So what have you met out on hacks this year?

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oldie48

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So far I have come across a cycle event, 100 riders in 3 groups tanking along a country lane, a steam lorry complete with whistle and a group of vintage tractors out for a jolly. We have survived but I do wonder what we'll meet next. What have you met?
 
About 50 vintage tractors racing. Didn't see any warning notices prior to the event. Needless to say my mare went cantering off in the other direction.
Recently came across a man with a remote control car, blew my youngsters mind a little bit :)
 
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pennyturner said:
In HERTFORDSHIRE?!!!?
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Ha ha no it was on chingford plains many years ago when the circus was on, but no one toldus they had tethered camels next to the bridleway, it caused mayhem one horse almost ran all the way home:)

Just realised it was supposed to be this year sorry! So answer to that just those noisy gas bird scarers that also make me jump out of my skin.
 
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Hi with a story like that, let's widen it to "anytime"
Pinkvboots said:
Ha ha no it was on chingford plains many years ago when the circus was on, but no one toldus they had tethered camels next to the bridleway, it caused mayhem one horse almost ran all the way home:)

Just realised it was supposed to be this year sorry! So answer to that just those noisy gas bird scarers that also make me jump out of my skin.
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One of the neighbours had a helicopter parked in the garden. Didn't warrant a second look (from the ponies anyway).

Other than that it's just been the usual agricultural kit and lots of MAMILs. It's not traction engine season yet.
The local pub race is when it gets really interesting.
 
Thee motor bikes on a track with no where to go. Luckily I was already leading as I had heard them, but very panicked 3 year old (who found her own way home) and some young boys left in no doubt about what they should do with their bikes. Grhhh!
 
A flock of incredibly noisy and territorial guinea fowl in a field in the middle of the village - we had to walk round the edge of this particular field and they followed us the whole way, the noise was ridiculous! Cue some magnificently collected lateral work with a few high school movements thrown in for good measure, most terrifying few minutes of my life....
 
Snap with the helicopter, there was one parked on the field next to my boy's yard yesterday, he didn't bat an eyelid at that, but the day before I was having a canter with a friend and a little bird tweeting in the hedge was the perfect excuse to turn canter in to a gallop LOL

Last year, on the same field where the helicopter was yesterday was the most impressive marquee I've ever seen. It looked like three conjoined giant teepees. Horse didn't bat an eyelid at it but the decorative purple flowering clematis at the top of the drive causes the most impressive lateral work!! In fact, he seems to find anything purple an excuse to have a spook at. Be interesting if we ever come across a purple show jump!

When I had my old horse we used to have to ride past a field with alpacas, most horses got used to them but there was always one or two who just couldn't cope.
 
In the last 12 months, we have encountered a golf buggy with an umbrella attached, a tractor moving a round feeder on its spikes and a flock of primitive sheep bouncing up and down at the other side of the wall - both the Appaloosa and the draft horse jumped at the sheep!

In the past we have come face-to-face with a hot air balloon, been chased by a cycle race, and ended up in the middle of a bed-push.
 
Mrs G said:
A flock of incredibly noisy and territorial guinea fowl in a field in the middle of the village - we had to walk round the edge of this particular field and they followed us the whole way, the noise was ridiculous! Cue some magnificently collected lateral work with a few high school movements thrown in for good measure, most terrifying few minutes of my life....
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Ooohhh noooh........ we've got guinea fowls; you're not in Devon are you by any chance??? Hee hee, I think our neck of the woods must be nightmare alley, LOL. The blessed things DO make a racket, our horses are obviously used to it, but appreciate others might not be.

We saw a Real Live Reindeer just the other side of a field-gate a few days ago, dunno if this counts as it was in the field - tho' mare had a good ole puff and snort and prance about it, think she thought Christmas had come round again pretty quick!
 
