Do YOU wear Hi viz???

Do YOU wear Hi viz?

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usually wear a hat band always wear lighlty coloured clothes and have a grey pony, but if there is poor light or vizibility i wear what i can find e.g some leg wraps and a neck strap and if really bad a tabard, always wear my tabard in winter
i do need some more might go and order some now :)
 
Yep, at least a tabbard in all weathers - but then I have at least 30 mins roadwork on most hacks.

Have hat cover, excercise rugs and a flashing light tabbard for gloomier days / evenings.
 
Yes, always. Hat band (pink), and pink tabard or coat if it's wet. Pony has leg wraps and exercise sheet that we use often; we also have bridle bits and pieces and a neck thingy.

I don't understand why people don't wear hi-viz. A lot of people at my yard don't, and I frequently see them out on the roads without it, and they are very hard to see. I just don't understand it!
 
Yes always wear Hi-Viz on horse and myself.

I wear a long sleeved Hi-Viz jacket so that motorists can see my hand signals more clearly and a Hi-Viz hat band so that they can see me over the hedges on bends in roads.

Also wear Hi-Viz when riding off-road so that others such as shooting parties can spot me. (i.e if they are shooting deer with high velocity rifles) (Also carry a whistle to draw there attention to me if I don't think they have seen me.)
 
Hacking out on the roads - absolutely yes. I'm sure we aren't covered insurance-wise if not wearing at least two reflective leg items. Anyone who says they didn't see us HAS to be up for driving without due care and attention to my way of thinking. I still ride with constant awareness of approaching and following vehicles and observe courtesy.

I seriously can't understand people who don't. I'm not honestly bothered about the unbelievable lack of common sense leading to their injury (or worse) - but the poor horse having its life stupidly put at such needless risk.
 
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studentvet said:
Hello all. I was wondering, how many of you do wear hi viz clothing when hacking? Because I am no fashion diva, but I dont (although I do try to ensure I dont wear dark clothing... ) and TBH when I'm driving around, I see a fraction of riders actually wearing it. So who does and who doesn't?

I'm sure I will get it in the ear from those hi-viz-honeys who go out in all of the gear, but it is a personal choice so please don't burn me down in flames (SHOCK I also ride in a beagler and dont wear a hat when schooling a more reliable horse...!!!) I am just wondering the % of who does and doesnt and if it is representative of the riders I see out and about. Or are we all (other than me!!!!) saints on here?!?!
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Mostly i do but sometimes i dont. I didnt today and felt a bit naked but stayed off the road mainly. It depends really on weather conditions. If i am leading up the road to or from fields i will always wear hiviz due to our road.Again, if riding from the farm I always wear hi viz. If riding out from the fields up the road i dont always remember to take it but would ride round the fields rather than go out without hi viz in the evening or poor weather conditions.

I wear it in good weather conditions because my insurance states that any claim could be invalid if i am not wearing hiviz.

In poor weather or leading horses on our road I wear it for safety.

It was brought home to me when I nearly hit a horse in poor visibility.
I would never go out in rain without hiviz but the setting sun can blind drivers. I am not sure if Hiviz helps in this situation.
 
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Mostly - we have very little roadwork where we are, so lovely sunny day and out with friends then no but getting a bit more gloomy/very early start (even in the summer) or going to be on the road then yes. I also found that my mega sexy police look alike jacket works WONDERS on speeding drivers over Ranmore - without fail they slam the brakes on! Also always wear a tabard if going solo after someone on here pointed that you could be found more easily..
 
Always. Minimum of tabard for me and four leg bands for horse. Reflective wrap round sheet in winter. Sometimes Parsons Rump for horse in warmer weather.
 
I always wear a hi-viz top for hacking and usually high viz boots on my horse.
I think its just good manners to other road users to make sure they can see you. I'm the only person on my yard who always does though despite the fact we have to ride up the side of a busy A road.
 
No.

I rarely ride on the roads. Our roads are empty, mainly flat, long (our road is 10 miles) straight (mind numbingly boring), 30' wide and unfenced, I can hear, and see, traffic coming from a mile away. If the horse came home without me I always tell someone where I am going, and a tracker dog (and that's what they'd use, well my own dog actually) would find me way better in the forests than a helicopter.

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I used to always wear a jacket and something on the horse. If I rode on narrow, windy, high hedged country lanes or the mountains anymore then I would.
 
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A tabard and hat band every time I'm out on the road. In winter, Arnie gets a high vix exercise sheet and a neck band.

There are girls local to me who wear nothing - and hack bay horses while wearing brown jackets. I've nearly hit them myself and I'm looking for horses:eek:
 
Always - at least a tabard or cycling jacket and an exercise sheet in cooler weather.

I'm pretty sure some insurance policies have hi-viz as an essential item on your policy and won't pay out if you were in an accident without it! ** off to check small print**
 
I do wear hi viz in most circumstances:

On my way to a meet I will have a reflective belt, if there's the possibility of me returning in fading light I also carry two chemical lightsticks, one white one red, which I stick into the plaited tail and brow band, although I will usually try to get somene to meet me with a hiviz tabard.

For a normall day hacking out on the road I'll make sure that I'm wearing a bright top/jacket and usually my horse will have reflective boots, either overeach or brushing.

I do remember hearing of a study about what gave the best results in poor light, the verdict was boots, because the movement caught the eye.

I don't dress myself up like a Christmas tree, but thats my choice, but I make sure that whatever I wear is easily visible if only to place the onus more firmly on a drivers negligeance in the event of an incident, I wonder if we invalidate insurance by virtue of not having taken all reasonable precaution, if we don't make ourselves visible.

