Big horse driving disaster

[Devon]

That video actually had tears running down my face;

Absolutely Awful.

 

[Minimor]

I agree that in a situation like this the announcer should announce that there is a runaway, and for everyone to come into the center of the ring ASAP--such an announcement would tell the other drivers to check over their shoulder before they turn in toward the center and/or before they slow down. Every effort should be made to keep the runaway on the rail while the other horses/vehicles group in the center. The first priority is for people to keep that runaway from ring center--keep him on the rail and let him wear himself down, and then get him stopped/caught.

I don't know how much training/driving time this particular horse had prior to this incident, but this is an example of why I don't think horses should go into the show ring with only a couple weeks training under their harness! Not saying that was the problem here, but it definitely can lead to this exact situation. There have been times when I have said that if a certain person takes a particular horse into a harness class at this point, then I will not take my horse into the ring. Lack of training is an accident waiting to happen and I don't need to be a part of it.

 

[Keri]

I commented on this video earlier (though I've never seen the video). All I could think of was all that money being flushed down the drain. Those $2000 carts being flung and kicked and those harnesses being ripped by the horses. Just goes to show, if you want to keep your equipment in good condition, make sure the horse is ready to show before even putting him in a class. And all that carnage happened due to one driving error as far as entering a horse not ready to show. The driver should know when to let his horse in and when to X the class.

 

[mydaddysjag]

Whats sad is only one horse caused that entire domino chain of events. Every other horse who spooked and such was a direct reaction of being ran into by a different horse.

I also thought what a shame about all of those carts and harnesses, and even the people and horses hurt there. I'll bet that the first horse (who caused it all) was responsible for the whole thing wasn't responsible for paying for anything. People need to realize that just because THEY are comfortable riding or driving a horse with brief basic training doesn't mean that other exhibitors are comfortable driving or riding in an arena with that animal.

 

[~Lisa~]

I missed the part where it was said this particular horse had had little training before being put in cart and in the arena?

Of course common sense says to ensure you have a horse who is trained before entering with other horses in a arena but even a well seasoned horse can spook when you least expect it and cause a chain reaction like this

 

[Margo_C-T]

Actually, when this 'made the rounds' the first(?)time recently, someone who'd actually been there commented that the horse was NOT green; had been shown quite a bit. Not to say this couldn't be the 'cause' of such an occurance, just that it apparently wasn't the case this time.

I suspect that it isn't JUST the mini breed ring where horses who really AREN'T trained to a proper level for competition are 'in there', anyway...and could and DO present a danger to others. When LOTS of the horses in the ring are like that, it's a disaster waiting to happen.

It seemed to me that there were mistakes made all around. I agree that the horses should not have first been asked to walk, but to come into ring center ASAP, while glancing over their shoulder first....then staying close to the judges' stand, while ring personnel work to keep the runaway on the rail. Many horses will 'run themselves out' fairly quickly, and be ready to slow down/stop on their own, if they can just be kept clear of others.

Advice from longtime drivers is almost ALWAYS to stay in the cart, not to 'bail' or dismount the cart. I had first hand proof of the reason for this when I was run over from behind, while on a dirt track in a SECTION(one square mile) of open ground, by a friend's runaway horse(who until then had been 'trained' ONLY for the breed ring, and was actually typical of that type of 'training'-though he'd won big in the breed ring, including at World....).He, out of the blue, 'blew up', bucking, and cutting sharply back, dumping her from the EE cart. I'd been ahead of her--stopped, got out of my cart to see how she was. As she approached me, at my horse's head, we were momentarily distracted; her horse, now just galloping(he never appeared to be in abject terror--just running) was circling out in the pasture, ran RIGHT OVER ME from behind, knocking me down and stepping on the back of the calf of my right leg(which had recently had knee surgery!), and rolling the cart over me--and of course, causing me to lose hold of my horse. Result? TWO horses loose with carts attached in the pasture! (All ended well, thank God...my mare just headed back for home; her horse ran far enough to tire, and was stopped by passing good samaritans before he got back out near traffic....but I surely learned MY lesson!)

Margo

 

[MiLo Minis]

I was the one who first mentioned green untrained horses in the ring on this thread but I didn't intend that it necessarily applied to this particular horse in the video. On a whole, it is best if your horse has some length of time in the cart before you introduce them to the driving arena with other people present as there are just too many things that can go wrong and a green, improperly trained horse is not going to react as well as a more experienced horse would. ANY horse at ANY time can lose it when driving and accidents happen but the more experience you and your horse have the more likely you are to be able to limit the damage.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Margo, I am shocked that the horse ran over you. I was also shocked in the video when the horse plowed right through that cart/driver. He appeared to make no attempt to avoid the obstacle. And he didn't seem terror-stricken, either. I was always told that a horse will do almost anything to avoid stepping on you. (The movie "Benhur" comes to mind, when the horses leaped over the stationary chariot.)

I, too, was shocked by the destruction of all the equipment.

But, those were sure beautiful horses in that class.