Nearly got caught up in the Remembrance Day Service in the Village ……

Eaglestone

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It could have been so Embarrassing and reminds me of the HHO member that nearly got caught up in a Funeral procession with a horse drawn hearse!

We started off on our usual Sunday morning hack and as we got to the top of the drive (sounds POSH doesn’t it!) the usual question ‘where are we going’ comes up!!!….. so off we sauntered with our wet weather gear on, making it impossible to move or turn round, and headed towards the village which meant many many options of different rides (we are so so lucky!) ….. as we got to a gate heading for the Village, the decision had to be made …. Riding partner suggested going through the Village (which is a long distance Bridleway called the Downs Link), and I muted that I did not want to meet any umbrellas, as Motor does not ‘do’ umbrellas, but we both decided that the rain had passed over so we should be ok…………………. So off we rode across a field to the Village Center….. as we caught sight of the Village, I could not believe my eyes, and neither could Motor!
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…. There in the middle of the ‘Official Route’ was a gathering of at least 75 people, possibly 50 of them sporting Umbrellas of all shapes, sizes and colours …. Now I try not to be put off by anything, so a quick conflab with riding partner, we decided to walk up the road a bit and skirt round the gathering (I was so concerned that it was in the middle of the two minute silence, as it was 11 ish ish!) …. As we got to the bit that joins back up with the Downs Link, I realised that we were dangerously close to the gathering (within feet!) and I really thought we were going to completely ruin the Remembrance Day commemorations (and give the people concerned a day to remember for the wrong reasons!) …. However all of Motors 14.3hh stature changed to 17.3 and his eyes came out on STALKS as we proceeded towards the ‘gathering’ … at this stage I was thinking sh*t this is going to be my most embarrassing moment ever, and I knew those eyes would be telling ALL to anyone who was looking, and I was ready to throw myself off him and drag him past …… but BLESS HIM although looking and feeling like a horse that was about to explode ….. he marched on and I gave a HUGE SIGH OF RELIEF! and it reminded my why I LOVE and TRUST him with my life!

….. my other horse a TB had not batted an eyelid all through this, typlical!

Sorry this is so long and I admire you if you have got this far ….. but have any other of you had such a ‘near miss’??????
 
Ive been caught by Morris Dancers once, luckily all we could do was stand and stare until they finished their little dance down the main street as they were taking up the whole road! Also, a little pony I used to ride took a dislike to the church bells, every sunday morning without fail we would be bronching sideways down the middle of the road while the chuch goers looked on in amusement...
 
Yup, even if he heard them in the distance he would be off bucking. Not sure if it was because he didnt like it or because he was just excited. Was very funny though!
 
We did almost the same today
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Jim isn't the best hack & this has been made worse by him not doing very much hacking in the last 18 months. Today I'd arranged to ride with a friend whose happy to nanny us a bit & can hold her horse if Jim has a funny at something. So off we trundle , both of us having forgotten there was a service in the village. Ironically it was my normally twittery neurotic ID that acted like a saint. He even coped just fine when we went past a whole crowd of people gathering for the walk to the church complete with umbrellas & flags! Ok he probably looked more like 18.2 than 16.2 & Im not sure the walk was strictly 4 beat but I really didn't care - he kept going forwards in a controlled fashion & never once felt like he was going to lose it
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. I was a VERY proud mummy & next time he has a panic attack about a leaf or water running across the road I shall remind myself he isn't a dead loss as a hack, just a little "special" at times!
 
Eaglestone the well done should definately be for Jim, I just sat quietly & let him get his head around it then kept talking to him as he went forward. He looked, gathered himself right up & I could almost feel him think "I CAN do this & I WILL!". Bless him, he's as genuine as they come & it's remembering moments like this that make me persevere with him when everything seems to go wrong.
 
Perhaps remember that 11 am on 11th day of 11th month is always 2 minutes silence in most towns and villages, shops, etc. If you don't wish to join in, then avoid that time and place.

Its not only our parents and grandparents generation who lost members thier families, but 25 years since the Falklands War,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FvE97zz5loc

and some have freinds and family in high risk situations at this very moment.
 
Our old gelding used to love the whit walk through the village, it was only by hard work that he was persuaded not to join in at the front! We think it was the brass band. Last year my sister and I joined a bed push by accident, both mares thought it was great and wanted to chase after the bed.
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The big mare wanted to go up into the village we think because she thought the applause was for her.
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I think some of you have missed the point, I did not mean to get caught up in it! I think it was unnessary for you to be so mean!
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I have great respect for this day and did try to avoid it. If you haven't got anything nice to say then don't, thankyou. End of!
 
