There comes a point in every rider's life, where they realise they are not indestructible. Some riders are born with fear and others are the "Yeee Haa" variety that only gain an understanding of what could happen, when it eventually does!
When we are kids we can have a bad fall and bounce back into the saddle almost immediately. However, once we reach a certain age, have kids, or have that one fall that we do not bounce back from our perspective and our attitude towards our sport can change; sometimes quite dramatically.
People think that dressage is the safer equestrian sport, compared with the more dangerous eventing and show jumping. Those who know dressage however, know that for a horse to excel at Grand Prix level, he must be blessed with a power and energy that takes a lot of understanding, talent, and technique to master (ride). This kind of horse, while obviously talented, will also be highly intelligent, which means that he can sometimes act impulsively, or even explosively, catching his rider unaware.
A top horse would have created a partnership with his rider and even if he does not intend to cause harm or fear, at the end of the day he is an animal and will always harbor the animal instinct of the fear and flight response. So how do we combat the mental challenge of fear and how do we allow ourselves to relax in the saddle, even though our mind is telling us to be on guard!
Straight Back on After Crashing
Olympic bronze medalist Laura Bechtolsheimer used to fall off a lot when she was little, as she was always out riding around the fields bareback, or jumping whatever she could find along the way. "The worst fall I had was when my foot got stuck in the stirrup," Laura told Eurodressage. "I was about 7 and my pony always used to come straight to me when I fell off, but this time he didn't know what was going on and I took a couple of rounds of the school on my back with my foot in the stirrup and my head inches from his hind hooves. To be honest, I think it was more dramatic for my mum than for me."
Laura's dad however, stuck her immediately back o, and Laura had to jump the fence that her pony had spooked at. "After that I went to the hospital to have my ankle x rayed and luckily it was fine. The rule was always, if you fall off you get back on and that way there is never a moment for you to think about being put off and not wanting to get back on again!"
As an adult, Laura has fallen off a lot less, and (touch wood) has not incurred anything too dramatic. "However, I am aware of risks and I try to be sensible in my approach. I believe all the falls and experimenting I did when I was younger taught me "stickability" and to ride forwards and positively if in doubt, rather than hold on and let the horse sense your fear."
Believing that it all comes down to respect for the fact that you are on a live animal, Laura always reminds herself that the horse's natural flight instinct is healthy, while fear is not! "Fear is never useful on a horse, fear leads us to do the wrong things on horses and they feel it and at best become insecure themselves and at worst, take advantage and become more dangerous," she said.
Riders who are scared should consider whether they have the right horse for them and if so, they need to find exercises that build confidence and partnership, such as some ground work. Have someone on the ground who gives you confidence when you are on a horse and learn to put the leg on and take a forward approach when feeling scared, rather than holding the brakes.
American dressage competitor Shannon Peters, on the other hand, has suffered two herniated discs in her neck and while this didn't make her fearful, it did make her think about safety! "Well, my young horse started bucking, and I didn't stay on, so I guess it was my fault," she joked.
This did not change my attitude to riding, but it changed my attitude towards helmets."
Breaking her helmet directly in half, Shannon can only imagine would could have happened if that had been her head, and she now wears a helmet every day, on every horse! Instead of having to overcome any fear that she may incur, Shannon simply chooses not to sit on any horses that may generate fear within her and while she can't eliminate all dangers, she can reduce it through the wisdom of choice. "Life is too short and accidents can happen even on the best horse, let alone on a horse with something like behavioral problems," said Peters.
While fear may prevent some riders from reaching their potential, Shannon knows that the right amount can be a good thing, if used in a positive way! "A healthy respect for a horse's power and natural instincts is something every rider should have," she added.
Overcoming Fear after an Accident
Australian rider Renee Pedretti knows all too well the dangers of dressage and while she had many falls as a kid, the worst by far is her most recent fall in 2010. "I imported a 17 hh bay mare by Jazz from Holland," she reminisced. "She was a little quirky and unpredictable. However once she settled in to Australian life we developed an amazing bond, she gave me a feeling that I had never experienced before not only under saddle but also as a friend. I had taken her out on a couple of occasions and although she was nervous she trusted me and therefore didn’t react on these nerves."
