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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to expect horse (and rider) to reverse for me!

362 replies

AliBingo · 16/04/2013 14:07

Genuinely puzzled here- I live down a single-track lane which is very narrow and windy so you have to drive slowly, anyway I met a horse-rider when I went out earlier.

Where we met, the rider was just past a field gateway passing place - the horse was about halfway past it, so its back legs and the saddle, and the rider herself, were still alongside the passing place. I stopped in plenty of time (couple of car lengths away) and waited for them to get into the passing place.

I waited and after about 30 seconds, rider did a hand gesture to indicate that I was to reverse! I duly reversed about 200 feet back down the lane and then sat waiting for about a minute while the rider proceeded to the passing place alongside me.

She looked a bit grumpy and didn't thank me, presumably because I hadn't reversed straightaway. But I had expected her to go into passing place!

So I am now wondering if it's not even possible to get a horse to back up/turn around/reverse etc - can you tell that I know nothing about horses!

WIBU to expect them to go into the passing place practically next to them, or does car etiquette not apply when the other vehicle is a horse!

Thanks!

OP posts:

Plomino · 16/04/2013 22:09

Actually , neither party might come out of it very well . Horses tend to not only land on your bonnet , but come straight through your windscreen in the same way that deer do . I have known of one van driver who was killed instantly when horse went through his van windscreen and out the back , and another killed when the horse went through his screen after being let out by vandals .

malinois · 16/04/2013 22:12

willyoulisten oh, you are so missing out not owning a horsebox. Instead of going for a tiresome and boring hack, you could be taking your horse for a lovely drive on the road

shellbu · 16/04/2013 22:13

plomino not my prob ,like the way im getting slated because i dont think horses should ride on the road , they should be transported by horsebox from place to another , i think people who cant accept other people are allowed an opinion are the obtuse and bigoted ones :) night yall nice site by the way, really nice trolls i mean people .

LessMissAbs · 16/04/2013 22:16

No, Shellbu, you're attracting comment because you don't appear to know the way the world works - those basic rules of society that tend to be instilled in most human beings from an early age. Some people call it common sense.

Mitchy1nge · 16/04/2013 22:19

Shellbu is making me snigger out loud although if she is being serious it's Not Very Nice - why shouldn't other road users, such as horses, use roads sometimes?

Looks like I am the only person here who actively chooses to ride on roads then, but I've never had a horrible experience in traffic and almost without exception all the motorists I encounter are very smiley and helpful.

malinois · 16/04/2013 22:20

shelbu - oh you're allowed an opinion, even if it's wrong. You don't seem to understand however that horses are not pets - they are working animals (even if that work is a leisure activity). They aren't just kept to be looked at, they are kept to be ridden - and in this country, completely criss-crossed with roads as it is, it is impossible to ride a horse for any distance without at some point having to cross a follow a road.

Stinkyminkymoo · 16/04/2013 22:20

Hmm, I think she was rude. If it had been me, I'd have turned DHorse round and let you pass and given you a cheery wave for stopping for me however there is a chance her horse was young or difficult, but it doesn't excuse the lack of a thank you for reversing for her.

Riders like this do us lovely folk no favours and I apologise for her being rude. We're not all like this and I ask you to continue being considerate to horse riders &

Booboostoo · 16/04/2013 22:23

I just remembered this but it will only make sense to the riders:

I met a car once on a single lane road that was just about to open up to a double lane right in front of me. The car stopped in the double lane part and I leg yielded to slot into the openning on the left and thanked the driver. She rolled down the window and I though "Uh-oh here we go, hope she's not completely bonkers", but turns out she was a British Dressage judge and wanted to give me pointers on my leg yielding (too much bend apparently and losing the quarters)!

(leg yielding is a sideways movement in dressage)

muffinino82 · 16/04/2013 22:23

Seriously, if you can't either back up or turn a circle into a passing space to let a car past, your horse shouldn't be on the road. If its that young/inexperienced/silly it should be with another, more experienced horse.

I have two horses and in general would agree with this. Obviously there may have been a very good reason why she couldn't go back to the space but she should have had the courtesy to at least nod or smile a thanks of that's the case, if she couldn't take a hand off the reins. If the horse was so nervous it couldn't deal with a car, it should be with another horse or a person on the ground. If you're riding on the road, you should be able to turn a circle back to the space. It's not that difficult to teach a horse to rein back, most horses I have ridden could do a half decent one. Even if not schooled, ideally horses should be able to rein back, do a turn on the forehand, stand still for a few minutes if asked, open gates, turn on the road, move over from the leg.

I agree with the poster who said maybe she could have turned and gone past the passing space for you to pull in then ridden past you. Maybe she has a nappy horse, though, which means one who refuses to leave home or tried hard to get back there. If she was riding out away from home, maybe she was worried he would nap back. Still no excuse not to say thanks, though.

Have sometimes come across two riding abreast on windy roads which seems stupid/dangerous.

It's recommended to do so with young horses and makes it easier for drivers to see you. The BHS recommends doing this on roads. But you should move in to single file for cars to pass if safe or trot on to a passing space.

