flat out bolt because I was determined to hold on - I only let go because it kicked my hand and I was in so much pain I automatically dropped the reins.
It was about 2 years ago and I'm still bruised, my hand is still a weird shape and I couldn't walk for months!

When I was younger I had a nasty fall with my pony, we were a bit battered but looking back it was quite scary & we were very lucky! We were coming up the side of a very steep slope, we'd got lost on the moors and it was dark so I was panicking and he'd picked up on it, he suddenly lost his footing coming up the bank and slipped over, we then started to roll down the hill together as I was somehow stuck in the saddle - he must have gone over me about 4/5 times before I finally came free, then I had to grab his bridle and try and pull him back up - at the time it didn't seem scary, I felt a bit dodgy after being crushed by my pony but he seemed perfectly happy, I checked him, got back on and we carried on with our mission! - if it happened to me now I'd be a nervous wreck! How we didn't get injured I have no idea.

 

[ChwaraeTeg]

I've had 2 pretty nasty falls, the first I was riding in an outside arena with post and rail, I caught my foot on the bolt keeping the entrance bar in place, the bolt went through my boot, breaking every toe in my foot and dragged me off the pony breaking my arm

the 2nd, well I worked with horses, but being horsey mad and on holiday I paid for a ride on a beach, I have absolutely no recollection, I remember being stood stock still, the next I'm in the coast guards office, I had no idea who I was, where I was or anything, no one saw what happened but from the hoof print in my hat I was either kicked on the way down or stood on .. it took me nearly 2 years to get my memory back, I still get dizzy, I now have vertigo, blackout in the most of awkward of places, epilepsy and struggle daily, but I still love horses altho I'm hardly around them any more

Always make sure your wearing clean underwear when riding, my daughter loves telling everyone I fell off a horse and split my trousers and everyone could see my knickers

Why do we do it ?

50 years of riding, I have had a few falls. One of the worse was as a child, I was dragged along a newly gritted road. My back was raw. I still have the marks.
The last fall was the first fall i had had for about 10 years - but it changed my life totally. The horse I was riding fell backwards . I was her soft landing.

Amongst other things, my skull was fractured and I was in a coma,on a life support machine for quite a while.
I forgot who were my family,I could not walk for a while
I forgot how to speak, feed, dress, toilet,wash, everything.
It has taken quite a few years but
Like JeanetteM has as her signature:

I would not be alive today if I had not been wearing my hat
.
Teg

 

[JennBags]

Good god Teg, that is awful Are you back to a "normal" life now?

I've had quite a lot of bad falls, been carted off to A&E by ambulance a few times - you'd think after almost 40 years of riding, I'd have got the hang of it by now

Anyway my most recent fall is probably the worst. I came off on a hack (pheasants) and have torn the cruciate ligament in my knee; I've had 2 lots of surgery & it is recovering now. It's been 5 weeks so far of being immobile (and only sorted out that quickly as I went private) & now my back has gone so I'm spending a lot of time in bed, hence being awake at this time of the morning

 

[Daytona]

The worse injury but not the worst fall was my 4 year old bucking me off out a hack then trampling me

He crushed my leg , I got compartment syndrome ( google it) the necrosis set in and the muscle at the back of my leg died and turned black they had to operate to cut away all the dead bits, losing my leg was mentioned at one point. They skin grafter over the cut away bits now I'm left with what looks like a shark bite out of my leg.

 

[pogface]

Worst injury wise was probably my first. Just learnt to ride off the lead rein, riding fairly safe pony, but she fancied spring grass, popped a buck in, at a walk, I came out the side door and dislocated my shoulder, cracked my collar bone, cut my chin, black eye, cracked ribs.

My most recent fall probably frightened me the most. Was jumping in the indoor school. Coming up to a double, over the first, pony took off a stride early for the second, I wasn't ready, lost a stirrup, landed up her neck, she spooked and took off at full pelt round the school, got to the wall, she went right, I went into the wall! Completely body slammed against the side (the sound was so loud that it spooked the other horses in the school and caused people from the yard to run up to see what had happened)
I fell splat on the floor.

It was at this point I decided if horses were meant to fly over jumps, they should have wings! Although my injuries were mainly cuts and bruises, it was the confidence that was injured the most.
It wasn't until after the jump that the girl doing the lesson told me she'd got the striding wrong, poor pony couldn't have helped taking off early.

