Falling Off a Horse
stepped on and if you do, you might not get hurt so badly.
Practice falling
It might sound silly, but you can practice falling off—preferably in a soft sand arena! Try tucking your chin to your chest, falling on your shoulder and rolling from a standing up position. Then be a bit more daring and take a gentle leap off a bucket!
After the fall
Don’t hop up immediately if you feel dizzy or hurt. Lie still for a moment or two and get your breath back. Too often concussed riders will get up and chase after their horses. If you’re at a competition, someone will catch him. If you suspect that you’re injured, stay where you are and wait for help. Most shows have an emergency medical technician.
If you feel OK after a fall, stand up slowly and catch your horse. Make sure that he’s uninjured and check that his tack isn’t broken. Then you can remount.
Getting on after a fall is quite important. It’s easy to lose your nerve after hitting the ground hard. The best thing you can do is to hop back into the saddle and continue riding. Hopefully, both you and your horse will forget about the fall and get back to work.
Even if you’ve hurt your pride after a fall, don’t take it out on your horse. By the time you catch him, he’ll have forgotten what he did to deserve a smack. Mark the fall up to experience and move on.
