horses on the road

neil_g

neil_g

neil_g

Soldato
Joined
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Hants
i know this will probably end up with some jokes or comments on how annoying they are but id like to pass this on after a girl my girlfriend knows died this morning.

"we'd like to remind ALL drivers that horses can be on the road any time of the day or night. "I didn't expect them to be there" is not an excuse for taking the lives of a person AND their horse. Be careful and be aware - you may not like ...horses, but that rider is somebodies mum, dad, daughter, son, brother, sister or partner and they often have no choice but to ride on the road.

A young woman and her horse lost their lives this morning to someone speeding on a blind bend a family member watched helpless DONT let this be your fault in the future! Most riders now take an exam to learn about riding horses on the roads do your bit as a driver!"

its struck a bit of a chord with me because the gf rides and i know shes had near misses. personally id not like this happening to her.

thanks for reading..
 
[TW]Fox;14705409 said:
How did they know they were speeding, out of interest?
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Tyre marks probably.

Would be interesting to know where the original quote came from "we'd like to remind ALL drivers..."

Personally if I chose to ride a horse on the road I'd consider the additional risk I'd be taking, and the additional inconvenience I'd be causing at certain times of the day. And when I see them riding two abreast on a busy B road I find it difficult to return any courtesy by slowing down.
 
[TW]Fox;14705409 said:
How did they know they were speeding, out of interest?
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They hit the horse. If you're going round a blind bend so fast you're unable to avoid something on the other side, you're either going too fast or not paying attention.
 
I always slow down but some riders do have a death wish.

If i see one or two about i am more careful as it could be a popular area for riders, but i don't go out my way just in case.
 
[TW]Fox;14705409 said:
How did they know they were speeding, out of interest?
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Rule of thumb is if you go round a blind bend and can't react in time, you're going too fast for the conditions of the road. Well, that's what past comments on here would leave me to believe.

Horses is a tough one, was it crossing the road ona blind bend? Was it playing up? Did the car lose control due to its own problems and just happen collect the horse and rider with it?

I do slow down for horses and I'm good at spotting them over hedges etc even when im on a fast drive. My girlfriend has 2.5 horses but doesn't ride them on the road, no point tbh.
 
I've only ever encountered horses on narrowish roads. If they're coming towards me, I stop as they go past; if we're going the same way, they tend to stop. Wouldn't want a frightened horse messing up my bodywork ;)

Shame about your gf's friend. :(
 
Mr Jack said:
They hit the horse. If you're going round a blind bend so fast you're unable to avoid something on the other side, you're either going too fast or not paying attention.
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Dup said:
Rule of thumb is if you go round a blind bend and can't react in time, you're going too fast for the conditions of the road. Well, that's what past comments on here would leave me to believe
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Indeed, but speeding implies that the car was exceeding the posted speed limit. Because thats what all the governments road safety literature is based on.
 
Sorry to hear about the girl

Im afraid im not a big fan of horse riders, the ones that ride around my area are bloody rude evan if i slow down they still turn there nose up .... I personally think they should stay off the roads
 
Im sorry for there loss BUT i personally hate horses on the road . No tax and probably limited if any insurance . The take up half the road...**** all over the place (Im a biker) and treat you like a crim if you dont go past them at 1mph .

I have had 1-2 close calls (in the car) with them . Road was a 60 was doing 50ish and making progress ..came round a fastish left hander and there was 2 horses on the road...now2 not to much of an issue but given i was still doing 50 and cars on there side had slowed to 5mph and were overtaking kinda limited my options lol . No damage done but they should be kept off the roads and if the must be used be licensed !

Persil
 
That's ridiculous. Horses on the road at night? Wtf? You'd have to be insane.

I'm sorry but there's no way I'm slowing down for every fleeting minor twist and bend in the b-road just because there is a meter wide blind'ish'spot where a horseback rider could be lurking.

