Hi-Viz?

katie_southwest

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As I drove home from the yard the other day I came around the corner to see 2 girls riding towards me on bay horses both wearing dark clothes and right next to a hedge so kind of blended in..luckily from keeping my horses there I always drive slowly incase of horses on the road etc but it doesnt take much to get a tabard or just something to stand out a bit does it? How many of us do wear Hi-Viz gear??
I got laughed at today when i produced my new flashing tabard and leg bands for horsey today!
 
Never go out without horses leg bands and my flashing tabard, unless it's leg bands and hi-viz fleece. Also saw a girl about 4pm dark horse, dark clothes, with the rug folded forwards and circingle(sp) dragging on the road!
 
Check out this picture...

riding1.jpg


Did anyone see the horse on the right? If you can do something to make other road users see you sooner, DO IT!
 
i wear hi-viz every time. i was involved in a hit and run while out on a hack 7 years ago (i was wearing hi viz at time) 2 weeks in hospital 5 days in a coma. by the time someone found me it was dark i was lucky that the pony i was riding was a palamino and had hi viz on his tail and legs and he stayed next to me .
 
I don't understand why the Mountain Horse Bodyguard jacket is not in Hi-Viz, would make so much sense. I have a blue one and have to wear a tabard with it.
 
We have far too many riders near us who regularly hack out at dusk on bay horses, dark clothes and no hi-viz - it drives me mad.
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Never ever ride out without my hi-viz tabard on and also leg bands etc in winter or dusky situtations!! Cant believe you see people riding out without hi viz gear on!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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Never ever ride out without my hi-viz tabard on and also leg bands etc in winter or dusky situtations!! Cant believe you see people riding out without hi viz gear on!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Its madness..like I said before I was driving slowly on purpose because I know there are riders about..and this crappy english weather changes it can be sunny when you go out and dark and foggy by the times you come back from a ride!
 
I wear the works everytime I go out, the yard joke that I can be seen from space well, but I really don't care, something awful still may happen but at least I did my best to prevent it.

By the way when I fell off on a hack, George galloped into the road with all his hi-viz on and it just may have been what prevented anything hitting him. Also my hi-viz meant my YO and friend spotted me in the distance very quickly, ok I was on my feet but if I'd been really hurt it may have helped to find me.
 
I am a returning rider and a frequent road user as I travel a lot with my work. I cannot believe how badly car / van drivers treat horse riders on the road. The rudeness and sheer stupidity I have seen led me to have some Hi-Viz vest printed up with 'Hoses don't dent, they DIE' on the back. It is a slogan I pinched from an American web site.

I would not dare venture out without Hi-Viz, and that goes for all the other riders I go out with.
 
Theres a riding school not far from me and a lot of them ride without wearing hi viz i think they are mad and totally ignorant.
 
did i not read some-one on here say that if you had an accident and were wearing no hi-viz then your insurance would be void cos you were not taking due care?
 
Was told yesterday by one of the security men who work at the public park that when he got hit by a car and injured his knee, the the cps didnt pursue it because he didn't have his Hi Viz top on, apparently he had only just gone on shift got distracted went out to a call without putting it on, says it all really.
I like my red neon flashing top for the dark as well as my Hi Viz gear and his headlight, I need to know for my own concience that if something happened and my loved pony got injured, that I had done everything possible that it wasnt my fault through not being seen, never mind any injuries to me, I think it is totally irresponcable to put an animal in unneccesay danger just because it isn't fashionble or you cant be arsed, make me wonder how people who dont consider their horses welfare when on the road can complain about other cruelty cases.
 
Always wear mine and would not ride without it. I have a big builders type jacket that I wear and when I first started using it instead of my tabbard I had a few drivers stop and remark on how they could see me coming ages away! So it does work!
 
I always always wear hi viz if I am stepping off the yard, both on me, and on my horse. I think it is completly selfish and stupid not to. We owe it to our horses to keep them as safe as possible
 
I always wear hi viz when riding out on the roads. It takes two seconds to put on so I don’t see why anybody wouldn’t wear it. We are on country lanes but cars always drive too fast on them so I just wouldn’t feel safe without it.
 
I always ride in high viz horse has boots all round I have a jacket and hat band. Used to use the tail guard but one day it slipped down and horse started bucking in the road as it was flapping round his legs!

If I had a pound for everyone who said we looked like a police horse and rider when we go out i would be bloody rich by now! and if that makes the cars slow down if they think they will get nicked then that's great!!!

Got a really good jacket from Ride Away it's called Luna Rider and I have had a lot of comments about how bright it is, (along with the brushing boots) also it has a nice shape too and you can pull it in at the waist so it looks a bit more feminine if you don't want to look like a builder on horse back!

Last summer I slowed down while driving along a country lane with trees all round it, you know the sort of road that looks like a tunnel. I had come from sunlight into the 'tunnel' and there were 2 riders on dark horses with nothing bright they were both wearing black it was a summer day, not even a white t shirt. I slowed down and said that it was very hard to see them, and what did I get?....... a mouth full of abuse and F words, so says it all doesn't it if motorists don't slow down for horses if they are treated this way. I live near London so the roads are always busy, it's about 50 50 re cars slowing down but I always thank the drivers who do, those who don't prob wouldn't even notice as even in 30mph limits they often tank it past the horses.
 
i went out yesterday with a friend & i wore my jacket, hatband & linx had his leg band/boots & bridle pieces friend just wore ex sheet. i was like 'how are cars going to you from the front??' it bugs me when i see people doing that particularly when it could affect me & my horse!!.

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^ this is like what i wore yesterday but linx had 2 bridle pieces & his neck strap with floures pieces in a V shape

have a look @ this link its similiar to the pic posted it shows how different levels of hi-viz can work - scroll down to the bottom & select which you want to see

vbandz vid links
 
What's equally important to hi-viz is that there's some reflective parts on the tabbard etc. If it's just hi-viz colour in the dark the colour doesn't make a huge difference, but something reflecting off headlights etc can be seen long before the bright yellow of the hi-viz.
 
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