Horseback riding was likely a common activity as early as 4500 to 5000 years ago

>But who first had the bright idea of trying to ride a large, potentially dangerous animal like a horse? Anthony thinks it's something that would only occur to someone looking for a thrill, someone who wouldn't mind repeatedly getting thrown off.

>"If you were, say, 12 years old, you know, and your sense of fear was not as highly developed," says Anthony, adding that he thinks the first people to ride horses "were probably adolescents who were challenging each other to try again."