A six-year-old boy has been hospitalised after a dirt bike drove at him and his pony, while doing a wheelie.
Unconscious
Jake Marriner fell unconscious after being slammed into the road, face first, when he fell from his pony during the incident.
According to mum Christine Marriner, although her son is back home, Jake is traumatised by the event and has been waking in the night, screaming.
The nightmare started when Jake went out for a hack on his pony Molly on Tuesday 19 Jan at 4.30pm in Carshalton, Surrey. Christine was leading them, while 17-year-old Katie was riding in front.
Galloped off
Christine told H&C she saw the dirt bike down the road, where the driver was revving the engine. She advised Katie to get on the pavement, to let him go past, but that was when disaster struck.
“He stopped right by us, and then did a wheelie across the road directly towards Katie,” said Christine who was a jockey for 12 years. “But her horse spun round and took me clean off my feet. She then galloped off down the road.”
Christine let go of Molly as she fell and the pony took off in trot, in hot pursuit of Katie.
To Christine’s horror a car was approaching in the opposite direction – heading straight for her son and his pony.
‘Screaming’
“I was screaming, watching them go towards the car,” said Christine. “I felt awful letting go of Molly, but I got trampled on and have a massive bruise where the horse trod on me.”
Katy’s pony darted across the road to avoid the car, causing Molly to change direction to keep up. Jake was flung to the ground, splitting his hat open in the process.
“Can you imagine what would had happened if he hadn’t been wearing his hat,” said Christine, clearly still shaken. “I dialled 999 and am ambulance took him St Helier Hospital down the road.”
To add insult to injury, the biker turned round and came past the riders again, this time making an obscene gesture and laughing.
Supreme Champion
Thankfully Jake suffered no serious injuries in the fall, although he lost consciousness later that evening and had to stay over night to be treated for concussion. Molly was also unhurt.
“He came home yesterday and I had him in bed with me last night, but he’s waking up screaming, he’s so scared,” said Christine. “It was just horrific.”
Christine hopes that in time Jake will get over the trauma of the event. He started riding when he was four and has had Molly for a year-and-a-half, wining many rosettes together, including Supreme Champion at a local show in Warlingham.
‘Dream team’
“I’ve arranged a session with a confidence instructor to help get him back in the saddle,” said Christine. “I would never make him get back on but I would love him to ride Molly again. They have had a lot of fun together – they are my dream team.”
Christine realises things could have been so much worse if Jake hasn’t been wearing a riding helmet. “If anything comes out of this it’s highlighting the importance of wearing a hat,” she stated.
“Molly is an absolute diamond, and she adores Jake, but this just shows it doesn’t matter how good your pony is, accidents can happen.”
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