Horses/Animals on the road.

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Sat 4 Aug 2001 14:56
Horses/Animals on the road. - Ashley
After reading the article on horse safety in todays Telegraph i thought i'd share a short story with you all. Whenever i come across a horse or horses on the road i take extreme care as i don't want to hurt anyone or damage my car !

I once worked with a bloke that came in one morning with a really glum look on his face. I asked what the problem was and he told me that a horse had kicked his car ! I went out to check the damage and the front passenger wing was concave to the rest of the car. I asked him if he'd given the horse plenty of room and he replied " The lane was narrow so i squeezed passed it ". The rider had said that she'd pay for the damage and so they exchanged details, but all she would give him was a telephone number. He tried to contact her that night and the number did not exist ! I asked if he'd taken the registration number of the horse and he threw his rattle out of his cot. I finished off by telling him that next time he'd take a lot more care when overtaking a horse. He ended up paying for the damage himself.
I've also witnessed a horse throwing a wobbly on the road, the rider did a excellent job of staying on, i was just glad that i'd left plenty of room to give the horse some space to move around. Frightening it was.

Regards,


Ash.

Ash.
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Sat 4 Aug 2001 18:05
Re: Horses/Animals on the road. - Roger Jones
A welcome reminder to slow down to 10 mph and be ready to stop, and even be ready to switch off the engine if the horse gets jittery. I don't ride, but I encounter horses often in narrow Hertfordshire lanes, and I well remember the day when three motorists sat patiently with their engines off while a novice rider took ten minutes to regain control of a horse that was freaking out.
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Sun 5 Aug 2001 08:26
Re: Horses/Animals on the road. - Martyn [Back Room Moderator]
Horses on the road can be a right royal pain in the backside. But the road is there for the benefit of *all* road users, whatever speed and space they take up. So if we choose to drive on narrow roads (ok, we may have no 'choice', but you know what I'm saying) where it isn't possible to pass a horse and rider safely, we have no option but to wait until there is a passing place.

The telling point in this discussion, imo, is the courtesy of the parties involved. If the rider is an arrogant pillock, then tempers are likely to fray. But even so there is no excuse for unsafe driving.

Incidentally, in the instance Ash refers to, if the horse had damaged a fetlock when it kicked out at the passing car, the owner would no doubt have had a legitimate claim against the driver of the car.

Martyn
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