What is normal behaviour for a horse?
 

Has anyone ever experienced anything bad when going past a horse and rider in a country lane? I ask because I had a nervous moment on a narrow country lane this afternoon. I was already taking it slowly because of the horse ***** all over the road but when I caught up with these 2 horses, I waited for them to stop in a lay by and then went past as quietly as a Ducati in 1st gear can go, which isn't very quiet at all.

One of the horses was twitching and backing away and it occurred to me that if it came towards me I was dead vulnerable. I've never thought about it before but was going that slowly trying to be quiet the best thing to do?

I've been on horseback when a bike has gone past without slowing down. My horse reared up and took off down the lane. I managed to get it back under control without coming a cropper but it was not a pleasant experience and put me off road riding for good.

:puzzled:

How do I move this into the right forum? 8 months and I still don't understand how this flipping website works! :lol:

sounds as tho you done the right thing - waiting for the horses and riders to get in to a layby and went past as quietly as poss- according to highway code horses have right of way over ANY motor vehicle--- im always very cautious when approaching horses as they are (in my experience) very unpredictable--- what annoys me are a couple of things when the riders never acknowledge your consideration for them in slowing down and giving them right of way- just a wave of appreciation is enough! and seeing kids on massive horses that, if they had too couldnt control the animal if they had too:flame:

in Brentwood were I am we have lot of horses on the roads and a large dear heard that jump out at you all the time
I have had three dear culls in my cars so i take it very steady round the lanes here
had a horse thing on the bike to,One backed right up to me had to stop would have got me to ******* things
by the way most pepole I know in the Brentwood area have had a dear cull as well so if your passing look out for bamby

my mate collided with a horse, wrote off his 636 and broke his collar bone, no one on the horse at the time, just ran out of a field. when out on our enduro bikes we would pull over and turn of the engine off. No point being the idiot thinking sod em and blasting off.

Wherever possible, I close the throttle and pull in the clutch when passing by horses - as long as I can give them a wide enough berth. The downside is that you have to coast by a bit quicker (albeit more quietly) as you need to maintain sufficient momentum. I'm not sure whether slowing right down but having twice as many revs going is a better idea.

Genuinely puzzled - never had this quandary when I owned a Japanese bike! :puzzled:

Imagine this for a moment - you are riding a motorcycle that pretty well does as you want it, but when you are faced with other road users, the bike is prone to react unpredictably - it goes onto the pavement, into the face of ongoing traffic, pulls wheelies and tries to land the front wheel on people's heads, etc. I wonder what the chances are of making a motorcycle like that legal, and to cap it off, by law it has the right of way over other traffic.
:flame:

horses are no problem on the road aslong as the animal is used to vehicals and has an experianced rider in charge.
i would like to see them wearing some sort of equine nappy though:eureka:

maybe the horse and rider should pass some sort of road test before they are allowed out of the feild

The rider should get off and pick it up there self they woud'nt like it I stoped and **** in front of them

Whilst 'coasting' is not generally the right thing to do, I find if I pull in the clutch and allow the bike to idle just before I reach the horses, this allows me to pass fairly quickly and with minimum noise. They hardly know that I've been there. Selecting first gear and crawling past slowly may well keep you in the animal's physical (and emotional!) 'blind-spot' for a longer period and increase the likelihood of it being 'spooked'. It goes without saying that you need to leave a lot of room between you and 'it' though.

(I remember a racer on the IOM hitting a horse a few years ago, and being killed outright. Not sure now who it was).

I coast past with the clutch in all the time and I was coasting when Silver backed in to me ******* things
:flame:

Ruth, you did the best thing in the situation you were in.
As Loz says, not best to coast - but at least it cuts the engine noise.

There is a riding & road safety test that all horse riders are encouraged to take - in fact in the BHS & Pony Club it is mandatory as part of the examination system. This takes the part of a written test, and also a practical test - for which it is advised candidates attend at LEAST 6 training sessions.

However, many do not take the test (Iwish our equine insurers would load premiums for those who didnt)

You will find that most of the time, a horse or pony if frightened - and gets out of control - will try to get away from any sudden noise.

C

footnote:
Having been mashed in a stable this morning by my daughters pony stallion, I could cheerfully throw him under a car:flame: - but then three quarters of a ton of moving object, that was not a happy pony while the equine dentist was doing his job, had every right to try to escape!:o

CK, sorry you got cornered this morning. I always feel being actually in a stable with a horse is a crushing waiting to happen.

