cyclist GRrrr!

NeverSayNever

NeverSayNever

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im happy to share the road with everyone but that's twice in the last week someone on a racing bike with all the racing gear on has caused me grief.

First time I was hacking along the road and they just whizzed past without slowing down or calling to warn of their presence:mad: Horse got a right fright and so did I. By the time I'd applied the brakes and got her back under control the guy was long gone.

Second time was today, driving along a single track road in my truck which is a quite large and the guy was infront of me. I stayed a respectable distance behind him and didnt attempt to squeeze past as I deemed it too narrow and all it would have taken was a wobble from him. He gave no indication he even knew I was there. He passed 3, yes 3 passing places but didnt stop or slow into them to let me by:confused::mad: So at the 4th I gave a little toot, as unaggressively as i could (if thats possible) to let him know Id like to pass and all I got was waved at angrily and gestured to pass - meantime he still didnt slow. Well there is no way I was going to risk it so I ended up stuck behind him to the next junction!!

Am I right to be peeved? What would you have done?
 
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I'm used to them coming past the horses without warning and so are mine, I think some cyclists panic about going past horses, they are in quite a vulnerable position, and if they don't realise that some hroses wouldn't like them then all they think about is get past as quick as possible.

Your best bet there is to just keep your wits about you from all angles and then when you spot them ask them to slow and move off the road for them.

As for the one with you in the truck, that was out of order of him if it wasn't safe enough for you to pass and I probably would have said something as I passed him but then it would depend on how rattled I was haha!!

I love it when cyclists or horse riders signal you to over take them on blind bends, um.....no i'd rather see it's clear for myself when I get round the corner thankyou lol!!
 
I have similar dilemmas with the cyclists in Cornwall.
Majority, at best, are rude ignorant and pretty aggressive, also showing little consideration for other road users.
Get the occasional one down here who calls out, but my mare when surprised will " have a go" at the offending object/person. They give us a bit more space second time!
However you would think souch a vunerable road user would be alot more defensive purely for self preservation!!
 
I was out hacking yesterday and we had the Bradley Wiggins Inaugural ride going on in our area. There were 2000 cyclists participating :eek: and most of them came past us at some point :D.
We only had one incident when we were turning right and they were turning left. Rather than wait for us to turn, they came up the outside of us :rolleyes:, which resulted in a little bike tussle as a few ran into each other. One chirrups up "I hate horses", to which my friend said "Well, I'm not keen on you" :). Everybody else was great and shouted hello to warn us they were coming, like we could miss them ;).

I had a similar cyclist to you, in the middle of the road, seemingly oblivious to me who wanted to get past. I tooted him and squeezed past him just after :cool:
 
I had a full cycle race going along the road right past my stables on a one track farm road, it forms part of a cycle track, but is also a public road, they were riding in groups about 3-4 abreast and riding fast, and when they use it for time trials they are a bleeding nightmare.we were given no warning this race was taking place.:mad:
We have caution horse signs either sides of the buildings, tbh i dont think some of them give a damn or go slow enough to see them, and yes, if youre driving you are expected to sit at the back of the group of them until they decide to let you past, they are a pain in the bloody arse.
Strangely its only the racing clubs who behave in this manner, the leisure cyclists have been very good and actually slow down as they pass the stables.
We have a small community of farms and cottages along the quiet road and the residents all feel the same way so its not just me.
 
Going back to the mists of time 1979 I was flail hedge trimming at least 2 years growth strong thorns when the Coalville Wheelers came past have never seen so many punctures and tyres being ripped off I recieved total abuse but it still makes me :D:D:Dlaugh
 
We bought a (thankfully) bombproof Clydie mare and hacked her home one Sunday morning. We chose Sunday because it would be quiet, ha,ha!
After a few hundred yards from her previous yard, we turned onto an A road. About 40 cyclists came past us, whooping and hollering, took absolutely no notice of us except to swerve round us. I have thought since that we should have complained to the organisers of this race, or whatever it was. At the time we just thankful that she was unfazed by them. In fact she was then passed, twice, by a milk tanker and an ambulance with flashing blue light, both on a narrow road while the only thing she worried about was a field of cows.
I agree with Marydoll, the leisure cyclists round here are very considerate but we recently had 2 organised cycle events locally, on the same day, we were warned about neither of them and all the cyclists were a PITA.
 
well a cyclist bombed past me again yesterday with no warning and completely ignored my 'please pass wide and slow' highvis. My horse is a star and had just gone past a digger and tractor with trailer without batting an eyelid! The sudden appearance of the bike however caused an all 4 feet off the ground leap and attempt to tank off. This is really worrying me now, I didnt think fast enough at the time to shout after him but will next time,
 
Since Bradley wiggins won the tour de france, I do nothing but meet Bradley Wiggins wannabes on the road.
Tbh i dont mind them, horse did a few times, but now ignores them.
We even met a mini tour de france of about 40 cyclists. All for horses decked on the brakes and looked but didnt back up or anything. Sounded a bit like a swarm of wasps coming past. haha.