 

[Littlelegs]

My worst was out hacking in a group. We were going up a muddy hill, person at the front decided to canter without asking anyone. The other horses all got a bit wound up. The one I was on did a few small rears. Not real rearing just straight up & back down over excited ones. Second time he slipped, tried to launch himself forward to regain balance but his back end went under him & he went over backwards. I launched myself off when I realised he was going to hit the deck & rolled as quick as I could away. Being on a muddy hill though he carried on sliding once down. I ended up with a lovely cantle shaped bruise on my thigh, but otherwise both unhurt. But very close call. Other time was jumping, horse caught its hinds & fell quickly, twisting in mid air. Didn't have much time to roll clear, horse actually landed with the corner of my jacket under it, less than an inch from landing on me. Again, both ok, but I class them as my worst falls because both times I was very close to being landed on. Other times a horse has fell with me I've had enough time to get completely clear.

 

[vickyb]

Good god Teg, that is awful Are you back to a "normal" life now?

I've had quite a lot of bad falls, been carted off to A&E by ambulance a few times - you'd think after almost 40 years of riding, I'd have got the hang of it by now

Anyway my most recent fall is probably the worst. I came off on a hack (pheasants) and have torn the cruciate ligament in my knee; I've had 2 lots of surgery & it is recovering now. It's been 5 weeks so far of being immobile (and only sorted out that quickly as I went private) & now my back has gone so I'm spending a lot of time in bed, hence being awake at this time of the morning

JennBags, I sympathise. I tore my cruciate ligament many years ago getting bucked off a four year old. It is SO painful. My worst fall was my most recent one. I have recently (well, for the last year) started riding again after a very long break. And yes, it was yet again getting bucked off a four year old! I have got broken ribs and a messed up back. I have never actually broken anything falling off a horse before. It is so painful I honestly don't think I will ride again.

 

[sussex_sun]

Although this wasn't my worst fall - I have just (a few months ago) returned to riding after a 25 year break....and was bucked off yesterday. One of my huge fears about returning after such a long break (and at such advanced years - 53) was that if I fell off I would break into a million tiny pieces. So....I get my wind back, wiggle everything to make sure it's all working, and get back on again.

In a peverse way I'm actually quite chuffed to have had a fall and still be in one piece (just a little stiff and achy but hey ho). Now I know I'm no more likely to break than when I was younger, I'm actually not so bothered about it any more.

 

[oldhat]

One of my worst experiences was when I was riding my young mare (about 6) along the canal towpath near huddersfield, we came across a man with a pushchair and a huge alsatian dog. Said dog tried to launch itself growling and snapping at Jas as we passed, she totally freaked and went immediately into reverse- backwards into the canal- we were next to a loch and her back end started to slither back towards the water. The stupid man still wouldn't get out the way and parked the pushchair with child right in front of us! All I could do was launch myself over her head keeping hold of the reins and land in heap in a deep puddle on the towpath. Jas had somehow managed to get one of her toes on a ledge so I have no idea how, I manhandled her back out of the water and onto the path. Neither of us was hurt but I had heard terrible stories of others falling into the canal. Jas was wet from the middle backwards and I was soaked, espec my pants (!!) and I still had to ride home like this through Slaithwaite (Slawit!!) much to the amusement of all and sundry. That stupid man never did get out the way and I had to ride a long way round just because of his insistence that horses shouldn't be on towpaths in the first place! Er- and what were they originally built for???!
Other stupid incident happened in the woods near here when we also got lost and I tried to go down a steep river bank with a tree hanging over, turned out it was the wrong bit of river and Jas being a trooper did as I asked and slid down it and in and under the tree. I was wedged under the branches and gashed heavily , there was no way forward and all I could do was (sounds and prob looked hilarious!) manually lift my right leg over her back and somehow slide back over the cantle!!she was brill and in the end we dislodged ourselves. We were both cut and bruised and lost a shoe but thankfully after that I never got lost there again! Mind you we as riders are all banned from there thanks to the miserable landowner- even tho this is Scotland but I won't go into that!!
Also (phew not more!?!) we got hit from behind by a silage tractor trailer minutes from home. Wedged between the trailer and a barbed wire fence. The most frightening thing ever to happen to us next to the canal incident, she ended up gashed inthe rump and her shoe half swisted off. My poor sweet mare who I have had since she was 16 mnths old and as fearless as they come was terrified after that of everything on the roads. This was 3 years ago now and despite being told that I'd never get her out again we are getting there and still get out on lovely hacks. The owner of the tractor is the same guy who has now banned riders off the only off road bit of riding round here. I so wish I had sued him back then!
Now don't we all love riding!!!!