I think on balance the clutch in, get by a bit quicker remedy is a good idea. The problem with my situation this afternoon was there was a 4 wheel drive vehicle coming the other way so I didn't know if he was going to stop. Once I'd halted to see what was happening, I had to go past in 1st gear. In future, I think I'll just stay off that particular road on my bike, although that's going to be tricky as it's the road from my soon to be new home to my local off-licence. Hmmmmm - needs more thought! :devil::P:D

Ruth
You did right by the sounds of it. I would only coast by as I described earlier if I could put a lane's width or more between me and the horse. Otherwise, it's a crawl in first and it takes as long as it takes.

Are there green lanes between your soon-to-be-home and the offy? Maybe you need a trailie for those urgent gin runs to the shop!
:p

One thing to point out tho - if coasting:

Please make sure the horse/pony rider has seen/noted you are there!:o

It can make for a nasty drag race situation when you get alongside (possibly hung over - or gossiping) rider with horse whose brain is in neutral.
You are suddenly spotted, horse takes off as you slightly accelerate past, jockey tumbles off.........:rolleye:

I always aim to leave a 'sideways' length of horse between me & the animal I am passing - room for manoevere for all

C

Roof - when you coming hunting???:devil:

CK - I'll come hunting when you next set up a protest hunt. Not that I particularly want to hunt and frankly I'd probably get thrown at the first 5 bar gate we come too as I'm not much of a jumper but I'm definitely up for it - F*ckin* Parliament Act. That is not what it was meant for and they bl00dy know it. That Act was introduced to get National Security stuff through, as far as I know. Downright bl00dy outrage that they used it for the flippin' 'stop killing the vermin that killed ALL of your chickens' Act.

Calm now :flame:

Can I ride one of your horses, then? :bouncy:

you can pass horses in two ways;


1 stop and shoot the bloody thing.
2 Ride past slowly cluch in bike flat out on rev limiter and check your mirrors after you have passed it, the rider should have fallen off if you have done it right :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

You are a BAD BAD man :alien::lol::devil:

I'm not a bad man !!!!!!!!!!!




Just hate horses :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

[Edited on 30-1-2005 by AGE996]

Dear Age 996

Re: You are a BAD MAN

Ipso Facto

Yours sincerely,




Redruth

Horses are good for one thing only.........












DOG FOOD :lol::lol::lol::lol::lol::lol:

Horses are lovely but I coul'nt eat a hole one :rodent:

It's time to hang up your shovel, Age.

And that's 'whole' as opposed to 'hole' you are digging for yourself amongst some of us DSC members who actually rather like horses. :lol::lol:

We use to have 5 horses on my dads farm, my grandad was a big horse lover and was into his hunting.

I did ride horses untill I found moto x

:cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool::cool:

My personal opinion is that they shouldnt be on the road, they are a danger to all other road users.

I dont get it, when there is a lovely field to romp around in to your hearts content, why put everyone at risk including yourself by being there.

Im sure the horse isnt made for tarmac, in fact what pleasure is gained from being on the road? apart from the look at me bit!

Mind you i do like some of the jodpers, although lets be honest, that saddle does nothing for the petite derier!
"does my bum look big in this?"

:lol::lol::lol:

If his screen was your visor ?

I do like horses really my one,s sitting with me now :lol:
were havin a great time, but he did just say that he might jump about if he feels like it :lol::lol: and dyslexia is no larfin matter

Bionicle, that was gratuitous photo posting and not in the spirit ... might be acceptable in your neck of the woods ... get yourself back over to the UK ... Popham Mega Meet ?? So I can give you a piece of my mind :devil::devil:

I always switch my headlight off as I was told this upsets them less. I also try to keep a little bit of speed up and coast by where possible.

Cat & dog food & postage stamp glue......................nuff said!

Ruth - you are more than welcome - however:
I only have a 21yr old 12.2 Exmoor pony (still fit as a fiddle tho!)
and a 13.2 palomino Welsh sec C stallion, also getting on a bit, aged 17 - also very very spriteley:D
Had to cut back on numbers, due to desk driving now - and also my back.

Horses on the roads - you guys stop & ask the riders you meet - as you would be suprised at the answers you get.
Not one of the people I know likes riding on the roads - they only use them as a means to get to the next field/comon/heath/bridleway (those bridleways that havent been turned into a mudbath by hooligan bikers:P ).

If I had to go on the roads, it was to get a horse fit by walking it on a level surface & then only where possible on quiet roads. I hated the roadwork - its soooo boring, and also dangerous too.

