'POLITE' waistcoats, do they work?

JenniferS

JenniferS

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I bought one yesterday at a stall at the RHS as they looked liked fantastic idea! Just wondering, what are your experiences with them? Do they actually stop cars from speeding past you?

I'm going to start hacking out Rhea soon (in company) and although the livery yard is in the countryside, nearby there's a housing estate which are homes to many boy racers and their silly cars who like to use the road at ridiculous speeds!

I don't want her first experiences on the roads to be bad ones so I'm trying to take every precaution (in my control) that I can :)

Also, please post your pictures!! :D

This is mine (when I got it) :

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If you look at Shysmum's thread then you'll see her comments and photos. I got mine this week (from England via my lovely Aunty Joan) and I'll be using it in Morocco when I ride next week!!! I can't comment on how effective they are but they make me feel more confident!
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If you're hacking in company, wouldn't all of you need to be wearing it to not ruin the effect very quickly?
I really want one. It's next on my list to buy;)
 
I wore mine for the first time yesterday. I have to say most of the traffic in my area is pretty good at slowing down for horses and riders as there are so many of us, but i think they slowed down quicker, further away if that makes sense? Normally they slow down gradually but it definitely seemed that they saw the blue and white on the tabard and slowed down quicker.
 
I have one and I can't say people slow down any more but someone from the yard passed me yesterday and said later he thought it said police
 
I did a post on this on friday, I wore mine for first time down a farm track and met one car. He was going quite quickly and we pulled onto verge. He pulled up by the side of me, apologised for speeding and said I should give him 3 points!!!
 
If it gives you one second of hesitation from a bonkers driver, I would say it's worth it! I have only just started taking Hugo out on the roads (VERY quiet, at that) and drivers round here are pretty good anyway. But I know it causes drivers to think a bit and if they do that - all good!

My OH thought about wearing mine on his motorbike! ;)
 
I think it is difficult to quantify how much better, if at all, these tabards are against the normal hi viz ones. I imagine it possibly would get the drivers with poor eyesight to take heed & slow down ;)

I'm in favor of all riders out hacking, no matter what time of day or time of year wearing hi viz & if these tabards get more people wearing hi viz then it has to be a good thing.
 
ive no doubt these are effective in making drivers hit the brakes, but my worry with them is that as soon as a driver realises they've been conned, there are certain types who would retaliate. Also, Im sure round here most local drivers would soon pick up on the fact it's fake and a) it woudlnt work for long and b) you'd risk annoying a fair few by trying to imitate the police i think. Just my thoughts.
 
I wear one that says "CAUTION. YOUNG HORSE IN TRAINING". I find that very effectivea nd motorists generally (well, the ones who can see my back) very courteous when they know why they should slow. Trouble is the front on motorists aren't so.
 
Supertrooper said:
I did a post on this on friday, I wore mine for first time down a farm track and met one car. He was going quite quickly and we pulled onto verge. He pulled up by the side of me, apologised for speeding and said I should give him 3 points!!!
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What an idiot statement from an idiot driver:D
 
WELL! I took Rhea out for a walk in her bridle and my friend joined me incase anything happened. First of all it was going great, we passed a van coming downhill and it stopped, reversed, pulled into the grass verge before putting his engine off!

Then it changed on the way back :( We were walking down a hill when a Jaguar S-Type came up behind us and could hear that they had suddenly slowed down (didn't look behind me). At this point there was a passing place approx. 100 yards down the road. I asked Rhea for a brisker walk so the car could get past at the passing place. The road was narrow enough and either side of the grass verge was a ditch, so nowhere to go. The car was following slowly behind us and we'd almost met the passing place when suddenly (it all happened so fast!) the car revved its engine right up and we all got a fright, especially Rhea who was terrified and had no idea what was going on, before the w*nker put his foot down and sped up the road!! At this point Rhea was snorting but standing still as she had no idea what had happened but was very jumpy after that. If Rhea had moved her bottom out even a tiny bit, both my friend & Rhea would have been hit :( I'm so thankful she stayed sensible throughout.

The car had a 5-letter regi plate and we definitely got the first two letters and had a rough idea of the other three. We went to the police to report it, they were very helpful and agreed that what he did was very dangerous. They phoned me back to tell me that the regi plate I supplied belonged to a Ford Transit so they got away with it :(
Although the road he was coming from was the road from the local golf club so I've asked a friend to look next time he's up ;)

It makes me really angry that he couldn't have even waited 15 seconds so instead endangered the lives of himself, my friend & Rhea. Whether he did this out of impatience, or the fact he realised my vest said 'POLITE' rather than 'POLICE' I don't know :(

I really hope Rhea will be okay to take down the road in future, and that the w*nker hasn't scared her to death.
 
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The trick is to wear a black top and then as a car comes up behind you, turn a bit so they can't fully read it, smile, thank and trot on! Found this works for me in mine.

And as for the jag driver, well, they are all complete twunts anyway. Fact.
 
Just a bit of a warning - I've been told that any waistcoat stating "Young horse in training" or anything similar is basically you admitting your horse could be a liability on the road :(
stupid I know, but I've stopped wearing mine since.
K x
 
KellysHeroes said:
Just a bit of a warning - I've been told that any waistcoat stating "Young horse in training" or anything similar is basically you admitting your horse could be a liability on the road :(
stupid I know, but I've stopped wearing mine since.
K x
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How ridiculous is that?

That you can no longer warn other road users of a possible hazard through fear of leaving yourself liable. Such a joke!
 
ThePinkPony said:
How ridiculous is that?

That you can no longer warn other road users of a possible hazard through fear of leaving yourself liable. Such a joke!
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I know! Instead of saying "be aware this is a youngster and may be unpredictable" it now says "this is a youngster and I accept any trouble it causes, sue me"
I used to wear one with my *cough* veteran...:o 'cause she could be a bit of a swine at times for no particular reason other than being a sod, but since I got told that I've stopped.
Its the same thing with dog signs - by having a "beware of the dog" sign you are admitting liability for your dog to bite someone rather than just saying "please be aware we have dogs"
K x
 
A bit of good news! After the trouble last night and thinking the bandit had gotten away with it, I was out hacking with someone tonight and what did I see? :D

The very same car (regi plate was 1 digit different than what I thought) parked in the back garden of a local horse hater's house. It's not the first time that the guy has harassed local riders either, he's done it before in different ways. Went back to the police with the correct regi plate so hopefully they'll get a talking to!
 
I haven't found that mine made much difference unfortunately but you'll always get the odd idiot on the road so not much of a shock.

I agree with KH - wearing the young horse bib admits liability or so I've been told.
 
where do you get them from? I've seen them on ebay, but never trust that to be the best deal.

Where we ride it's all main roads and I think this would work a treat to make them slow down... just need to change my hat cover back to black rather than bright pink and brown!
 
Re the liability, if you are involved in an accident on the road involving a vehicle, the first thing their insurers will ask is were you wearing hiviz and if so how much? Obviously it is better that you were (and wearing LIGHT coloured sleeves/gloves makes you more visible than wearing black and trying to look more like a police officer with your polite hiviz btw;))

There is some evidence that wearing hiviz with statements such as caution young horse or novice rider etc may be used against you, so my advice (and I do this as part of my living) is to wear as much hiviz as you can, but without writing on it. You are trying to be more visible, more quickly, to other road users, not to distract them while they read your tabard or mislead them (which does indeed p**s off a good few drivers who think they own the road and will take it out on the next rider they see :()

In NI I have to say I can't think of anyone who would willingly dress to make themselves look like a PO so I doubt they'll sell many over here.
 
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