One Rein Stops!!

Just wondering how many times you've had to use a one rein stop when a horse bolts or tries to run away with you where if you wouldn't have done it you could have ended up in the next county. I want to hear your one rein stop stories!!

Here's mine. Today I rode this VERY HYPER Arabian. The weather has been very frigid all winter, but today was nice enough that you didn't even need a coat. It was muddy, and I had never rode the gelding before. We did a lot of work inside in the small pen before I got brave enough to take him outside. On the way to the pasture he spooked at anything and everything!

Finally we made it to the pasture. He was still a bit spooky, but not nearly as much. Then after about 15 minutes of riding around the pasture he freaks out and takes of bucking. I didn't expect it and went flying onto his neck and then out of the saddle, but I was fast enough to get a good hold and stay on. I was trying to pull his head around with my left hand. I knew I should probably double-up, but if I let go I would probably fall off because the saddle is too big and the stirrups are too long. I didn't want to pull him around too hard though because he was running odly and had more weight then he should of on his hind quarters and he's an odd colt still and I really didn't want him to fall. Eventually I got his head flexed around and got him to stop. We were both find, but very shook up.

Unfortanately my trainer saw the whole thing. I felt pretty dumb, but at least I stayed on Yeah, and this horse is going home tommorow to his owner. My trainer wants them to keep him there longer, but there isn't much he can do about it. I think I might show up and tell them what I think too!

For the first month or so after I got my current horse she had never been taught to whoa. The only way I could stop her was a one rein stop. The only time I had to do it was on my QH Fancy. We were out alone on a trail ride and she farted really loud, scared herself enough to bolt across a wheat field. It was the only way I could get her to stop.

I'm a huge fan of one rein stops! I teach them to every horse I get on. I use them pretty regularly and not just for emergencies. For example, a horse that jumps, drifts in, and cuts the corner? One rein stop to the outside at the end of the line teaches them to keep straight. Or if they drop their shoulder around the corner? One rein stop to the inside gets them off their inside shoulder (or one rein neck bend is actually better for this). Or if I get on a horse whose owner hangs on their mouth and teaches them to pull, I don't even regular stop the first couple of rides, I one rein stop until they realize that I'm not going to hang on them and they need to be soft.

I did have to use it on a paint horse I'm working with. There's a 6 ft privacy fence a couple of feet from our arena where someone was raking leaves (or something loud in the leaves) on the other side. You could barely see glimpses of him through the fence but my horse was convinced it was a monster. He leaped to the side and bolted so I one rein stopped, but as he turned he faced it again and tried to bolt again. So we were kind of running and leaping around a bit. :roll: But then he eventually stopped like was supposed to!

I'm sorry I had to laugh when I read that. It's really funny she scared herself.

My friend's horse did that, except it was after a lesson when we were all cooling down and all of our horses spooked ...

Ugh, not fun....

Its good for a horse to be taught a one rein stop. Me and my good friend Nana were out riding one day and we just riding through the woods and Poco stepped on the end of branch which just happened to pop up on the other end and smack him right between is hind legs. Boy was that the scarest thing ever. He bolt, rammed Nana's horses, then she bolted. I think went a good 200 yards before I could get his neck flexed enough for him to stop. Of coarse when I did Nana's horse ran into Poco and broke or horses bolt as well. If they arent taught a one rein stop it can be extremely difficult to get them to do it. Because I don't ride in a bit it made it even harder. Now Poco is trained to stop like when asked and does it perfect every time.

Yeah... no kidding. We were all riding around bareback, and I managed to get Dancer stopped so I could jump off and control her, but the horse who farted originally dumped his rider (he's 16.2hh) and her foot got caught in the rein... he dragged her for a good half of the arena before the rein snapped... she wasn't hurt badly, but still went to the ER.
Haha.. tecnhincally speaking it was a one-rein sna... er stop!

All because a horse farted..... hard to believe..... it's good no one was hurt badly though

Fancy used to do that all the time. She had the loudest farts I have ever heard from a horse. You could hear them from all the way across the pasture. Its no wonder she would scare herself
I remember another time I had to ORS Vida. We were riding at some friends ranch in the same pasture with their geldings. All of a sudden all the geldings (about 10 of them) came charging up behind us and Vida freaked out. I got her stopped and everyone was impressed I had stayed on her. I was kinda proud of myself too, it was a real crow hopping stop.