Irrational fear of hacking (a bit long, sorry)

[theocat]

A plea for your experiences / advice!

I've been riding for a fairly considerable time (twenty-odd years), and would consider myself to be a competent intermediate. I have experience with a wide range of horses and situations, and am generally pretty happy in the saddle, although I've never been one of those devil-may-care overconfident types! I'm currently riding a young, green horse - a six-year-old fairly forward-going cob - for its owner, and concentrating almost exclusively on schooling.

At the end of last week, we went for a hack. I wasn't happy before we set off, and spent the entire ride feeling nervous and tense, to the obvious detriment of the horse, who became equally tense and hollow. We stayed in walk, and absolutely nothing happened.

By the time we got back to the yard, I'd worked myself to a pitch where I'd decided I didn't want to hack him again - I was just horribly, horribly tense and nervous, and while I'm like that I won't be doing him any good at all.

Luckily there's an older horse I can borrow to hack, while a friend hacks the cob. We did that last night, and I could see how chilled out he was, but even on the older horse I'm still far too tense and nervous.

I've always disliked hacking, but this fear seems to have come out of nowhere. To be honest, I feel like a bit of a fool - I just wondered if this had happened to anyone else, and how you got over it? Personally, I'd happily never hack again, but that would get a bit dull for the horse, so I'd like to do something about it! Any comments would be very welcome.

Sorry it's long - you can have the other half of my twix if you got this far!

 

[Marusenka]

I've been just as bad about hacking- had a very bad experience on a horse with it bolting down a main road and getting me off and that put hacking on hold for me for a long time!

I then got my youngster and decided that I couldn't not hack him out as that would be so boring for him and he would be missing a large part of his education so i decided to bite the bullet and just go for it! Granted i was a horrible nervous wreck for a good few weeks but i found some great people at the yard with safe horses that he could follow and so me being a big wuss did not phase him too much! I had to physically force myself to go out every day for a week and then left it a bit longer between and after a few months i was finally confident enough and knew my horse a lot more to brave hacking on our own!

Now we go off on our own or with others regularly and conquering that has made our bond a lot stronger. I would say that i am far more confident hacking him than others as i know him and so that has helped a lot!

Pointless reply really but just to say that others have been in that situation and you can get over it with succesful rides- just try not to push yourself too much and if ever you do feel totally unsafe don't feel bad about getting off! I'm sure if you do it a bit more and build a bond with the horse it will all work out fine!

 

[Riley Roo]

I have the same irrational fear of hacking.

I just take little steps and build up my confidence - i'm still not going very far at the moment but i will get further - it just takes time.

A lot of people have advised me to take rescue remedy which i have not taken yet but a lot of people have sworn by it. Perhaps it would be worth having a few drops before you go on another hack just to calm you a little as you're obviously tense which will make your hack worse - believe me i know!!

You are an experienced rider so i presume you're capable of dealing with anything that might crop up on a hack? Practise one rein stops in the school to help if a horse bolts - it gave me more confidence and really works when Riley is being nappy.

Lastly try and work out what it is that you are nervous about - traffic, bolting, rearing, bucking etc? And workout in advance how you would deal with that situation so that you are prepared for it which will make you feel a little more confident - try not to worry about the what if's - and breathe x

Good luck x

 

[MaisieMoo]

I also have a fear of hacking but only on the road, I'm fine in fields/open spaces- I'm fine in all other aspects of riding including jumping. I find this odd as I have fallen off while jumping more times that I care to remember but never fallen off while hacking on the road. I thought I'd over come my fear and was getting out and about on my own, albeit we were only going for short hacks but I was feeling confident and them my boy did a spook/bolt/nap on the road and carted me 200 yards before I could stop him. I've not done much road work since then as we have direct access into a forest which we can use when it's dry but with all this rain I'm thinking I may have to force myself to go on the roads again.

I have just borrowed a hacking with confidence cd so I'll let you know how that works out!

 

[Skib]

This post is from someone addicted to hacking. It isn't irrational to be frightened of hacking - because the risks are greater than riding in a school. Hacking has similarities to riding a bike or driving a car. Even when you choose your route, you cant be prepared for all eventualities.
So the first secret of happy hacking is that you must want to do it? In spite of the falls. It isn't compulsory.
Those of us who hack do so because, like other forms of travel, riding through a landscape on a horse brings us pleasure - like similar outdoor leisure activities of walking or mountaineering.
So the first question is whether you don't like hacking? Or whether you don't like the way your horse behaves out hacking?

