Scary hack, hope the driver learnt a lesson!

[0ldmare]

Its really quite shaken me up. I had met a friend for a hack on my youngster and, after leaving her, was hacking back alone to my house. The lane is really narrow and bendy (not even enough room for 2 cars to pass that that easily). I could see a medium size lorry coming very fast towards me, pulling a big flat bed trailer behind it and as he rounds the bend I am waving my arm to slow him down. He slammed the brakes on and the brakes locked and he started to skid. At which point the trailer he is towing starts to jack knife across the road in my direction. (He is about 15 metres from me at this point). Thank god he had the sense to stop braking and put his foot down again because it straightened up and hurtled past me.

I was literally leaning away from it in the saddle it was that close. And my little horse? Was totally unconcerned and didnt flinch or even look at it

She is the ultimate bombproof horse with traffic! But it scares me so much how close we came to being hit. I hope so much the driver learnt a lesson and that it scared him just as much. Pointless post really...sorry!

 

[CracklinRosie]

You should have got his number and phoned the police.

I'm sure a chat from the boys in blue would shake him up!

What a good little horsey!

 

[Daisy11]

this happened to my friend she has this cob when she was out hacking she was on her way back when a lorry came fast down this lane very small to when he slammed his foot on the brakes at this point the lorry was screaching and skidding at this point my friends horse turn and they departed she ending up getting knocked out and had to got to hospital i think the lorry driver wont be doing that in a hurry again
sounds like a really trustworthy little horse

 

[Eaglestone]

Thank goodness you are both ok it is obvious you have a lovely little horse there

My suggestion is ... now you have written it down try and forget it, as these sort of things can haunt us riders, unless we put it firmly to the back of our minds

 

[0ldmare]

Thank you, yes I do need to try to put it out of my mind and not keep thinking about what might have happened if it had hit us. Thank goodness I wasnt on my older horse who is a total wimp in traffic. Even if it had been stationary we would have struggled to get past it!

I wish I could have got his number, but it all happened so fast.

 

[PeterNatt]

What a good horse.

I find riding around narrow country lanes far more dangerous than riding in Central London as the visibility is so much worse along country lanes with the high embankments and hedges and drivers driving far too fast. Also in London there is a 30 m.p.h. speed limit and there are pavements to escape on to.

My only advice to all riders is to wear Hi-Viz when hacking out including a Hi-Viz Hat Band which may well show above the hedges on narrow country lanes warning drivers that you are there.

 

[0ldmare]

Thanks, yes she is the ultimate hacking horse, bless her. I was wearing a tabard and hat band, but dont think he was actually looking (plus the hedges are high around here)

 

[Eaglestone]

[ QUOTE ]
My only advice to all riders is to wear Hi-Viz when hacking out including a Hi-Viz Hat Band which may well show above the hedges on narrow country lanes warning drivers that you are there.

[/ QUOTE ]

I have just bought the Hi-Viz Hat Band as I noticed how much difference they made, especially as you said, about being seen over the hedges. I am very pleased to say that a couple of my friends who ride/drive have asked me where I got it & how it fits to the hat, so I hope that they 'invest' in one too

 

[Ravenwood]

How terrifying

Did the lorry driver not stop to make sure you were okay?

 

[flowerlady]

Oh!

I just got goose bumps all over reading that.

You poor thing.

4 riders in our village were riding down the road which when you get just past our house it is no speed limit it twists and turns but the drivers don't care. Anyway a car coming the other way at 90m.p.h. which was what was on the speedometer when he saw horse's tried to break and rolled the KA skidded along the road went up some railings. The horses obviously were all excellent in traffic turned and bolted the other way up the road. One girl could not get her horse to leave the yard after this is used to get down on the floor when got to gate and wouldn't go through not being lead or ridden. One of the others it took her nearly a year to get her horse to go that way again and even then was a little jumpy on the roads. Why is it when on country roads that are twisty and not very wide they have a no speed limit.? The driver had only passed his test the week before and was racing a friend.

grrrr

 

[0ldmare]

No the ignorant git didnt stop afterwards. I will look out for him in future though, you have to be local to be going down that lane.

So pleased with my little girl though, I know I am bragging about her but she always assumes that everything is safe. A few weeks ago I was with another friend and a huge group of about 30 motor bikes came up behind us. My friends horse freaked as there were a lot of them and they were so loud. They were very good and stopped completely and switched off their engines (I do find most bikers are good with horses). I tried to get my horse between my friends and the bikes, but she was plunging about and tried to kick mine so I had to move out of the way. It ended with my friend getting off and leading her horse past them all. Mine stopped to be patted by one of the bikers and peered in the side-car to see if there was anything else interesting to eat!

 

[cyberhorse]

Glad you are OK, your horse really sounds like one in a million! It is important that you put it to the back of your mind and take the same route as soon as possible. I sadly put it off too long and ended up to scared to hack out as I dwelled on the incident so much rather than rationalizing it with a few uneventful trips.

Unlike you I was on a highly strung/mildly psychotic TB who on seeing a truck slamming on as it got round the bend behind us spun and backed into the path of another vehicle on the opposite side, luckily they reacted in time. As your horse is totally unflappable you can take plenty of confidence from that!

Please get out there again ASAP, 11 years later I am still struggling with confidence on hacks involving any portion of road.

 

[Gorgeous George]

Gosh what a wonderful horse you have, pretty scary though.

 

[Booboos]

What a brave horse (and rider!). Well done both of you!

We also hack on single lane roads with high hedges and the Hi-Viz Hat Bands do help, but some drivers are insane and we have also nearly been hit by bicycles twice (the cyclist was going so fast, he skidded when he tried to stop, lost control and nearly run into us both times). There was an attempt to change the speed limit to 30 (currently it's 60), but the government decided that there was no point on the grounds that the roads are so small that going 60 would be insane, no one would do it therefore there is no need for change! (I have the precise wording of that statement and I use it in my classes as an example of crappy reasoning!).