Close call with cyclists

I've had a very similar experience- walking up a single lane, riding and leading. Cyclist came flying round the blind bend at the top of the slope, slammed his brakes on, skidded on the gravel and slid all the way down so that his bike was almost under my horse's legs. I pointed out the same thing- that if I'd been a tractor or even a car, he'd be dead.

Another time, riding a young horse, I paused at a T junction. A group of about 20 cyclists came blasting down the hill from behind me, separated to pass either side of me, then carried on without pausing onto the main road. Some people deserve instant karma.
 
I generally have good / neutral interactions with cyclists.
I even posted on here a while ago about a particularly good pack who not only slowed, kept a wide berth and shouted “horse” back through the pack, the ride lead also instructed them all to say hello as they approached.

Quite a few years ago I felt rather mean at spoiling a groups fun; they had just crested over the top of a hill and I’m sure they were looking forward to a nice speedy downhill….but they spotted me at the bottom of the hill and had to slow down and pass me nicely, which they did politely.
 
Our yard is on a cycling route (in Austria), but the route is largely gravel farm tracks and similar, and so attracts day tourists on e-bikes rather than Strava-segment-chasers. The tourists tend to be polite and reasonable. The Ballerina Mare did find one particular cyclist a bit scary: she was towing a "people-foal-carriage" with a flag protruding from the top! But the cyclist was very polite (if amused), and waited till we danced past her, goggle-eyed, and the next time we met her, the mare was much more chilled about the "people-foal-carriage". In the summer, we get a certain amount of ridiculously fast motorcycles on the otherwise empty single-track roads, and those, I find scary, because they are very fast, and don't seem to expect any other traffic on the roads.

In Scotland, my main hacking was forestry, and there were lots of mountain bikers. Most of them were perfectly reasonable, but there were always a few that seemed very surprised to encounter a horse on a narrow track. Various conversations were had, about not going faster than you can see, and about the existence of dedicated mountain-bike tracks on the other side of the forest, where they could ride faster if they wished.
 
I remember walking with friends in a national park or forest, south of Brisbane, Australia. It was absolutely regimented. Certain tracks for walkers, on which no bikes or horses allowed. Dogs on leads. Certain tracks allocated for horses, on which you could walk but horseriders had right of way and priority and any mishaps would be assumed to be fault of walkers. And certain tracks reserved for mountain bikers, on which you could walk but not horse ride and bikers had priority. The Australian authorities obviously assume that everyone is a complete idiot and take steps to try and circumvent that. I didn’t actually like the feel of it though. You were supposed to be in the wild bush, but you had to follow the right trail, or else! It was different, let’s say. On the plus side the bush was quite thick and you did have the security of not being mown down by a biker or out of control horse
 
HeresHoping said:
As a cyclist, a pretty whizzy one at that, and one that is regularly part of a Pelton I am astounded at the stories on here. Complain to their Clubs. The will have the name on their jerseys. Or better still, complain to British Cycling. Complaints get handled pretty quickly and the penalty will be loss of insurance for the Club if they don't behave - in many instances.

We have to abide by the rules of the road. We are also supposed, in Groups, if part of a Club, have a ride leader and they are supposed to instruct to slow down past horses. I am a ride leader, it is part of my briefing. As an ex horse person, this is one thing I stress to extreme. It is very easy to get bogged down in chasing Strava segments but it should never be at the cost of safety.
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I've complained to a club who hold non-competitive time trials around here on a Tues evening over the summer. Not horse related but in slow traffic I've been undertaken by one, had them swerve out in front of me at junctions and had them swerve around each other to overtake on busy roads without even a glance over their shoulder.

Zero response both times (I emailed) but someone showed me a screenshot from their internal stuff about locals moaning. It wasn't apologetic.
 
Exasperated said:
Oh, all too easily believable, cyclists are above the law and invincible....
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we need to add to the law by taking action against cyclists who use roads when there is a cycle track by the side of it. (nothing to do with horses)
Going into town today there is a very wide cycle track, I have only seen half a dozen bikes oh it over several years. They made the main road considerably narrower in order to build the cycle track. No idea why they thought any cyclist would actually use it.
Today the cycle track was completely empty you could have cycled along with no problems. So why did one female (in lycra( insist on riding on the road very slowly. (it was uphill) there was 1/4 mile of traffic queueing behind her and absolutely no hope of any of it getting past her allowing her 2m for several miles. What a selfish cow she was.