It was just an unfortunate accident I'm sure. But instead of defaulting to the "oh yer he was speeding" line, it might be worth considering whether you should have let your loved one out for a horse ride on a tiny back road in the bleeding dark...

I bet the horse rider doesn't drive. Because if it was me on that horse going round a sharp bend on a b-road and I heard a car approaching I would have slapped that horse silly to get out of a potential danger zone.
 
"Always be prepared for the unexpected"

Equally it could be a broken down car round the blind corner instead of a horse.


I always give horses loads of room and slow right down to a crawl - because I know what it's like to be the one on a horse that doesn't like cars! :(

Also remember to be wearing a high-vis too :)
 
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In some cases the speed required to negotiate a blind bend AND be able to stop if something was around the corner is 20mph. Remember that next time you are on an NSL road. Always slow to 20mph for corners you cannot see completely round as you just dont know whats round the next bend. Complacency kills.
 
NathanE said:
I'm sorry but there's no way I'm slowing down for every fleeting minor twist and bend in the b-road just because there is a meter wide blind'ish'spot where a horseback rider could be lurking.
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you are kidding me. well i hope you like the driver in question get charged with death by dangerous driving.
 
When anyone dies in an accident it is tragic as this of course sounds, but it's not always black and white and sadly stating "you were driving too fast for the conditions if you couldn’t see around the blind bend" is also not a catch all and shouldn't be used as such. The fact is at 5mph you can take horses legs away and the rider can fall with potential life threatening consequences. Horse riding in itself is a high risk activity and when you add in roads and people it simply amplifies this fact.

I used to have a house with stables in the grounds full of horses and I often confronted them on the driveway or lanes around the house. I am sure everyone is guilty of driving too quickly at some point and in 25 years of driving I have had the odd issue with horse riders and horses, some my fault some their fault. The fact is, for it is a fact, that many horse riders like car drivers think they own the road. The difference is their aggressive riding or arrogance will usually hurt them more than the car driver if it goes wrong (like the yob who walks slowly across the road all tough guy as you drive along, only ever going to be one winner!) so they have to be extra cautious and ride defensively. It is also a fact that many people drive far too quickly (most people with a car actually) on occasion and these things happen. Horses need to be treated with care on the road as they are volatile beasts and also often very unpredictable.

The fact a corner is blind means that to be 100% sure it’s safe you should slow down to 10mph or even park safely, get out and walk around the corner to establish it's safe before you continue but let’s be real, that simply isn't practical 99.9% of the time. Because of this we get people driving down a lane with a 60mph speed limit at 30mph, around a corner and hitting a horse and killing the rider and potentially the driver too. I urge people not to jump on the "I know best" bandwagon as though in this instance it might have been one of said idiots, it could just as easily have been any of us doing 30mph on our way to the shop for some bog role driving steadily who got caught out because they trundled around a road to find a horse walking out of gate, idling next to a hedge or standing in the middle of the road chatting to a farmer.
 
Sam said:
Sorry to hear about the girl

Im afraid im not a big fan of horse riders, the ones that ride around my area are bloody rude evan if i slow down they still turn there nose up .... I personally think they should stay off the roads
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Sam...you drive a noisy scoob... :p


I'm used to them round me, as soon as I see them I drop on the anchors and crawl past with engine making as little noise as possible. Also know the roads they normally use so know when I am likely to encounter them.

Housey, as always, you make brilliant points. :cool: :)
 
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Dangerous driving cause someone decides to clog up the roads with livestock? Get a grip please .

If i see a horse ahead of me i slow down, keep the revs low and give them a wide berth . They still look down at me like im scum (car or bike) but i will be dammed if im gonna stop having fun just cause these people want to take there nags on the road..

I know its a little sensetive atm for you but please understand that we can all go around every corner expecting a horse to be there .

Persil
 
To use anything on the roads, I think:

a) Insurance
b) Tax
c) Some kind of basic training

is required.

So goodbye horse riders, goodbye cyclists.
 
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