I've camped for over 40 years and tied to many a hitching rail. I'm only posting this so that other riders can avoid what happened to our group while riding down in TN.  

     We had ridden all day and were trying to avoid riding the highway back to camp. We tied our horses to 3 different hitching rails at a convenience/camping area to ask for directions and get a soft drink. What spooked the horses is anyone's guess, but off they bolted still tied to the huge rails which were actually logs. Miracles do happen as had anyone been in the open area, they'd surely have been seriously injured and most likely killed. Luckily, the horses stopped just short of the busy highway. My horse is seriously injured, but we are thankful that no humans were.  

     I'm without a riding horse, but when I resume I will thoroughly inspect the hitching rails before ever tying up again. Please take note, and I pray that none of you riders will ever experience what our group just did.

      The "after" pic was taken from where the horses stood. The 2 horses only took out the top rail while you see nothing standing to the right where our 3 horses were tied. The 6th horse didn't take off at all, and I'd say he is worth 10 x his real value.

Crowleysridgegirl, Tks for the kind sentiment. We are located only 30 miles from the University of Illinois veterinary teaching hospital. I've already placed a call for an appt. to have him evaluated.  Hoping he doesn't have to be put down. We are lucky that no people were trampled, so we are all very thankful.

Pooperscooper, (I love your login!)

    That sounds SO awful, and I'm so sorry about your hubby's horse. Thank goodness you were able to get it safely to a vet. I'm sure your horse's wound is healing by now, but I'm sending you a PM about some wound spray that friends brought over for me. They've managed a barn of expensive race horses for years and swear by this spray. They've seen lots of injuries over the years and know it works. Plus, it keeps flies off the open wounds.

     My horse sustained numerous cuts, but the impact blow to the front leg's tendon is the problem...we think. The numerous cuts were in bad places~puncture to the knee and a cut down to the tendon sheath. Other cuts were more minor. I did have an emergency vet call the evening of the injury, and am waiting on a call back from the University of Illinois vet hospital to have an evaluation and possible course of action. I am not overly optomistic. 

I know how I would feel if that were my beloved saddle mare,we just finished a weekend in MO riding and she takes SUCH care with me. Will be praying that your horse will be spared what you may be thinking,and that God will give you and your bud a miracle!

I hope your horse recovers.

We has a similiar incident when riding out of Cedar Lake in Heavener, OK. There is a bar that you can ride to from camp and we decided to stop for a drink and tied to several hitching post at the bar.  On one post we had two horses tied and when a dump truck came by it spooked one horse. He up rooted the hitching post and a tug-of-war began between these two horses. The post where not that deep in the ground. The horse owner then tied his horse to the post on the front porch of the bar. When the dump truck came back the horse pulled back so hard he broke the lead rope and flipped backwards. That is when we decided to head back down the trail ( the dump truck may not be finished for the day and we couldn't take any more excitement).

Again I hope your horse recovers.

Good Riding

   Tks for your kind words. 2 riders in our group were sitting right in front of the horses when our train wreck began. They are still baffled as to what caused the explosion.

    I just got back from taking my horse up to the University of Illinois vet hospital to be evaluated. There is so much swelling that a sonogram would fail to show exactly what is going on in the leg. So they are administering strong antibiotics and pressure wrapping. He will be up there for several days, and then hopefully I can learn the extent of the damage. I feel I did the right thing at this point.

Yeehaw, How terrribly awful to have to watch your horse succumb to such a demise. My heart goes out to that gentleman. I'm sure that's an image that still haunts him. I woke up at 1:30 last night dreaming I was back at the stall in TN swatting flies to keep them off my horse. Then the scene of our runaways with those rails bouncing wildly as the horses jumped like jackrabbits crept into my mind. Think I got to sleep again at 4.

In the case you described, the fellow's horse probably felt as it was being attacked by loud angy monsters. Wonder if the 4-wheelers ever realized what transpired? So sad.

The gentleman is just lucky the Forest Service didn't require him to remove the corpse. I've always felt that was pretty mean to require a horse owner who just lost a long time pet to remove the dead animal. But I can understand that it really affect many hikers, and other outdoors people that might use that same area for the next few months.

   We were tied up at True West in BSF asking for a shortcut back to camp so we could avoid riding the highway. These were calm and tired horses, so what caused such a horrific chain reaction is totally beyond us. Two of our group were sitting on the porch watching over them.

   I've camped a lot of times at Brown County and always regarded their hitching posts as very secure. But a horse is a mighty strong animal especially when the fight/flight instinct kicks in. That had to be a terrible situation to witness.

    Oops, make that "True West" at Big South Fork, TN. Wrong state. Just happened to notice that.

    I am horse shopping. Actually, two of the friends I camped with and whose horses also bolted, snuck off last week to check out and ride a "new" horse for me.  Don't know too many of the particulars just yet, but I'll check it out myself. It's great having good friends to help heal the soul. I am thankful.

     Not as of yet. After weeks of complete stall rest, I was able to begin hand walking him 3x/day around the yard where it's nice and level. We live in the country and have a big yard which is adjacent to Hubby's aunt and uncle. So I have a nice area to walk him in. Well, Murphy's Law.....just as we were almost back to the barn, a truck went by on the road pulling a rattly implement. Quiz lurched and came up limping a lot. He's never been spooky, and the jump took me by total surprise. So it's a definite setback.

     His vet surgeon is on vacation till first week of July when we'll go back to the vet hospital. I hope to know more then.

     Thank you so much for asking. I still am in disbelief over such calm and very tired horses got so spooked with two of our group sitting just few feet away and saw nothing. All I can do is hope to find a trail gelding with a good temperament and willing to go out alone without a fuss. The rest will be time and effort.

    Update....can't sleep after a tough day. Contemplating whether to put my horse down or wait it out. Quiz will never ride the trails again. At best, he'll be able to be ambulatory on four legs, maybe. At the vet hospital, he was fitted with a special shoe to ease pressure on what's left of his foreleg tendons. So today, his regular farrier was here to trim his other three feet. It was extremely painful for Quiz to exert so much weight on his injured leg so the good front leg could be trimmed and reshod. I left Hubby to hold his head, and my super quiet gentle horse repeatedly tried to bite Hubby. I had to leave because I couldn't watch. I can dress wounds, but I simply don't have the withall to see human nor animal suffer. I worked in a hospital, and that has always been the case.

     I can't sleep reliving the accident, the pain my horse is going through and the three "goose chases" in pursuit of finding a new horse.