 

[Shutterbug]

Quite a recent one! Was having a jumping lesson and all was going well - had gone over the jump a few times in both directions when he decided to land in a gallop and took off - no idea why and totally unlike him. He galloped to the fence around the school and I lost a stirrup, thought there is no way I am staying on if he slams the brakes on and I launched myself out the side door just as he decided to go round the corner and I went through the bottom half of the fence landing on the kick board and breaking 2 of my ribs and damaging the muscle in my lower back, trapping my sciatic nerve - am just starting to feel better now

 

[AnneCam]

I've lost count of how many times i've come off but i seem to bounce quite well and i've only ever had cuts, bruises and a couple of doses of whiplash. Until 3 weeks ago...

Got too close to vaguely big vertical on someone else's big posh eventer that i'd not jumped before. Got jumped out the saddle, then he took off and i fell off. There is a big muscle that holds your shoulder blade onto your ribs. Except my left one is now a small bit of original muscles and some recently grown scarry mess.

Certainly not lifechanging, i'll be absolutely fine and back riding by Christmas. But it's the first time i've been in pain all day for weeks at a time and i can't say i'm enjoying it. Apparently it's quite like broken ribs. Not dangerous. Hurts. No one can really do anything about it.

Sympathies for the incompletely healed.

 

[mynutmeg]

In a peverse way I'm actually quite chuffed to have had a fall and still be in one piece

I know the feeling, I had a very bad fall coming of my tb, fast forward 4 years and although I've had my mare 4 years now I'd never come off her and never came off anything else. I was pretty scared about coming off and then she sorta shot sideways at the end of trotting poles when I was unbalanced and I came out the side and landed on my back, a little winded but fine otherwise, it definately helped tho

 

[Sparkles]

Worst has happened to me on the ground than riding. Getting kicked in the face has to be my most occurant moment on my mind all the time now.

My 'worst' riding falls though, have been ones which didn't even end up in any major injuries, but more just what happened.
First comes to mind, was riding a friends horses I had to do. One was backed....one wasn't. Both were coloured. I asked which one was the backed one....friend told me the skewbald. So I tacked the skewbald up no problem, lunged him before I got on...was a bit energetic but nothing major. Asked a girl down the yard to give me a leg up quickly.....
Well I didn't even manage to get my arse in the saddle for a second before he absolutely exploded into possibly the best[or worst?] rodeo display I'd encountered in my life!
If you didn't guess.....Friend had made a slight error. She'd meant to say the skewbald one was unbroken.....The piebald was the broken one. The skewbald had been so quiet to tack up and trot round on the lunge, nothing had made me question it!

2nd, had to be on one of the 'projects' another friend had in. 17.2/3hh, big big athletic MW hunter type. Sharp as houses, but, was fully broken etc. Lunged beautifully, was very very quiet. Took him to the block to get on.....and that's all I remember. Woke up in the middle of the school the opposite end to where we started, upside down on the jumps left there in a pile. Apparently, he went vertical as I went to do my stirrup, spun and then proceeded to rear/fly buck/rear. I don't remember any of this.

Another was getting bolted with....again, on yet another friends horse! Once we'd already done over 20 laps of the school, had spun down to 5m circles and STILL no stopping, to then feel her aim up the arena fence at the end, I bailed and threw myself off. If we'd have been slower, I'd have landed on my feet possibly....but the impact just flipped me straight over and god I can still remember how hard that floor felt! I'd never felt so ill for hours after that one.

Aaaaand the last one I'll reminisnce about, would be off our previous big ex world cup SJ lad. 17.3hh, big warmblood. Stagged a 2ft warm up fence 3 strides out and 5ft up. I jumped about 5 minutes AFTER he had it felt like, landed on his neck out of the saddle like a monkey clinging to him.....went down his shoulder round the short side, he turned....but turning partially on my shin bone as he did so. Couldn't walk on that for some weeks.......Still have a lovely dent in my leg there now.....Though that one was no-one's fault as he didn't do anything to get me off on purpose really, I just wasn't ready for his leap over such a small fence!!!!


Trend here is....stick to riding my own sodding horses I think!!!!