Thoughts on Horse Safety- Bayard Fox
Bayard Fox has just rewritten his article on horse safety to include some new thoughts. The emphasis in the article is on avoiding a few of the major causes of accidents with horses and thereby making the sport much safer. The most dangerous hazards in Fox’s opinion are not always what most people would think. For instance, he rates having a hat or other object fall from a horse in front, spooking the horses behind as a major cause of falls and serious accidents.
Another danger to safety is lagging behind either purposely or inadvertently and then coming ahead fast to catch up. His theories come from over seventy years of riding and from working as an expert witness for equine accident cases. We would be glad to have your thoughts and comments about riding safety.
April 7th, 2008 at 6:52 pm
I have seen both the situations you mentioned create safety issues. Beginning riders generally don’t see these types of things coming whereas a more experienced rider might anticipate the hazards and be able to take evasive action. We once saw a horse bolt and the rider take a bad spill because a person on the ground, who was approaching the group of riders, tripped and stumbled. The person stumbled in the direction of this horse. The rider was distracted, didn’t anticipate the unexpected, and the horse quickly whirled out of the group and took off in a run. The sudden action of the horse caused the rider to lose her balance which further unnerved the horse who ended up in a panicked fear-based run. The rider came off that horse at a dead run. Thank goodness she was wearing a helmet and didn’t end up with a broken neck or other body part. It could have been much worse.
April 10th, 2008 at 8:50 am
I am in agreement with Bayard’s article. One only needs to browse YouTube to see videos of bucks, falls and wrecks due to riders’ inexperience or inattention. I approach horseback riding like driving a car. Be a defensive rider, anticipate the unexpected and wear a helmet. It also helps to learn as much as you can about the equine mind. If you can think like them, it helps to avoid potential sticky situations. There is no better feeling than being in synch with your horse, whether on the ground or in the saddle. I would also add that it’s a good safety practice to wear a helmet anytime you are working with a horse. I have seen a horse kick at a fly on its belly while a person is bent over picking a front hoof. Fortunately no contact was made with that person’s head. Be proactive with safety.
April 10th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
Very valid points from both ladies. There is a certain stimga attached with wearing a helmet- especially in the Western riding world. Out here in Wyoming it is easy to fall into the habit of “Western Style” where you replace your helmet with a cowboy hat. I myself fall into that catergory on occasion. More than anything it is laziness for me. I need to remind myself that as I get older my body doesn’t ‘bounce’ as well as it used to!
October 19th, 2008 at 1:15 am
Good article on an important topic. It’s easy to forget we’re dealing with a living creature that’s capable of doing unpredictable things. If we think its too “wimpy” to follow all the safety precautions we can, we’re just asking to get hurt, possibly seriously. Use common sense, people!