I wasnt being mean at all. I was agreeing with a previous post.
11th November at 11am does happen once a year, how can you forget
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How can you avoid a day you have great respect for???
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I agree with Eaglestone, The post was about a horse issue, if some one wants to make their first post a "get" at another member then perhaps that is the reason they joined the forum. You can respect a day without following the traditional route or rememberance, and can come across a gathering of people because you don't know or remember that they meet there.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I think some of you have missed the point, I did not mean to get caught up in it! I think it was unnessary for you to be so mean!
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I have great respect for this day and did try to avoid it. If you haven't got anything nice to say then don't, thankyou. End of!

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh for heavens sake, no one was being mean.

You admitted you carried on regardless, you did not even attempt to turn around and go another way. What if your horse played up? (which you expected him to do) with that crowd of people literally feet away? So in essence in was pretty convenient for you to find a crowd of people, because it proved to you that your horse could cope with umbrellas
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If you'd done that in my village I'd have been finding out who your mummy and daddy were and giving them a call to let them know how disrespectful you were. Afterall, if you had ANY respect you'd have turned the horses round and gone another way.
 
How incredibly rude of Silent-Night, and how condenescending to speak of some-ones parents in that way. Given your stated views about respect what a pity you don't show normal courtesy yourself.
 
sorry? If MY child had been that disrespectful of a Rememberance Sunday service I'd sure as hell want to know. Wouldnt you?
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and in what way did I speak of OP's parents? I simply said if she lived in my village I'd be letting her parents know what she'd done. Why would that be disrespectful?

I am, of course assuming the OP is a teen , from the " if you havent anything to say don't say anything at all. end of" (ner ner ner ner ner ) reaction when someone else pointed the same out.
 
Parents, fine "your mummy and daddy", sounds condescending and making assumptions about some ones age from their posts is not a great idea in my opinion. The sentiment may be genuine but IMO is devalued by the manner of delivery.
 
TBH YorksG I have in the past made assumptions about xxkatyxx thinking she was a teenager. I was shocked to find she was a mother of two!! Sorry Katy but I think you were out of order to this poster & a tad to righteous & condencending. There are 100's of people who forget about the 2min silence, does not mean they are disrepectful at all. This poster did not deserve your comments after all you are not without faults.
 
I've come across morris dancers outside the pub -eyes on stalks but so well behaved that I was getting compliments from various peole for days. Have recently come across a fun run, an endurance ride & a sponsored ride with no problem. But if I go past Keysoe car park - total embaressment1
 
Have only just found this post but have to agree with LCobby and others. It does only happen once a year. I was with my son at a big Motor show at the NEC yesterday (with the TOP Gear gang), and it was very moving. They had a 2 minutes silence and however many thousand people there were attending all stood in silence to show their respect.
 
Well done you for tackling the route. And it sounds like your two coped admirably. I often get caught out by the triathlon that runs through the main village. Bikes, swimmers, runners. It doesn't matter how much advertising there is I always miss it.

I am intrigued to find that your post has caused a stir and an assumption that you are a minor! Is it because you were on a pony? There are some very odd folk on this forum.
 
sorry but I think there's a few who'd find riding through a rememberance day service completely disrespectful and disgraceful.

I assumed what I did because OP seemed to find it amusing.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I am intrigued to find that your post has caused a stir

[/ QUOTE ] I'm not at all surprised - when I read the post my thoughts were the same as many of the other posters on here. Seems very thoughtless to risk disturbing the Remembrance silence rather than take an alternative route.

If people don't want to participate in the silence themselves, then that is their choice, but it selfish and rude to risk spoiling for those that do.
 
[ QUOTE ]
TBH YorksG I have in the past made assumptions about xxkatyxx thinking she was a teenager. I was shocked to find she was a mother of two!! Sorry Katy but I think you were out of order to this poster & a tad to righteous & condencending. There are 100's of people who forget about the 2min silence, does not mean they are disrepectful at all. This poster did not deserve your comments after all you are not without faults.

[/ QUOTE ]

The point is, that the OP carried on, when most people with an ounce of respect, would have turned around.
I too, think it was disrespectful and rude.
 
i once found myself in the middle of a fun run once, not just me and the horse but my highly disobedient ridgeback cross who was very intrigued (sp) as to what everyone was doing? and proceeded to meander up to them all.... then to top it off mildred (the horse) did a great big poop in the middle of the road and luke (the dog) rolled in it
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