I started doing pick-up-the-waterbottle-type exercises after about a year and a half of cycling more seriously... on pavement, not grass, mind you. I could have started trying earlier. I also got to try bike-polo (yeah, like polo on a horse, but on a bike...), on the grass though.

These are good skills to practice. Like doing figure-8s with your bike (on both sides), trying to make smaller and smaller circles, etc.

And, no, I could never pick up the *"/$( bottle, but almost did. I also fell off my bike once when I locked my left foot into my wheel. That's life. But I did learn lots of skills. I should be practicing more...