Twentyfive years ago I was driving a pony and trap along a country road ... plenty of room for two HGVs to pass each other so there shouldn't have been an issue ... pony was well used to being driven right through the centre of Newmarket on many occasions so was as near 'bomb proof' as it was possible to be.
A large lorry came from behind and slowed down and drove alongside us for at least a quarter of a mile revving the engine, my pony becoming more and more spooked by this... the friend with me got out of the trap and went to the pony's head to lead him ... we kept waving the driver on but he ignored us ... when we stopped he stopped and waved us on but as soon as we moved forwards he was alongside us again ... then he made his air-brakes make that wooshing sound ... understandably my pony tried to get away by going up the bank, turning my trap over and breaking one of the shafts and snapping some of his harness. I narrowly avoided being thrown under the lorry rear wheels ... the lorry revved up and drove off sounding his horn.
A terrifying experience for me and my pony who had, up until that time been absolutely safe in traffic ... he never was again ... he lost most of his value ... I daren't let children ride him on the road any more and I couldn't sell him as a children's pony ... the trap and harness cost hundreds of pounds to repair and I was unable to continue with a much loved past time.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
When my Son had the Farm at Appleton Wiske we had to stop taking the horses down the road. The Townies were gradually moving into the small villages around and then driving along the roads with no courtesy to any one, Horse riders, cyclists, Tractors and even when I was driving the horse box they would not give way. Every one behind a wheel be it cyclist or driver thinks they bought the road, imagine my shock looking in the rear view mirror seeing a car coming at speed with no driver. i started to speed up looking for a place to move in before being rear ended. Suddenly a head popped up a scream of brakes and the front of the car ended up over hanging a ditch. Stopping and walking back I saw a white faced woman two very frightened children and she had a phone in her hand. I dropped my phone on the floor she said, it only took a second to stoop and pick it up and suddenly you were in front of me. Are you blaming me I asked quietly then proceeded to give her a lecture on safe driving, just then the phone went, hang on I have to answer. I looked at the two children thinking some day your mother will kill you and walked away. I felt hopeless. Frank.
Generally here the drivers aren't too bad with the horses - of which there are many. The only horse riders I have an issue with as a rule are the ones that ride in pairs shouting at each other as they go, with three or 4 yappy dogs running round the horses' feet who are totally ignored and entirely out of control in any sort of emergency (such as meeting a dog walker whose dog doesn't like little yappy dogs).
My mum's dog ended up with a broken leg after one of these riders came past, their dog attacked my mum's dog and their horse spooked and trod on my mum's dog. Needless to say it wasn't their fault in their opinion.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
And don't get me started on the hunt dogs that follow a scent trail through my veg patch regularly because my garden is visited by foxes. We're supposed to doff our caps and thank m'lord for keeping us safe from the killer foxes.
If you can keep your head, while those around you are losing theirs, you may not have grasped the seriousness of the situation.
And don't get me started on the hunt dogs that follow a scent trail through my veg patch regularly because my garden is visited by foxes. We're supposed to doff our caps and thank m'lord for keeping us safe from the killer foxes.
That would make me distinctly curmudgeonly.
I've not seen a fox hunt close by here, it's all stag hunts in these fields (there are two plus the junior 'buck hounds' hunt). The red deer can jump our 2m fences but generally don't. The stag hounds haven't come in to the garden so far, fortunately.
Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Scamp had been quite a valuable pony ... a pure bred Exmoor Ride & Drive ... he eventually went to live at a stables on the coast where they did beach trekking ... no chance of traffic there hopefully ... although I'll wager he molested a good few picnickers ... he was very greedy.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Funnily enough , I WAS asked " how would you overtake a horse" at my driving test. Having lived in Greenock all my life before that, I think I'd only ever seen about 2 horses in my life, neither were on the road. I answered: " As I would a small child on a bicycle, very slowly and patiently, expecting the unexpected and giving as much room as possible"
The overwhelming majority of both drivers and riders I've come across are perfectly courteous to each other, but I think there should be an age limit on riders on a public road. I heard a radio phone on in recently where a caller said " my 9 year old daughter regularly rides her pony on the road " 9 years old? really? totally able to control her pony should it bolt? avoiding all risk of danger to herself, her pony and everyone else around? I think not.