If you are confused about what frightens you, I'd suggest booking a trail ride to remove the unpredictable horse from the equation. Most trail ride centres or schools that hack daily have horses that are used to the route and wont spook. You can book to go just in walk or walk trot. Very calming on the nerves.

If you decide you enjoy riding out in the open on a safe horse, then the next step is to recognise that hacking is a discipline like any other. Just as in dressage and jumping, a horse has to be taught to hack out. You need to school your horse gradually, to accustom it to your routes, to unpredictable stimulae, and to respond to the aids one needs out hacking - mainly brakes.
Stands to reason your 6 year old loan horse is not an old hand at hacking.

But that is not the whole answer to the question of nerves out hacking.
I feel one of the main causes of anxiety about hacking is the tendency for hacking to be regarded as a casual outing for you and your horse. It is time off work.
If you ride with a friend the odds are that you will be chatting. And you are distracted from the horse, by the social situation.
The horse is left in limbo.

You say you are doing it to stop the horse getting bored in the school. But
I guess this chilling out or total recreation contributes to panic. Neither you nor your horse have anything to occupy your mind while you hack except the possibility of something going wrong.

Hacking doesn't have to be like that. You can create activity out hacking just as easily as when riding in a school. A lot of the time my mind is packed with things I want to try with the horse - to remind her of - to experiment. I make demands on myself and my horse.

There was a gusty wind this morning and the mare was idle. So I rode masses of transitions. Throughout the hack. First from walk to trot to get her going forward, but then canter trot, canter - counting the exact number of strides.

Once she was heading home with more alacrity, I rejected canter and trotted instead, alternating rising trot with sitting jog. Very important that a horse out hacking doesn't assume that you want canter every time you sit to trot.

Was I nervous this morning? Yes - not of the horse but of the old timber. Because of high wind, I decided we wouldn't take the route home through the wood, there is a danger of falling branches. I don't want a rescue remedy to blot out my intelligence and natural instinct for self preservation.

In your case since you are an experienced rider, you may not choose to polish transitions - but you could work out whether there is something that your young horse can gain from going out?
Learning to trot or canter round corners or how to cope with hills or puddles? Or give the requested canter lead on a straight bridle track? Or leg yield and shoulder in. If you are teaching the horse, and "improving" the horse then you are putting yourself back into control.

This going outside the school is not something you need to endure to give a horse pleasure. He has to benefit and work outdoors, just as inside. I gather that people get eventers fit by hacking them and hunting them. There has to be an equestrian purpose.
I don't exist to give horses an interest in life. I pay money and the mare gives me an interest.

When asked why he likes hacking, my OH says, It is a grand thing to see the world from up there. Men have always enhanced their status by raising themselves on the back of a horse.

You are always going to dislike hacking unless you get more out of it than you put in.

 

[eventerbabe]

i agree with the increased risks being part of hacking fear. My mind races when i think about the damage one ignorant driver could do to my horse. My friend/RI lost her horse after she was involved in a road accident which only exacerbated things when i moved to my current yard (with excellent hacking!) i set myself baby steps. To start with, it was once round the farmyard quietly and calmly. Then round the yard and out the back track to the road, then yard, track, along the road and to the wood next door. If i got freaked out i'd go back a step.

 

[puzzles]

I too am not as confident as I would like hacking, building up over the years subconsciously from being bolted with and having a few nasty incidents occur whilst at speed out hacking.
Also, now that I hack alone and being with my non-horsey mum, I feel very responsible - what a difference it makes when you're with a confident person who is older and who you trust, as it makes you feel much safer should anything happen!
To be honest, it's a perfectly rational fear - anything could happen and riding is a dangerous sport.
You could try hacking out with someone you trust and get on with, who is confident but happy to go at your pace, on a reliable horse.
You could also try having some lessons on a reliable, safe horse so that you can work on making your aids and position as effective as possible to help you in an undesirable situation, and also make sure you wear a proper hat and body protector. You can also put a neckstrap (a stirrup leather will do perfectly) around your horse's neck to hold onto for extra stability should you need it.
Practise visualising your perfect hack before you fall asleep, when you're having a sit-down or on your lunch break. Remind yourself (ask for help with this if you're struggling) of all the positive things about hacking, and why you do it: benefits for both yourself, and your horse.
Knowing that you are doing all you can to keep yourself safe will help to give you lots more confidence.
Fear usually comes from feeling incapable of dealing with a negative situation should it arise.
I recommend taking a few drops of Rescue Remedy on the back of your tongue an hour before, and just before, hacking out to help reduce anxiety and the feeling of panic.
Remember to breathe and relax. When you feel yourself tensing up - look up, sit up tall, close your eyes and breathe in deeply. So many of us forget to breathe when we are scared, and sing if you're struggling! Singing your favourite song will help you to think positively, breathe and relax.
Often butterflies, an increased heart rate and adrenalin rush is interpreted by riders as fear, but this can be a positive thing if you teach yourself to interpret it as excitement; the physical signs are pretty much the same, so how can you tell the difference?
Keep telling yourself that it is all in your head. There is no logical reason why anything negative should happen.
Having lessons and protecting yourself, and running the scariest scenarios through your head whilst thinking about how you would bets deal with that situation, will help you to feel in control and confident knowing that you can deal with such negative experiences.
It's also important to find out exactly what you are afraid of; being run off with? Feeling out of control? Being scared itself, or panicking? Not knowing what to do? Fear of the unknown? A mixture of any of these even!
Then, once you know exactly what you are afraid of, you are already 1 big step forward and can then negin to deal with that fear.