In September of 2010 Pedretti had entered the mare in her first competition. She was training all of the advanced movements at home but Renee had entered her in Novice to give her a no pressure first competition experience. "I took her to the competition grounds the day before the show to give me the opportunity to ride in the arena and settle in," she said. "In had been a very wet winter and the grounds and arenas were under water. I gave her a short lunge. However it was so boggy that I decided to just get on, I trusted that she would relax once I was on her. So I got on and started trotting her around the arena and after only a few minutes she was suddenly standing on her hind legs. As I was not prepared for such a reaction I was unable to get my arms around her neck. She then went down and threw in a buck which unseated me and then reared again. This time I was holding on only by the reins, it seemed like forever that she was standing there. In the moment I decided it was best to bail as I didn’t want to pull her over on top of me. I threw myself off and landed on my lower back. I knew instantly that I had done some damage and sure enough a few moments later the pain kicked in."
Pedretti was taken by ambulance to hospital where she was told that she had sustained fractures in ger sacrum on both sides. Standard procedure was three months off and then she could start riding again. With many mixed emotions over those three months, from anxiety at the thought of getting back on, to not wanting to ride anymore at all, Renee was also quite depressed over the fact that all she had ever done during her life was ride and had no idea what life would be without horses "I had no other training in any other field so when faced with the situation of not being able to ride professionally anymore, I had no idea what I would do," she admitted.
Given the all clear to return to the saddle, Renee was in a dilemma which horse to ride first. Her other horse, an imported gelding, was far too powerful for her to ride while she was still weak, so she turned him out and started riding a quiet mare that her mum purchased. "This gave me the opportunity to not only build up my core strength but also my confidence," she confessed. "I have had a few physical and mental setbacks during this time but I now have my gelding back in work, and I am really enjoying riding and training him at the moment."
Admitting that it was her fault, Renee says the mare was quite stressed after the float trip and the stable allocations had not been as required, but she took for granted the trust the horse had put in her in the past. "In hindsight, I should have probably not gone to the competition. The weather conditions were so bad and the arenas were under water, but when you have an obligation to a sponsor to be out competing you make decisions based on other's expectations rather than what you feel is right," she explained.
Previously driven by the dream to represent her country in the sport she loves, Renee took a year away from horses and got an office job. Slowly over time she could feel that desire and want returning. "Obviously as a serious competition rider you want to create the best you can with your horse. As a horse has its own mind and sometimes objects to being through or in front of your leg or just finds things a bit hard and they will react in a way that can trigger those fears. For me I could not handle riding a horse and not being able to ride them through these moments," she said.
About three months ago Renee found herfelf in a situation in which the horse she was riding in a clinic was finding the canter a bit hard when she asked her to take more weight on her hind legs. The horse did a couple of leaps in the air which Renee managed to ride through. "Then she just suddenly stopped and did a very little rear; that was enough to trigger my mind," Renee remembered. "In the moment a quick flexion aid and kick probably would have kept her going and we would have got past that. In my mind I knew what I wanted to do but I just couldn’t stop my body from just grabbing onto her neck. This was enough for her to realise she could use this to get out of the work and within a few minutes I couldn’t even get her to walk without her doing a small rear. This really hit me hard as I believed that I had got over my fear and was riding confidently again, the realisation that this was not the case and that in the moment I might never be able to get a horse to work like I used to. That is the greatest fear that I am still working with today. What I have found to be the best way to build up my confidence is to keep pushing myself outside of my boundaries within reason. Each time I do this I can feel my confidence growing again."
