Can You B believe it out on a hack earlier and chased by a ....

S

SAL66

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Bloody tractor, I took my new boy out for a hack this afternoon and was just on my way back as I heard a tractor , looked behind me and I thought god are you going to stop.
We were going down a little lane with no passing passes and as soon as it was safe to trot I did, the tractor did not keep his space but increased his speed and kept getting closer and closer I bet this was no more than 6-7 foot away.I couldn't believe it, my boy was just starting to stress but he was so good.
The tractor passed and he had the cheek to wave, the thing is he is the husband of a woman that I say hello to at school, do i say anything to her or let it pass. I was lucky as my horse coped with it many wouldn't.
 
i would say somthing,i dont think thats on and he should know better !!
i just shout at them as they drive past !! my boy is huge and a,you wouldnt want him on the bonnet and b,he gets a bit silly when a car etc is up his bum so who knows what he would do !!
i hate it when people have issues with their brain and forget how to use it !!!
 
paintbox - I really couldn't believe he was so thoughtless, he had one of those ploughing blades on the back as well, I'm surprised I didn't say something, but i think he wouldn't have heard me anyway, and I was still in shock that it had happened.
And to boot he had a small child in the cab with him.

Earlier I met a milk tanker, who kindly pulled over on to a verge even turned his engine off so we could pass, my lad was more bothered about the cows he could see rather than this big green & white tanker next to him, frighten to death of cows- bless him.
 
Yeah I would say something too regardless of whether you know his wife or not.
By that I mean it should make no difference as to whether you know these people or not and that should not make you feel awkward for saying something because they are not total strangers.
Fact is he drove the tractor with little regard for you or your horse's safety. He had no idea if your horse would spook at his close proximity to you and I personally don't think he should have taken the chance either.
Words like "could you please ask your husband not to drive too close to my horse next time he sees us on the road because both I and my horse felt uncomfortable on .....day when he did. I was frightened because the horse was getting stressed and next time the horse may not act so well behaved and there could quite easily be an accident. There was also a small child in the cab on ....day and should there be so again under similar circumstances I would fear for his/her safety as well."
They would be the words I would use or something very similar. You would not be acting improper or being polite by voicing your concerns imo. A courteous request for her husband to be more careful next time is surely the next step in my honest opinion.
Caroline
 
aww bless him,its the silly things they hate and the big things you panic about they are fine with !! lol
years ago there was a tractor behind me with forks on the front my boy decided to spook at the invisible man in the hedge and ran back!!!! omg i thought that was it im a gonna we were inches away from being impaled on it then i just smacked him one which i dont do as a rule but had to,thankfully tractor had stopped and my boy shot forward !!

sorry got sidetracked there !!
i would say something to his wife,plus the kid isn't allowed in the cab either !!
 
Just realised should have said impolite but could not get back on again quick enough to re edit as the forum is being a tad slow tonight.
Was not trying to be patronising in my reply btw I was just trying to reassure that in my opinion it would be fine to say something to the wife if you don't get chance to speak to him in person.
 
If he did that to us on one of our horses in particular he would have caused an accident, no question as we have one who simply cannot cope with tractors coming up behind him. We have a tried and tested routine to deal with it, and thankfully people round here are really good.

Glad you are okay, what a completely idiotic and dangerous thing he did.
 
Did you ASK him to stop or slow down using hand signals? If not then maybe he assumed you were happy with him driving that close to you.

Sometimes I think us riders are too quick to judge other road users - after all they are not telepathic! My horse and most of the horses at my yard would have been fine with that happening to them as they are exposed to tractors on a daily basis.
 
I had a scary incident with a tractor earlier this year.I was coming back from a lovely hack on a small country lane just a couple of hundred yards away from the yard and my horse who doesn't like tractors when they are towing anything was not amused to have the tractor revving his engine a few feet behind us.Needless to say my horse reacted by taking off on the road whilst rodeoing away and me sat there with one hand on the reins and the other frantically trying to stop the tractor behind me.I was luckily with a friend whose horse was very sensible and not remotely bothered by tractors nor the fact my horse was going nuts.My friend managed to remain behind right in the middle of the road to prevent the tractor getting any closer and I managed to get safely into the driveway of the yard.We did manage to get his registration number and told the YO who chased after the tractor in his car and proceeded to give him a right mouthfull but we haven't had any problems since.
 
I agree with weezy, I live on the edge of a very busy working estate, beacause the land is mostly arable, the tractor drivers have very little knowledge of animals (esp horses) I always ask any driver to slow down if they are approaching too fast, my 2 are pretty good in traffic, we are right by a motorway and have to cross a road bridge, we also have cycle races and a biker night just up the road, so tractors are really the least of my worries! Most people are very unaware, give him the benefit of the doubt and politely mention to his wife that it would be a good idea to pass horses slowly. As for the kid in the cab? It is illegal, but I really wouldnt waste any energy on something as insignificant.
 
As he waved I think he didn't realise he was too close. Chum hates tractors and we have lots by us so I just ask them politely but very obviously to slow down and then trot to the next gateway etc and I usually have enough time to turn him to face the tractor.
Then I give the driver lots of thank-yous, smiles and even blow a kiss if they have been very patient - they usually remember me for next time
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Mention it in passing to his wife if you see her first but perhaps give him the benefit of the doubt.
And well done to your horse for being so good
smile.gif
 
I'd try to use the hand signals to stop or slow tractors down...but it's easy for me to say as my horse is even fine with intercity trains going underneath bridges she's on...
Wear lots of fluorescent and look worried.
Could you 'tractor proof' your horse by feeding him near one or similar?
S
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I would just have a pleasant word with them and explain.

Why not take the BHS Road Safety Course as this will provide you with a number of skills for when you ride out on the roads. I found it invaluable.

More information from

www.bhs.org.uk
 
Thanks for all your comments, I thought he handled the tractor incident very well all things considered, he is normally A1 in all traffic, I have only had him 4 weeks , so alot of unknown areas as yet.We live in a very rural area and tractors are a matter of course, it was his thoughtlessness that got to me.

Wheezy, i take on board your comments but I did give me hand signals to slow down but he wasn't having any of it, at one point where the road slightly widens he did think to pass me as he pulled over to the side , thought better of it and pulled back behind, your are lucky that your horses are fine with traffic, but maybe one day something may spook them and driving like that could cause a nasty accident.
I am sure for the sake of 3 mins he could have pulled back a little, incidently when I got back to the yard explained what had happened they all knew who the tractor driver was!.

Cazee34 I didn't think you were being patronising anyway.
 
If this was at 945ish this morning, and the tractor was big and green with a red harrow on the back, I was stuck behind him on the A515 near you!
 
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