If side reins are used correctly the horse can trip, it can get startled. It does not hit the side rein as the side rein is not there to be hit by a horse that does not understand.
My boy was taught to stand still if he got a fright. He was being lunged in side reins. The dog from next door came under our fence and attacked him from behind. I saw it happening so I screamed at it and brought the lunge whip down as hard as I could on the dog now right behind by OTTTB.
He halted and stood while I continued to yell at the dog, chase him with the lunge whip and send him home. I had dropped the lunge rein.
The dog goes home. The horse gets praised. Good Boy. A stroke on the neck. The lunge rein is picked up again and the horse sent on.
I had a mare who slipped and came down on her side. She was able to get up again and continue on as if nothing had happened. This same mare also tripped often and slid. I did not have an arena. I had a paddock frequented by cows. She would trip on dry cow manure and slip on wet cow manure.
This could have happened any time in their training. They still would not have hit the side reins as I never set them where that will happen. I have been trained properly.
People not trained properly tighten the side reins as ‘they are not working where they are set’. The horse trips, surges forward, panics or whatever and hit the bit as the side rein is set incorrectly for that horse. The horse goes up and over backwards. This is not the fault of the horse or the side rein. It is the fault of the person using the side rein. The horse can be maimed by what it lands on, it can be killed if it lands wrong. Anything can happen from there.
It is the same argument as guns don’t kill people. People kill people using guns.
Side reins should only be used when lunging. Only in trot and canter and this can be with or without a rider. The rider does not have reins attached to the bit.