Believing that once you understand fear it becomes easier to deal with, Renee does not look at fear as a negative, as it has enabled her to become much more aware of her horse and how he is feeling. "In a way it is actually a positive as I feel the way that I am training now is with a much more understanding attitude towards the horse," she said. "I know there will be times when I will just have to push them through but on the whole I think this perspective has had a very positive effect on the horses I am riding. For example, I rode my gelding in a four day clinic and each day he got better and better, I didn’t want to lose what I had got out of the lessons so I rode him for the following two days. The first day he was quite good but a little bit stressed the second day he was very hot and I could feel the fear of “What am I doing wrong, how is he going to react?” kicking in. Then I thought about it and decided that six days in the same arena doing the same thing was probably just too much for his mind so the following day I free jumped him. After that he was great again. So now I make sure I don’t do more than three days in a row in the arena and he is happy! I even got really brave and jumped him myself and it was so much fun!"
Renee admits that the desire to go out and compete is certainly coming back, but she is not in a hurry as she is really enjoying the training. "Fortunately for me that is the part I really love once again," she said.
Controling Fear with Sports Psychology
With a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology, specializing in Sport Psychology, Seana Adamson has been training dressage and event horses for over 30 years and knows that fear plays a major role in equestrian sport. "There are two types of fear. Physical fear is the fear of physical injury, while performance anxiety is the fear of performing badly, both of which are inherent in dressage," Adamson explained.
According to Seana, physical fear often arises following an injury, or can even be the result of witnessing a traumatic riding incident. "It is also common to feel physical fear when you are being over challenged. For example if you do not have the proper skill set to perform the task you're attempting."
Acknowledging that it is quite common to become more aware of physical fear as you grow older, Seana says the other type of fear is more connecting to personality type, rather than the age of the rider. "Performance anxiety stems from the desire to do well. Unfortunately if you "TRY" too hard it can have a detrimental effect. Many professionals have tremendous pressure put on them to achieve particular results as competitive outcomes can have a huge effect on business and livelihood."
Everyone wants to perform their best when they're on stage and Seana knows that the body's natural response to this athletic drive can cause both good and bad hormonal reactions. "The body responds to an athlete's desire by releasing a flood of hormones and neurotransmitters which can have a dramatic effect on both strength and coordination," she explained. "If you learn how to use this hormonal cocktail to your advantage it can help you produce a peak performance. However if you get too worked up, and the cocktail gets too strong, then the result can present a major weakness in lack of coordination, and an inability to focus."
Stressing that fear can often provide some important wisdom, Seana suggests talking with your fear to see if it has something valid to say. "It might say, "wear your helmet" or "lunge the young horse a couple extra minutes today before you get on"...sage advice! You first need to listen to your fear, and then argue with it if you don't agree. You don't have to follow it blindly, but make sure to pay attention, even for a moment, to what it is telling you."
While any rider at any level can experience fear, a top rider will continue to persevere through their fear, but Seana warns that the cost can be very high due to the state of stress this creates in the body. "This drive to persevere can begin to progress to a chronic Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, similar to that of a soldier enduring numerous front line deployments. There is an increase in depression, anxiety, sleep disruption, and emotional issues."
To reduce stress and fear in patients, Seana suggests relaxation routines and breathing exercises, that will help to turn down the hormonal cocktail that your body produces in response to fear. "These exercises are a good starting point, but if your fear is persistent, then seek professional help," she said. "If there is not a qualified therapist in your area then try doing an email or telephone consultation with a sport psychologist. Many have web sites and offer a variety of services."
With Seana's advice in mind, I come to my final point. As a kid I used to always ride in a helmet, but as I reached a certain age I found some sort of liberty, or perhaps I'd just seen my heroes riding without a helmet. I recently discovered, thanks to my mum, that this is ridiculous, and in her words it comes down to two main factors: "The helmets these days are so light weight and comfortable, in my day they were big heavy things that didn't even stay on when you fell off anyway" and "You won't be a good rider if you are laid out on a stretcher!" Harsh, but reality.
by Sarah Warne for Eurodressage
Related Links
Classical Training: The Art of Letting Go - Part III
Classical Training: The Art of Letting Go - Part II
Classical Training: The Art of Letting Go