Was I in the wrong?

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Ahrena

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I had a slight...incident today when I was show jumping and wanted some opinions.

Basically the venue I was at has a seperate horse walkway which is surfaced to get to the warm up than the people on foot have. After my first class, I wanted to get my horse to the lorry for a drink as it was quite warm and he was sweating so said to my mum I would see her up there.

On my way past the warm up, I realised there were only a few in the class, plus I needed to walk the course (totally forgot about coursewalk, lol I don't do much sj) for then next course. My mum had gone too far at this point for me to call back and I didn't have my phone on me. So I started trotting along the horse walkway.

It was basically empty, I met 2 horses. The first one was coming in the opposite direction, I slowed down to a walk before we got to him, passed at a walk and once we were a bit past, I trotted on.

Came round a bend and saw someone going in the same direction as me, about 30-50m ahead of me. So I started walking as personally think its rude to trot past people. About the same time as I started walking my horse, that one started going a bit sideways. Nothing major, it just tensed a bit and then as far as I could see, although I appreciate I don't know the horse, seemed to settle.

The rider turned around and gave me a huge *******ing about trotting there, how I shouldn't be trotting there and how her bit wasn't working and her horse was going to bolt.

I was a bit shocked but replied I wasn't trotting past her and I started walking my horse a good 30-50m behind her (not entirely sure but it was, IMO a very fair gap). I didn't say, but kind of felt it wasn't my problem if she couldn't control her horse.

There are no signs on the track or rules on the schedule saying you must walk on this track, and tbh it didn't seem unreasonable to trot there. I normally event and people are always trotting (and trotting past people) to get to the dr/xc/sj.

I was more taken back when she got to her lorry and started saying to someone about how "Some stupid girl was trotting her horse up her a***e and winding up her horse" just as I was passing..I couldn't entirely hold my tongue and repeated that I had started walking way before I got anywhere near her horse and it wasn't my fault that it upset him. Fair enough if I had trotted past or stopped very close behind him but I didn't, I stopped with plenty of space.

It just got to me a bit as I hate being shouted at, don't like upsetting people and didn't feel I did anything wrong so kinda want reassurance (and if I am in the wrong, hopefully not a beating :P) from here.

Also to add, I believe that that horse walk forms part of the centre's off road hacking route and it says on their website (I was bored on the way up) that it is for walk and trot only, no canter for safety reasons. But I was trotting not cantering, so by that, it suggests I was allowed to trot.
 
Let it go.:)

She was frightened I would think but doesn't want to admit it so it's always everybody else's fault.

If the world was perfect she would be the best most competent rider in the world and never feel as if she was about to fall off.:D
 
tbh imo you didn't do anything wrong at all - you gave the other horse's plenty of space and didn't crowd them, her problem if she can't control her own horse - I think the quote 'my bit isn't working' kinda shows the truth there
 
She'd have no right to complain in the collecting ring about other people passing her in trot or trotting behind her. Therefore what difference does doing that on a walkway make? None, in my opinion.

As her "bit wasn't working" I'd say she had the jitters and snapped at you when she should probably have been concentrating on what was happening underneath her. Don't let her get to you, she pushed the blame your way when realistically you didn't do anything wrong.
 
Thanks :)

I did forget about it but it got to me at the time and its just the kind of thing for me to dwell on and fret about!

I need to grow a thicker skin I think :)

Just don't understand people tbh, no matter how nervous or scared I am I don't think I'd have a go at a stranger :S
 
As impossiblepony says I expect she was frightened I have been in a very similar position although on my own yard and I blamed someone else (it wasn't their fault) but luckily I could apologise and explain afterwards how scared I was. I expect she is feeling really bad now for being so rude to you not that it helps you but perhaps you can understand why she reacted that way and no you did nothing at all wrong x
 
You should of wished her good luck, if her horse can't cope with that god knows what it will be like in the collecting ring!
When people are nervous/ scared/ tense etc they often over-react.
I think I may of done something similar, at the start of xc, when my horse got over-excited and started leaping about etc, and there where people milling about the horse walk, xc start, and I told them to get out the way, rather abruptly, but if I came across rude, it was because I was scared that I was about to wipe someone out!
 