A tractor and trailer which goes much faster than she was is required to pull in and not hold up the traffic so why shouldn't cyclists
 
Would you like a list of reasons not to use cycle paths? Everyone assumes we're just being petty/belligerent and that is rarely the case its just that drivers haven't figured it out. People also assume the paths don't get used, just because you don't see people when you are driving alongside it for a short period of time.

It's always saddening when riders have no empathy for other vulnerable road users, we should all support each other, I wear lycra on the horse and on a bike is this somehow bad?

Oh and distance is 1.5M for cyclists.
 
Dam1 said:
What are the reasons for a cyclist not using a cycle path ? - genuinely interested. Our LA have spent millions on cycleways in my area but they never seem overly busy.
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Oblivious walkers stepping out in front of you
They are often full of rubbish / gravel so they are unsafe to use
Some are laid out in a ridiculous manner (Google something like ‘stupid cycle lanes’ to get many many pictured of idiotic designs)
 
Pretty much every time someone puts up a wHy areN't thEy uSing the cyCLepath photo on twitter the cyclists come along and explain 🤣

So round here:
crossing driveways/dropped kerbs with no clear view of sight to see if anyone will be exiting driveways, sometimes for extra fun these sometimes come with give way markings for the cyclist at every driveway when there is one every 15 meters.
not having priority at junctions leading onto the path, often t-junctions but going across motorway slip roads is fun too. .
vehicles parked on path
round here 9/10 its actually a shared use path and suggested speed limit is usually 15mph, in reality anything more than 12 can be problematic. See also pedestrians/dogs etc, particularly fun in the pitch black with not a reflective between them.
insufficient on-ramps to access the path (sometimes you come off for a parked vehicle and if you're not a keen bunny hopper you can't get back on) poorly positioned off ramps where you have to rejoin the road are also an issue too.
path on one side of the road only which would mean crossing the road twice to access it
glass/nails/screws/holes/brambles/nettles/wet leaves/council have resurfaced road and the path is covered in grit for 9 months (true story) always more of an issue if there is no grass 'protective verge'
Oh bin day/night before is always fun too.
Ice (I've been hollered at for not using a path very obviously covered in ice)

Currently in a lose lose in that the same people that don't want me cycling on the A10 also don't want a housing developer ('wasting our money') to build me a bridge with a greenway either side that means I won't have to.

The vast majority of people on bikes are running a risk assessment on where/how to ride while just trying to get somewhere, I have an 8 mile commute through villages and it is rare I complete it in either direction without at least one reportable incident. I definitely have more bike incidents than I do horse ones and it's sad as I love it but it does take the shine off. I was quite upset last year when someone ran down 4 cyclists on one of my favourite 'quiet' routes.

They built 2 bridleway bridges over the new A14 and I've had people recently say they've never seen anyone on them when they cost ££- while they are driving at 70mph underneath them 🤣 they get used a lot!

The other off road routes we have they are also having issues with muggings from e-bikes so that's fun too.

I have also had my own f ups, had one incident with a lambourghini on a long ride in essex once, thankfully bike bailed me out somehow :o and they just asked if I was ok.

Some paths are lovely but IME they are few and far between and are often a compromise. Some of the not great ones I will use because my risk assessment is that the road is a total no go. Some I use because the road surface condition is even worse. I also take in the amount of road traffic into the equation, I tend to do my commute outside of peak times which helps.