... but I think there should be an age limit on riders on a public road. I heard a radio phone on in recently where a caller said " my 9 year old daughter regularly rides her pony on the road " 9 years old? really? totally able to control her pony should it bolt? avoiding all risk of danger to herself, her pony and everyone else around? I think not.
I agree Hosta ... Wonky never went out riding without an anxious sweaty Dove jogging alongside ... whereas at the age of 11 I was expected to go out riding on the roads totally alone ... but it was a very long time ago ... there was very little traffic and many drivers in those days had usually grown up seeing horsedrawn traffic on the roads ...
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I know what works to slow them down/put the fear of death in them. A BULL! A couple of years ago a beautiful Limousin wandered past my house. He was a monster! The few cars that appeared stopped, the drivers looked about for an escape route and then closed their eyes and prayed!!! You should have seen everyone trying to make themselves really really small. My fear was for my fence swiftly followed by my, sunroom and house. He wouldn't have damaged anything maliciously (he was just out for a wee dander after all) but if he'd brushed against something he would have trashed it!!!! No idea where he came from but he checked out the houses on the way down the road, saw a farm yard with proper buildings and proper red doors and went in there to be rescued. Brilliant!
Posts
A large lorry came from behind and slowed down and drove alongside us for at least a quarter of a mile revving the engine, my pony becoming more and more spooked by this... the friend with me got out of the trap and went to the pony's head to lead him ... we kept waving the driver on but he ignored us ... when we stopped he stopped and waved us on but as soon as we moved forwards he was alongside us again ... then he made his air-brakes make that wooshing sound ... understandably my pony tried to get away by going up the bank, turning my trap over and breaking one of the shafts and snapping some of his harness. I narrowly avoided being thrown under the lorry rear wheels ... the lorry revved up and drove off sounding his horn.
A terrifying experience for me and my pony who had, up until that time been absolutely safe in traffic ... he never was again ... he lost most of his value ... I daren't let children ride him on the road any more and I couldn't sell him as a children's pony ... the trap and harness cost hundreds of pounds to repair and I was unable to continue with a much loved past time.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Every one behind a wheel be it cyclist or driver thinks they bought the road, imagine my shock looking in the rear view mirror seeing a car coming at speed with no driver. i started to speed up looking for a place to move in before being rear ended. Suddenly a head popped up a scream of brakes and the front of the car ended up over hanging a ditch. Stopping and walking back I saw a white faced woman two very frightened children and she had a phone in her hand. I dropped my phone on the floor she said, it only took a second to stoop and pick it up and suddenly you were in front of me.
Are you blaming me I asked quietly then proceeded to give her a lecture on safe driving, just then the phone went, hang on I have to answer.
I looked at the two children thinking some day your mother will kill you and walked away. I felt hopeless.
Frank.
I've not seen a fox hunt close by here, it's all stag hunts in these fields (there are two plus the junior 'buck hounds' hunt). The red deer can jump our 2m fences but generally don't. The stag hounds haven't come in to the garden so far, fortunately.
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Scamp had been quite a valuable pony ... a pure bred Exmoor Ride & Drive ... he eventually went to live at a stables on the coast where they did beach trekking ... no chance of traffic there hopefully ... although I'll wager he molested a good few picnickers ... he was very greedy.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Having lived in Greenock all my life before that, I think I'd only ever seen about 2 horses in my life, neither were on the road.
I answered:
" As I would a small child on a bicycle, very slowly and patiently, expecting the unexpected and giving as much room as possible"
The overwhelming majority of both drivers and riders I've come across are perfectly courteous to each other, but I think there should be an age limit on riders on a public road.
I heard a radio phone on in recently where a caller said " my 9 year old daughter regularly rides her pony on the road " 9 years old? really? totally able to control her pony should it bolt? avoiding all risk of danger to herself, her pony and everyone else around? I think not.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
A BULL! A couple of years ago a beautiful Limousin wandered past my house. He was a monster! The few cars that appeared stopped, the drivers looked about for an escape route and then closed their eyes and prayed!!!
You should have seen everyone trying to make themselves really really small. My fear was for my fence swiftly followed by my, sunroom and house. He wouldn't have damaged anything maliciously (he was just out for a wee dander after all) but if he'd brushed against something he would have trashed it!!!!
No idea where he came from but he checked out the houses on the way down the road, saw a farm yard with proper buildings and proper red doors and went in there to be rescued.
Brilliant!