is horse riding more dangerous than riding a motorcycle?

Answer 1

I think a motorcycle is by far more dangerous

Answer 2

Well, both are dangerous....but a horse is a living breathing creature with a mind of it's own. It can suddenly react to a situation in a way that you are not expecting. The horse is also bigger, stronger, and usually smarter than you are. I think the ability of a horse to think is what gives riding a more dangerous aspect. Horses are unpredictable. Even the sweetest, most bomb proof horse can suddenly "go crazy".

However, motorcyclists have to worry about all the other morons on the road who are bad drivers or not paying attention, which is where the danger comes in. However, the motorcycle will only do what you tell it to. It doesn't (usually, unless there is a probelem or something) have a mind of it's own and is unpredictable.

I think in both sports a helmet is the best investment you can make!

Answer 3

I believe that riding a motorcycle is inherently more dangerous than riding a horse, particularly if we exclude riding racehorses of any kind from consideration. Which I believe we should, since most average people will never get closer to a racehorse than being a "railbird".

Motorcycles, on average, travel faster than horses, which means that anything that happens to the motorcycle involves greater energy than anything happening to a horse. Put another way, most speed limits on streets are a minimum of 25 MPH and can be as high as 65 MPH. Your average pleasure riding or show horse is doing good to make 20 MPH for short distances. (Yes, racehorses can go a good deal faster, but most pleasure horses can't approach the speed of a racehorse even if they're going downhill with a tailwind.)

Also, motorcycles are typically moving on a harder surface than horses move on, which means that in an accident, the rider is falling onto a less forgiving surface.

And the final issue: motorcycles are usually running on roads with other vehicles which are large, hard and also travelling at higher speeds than horses go.

All of those factors combine to make the injuries likely to be sustained in a motorcycle accident much worse than those a person on a horse is likely to sustain.

I've personally seen two motorcyclists get killed in accidents. In neither case was the motorcyclist at fault, and in both cases the motorcycle was hit by a car. The worst injuries I've seen people get from horseback accidents were a concussion one rider got when thrown into a fence by a spooked horse and a broken leg another got in a fall where she hit a fence.

Horses do have the unpredictability thing going for them, which motorcycles do not, but I think the other factors I've mentioned more than trump unpredictability.

Answer 4

NO. Riding a horse is much, much safer than riding a motorcycle, provided that proper precautions ( such as wearing proper footwear and a well fitted helmet ) are taken. Most horseback riders work or ride in a confined, enclosed area, unless they are either racing or are event riders on a cross country course, or they are foxhunters who ride to hounds cross country. Being in a confined space limits the speeds at which one can go, and this helps protect both horse and rider. With a motocycle, the rider can go almost anywhere, and there are no speed limits unless the person is on a public street or highway. Either way, however, falls can seriously injure or kill a person. Also, motorcycles do exactly what they are told to do, because they are machines and can't think on their own. If you make a motorcycle go off the road and hit something, it will do just that, without question. A horse is less likely to deliberately put itself and its rider in danger, simply because horses are living animals with an instinct for self-preservation, something a motorcycle will never have. It is interesting to note that many insurance companies will insure people who ride motorcycles for injuries sustained in such an activity,but at the same time, those companies also consider horseback riding to be dangerous and WON'T pay claims for injuries that result from it. That isn't fair, considering that most people who ride a lot are far from beginners, and they really are in no more danger from the sport than they would be driving a car. Yes, horses have minds of their own, but to say that the sport of riding is dangerous because of this is ridiculous. It's what a person DOES with the horse and to the horse that makes riding safe or increases the risk. Motorcycles have no feelings, no voice, and can't think on their own. There are plenty of dangerous things associated with riding them- and perhaps the worst one involves those who for whatever reason choose NOT to wear a helmet. Nowadays, helmets are lightweight, breathable, and have been designed to allow the wearer to see and be comfortable with them in place- and it is really foolish not to wear them. Motorcycles can be dangerous in traffic, particularly traffic on an interstate, because they are hard for drivers to see, especially at night or in bad weather. Horses, on the other hand, are always very visible because of their size. Most people who ride don't usually ride at night, either, unless they have a lighted indoor or outdoor arena. Such places are almost always off-limits to cars and motorcycles, which makes them safer. I don't believe that riding a horse is more dangerous- I think it is the other way around.