Hopefully that helps!
 
ester said:
Pretty much every time someone puts up a wHy areN't thEy uSing the cyCLepath photo on twitter the cyclists come along and explain 🤣

So round here:
crossing driveways/dropped kerbs with no clear view of sight to see if anyone will be exiting driveways, sometimes for extra fun these sometimes come with give way markings for the cyclist at every driveway when there is one every 15 meters.
not having priority at junctions leading onto the path, often t-junctions but going across motorway slip roads is fun too. .
vehicles parked on path
round here 9/10 its actually a shared use path and suggested speed limit is usually 15mph, in reality anything more than 12 can be problematic. See also pedestrians/dogs etc, particularly fun in the pitch black with not a reflective between them.
insufficient on-ramps to access the path (sometimes you come off for a parked vehicle and if you're not a keen bunny hopper you can't get back on) poorly positioned off ramps where you have to rejoin the road are also an issue too.
path on one side of the road only which would mean crossing the road twice to access it
glass/nails/screws/holes/brambles/nettles/wet leaves/council have resurfaced road and the path is covered in grit for 9 months (true story) always more of an issue if there is no grass 'protective verge'
Oh bin day/night before is always fun too.
Ice (I've been hollered at for not using a path very obviously covered in ice)

Currently in a lose lose in that the same people that don't want me cycling on the A10 also don't want a housing developer ('wasting our money') to build me a bridge with a greenway either side that means I won't have to.

The vast majority of people on bikes are running a risk assessment on where/how to ride while just trying to get somewhere, I have an 8 mile commute through villages and it is rare I complete it in either direction without at least one reportable incident. I definitely have more bike incidents than I do horse ones and it's sad as I love it but it does take the shine off. I was quite upset last year when someone ran down 4 cyclists on one of my favourite 'quiet' routes.

They built 2 bridleway bridges over the new A14 and I've had people recently say they've never seen anyone on them when they cost ££- while they are driving at 70mph underneath them 🤣 they get used a lot!

The other off road routes we have they are also having issues with muggings from e-bikes so that's fun too.

I have also had my own f ups, had one incident with a lambourghini on a long ride in essex once, thankfully bike bailed me out somehow :o and they just asked if I was ok.

Some paths are lovely but IME they are few and far between and are often a compromise. Some of the not great ones I will use because my risk assessment is that the road is a total no go. Some I use because the road surface condition is even worse. I also take in the amount of road traffic into the equation, I tend to do my commute outside of peak times which helps.

Hopefully that helps!
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well this cycle path is lovely. There is no risk whatsoever to a cyclist. In fact there is far less risk to them than from cars on the road. If cyclists are unwilling to use them what is the point of the tax payer funding them? total waste of money. The traffic has suffered badly on that particular road both whilst it was constructed and with the now much narrower road. They are still suffering due to the failure of cyclists to use the facily that has, at considerable cost been constructed for them. No bins, no rubbish, perfect surface, very very few pedestrians, no driveways. I have cycled on a lot of cycle paths in towns and cities and this one is lovely. There is no way I would risk riding in traffic on the road anywhere when there is a cycle path to protect me from the traffic. Strangely around here (ie within a 30 mile radius of me) the cycle paths have lovely surfaces, a pot hole is rare. The roads OTOH are a mass of pot holes and uneven surfaces.

You say the majority of bikers are running a risk assessment. I'm afraid that to my mind they are running a bloody minded assessment that they cannot be bothered to get off the road.

So why should someone simply not bother to use it but instead prefer to hold up a very long line of traffic and also have the risk that someone will try and pass them.
If a cyclist wants to use the road in preference to the cycle track then why not pull in and let the line of traffic past? I often do. I also often do or did when I was in a lorry or with a tractor/trrailer or any other vehicle that restricted the flow of traffic. I have seen tractors/trailers pulled in by the police with a queue of traffic behind them clearly being reprimanded to not pulling in and letting the traffic flow. Why not bikes? I frequently pull in on my horse to let traffic past, I rarely see a cyclist doing that. Why is that?
 
would love to see a google street view :)

what a shame you can't be more generous towards other vulnerable road users when you are driving.

I've an equally long list of reasons why cyclist's don't pull in :) given that they aren't tractors or horses. It can however get very like the why aren't you riding in a field argument.
 
ester said:
would love to see a google street view :)

what a shame you can't be more generous towards other vulnerable road users when you are driving.

I've an equally long list of reasons why cyclist's don't pull in :) given that they aren't tractors or horses.
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why can't cyclists be more generous to vulnerable horse riders?
why can't they pull in? going uphill I can see but if there is space to do so safely and a long line of traffic why not?
 