Good luck hun, you are not alone!

x

 

[LawlessMissyD]

*breathes a sigh of relief*

Im so glad the OP asked the question and that there have been replies - I too am someone that does not enjoy the idea of being out on a hack. I do know where the fear stems from though...
My big beautiful and sometimes BRAINLESS oaf of a horse decided it would be a goo idea to test his bronc skills out on my when we were out one day, in his defence we eventually realised it was an incorrectly fitted saddle and this problem has been rectified.
My phobia of it happening again though has not - so I am tense, nervous and not a pleasure to be around when we do anything but walk when out (I am, however, perfectly happy schooling him in all paces, including extended canter - go figure).

Like many have said above, I know Baron loves his hacks and that he is actually very well behaved (my previous sharer took him out on many occasions on both walks hacks, and then the more adventurous i.e. open fields with strong, controlled canters) - She never had any issues and swore blind it was probably just a once off.
So I have began working on 'baby-steps'! I go out with ppl who have sensible, well mannered 'been-there, done-it' hackers so I know I dont have to worry about the other horse setting him off.

Im still a nervous ninny but I am told, with time, it will get better...

 

[Miki]

I would continue riding the older horse on short hacks if you can, until you are clamer and it is more fun. Then You can try the one you are schooling. I had a similar fear of going fast and it really helped me to ride a calm horse. I knew nothing would happen and if I felt like I was going to fall he would stop. It worked wonders, eventually.

 

[Jenny2502]

Wow thanks for posting this question, i too am a nervous ninny hacker. I used to love it, in fact I was the one asking "can we gallop can we?" now the very thought of it makes me feel sick.
I know i'm going to get back into it and enjoy it and i know puzzle is 99% safe to hack but putting it all together argh!
i too need to take baby steps and need to go out with some good, safe neds and riders.
keep us posted everyone! and tips.
also rescue remedy is great!!

 

[theocat]

Wow, what fantastic responses! It's actually just a huge relief to know I'm not alone! Special thanks to Skib and Puzzles, although you've all been great.

Thinking about it, my greatest fear the moment is having a pheasant fly out in front, which will cause his normal hacking mate to spin and bolt - straight over the top of us, and setting my horse off in turn. I've done a lot of hacking in the past on lots of safe riding-school types, and I've served time as a hack lead (which doesn't exactly lessen your awareness of risks!). When you're hacking as part of a riding school, it's difficult to improve the horse, which is where I think my dislike of hacking comes from (my enjoyment in riding comes from improvement) - and Skib is spot on about giving myself something to think about ... with other "non-riding school" horses I've worked with, I always did loads of transitions, leg-yielding, etc etc and I didn't get like this!

Thinking through what you've all said, I think my problems stem from the fact that our current hacking is limited to a very rough track, and we're therefore pretty much limited to just walk and halt - very difficult to give yourself something else to concentrate on! It's also a there-and-back, rather than a loop, which I loathe - too much of an excuse for horsy to try to charge for home!

I'll try to find some new routes that will allow me to incorporate some "schooling", and build up in baby steps as eventerbabe suggests, and I suspect that will do the trick.

Thanks again, everyone - especially for listening to my new ramblings in this post! I really appreciate it!

 

[cinammontoast]

Oh dear, why am I even buying a horse?!?!? Am the same after a nasty experience. A very experienced girl said to me yesterday that when (if!) I ever hack out again, I need to practise tons of transitions to make sure he'll stop when asked and go out with calm horses. She's gonna hack him today but it makes no odds cos she's a brilliant rider-doesn't mean I could cope with napping/tanking! I ued to really enjoy hacking but have never galloped: am going take it really slowly and also believe it's part of his education and that he'll be bored otherwise.