I have seen so many people riding around on brand new bikes recently, I think its great. Even bought my OH a bike, so I can go on holiday this weekend with the kids and car, and he can get to work. He says hes not a Bradley Wiggins wannabe but a Dave Mira wannabe. lol.
 
Cycles are quiet aren't they horses don't know they are there. I have a dilema, I have taken to road cycling for fitness, but I also ride horses on the road.

As a cyclist I am most perplexed by what I should do if I meet a horse - luckily I have not need to go past one yet. I get the pass wide bit, but the horse isn't going to know I am there, and it seems anything I could do would frighten it - when a car approaches (bar these electic ones), you get the distant engine getting closer warning, but on a bike I don't have this advantage. If I call out the horse could be startled, I could 'ting' my small bell, but again this is an unexpected noise that a horse might react to. I also think I am the more vulnerable of the horse and rider/cyclist combo if a horse goes 'my god what the hell is that'.

I understand both aspects implicitly, but I am still phased my the best thing to do - I wear hi-vis too when cycling, so I am going to suddenly appear as big frightening thing in a hoses limited peripheral vision.

I'd be interested to know what H&H forum think is the best way for me to pass their horses on my bike.
 
Cyclists near me generally shout out 'cyclist!' to annouce they are coming past, or one genius man went 'brrrrrinnnnng brrrrrriiiinnggg' to imitate a bell, made me giggle at least. I don't mind if they say nothing tbh, they might not know. My horse will just have to behave himself I'm afraid, besides unexpected hedge ninjas (aka blackbirds) are far more frightening :rolleyes:

I cycled past where the Leeds festival is this weekend on my ride yesterday, which was foolish as there was lots of traffic on a normally quiet road - who goes to a festival 2 days early ffs?! I didn't pull in to let anyone past (its a wide ish 2 lane road) but it did mean I had the pleasure of a double decker and all its festival going occupants behind me for a while which made me pedal as fast as I could - got a few whoops as they went past :eek: :D
 
I always find that if (on the rare occasion) a cyclist says 'hello' or 'can we pass?' horse makes no fuss at all. It's when they whip past like silent ninjas that's the problem.

I once was hacking with my oh and the dog on our little block route, chatting away when I glanced down to my left to see a leisure cyclist about 3 inches from my foot. I expressed surprise at him being so close but he just got huffy and said he wanted to pass. I said that it's fine but if something on the right had spooked my horse, he could have been seriously injured and just to ask next time would be safer. Idiot!!
 
Round here, cyclists usually call out 'good morning!' (or afternoon or whatever) and I reply. This works really well as my horse knows I don't engage in conversation with monsters. Problem is, some cyclists don't realise this and think they should sneak past so as not to scare her! I usually explain to this sort (after unwanted GP dressage moves) that as far as my horse is concerned, people sneaking up are likely to be predators! They normally understand and call out next time.
 
FWIW - cyclists get yelled at by car drivers, I know I do, frequently, and I get hooted at and swore at too, so cyclists also take their fair share of flack too.
 
Maddie is vehicle proof including tanks but cycles always spook her unless they make themselves known - I always ask them to just shout out when they come up behind a horse and thank them when they do. However she believes Satan himself is hitching a ride in every all terrain baby buggy and nothing will persude to get over herself if she spots one of those.
 
Id be chasing them personally. Ive done it before shouting full abuse.

I dont see why they cant just be nice as shout it wouldnt even take them a full breath to shout BIKE.

They are the first ones to complain if a driver gets too close.
 
A french source said tacks work well at slowing them down......;)

Ones round me very considerate, but we're not on any time trial routes & hills are big enough with sharp bends such that speeds are curbed.
 
Our local cyclists are pretty good but they are the one thing that my 'bombproof' mare is a bit wary of, coming up behind her. If I see her ears beginning to go back, I look round and say 'good morning/afternoon' to whoever is behind us. Then she is fine, as she hears them answer.
 
rolls1392 said:
I have similar dilemmas with the cyclists in Cornwall.
Majority, at best, are rude ignorant and pretty aggressive, also showing little consideration for other road users.
Get the occasional one down here who calls out, but my mare when surprised will " have a go" at the offending object/person. They give us a bit more space second time!
However you would think souch a vunerable road user would be alot more defensive purely for self preservation!!
Click to expand...

Do you mean that your mare kicks out if they shout? Because what are they meant to do in that case?:confused:

FWIW if I meet horses out on my bike, I slow right down and say hello if we're coming towards each other, and ask if I can pass in plenty of time if I'm behind them. I also use passing places if there's a car behind me (unless I'm going up hill - I find kicking off on an uphill stretch painful at the moment because of an injury I'm carrying, so I keep going to the top then wait!), I hate having people behind me. I just really want them to sod off so I can enjoy my ride in peace. What I will not do is hug the kerb though, as this is dangerous for me and I do want to get home in one piece. I will also claim my space on the road when overtaking parked cars and so on, and unfortunately anyone behind me will just have to be patient until I've passed the obstruction.