I don't think you really want to know why they don't pull in, you will just poo poo it like you have with everything else. I made the list for Dam as I thought they were geniune in their question.

As I said everyone makes mistakes, most people learn from them even cyclists. I have incidents with them too but I try and educate and certainly don't turn them in to a single group of people like most seem to manage.
 
ester said:
I don't think you really want to know why they don't pull in, you will just poo poo it like you have with everything else. I made the list for Dam as I thought they were geniune in their question.

As I said everyone makes mistakes, most people learn from them even cyclists. I have incidents with them too but I try and educate and certainly don't turn them in to a single group of people like most seem to manage.
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I am VERY genuine in my question as to why they don't pull in for cars. Totally genuine. I do. It would never occur to me not to. If there is a wide part on the left coming up it is easy enough just to pull in and slow down to let people past.

I am even more genuine in asking why they don't slow down, pull in etc for horses. These are not mistakes, this is total bloody mindedness. They want their enjoyment at all costs. Some do of course slow down for horses, pull in or just look lost and then come on past when I tell them it is OK. These cyclists are not making mistakes. The number of times I have said to cyclists on narrow lanes "if your pedal hits my horse's hind leg he will kick you? that is either them over taking or undertaking. Whilst there are good ones of course they seem to be the worst group of road users.

of just about every group of road users I am afraid they are about the worst. Don't even get me started on their competitive rides. The best cyclists however are those on mountain bikes going downhill who can assure me they can stop. They can do, straight over their handlebars. :D:D
 
One thing not mentioned, I don’t think, is the method of separating the cyclists from cars. If it is just a painted line, which it often is, it is not very safe at all. They seem to be better on the continent at proper separation with a line of kerbs or whatever. Round us we have some tracks that are well used and separate, and others that are not and people do seem to prefer the road to these. But I think they are old, narrow, and poorly surfaced, so if you want to commute speedily the road is preferable.
 
Time for Tea said:
One thing not mentioned, I don’t think, is the method of separating the cyclists from cars. If it is just a painted line, which it often is, it is not very safe at all. They seem to be better on the continent at proper separation with a line of kerbs or whatever. Round us we have some tracks that are well used and separate, and others that are not and people do seem to prefer the road to these. But I think they are old, narrow, and poorly surfaced, so if you want to commute speedily the road is preferable.
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I can see the problems with painted lines which are a lot more dicey. The ones I am referring to, and am annoyed about, are proper cycles tracks away from the traffic and perfectly surfaced ie a car would have to leave the road and deliberately mount the cycle track so the cyclist is totally safe from traffic. We have considerable maintenance on cycle tracks in our area, a lot more than is spent on the roads.
 
Time for Tea said:
One thing not mentioned, I don’t think, is the method of separating the cyclists from cars. If it is just a painted line, which it often is, it is not very safe at all. They seem to be better on the continent at proper separation with a line of kerbs or whatever. Round us we have some tracks that are well used and separate, and others that are not and people do seem to prefer the road to these. But I think they are old, narrow, and poorly surfaced, so if you want to commute speedily the road is preferable.
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Called murder lanes/strips for a reason, cars pass you much closer as they consider not being in your lane to be sufficient. They also usually are full of debris and recommended road positioning would be pretty much on the line not in the lane. I’m not sure if they or shared use paths are worse for putting cyclists in danger because drivers are annoyed that they’re not doing what they should be doing. I’ve only had once serious punishment pass
I don’t know how they didn’t push me off the road, for not using a shared use path during Covid which is <1m wide with a pinch point, overgrown vegetation and a blind bend. It was horrible. Badly designed infrastructure certainly isn’t better than nothing.

Painted lines are Only vaguely useful in order to access an advanced stop line, but they probably annoy drivers too.
 
When I lived in Edinburgh, the city had cycle lanes. Brilliant. Trouble was, they were shared with.....buses. That was ingenious. I don't know how it is now -- the city has upgraded its cycle infractucture....hopefully they've made it less sh1t.