No I don't think you were in the wrong. You pulled your horse back to a walk as soon as you saw her and that's normal etiquette as far as I'm aware. Don't worry about it :)
 
If she cant control her horse with another walking or trotting near her for fear of bolting she needs to get some help and stay away from others till she can.
IMO you did nothing wrong
 
I'm glad you stuck up for yourself when you heard her slagging you off.

If she can't control her horse in the walkway at a show, then she shouldn't be there! Sounds like she was scared and after someone to blame that on. And probably didn't want to admit that she can't even control her horse at walk!
 
I don't think you did anything wrong either :)

Sounds as though she was feeling quite scared (and not because of you) - I'll hold my hand up and say I have overreacted (to the point of real rudeness) out of complete fear (although in my case the person was actually doing something that had the potential to frighten the horse). I still bad about it twenty years later. :(
 
Aarrghimpossiblepony said:
Let it go.:)

She was frightened I would think but doesn't want to admit it so it's always everybody else's fault.

If the world was perfect she would be the best most competent rider in the world and never feel as if she was about to fall off.:D
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I know quite a few people like this always everyone elses fault. As you say as long as you didnt come hurtling along then thats fine. I am just wondering how she would have coped if another class has been going on around her horse. Perhaps she would have had to ask them all to stop. I agree frightened. If she had said sorry got a young inexperienced horse ie do you mind etc. But some people are utterly born rude. Ignore I think you were on receiving end of her incompetencies.
 
Sounds like she was scared or being a twonk. Nothing wrong with being scared, but no excuse for rudeness.

My daughter had a similar thing out hacking a few years ago. trotting through the village and spotted a horse up head coming in the opposite direction. Slowed to walk. As she got closer she recognized the rider whose horse (notorious nutter) had been on box rest. As they passed. My D went up onto the village green to give hers plenty of room (as it was going sideways) said good morning. She then screamed out 'is it? well it was until your horse set mine off, don't you know its been on box rest with a broken pedal bone'. My D was really upset. Obv everyone else in the village should have known she was out that morning and stayed of the roads. I think some people are so used to rudeness and being bitchy they don't consider that reasonable, respectful people would be hurt and offended by such behaviour.
 
amymay said:
I'm going to go slightly against opinion here, and say that a horse walk is simply that - a horse 'walk'.
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Quite possibly, but I think the other rider could have pointed that out a bit more politely.

Unless there were signs specifying 'walk only' (the term 'horse walk' could just be the OP's terminology?) I think the other rider over reacted, quite possibly because they were scared and maybe embarrassed.

Don't worry OP, don't dwell on it.
 
Unless its very narrow, then I can't see the problem.
I had a similar incident at an endurance ride a few years ago. The rules state you are allowed to pass but must do so safely, they also state you are not allowed to impede other riders. I came across a lady who looked worried but we slowly went past her, and out of sight. About five minutes later she came up behind us flat out, and without uttering a word, crashed straight into the back of me. She later complained that we had upset her horse. I'm afraid we took serious umbridge at this, especially as she had lamed my horse.
I understand people are frightened at times, ad that horses can be worse incompay so you do have to get them out and about, but if you are going to compete, you need to get on with it, or to be quite frank, stay at home!
 
I say horse walk as it was a separate way for the horses to go to the ring/warm up than for the pedestrians.

Perhaps I should of taken more heed of the word walk but given no signs and no rules referring to it I didn't feel a steady, controlled trot was unreasonable.

I didn't actually pass her btw as started walking a while behind her and obviously wasn't going to pass after her reaction!

Anyhow, thanks guys, I've put it out my mind now.
 
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