Blokes using nail-guns on our hack today!! Rant warning!

MiJodsR2BlinkinTite

MiJodsR2BlinkinTite

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Interesting hack today!

Went out for a hack on the quiet (or so we thought) lanes, and heard something which sounded like shooting!

When we got nearer, we realised it wasn't gunshot we were hearing, it was two blokes doing some wooden panel fencing, both using nailguns.

When I shouted and asked them to stop just as we were riding past: the response was zilch - they just kept at it (and YES, I'm sure they did hear us coz we shouted loudly enough for them to do so).

Thank god both horses were fine with it and disaster was averted, BUT why FFS didn't they stop??? That could have been such a nasty situation, particularly with some of the horses in the district who'll jump out their skins at nothing. The main dual carriageway is less than a mile up the road from where they were and if one of the horses (or both) had decided to leg it then it could have been horrendous.

Grrrrrhhhhhh!!! Blimmin blimmin blimmin! Stupid gits, just hope something happens to them to frighten them out of their wits.
 
I hate it when people are doing something noisy and they see that you are coming and are going to have to ride past and instead of stopping they just watch you as you try and remain in control!

Had a bit of a sticky incident with men chain-sawing trees a few metres away from a bridleway and they just decided to watch! Luckily mare just got a bit joggy rather than silly but its ridiculous!!! How would they feel if you fell off!
 
Right so two blokes hard at work trying to put a fence up

Some women shouted at them from horse back to stop and they duly ignored you

Did one of you dismount and go and talk to them rather than shout, which may give the impression of being "on your high horse" and expecting the world to stop for your leisure activity?
 
Did they have any reaction to you shouting at all so that you can say they did hear?? They may have had earplugs in & not have heard.

If your horse didn't react I don't particularly see the problem...

I fell off my horse on Tuesday because as we were coming down a bridlepath she must have heard a noise / seen movement behind a hedge & disappeared from underneath me to head back in the direction of the road - it turned out to be 2 guys repairing a fence/gateway... I don't blame them for it & wouldn't expect them to do anything differently. Luckily my horse is trained to voice commands of "woah, steady".
 
Everyone is ok so i don't see a problem.
I (and i'm sure many others) pass plenty of hazards out hacking every day.
I'd rather pass something like that than a speeding car on a narrow lane or a bus/tractor that didn't slow down.
To be honest my horse is more likely to have a hissy fit at a carrier bag flapping about than a guy with a nail gun :rolleyes:
All good experience for them i say :D
 
Guy who owns our land was chainsawing a few weeks back. My horses was non too happy but he was in his own world with ear defenders. Could be as loud as a foghorn and he wouldn't have heard, wouldn't have blamed him had I come off.. It's a risk you take in a public areas. It's nice if there is issue and people stop what they're doing for 2mins, but not obligatory.
 
I have a very 'jumpy' horse and I used to get in a strop when people slammed their car doors, mowed their lawns etc etc when I rode past but then I realised that the world doesn't stop and stand quietly as I ride past so I have just stopped making it into an issue - which was all in my head !

Not everyone is horsey and you can't expect them to understand that a horse may not like a certain noise. Your horses were ok so no harm done.
 
Non horsey folk just don't think about things like that tbh. I rode Ben past a chainsaw, man chopping tree with an axe and a shredder all going together on Tuesday, As long as he can see them he doesn't bother.

If my horse was at all bothered, i would have jumped off and walked him passed
 
If the nail guns were so loud you heard them quite a way off, how do you expect the men to hear you when you are next to them? I don't really see why they should stop, if everyone turned everything off when I rode through the village where I live the village would come to a stop.
 
I'm with the others here - don't see a problem. If you are going to hack then you have to expect the unexpected and should be prepared to do so. The world doesn't stop just because you want a quiet hack.

Now if you were having problems then either turn and go a different way, or wait at a little distance until there is a break in the noise and then ask NICELY for the blokes to wait for you.
 
OP, you sound very arrogant. Why shouldn't men carry on working just because you're in the area and you don't like it? If your horse is out hacking then I assume you should have accustomed him to any noises/sights he might hear or see for his own safety, don't expect the world to stop for you.
 
Had they started just as you passed them, I could understand your gripe.
As they'd been at it a while, I fail to see the issue.

Had you been that concerned, you could always have turned round :).
 
You find diffrent sights and sounds out hacking thats part of what it is. Your horse has seen one now and you all were fine I dont see the problem take it as a schooling oppertunity so get over it and move on.
 
Also bear in mind that people being helpful not to scare horses can have unintended consequences. Eg people with pushchair and dog who want to let you pass so they tuck themselves behind a tree - its really helpful until invisible monster with wheels starts rustling as you go past.

What Im saying is, it's better to have a strange sight or sound that is visible, thats a lot less scary for the horse. And they might have stopped for you and then do what most people do which is not wait long enough before starting again - waaaay worse for the horse then.

They might not have heard you but TBH I think even if they did it wasnt a very necessary/reasonable request as if we all did it our horses would never cope with anything unexpected, and would dislike horse riders even more than a lot do already.
 
I was expected them to be firing the nails at the horses to provoke a rant :eek:

I'd just look on it as an educational experience. I wouldn't expect the world to stop so I can hack - I expect my horse to deal with the world around him.
 
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