Answer 5

It depends on what you're doing on each.

If you're a beginner riding green horses, then horse riding is dangerous. If you're riding your motorcycle at high speeds, it's dangerous. But if you're doing either safely and reasonably, then neither is dangerous... not really anyway.

You're probably going to fall off your horse more often than you are your motorcycle... because the horse thinks for itself and you control the motorcycle. But I think a horse fall is less dangerous than a motorcycle fall. If you fall from your motorcycle, it's heavy and could land on you while a horse would likely canter away or stand beside you. Also if you fall from the motorcycle, it's probably because of a traffic accident. You'll probably fly away from the motorcycle and break something when you land, and you could be hit by another vehicle. Very rarely will a horse fall on top of a person and it's pretty rare for a person to break something when they fall. Most of the time there's bruises and maybe scrapes, but the majority of falls end in nothing more than those injuries.

If you're riding a horse at a level beyond your skill, you're likely to get hurt a lot worse than a person riding at their skill level. But it's the same for a motorcycle. If you've never ridden one and you get on the highway right away, it's a lot more dangerous than starting out slow.

So I don't think horse riding is inherently more dangerous than riding a motorcycle, but doing either stupidly is very dangerous. But you could do either all your life and never get hurt if you've done it safely.

Answer 6

Everyone keeps mentioning motorcycles are used on the road, so that makes them more dangerous. I trail ride my Paso, I jump my Thoroughbred, and I've been riding for 25+ years. I've had several concussions (two severe concussions), a bruised shoulder, a busted hand, broken teeth, fractured jaw, shattered femur, dislocated hip, separated the cartilage in my knee, pinched nerve in my elbow, broken and bruised ribs, broken toes, sprained wrist, and a bruised kidney after being kicked in the back.

The last time I fell off, I was trail riding my Paso on the road and he spooked at a car, throwing me into oncoming traffic. I wasn't wearing a helmet and my head hit the road. Four years ago, my Thoroughbred stumbled in a full gallop and I came off. The doctors figured I hit the ground going 30-35mph.

My brother rides a Harley, thankfully he's never been hurt.

Just know the three most dangerous activities are horseback riding, motorcycling, and car racing. The difference between all of them, is the horse can think for itself.

Answer 7

As most people have said, there are inherent risks in both activities (as in any sport activity). As an equestrian I have been thrown, kicked, stepped on, bitten, butted, brushed off and fallen on, and have been very lucky to only have chipped a tooth and broken a few ribs in the process. So it depends mostly on your definition of danger. I would say motorcycle riding is probably more likely to result in fatal injury than horseback riding because of the speed involved, not to mention the inherent risk of riding on the road (MUCH harder/rougher surface breaking your fall, and all the other uncontrollable factors like traffic). Of course it depends largely on the style of horseback riding you do, too. Steeplechasers and racers are likely to be trampled if they fall off, while cross-country riders, eventers and stadium jumpers all run the risk of being thrown violently into a jump if the horse refuses (most now wear vests in addition to helmets). Barrel racers are more likely to be fallen on if the horse slips. Dressage riders and other flat riders are probably the safest riders. I've ridden dressage now for years and haven't fallen off since making the switch. My injuries since starting dressage are exclusively on-the-ground mishaps. So my danger-vote goes to the motorcycle.

Answer 8

both are dangerous.
i've never rode a motorcycle but i do ride horses. if you ride for enjoyment it's not too dangerous. theres a possibility you could fall off an break your arm but nothing too serious. but there is deffinate danger when racing horses.

Answer 9

Horse Riding is more safe because there are no Cars in the fields where you ride a horse. MotorCycle is More Dangerous because there are many cars in street whan you fall maybe you will die because of the car bump you!

Answer 10

both are dangerous but id rather be thrown off a horse than wreck on a motorcycle. mainly b/c the chances of survival are far greater off the horse as opposed to a bike due to the speed.

Answer 11

I ride both.
And in my opinion the motorcycle is safer.
You know that you are making all the decisions on it. It does not have a brain and is not spooked by things.
The horse is 1200 pounds and has a mind of it's own and can be spooked by things.
My motor cycle has never spooked at anything.