AliBingo I commend you for your patience

shellbu · 16/04/2013 22:24

thanks malinos for letting me have an opinion , even a wrong one lmfao :)

muffinino82 · 16/04/2013 22:25

Ha, I bet she was a Pony Club DC at some point, too

willyoulistentome · 16/04/2013 22:27

Booboostoo that's funny.

LessMissAbs · 16/04/2013 22:27

Well, I manage to hack on roads regularly without problems. I'm always nervous of someone driving into me though. My horses are very good in traffic and I have no need to reverse or rein back if a car is coming towards me. I only encountered two arsehole drivers on my hack today, and neither were dangerous.

One shook his head at us as we rode through a village, very excited he was, far more so than the horses, as we calmly rode past. Perhaps he was related to shellbu. Considering it was a small rural village, I can't see his gripe.

Then on the narrow lane home, we met an HGV driver of a massive lorry. He was playing silly buggers and went past numerous places to stop and straight onto us. He was counting on us getting all worked up and the horses getting upset for a bit of entertainment, but his lorry was between them and their feeds. He came to a halt just in front of us, blocking the lane or so he thought, but we simply squeezed past (we had to lift our legs to avoid getting snagged on the barb wire fence on one side) and continued on our way, giving him no reaction at all.

I don't like turning my horse away from oncoming traffic if I can at all pass safely - it teaches your horse to turn away from oncoming traffic, which could occasionally be dangerous.

olivertheoctopus · 16/04/2013 22:29

Intrigued by whether a horse can reverse... Do they make a beeping sound when they do it?

Plomino · 16/04/2013 22:31

My big horse is excellent at leg yielding . The other one just adapts my request for leg yielding into that other well known dressage manoeuvre , The Banana . Usually with a musical accompaniment of snorts of deep disgust

Twattybollocks · 16/04/2013 22:31

The horse owner may or may not have had a good reason not to reverse, and while not raising a hand to thank you may have seemed rude, if the horse was being difficult about reversing, it may perhaps not have been a wise move to take one hand off the reins to raise her hand.
I personally don't think reversing a horse is an advanced manoeuvre, it's one of the first things I taught old horse as a baby, alongside moving around a gate, standing quietly whilst I lean precariously from the saddle to fasten/unfasten the gate, and more importantly, standing quietly outside the pub so I could drink my pint and letting all the local kids feed him crisps and pat him.

shellbu · 16/04/2013 22:32

ok you are scaring me now lessmissabs you keep referring to me in your posts it is all getting a bit creepy now plz stop :)

muffinino82 · 16/04/2013 22:33

What happens on lanes like this if an ambulance/ fire engine is in a hurry and needs to get past a horse quickly?

They will turn off lights/sirens until past the horse and out of sight, as they don't want to cause another accident/emergency that needs attending to. In this situation, it would be best for the rider to get out of the way and let them pass but they may have to reverse if that's not possible. It's either that or risk another emergency situation and a possible loose horse causing more.

Mitchy1nge · 16/04/2013 22:35

I always get leg yield and shoulder-in muddled up

but I can reverse (on my horses anyway) :)

tazzle22 · 16/04/2013 22:35

I am glad butkin that you thing reverse is an advanced manouvre that few have the skill to do .... so both my bog common neddies ( well one well bred welsh cob and one half shire) and me do it very well indeed ...... (and come to think on it even in advanced dressage its not, as far as I am aware, a required element). We must be very speshul indeed .... I mean I just suck my tummy in and they reverse and I am not even a very good rider according to some standards !!!

I think it does need repeating ( and other posters appear to agree) that every horse taken on the roads ( or narrow paths / bridleways )should be able to perform the simple, basic, safety based manouvres such as reverse gear and move a* round / over ( poshly known I think as turn on the forehand )

It does go to show I think ........... talking seriously now ...... hacking out with a horse safely is a definate skill that some "serious" riders do not accord much talent to !!!! Much much more thought should go into developing those skills.... and much of it can be done without actually having to be ON the road, preparation is the key.

Maybe riding schools have much to answer to as well...... I have seen some take out riders on the road barely able to ride or on a lead rein. Many riders also go out on quiet horses and never really learn how to teach a horse things.... and they themselves never really learn what a "good" horse can do.... or needs to do.

muffinino82 · 16/04/2013 22:35

Sorry, I didn't realise the emergency services question had been answered

SilverSky · 16/04/2013 22:36

Brilliant! Loving the schooling tip for achieving a better leg yield.

Given a choice most riders would prefer to remain off road entirely when hacking esp with the roads they way they are now. That is why I wear hi viz always - off/on roading. That way the driver can never claim they didn't see us.

LessMissAbs · 16/04/2013 22:36

Believe me shellbu, the feelings mutual.

willyoulistentome · 16/04/2013 22:38

I dont think rein back and leg yield are particularly advanced moves for horse or rider either. Standing still and waiting calmly when my girl is on a mission to get home can be a challenge for me sometimes though.

tazzle22 · 16/04/2013 22:41

and more importantly, standing quietly outside the pub so I could drink my pint and letting all the local kids feed him crisps and pat him.

oh yes twatty ..... thats one of the best skills of course .. as well as at the ice cream van so I could get my 99 !!!

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