I also pass several tethered horses on my commute, and have garnered some very funny looks from people because I always say hello to them and generally have a little chat, so they know I'm coming and that I'm human and not a monster:D
 
like spudlet said.... I call out hello and then ask if it's ok to come past, and as long as the road is clear I move to the other side to do so. If it's not, I'll wait some distance behind until it is.

I've never seen a horse have a paddy as I've cycled past. And the only time ours have had a problem was coming up to a T junction (up the stalk if you like) and a load of road bikes shot past on the road ahead (the hat bit if you like) and surprised both horses and both riders! but in all fairness we couldn't see them due to our position, and they were coming downhill and wouldn't have been able to see us either, so no-one's fault, and horses only jumped then walked on!
 
Most the cyclists in our area of North Hertfordshire are very good and shout 'passing' well before they get to us. I often go to one of the local pubs with the horse and end up introducing the horse to them as well as explaining things from the horse riders point of view. It is interesting how many cyclists do not understand that horses could be afraid of them.

Regarding organised cycle events on roads there was a court case some years ago as a result of a road race causing three ridden horses to bolt and the riders were seriously injured. As a result of this it was strongly advised to any organisation organising a road race to ensure that the road race was accompanied by a vehicle at the front which had the power to stop the race if they came accross horse riders and ensure that the race would only be re-started once the horses had got safely away from them.
 
I've been cycling round my field with my youngsters in the last couple of days.. They are racing round like a pack of hyenas are on their tails but I'm hoping that it will help them when backed and/or walking out..

My previous horses have all been solid as rocks with bicycles.. Balloons and umbrellas are more problematic!
 
backridingagain, to answer your question, all id want is them to shout they are passing or ring the bell, and slow a bit. Its the ones who whizz past with no warning, even I jumped!!
 
Stencilface said:
Cyclists near me generally shout out 'cyclist!' to annouce they are coming past, or one genius man went 'brrrrrinnnnng brrrrrriiiinnggg' to imitate a bell, made me giggle at least.
Click to expand...

Wow, he gets about. He passed me the other week, near Dorking! Only ever had one near miss due to a dopey cyclist (before Olympics) racing past as we rounded a blind bend - didn't bother Henry, but neither I nor the oncoming driver were impressed!

Other than that, I just see it as Karma for all the times I've held up other people on Henry! I should also add that a cyclist actually pulled over today for the first time in 12 years of driving down a 5 mile narrow lane. Big thumbs up to him!
 
I still maintain that seeing the face of a mountain biker as he comes flying round the corner downhill on a gravelly bridle path to come face to face with my ned is one of the best expressions I've seen, he pooed himself :D :D

Horse didn't care :p
 
Im afraid that round our way cyclists seem to think they are both immortal and immune from the Highway code. We are on a time trial route and they whizz past with no warning shouts and no regard for either horses or any other traffic. I phoned the organiser at the club they belong to and asked whether when time trialling they have special permission to ignore basic road rules, a little tongue in cheek, and was told if I could get number of offending cyclist he/she would be spoken to. I did point out that they were moving too fast to get number and anyway, I had my hands full calming spooked horses as several triallers, who had caught up with each other whizzed past in quick succession. Chap on phone was quite obliging but this year nothing has changed. I also get stuck behind lots of "normal" cyclists on our country roads who ride two abreast and never seem to think about pulling in to side of road to let queues of traffic past. Maybe its just because I am a courteous horse rider that I get wound up, I always pull in when safe to do so to let traffic past me and Che, always thank considerate drivers and try to avoid riding at busy times. I have insurance and wear hi viz, not many cyclists round here seem to have heard of HV and I wonder how many are insured! I know horse riders garner a bad press but some of the cyclists Ive met are far worse IMO.
 
Try to desensitise your horses to anything that you can think of.
Expect the unexpected.
This pony
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was introduced to bicycles at 2 years old. "Meeting" them over the stable door first (I was in stitches as she spun the front wheel around with her nose :D).
Then built up to someone pushing it along beside her while I led her. Then someone cycling around her, passed from in front and passed from behind.

I did the same with a motorbike. First, let her look at a stationary bike, allowing her to approach it in her own time. Once confident, pushing the bike along beside her with the engine off, then letting her hear the bike running while on its centre stand, then someone riding the bike slowly nearby while she stood watching, then riding the bike closer to her and so on until she was happy with the bike approaching from in front, from behind, alongside, and passing her.

Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to ride her on the road....she died aged 5 years old.
But, she was as bomb proof and traffic proof as she could possibly be in the 3 years I owned her.
 
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