Glasgow's cycle infrastructure is comedically terrible. There are separate cycle lanes, but they are only for short-ish stretches, so you have to dodge cars anyway. I wish they'd put more lights on the bloody canal; that's a great off road link, but dodgy at night.
 
I am honestly starting to believe cyclists think they own every, road, piece of pavement, etc they ride on.

The sense of entitlement I have seen for years from cyclists and now read about here just confirms that. In Boston they bitched to have bike lanes, they got them, but apparently having a a lane on the road means they own the road. Hiking in places where people hike or ride out, rarely do I get a heads up as a hiker that they are coming behind me.

I’m sure the rules are similar in the UK where pedestrians always have the right of way, then riders then bikes. I’ve honestly started walking in the middle of the trails to either dare them to run me over or prove a point. I can hear the tires but damn, you yield to me.

Thanks for reading my rant.
 
Caol Ila said:
When I lived in Edinburgh, the city had cycle lanes. Brilliant. Trouble was, they were shared with.....buses. That was ingenious. I don't know how it is now -- the city has upgraded its cycle infractucture....hopefully they've made it less sh1t.

Glasgow's cycle infrastructure is comedically terrible. There are separate cycle lanes, but they are only for short-ish stretches, so you have to dodge cars anyway. I wish they'd put more lights on the bloody canal; that's a great off road link, but dodgy at night.
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I have a question about Glasgow as that’s where I spend the most time. Are cyclists supposed to follow traffic laws with regard to lights etc? And why are so many on the pavement? Is that not illegal?
 
You're in Glasgow? We should have a pint.

They are supposed to follow traffic laws, but they do whatever they want. Don't get me started on the ninja deliveroo riders who seem to be trying to remove themselves from the gene pool.
 
Caol Ila said:
When I lived in Edinburgh, the city had cycle lanes. Brilliant. Trouble was, they were shared with.....buses. That was ingenious. I don't know how it is now -- the city has upgraded its cycle infractucture....hopefully they've made it less sh1t.

Glasgow's cycle infrastructure is comedically terrible. There are separate cycle lanes, but they are only for short-ish stretches, so you have to dodge cars anyway. I wish they'd put more lights on the bloody canal; that's a great off road link, but dodgy at night.
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We have that in Cambridge too and some bus overtakes are terrifying, one of the main arteries (to much complaining) has been altered recently to have segregated lanes that I think suffer from the junctions and drives issue and started with some really bad markings like upside down give way triangles.

One of the others got some plastic bollards, more complaining obviously, I’m undecided on them/whether they actually make people safer or just feel safer.
 
I don’t cycle much (can ride a bike but prefer not to!) but I’m Leeds area and we have some god-awfully designed bike lanes!

One in particular that definitely suffers from issues with a million kerbs to navigate, crossing driveways / car park exits, poor surfacing and random obstructions. Then we have a lot of ones that are shared with buses and a lot of quiet narrow ones that are just painted on that I hate passing cyclists on when I’m in the car as I don’t think the amount of space that’s been painted out as a lane really gives enough passing space.

We do also have some monumentally stupid cyclists though … Yes I know hi viz & lights aren’t cool but it means I can see you several seconds sooner when you’re careering about in the actual middle of the completely unlit, very windy country road wearing dark coloured clothing in the middle of the night & yep sure the road LOOKS clear but the light that changed to red a good 10 seconds ago & is still on red does in fact apply to you just as much as the que of cars you just whizzed past 🙄
 
So many overt haters of cyclists on here 🙄.

Just been nearly been made a widow today. Husband, who had survived a very close call with cellulitis earlier this year, and his fellow cycling OAPs in his U3A cycling group were nearly head on’d by a white van this morning. The driver raced round a blind bend on the wrong side of the NSL road while on his phone, and nearly took them all out. The cyclists managed to dodge him.

Sadly no footage close enough to identity the van.

Less than 100 yards from home, and on the very same blind corner in which the driving school instructor nearly rear ended me and the IDx in 2019. I personally cut the hedges on that corner even though they don’t belong to us, just to improve visibility.

Cyclists are very vulnerable, just like horse riders.
 
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