C:)

Hmm, from my experience its the horses that do the damage, then the bikes get the blame for it (assuming it is a green lane) as everybody hates the bikers (noisy smelly things apparently - same could be said of horses though ;) ) including the ramblers.

Have a look at the state of bridle ways where no bikes go, and see the state they are in.

Bugger. Quick, someone take my soapbox !! :lol:

I've always tried to be considerate to horses and their riders, and have always slowed right down for them. I had a skittish horse kick the nearside wing of my car in once, loads of damage and no insurance (the horse rider that is). I wouldn't like to imagine the mess it would make of your leg.

I do have a problem with horses on the road. It seems inconsistent to me that the law makes people wait until they're at least 16 before driving any vehicle, and yet it's perfectly happy to let little Cynthia (aged 8) out onto the public road in charge of an unpredictable animal.

In my view there should be several criteria that need to be satisfied before anyone is allowed out on the road on a horse.

First, there should be the equivalent of an MOT for any horse. I don't see why the horse itself should not be subject to a yearly test of it's behaviour to check that it's quiet, placid and well behaved enough to be safe, not some tempremental highly strung thing that is always going to be a handfull. If neccesary, there could be several MOT ratings for horses, going from an old docile pony that's never going to break out into a trot to a thouroughbred 'sports' option.

Second, there has to be a minimum age for people to ride on the road or a public bridleway. It seems to me that the same age restrictions as motor vehicles should do nicely.

Thirdly, being licensed is a must. Riders should have to take and pass a 'driving test' to show that they're competent to ride a horse safely. If neccesary, this should be graded in the same way that motorcycles bhp is limited to new riders (or like a pilots license). Only riders whove passed the thouroughbred exam should be allowed to ride a horse that has a thoroughbred "MOT" rating. If you've only passed your plodding nag test, then you should only be allowed to ride plodding nags.

Fourth. I don't see why riders should not have to wear some sort of bib or armband with a registration number, or the horse could have a registration mark on a horse blanket or something.

Fifth, the horse and rider should both be insured for third party damage at least and they should be required to carry all the documentation about the horses MOT rating, their rider status, their registration details and insurance documents.

Sixth. They should all wear a helmet (there are plenty that don't)

I'm not anti horse I rode one for the first time in my life whilst on holiday in Connemara this year (well, funnily enough it wasn't a horse, it was a Connemara pony), just on a plod about (it broke into a little trot once or twice), but I loved it. We went up the side of a mountain overlooking the sea, and to me it was a real highlight of the holiday. So I can understand the attraction of riding, but I still think it needs far more rigourous control.

Jools, bang on with most of it mate (apart from the categories:lol: - which I'd love to apply to bikers too, eg - I ride w/ends only when the sun is out & cant corner for toffee, so I dont see why you should come past me section:lol: )

There are many responsible people in the horse world that are pushing for a mandatory test.
After all, kids in the pony club are not allowed to ride to rallies etc (they have to be 'transported' , no jokes!) till they have passed their riding & road safety test, but the kiddie that goes out on a friends nag at the w/end doesnt.

Parity for all road users - all horse riders should ake a test & have insurance - and so should flipping cyclists too:mad:

C:saint:

[Edited on 31-1-2005 by CK and AK]

Amen to that about cyclists. If they want the whol lane then fine, I've got no problem with that, they're entitled to it. But then they go and run straight through the red lights etc.

I nearly hit one in a car once and he had the cheek to say that he had right of way because he was a cyclist. I was walking over, red mist fully descended, and I was going to belt him when he jumped back on his bike and took off up a footpath away from the road. Probably didn't want me to run him over.

Probably went off to his cycling mates about nearly being hit by another ignorant car driver!

My view is that they shouldn't be allowed on the road, I know nothing about horses, and don't want to, but do they have insurance, road tax etc?

I remember several years ago a friend of mine had a morgan, it was parked up no one around, horse came past and kicked the thing, nice horseshoe print in the hand crafted panel, the owner saw this, and eventually took the rider to court, as there is no insurance/legal procedure, or certainly wasn't then.

You could argue the same for cyclists, but as far as I can remember pushbikes don't have a will and mind of their own.

Good point, i never thought of that.

/ian

Best way to pass a horse?
Whilst in france we used to wash it down with a couple of guinness then take a senapod before retiring.
Should pass through no problem after that.:D

Bit difficult with the new bikes - NO SWITCH FOR THE LIGHTS.