However all the hi viz in the world isn't going to help you if you've got some dipstick treating country lanes like a racetrack and rallying it around blind bends!
 
People dress up their horses in cross country gear - boots, over-reach boots, etc. etc. so putting on high-viz etc is just the same, dress your horse for the road as you dress your horse for going cross country.
 
ORANGEHORSE said:
People dress up their horses in cross country gear - boots, over-reach boots, etc. etc. so putting on high-viz etc is just the same, dress your horse for the road as you dress your horse for going cross country.
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You are right...the point I was trying to make that I prefer a little..used effectively..rather than going the whole hog and changing into my dayglo boxer shorts lol
 
I put other as I do have a bright yellow exercise sheet and a bright orange jacket ( clashes amazingly when worn together) but I only tend to wear it when the weathers bad or in fading light. Other than that I never bother
 
Yes I wear a tabbard and horse wears leg bands as a bare min. Also have an exercise sheet for winter - she gets too hot in summer.
 
We hack mostly off road but when we are on roads we are on bendy, high banked, dappled or dark roads so YES i do wear hi viz. Currently I only wear a tabbard by v-bandz with the reflective strips as well as the bright yellow grear. However having almost ran into a few horses who I and others haven't seen due to the dapple light and colour of horse I will be adding leg wraps to my horse as well. As I meet horses out alot I've noticed that those with leg bands stand out much more than riders with just a tabbard. I'm not sure the breastplates etc help but the more the better I would say. I value my life and as a careful driver who has narrowly missed horses I would rather be seen than take my chance with a less careful driver!
 
someone else may have already said this cos TBH I haven't read all the posts but some research a few years back suggests drivers take more notice of leg bands than anything else (because they are moving maybe?). I always wear a tabbard and sometimes leg bands. I ride my bike with a tabbard too.
 
Didn't used to wear high viz however the other day decided to go out for a hack with a friend at yard, both on dark bays and both wearing dark clothing, as the other horse not particularly confident out hacking and it was quite overcast decided on the spur of moment to put on my high viz tabard that has been in my trunk for years.

Anyway I couldn't believe the response from drivers, I hack on a not particularly busy road but people do travel at speed on it and never have I known drivers to slow down as much as they did that day and the only thing different was the fact that I was in high viz.

Now feeling a bit of a conversion coming on and that tabard will be coming out much more frequently!!!
 
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Keep-Horses-Safe-on-our-Roads-Wear-Reflectives/148474228505377

There's a facebook group been started by someone who wants to get enough people together in order to approach insurance companies to make HI VIZ compulsory for equestrian road users - ie insurance may be invalidated if rider/driver not sufficiently decked out, in order to protect horses from being involved in accidents.

I quote a post made on the discussion page of this fb group...

" THINK VERY CAREFULLY ......PLEASE!


We have enough legislation in our lives, let it remain an individual choice.
If there were to be legislation or conditions on your insurance, where would it end? Would we have to wear reflective clothing on road drives and on the marathon, (in the case of carriage drivers) in case we went on a road or crossed a road to get to a track? Would the beautiful horse drawn hearse or wedding carriage look as good covered in high vis? Where do you draw the line?
Would you have to tog up to walk down your drive and cross the road to the bridleways or forest? You might say no BUT should an accident occur whilst crossing a road your insurance would be invalid.
Your suggestion has far reaching implications that need very careful consideration as once implemented it's extremely difficult to go back and it could adversely affect a large number of people in ways that one hasn’t even perceived.
In addition IF for some reason you have not got reflective gear on and a claim is made against you, you run the risk of losing your property and possessions when you are sued and your insurance has been invalidated. The bill will lie firmly at your feet.
It is a dangerous game you are playing, you are giving insurance companies yet more loopholes to avoid paying out to equestrians when an accident is very often not their fault but that of a careless driver.
I strongly urge you to EDUCATE not LEGISLATE."



How does everyone feel about this???
 
I always wear a tabard/cycling jacket when hacking. This year due to having hacking that involves roads I am going to order Reflective strips for my pony. My exercise sheet has reflective strips on it.
 
I always wear a tabard when riding and my boys wear leg bans and bridle kits aswell as a hi- vis excercise sheet on dull days.

Even if you are only hacking on the road for a few mins to get to a bridleway hi-vis can help air ambulances / floor ambulance crew to locate you should you fall from your horse and land up unconcious in the middle of nowhere!

in MY opinion not wearing hi-vis is stupid and incredibly selfish.
 
In winter when its mostly misty and boggy i wear a pink one or when its really bad i have a BIGHT! yellow rain jacket but its gets to hot so i wear it when its really cold
but on a nice summers day when the suns shinning no :)
 
i absolutely agree (and insurance is my family trade!!!).its a dangerous move to make it a legal requirement.

i personally, have never worn *proper* high viz. being a dressage diva i dont hack in **** weather/light, and because my horse is unreliable in heavy traffic, i only hack at quiet times of the day. the roads my yard is off is long and nearly straight, plenty wide enough to get 2 cars and a horse if needed, and the lanes are the total opposite, so narrow and twisty that people HAVE to go slowly. verges are usually well mowed and are wide so more often than not im pootling along the verge anyway.

however, im usually kitted out in something like this......
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pink.jpg

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so it could be argued that i do hack in hi-viz after all! (and i do ALWAYS wear a hat, a proper one with a chin strap! out hacking)
 
I wear a bright orange builders hi viz vest. I have have now had made a orange breast plate and leg bands for my horse. The lady is also going to make me orange hi viz rein bands aswell. Have had people I know spot me from a fair distance away in their cars and they say orange can be seen better than yellow.
 
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