A crashed helicopter, though it was part of a film set, gave it a wide berth, more to do with the tarp around it than the helicopter. Have met segways in our local country park, they ( the riders) are good at standing still when yelled at, though F seems to have got used to them. Not this year last year, met a sponsored run with 80 odd people with dogs and prams coming towards us on a narrow bridle way, we were going sideways how we didn't wipe someone out I'm still not sure,
 
oldie48 said:
Hi with a story like that, let's widen it to "anytime"
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OK, The Naked Rambler. Only he wasn't naked, he was wearing socks, boots and a rucksack. The horse was completely transfixed - didn't take his eyes of the man's todger the whole time it was in view. :D
 
ycbm said:
OK, The Naked Rambler. Only he wasn't naked, he was wearing socks, boots and a rucksack. The horse was completely transfixed - didn't take his eyes of the man's todger the whole time it was in view. :D
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:-0... Poor horse, he will always wonder what that was all about!
 
ycbm said:
OK, The Naked Rambler. Only he wasn't naked, he was wearing socks, boots and a rucksack. The horse was completely transfixed - didn't take his eyes of the man's todger the whole time it was in view. :D
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This just reminded me of a time, many years ago on a lovely summers evening I was hacking out on my pony and cam across a car parked on the bridleway, quite a long way from the road. Moon, being a ginger woman and very nosey decided to poke her nose through the open sunroof. I then saw a couple being more than a bit lovey dovey in the car. The man looked up in abject shock at the sight of my mare's nose causing coitus interruptus. I would have apologised but they really shouldn't have been blocking the bridleway LOL.

Even more years ago I was hacking with a friend through some woods near Whitewebbs in Enfield and we came across a guy 'exposing' himself. My friend galloped away in terror but I thought it was pretty hilarious (wouldn't have if I'd not been safely on my swift get away vehicle I expect).

I used to ride on Chingford Plains like another poster. Never came across camels but those model aeroplane flying people sure caused quite a few unscheduled gallops. Again, in Epping Forest (best hacking I've ever had access to) we came across a car that we could see no way it had entered the group of trees and undergrowth. There we no tracks, no broken down bushes, nothing. It was as if it had been lowered there by helicopter or something. On another occasion I was taking out a hack from the local riding school and the rather well endowed lady was startled when she heard us coming along. She sat up rather suddenly with her unclothed bosom jouncing for all to see.
 
Deer, donkeys and new forest ponies in abundance. Came across a few pigs once, THAT was interesting. Accidentally joined in a drift (new forest pony roundup) once as it was either that or part company and he would have joined in on his own. Scariest thing so far has to be someone flying a kite, oh and randomly once two people carrying a very long ladder, miles from anywhere, goodness knows what they were up to...
 
Tigers!

Their enclosure fence runs very close to the road and we hack past on the opposite side of the road on the field margin. This time of the year you can clearly see them and they stalk you as you go past!
 
In the last 12 months - illegally low flying helicopter straight over us, paragliders, kites, multiple golf tornaments and fell running races, the uk's biggest Harley Davidson rally in the field next door, sheep, cows, deer, peacocks, many, many barking dogs nipping his heels, a posse of speeding quadbikes, a string of racehorses at least once a month and 100 walkers coming towards us all at once.

After all that, I really shouldn't have been surprised that he took Great Yorkshire Show in his stride last year!
 
But no tigers! That would take a bit of acclimatising to.

Also would be good fun when ringing about a horse for sale - "Is he good to hack? Fairly bombproof? Good around other animals... how about Tigers?" :)
 
Just last week it was an enormous pig bearing an uncanny resemblance to Jabba the Hutt. Needless to say dear horse performed an impressive piaffe-levitation-pirouette combination on the bitumen road quickly followed by an exit stage right at warp speed.
Last year was interesting. We had three giant helicopters taking off in front of us just as we came out of the woods. We were braced for the horses to make a quick exit. They simply stood there transfixed and lifting their heads up to look at them as they flew right over the top of us.
Plus we had the large lorry with a cement mixer on a very narrow lane. Driver stopped to let us squeeze past. Horse suddenly stopped and stuck his big head right in through the open driver's window to say "hi" thereby nearly scaring the poor driver half to death.
And the elderly man in the electric wheel chair. As I stopped to say hello after the man asked for a pat, horse tried his best to deflate one of the tyres with his teeth.
Oh, and the duck that went quack. Horse shot sideways and sat on the bonnet of a parked Mini.
My boy is very special.
 
sidewaysonacob said:
But no tigers! That would take a bit of acclimatising to.

Also would be good fun when ringing about a horse for sale - "Is he good to hack? Fairly bombproof? Good around other animals... how about Tigers?" :)
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Funny you say that as he is fine with Tigers and we have Gibbons right up against our grazing so he is monkey proof too. However a solitary sugar beet lurking on the verge causes a melt down.... As does his own farts!
 
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