Re: tripping

[vanhove@unavco.ucar.edu (Teresa Van Hove)]

All these trip/stumbling posts have me wondering if I am way slower
to react then the general population, or my horses are quicker.  When
Grey stumbles he gets some jerk on the reins because I ride with light
to no contact, but never much slack.  Anytime his nose suddenly goes
down he's going to hit the reins.  He usually recovers quickly by 
catching himself with his other front foot and I have not had time
to think about how to help him.  The one time he fell he hit a covered
hole in a summerfallow field (underground erosion from run-off) and it
was so wide that he hit it with the other foot too.  He went down and I
sailed off - I don't remember launching myself but I did want to be off
and away in case he somersaulted.  Reminds me of a Practical Horseman
article about getting into a "power point" position as your horse
starts to shy.  When my horses shy they don't give me any lead time
to change positions.  Its -bam- 4 feet to the side and if I was in
good position when it happened I stayed on and if not I'll have hit the 
ground before I knew the horse was thinking of shying. Those big english 
type horses must have much slower reactions than the arabians if folks have 
time to get into a special position when the horse is going to shy.

Teresa

> 
> In my experience, if the rider throws the reins to the horse (assuming
> the horse has not stepped on the rein and caught her head down) AND
> remains vertical, the horse will come back upright. 
> 
> Obviously, if the horse rolls the rider is going to take the tumble also.
>  But I've survived many the stumble where my horse has gone to her/his
> knees at walk, trot, and gallop and has come back up to keep going.  
> Even downhill.   And I've  occasionally seen a student of mine  survive a
> stumble in the ring in the same way.
> 
> I can't explain the physics of it but I know it works.
>