horse riders that don't acknowledge cars pulling over for them drive me mad

[NellyJob]

so I am driving along a narrow lane and see two horses approaching and so slow right down and come to a halt as they pass, and one of them gives me this kind of tiny smirk, and the other sticks her nose in the air and blanks me completely! and they clip clop off!! HOW RUDE! It's people like them that give horseriders a bad name! Like they think they are too posh to say thanks or perhaps just wiggle a finger at me! Another rider who I encounter regularly who is genuinely posh couldn't be more charming. My daughter rides her pony up and down there every day and I would be ashamed if she behaved like that...
rant rant,moan moan.

That post of mine made me sound like a sanctimonious cah.

It wasn't meant. I always feel disproportionately cheered up when a rider smiles at me for slowing down tbh.

Please do not ride "nutters" on the road. The road is no place for unpredictable animals. I've just seen what could have been a nasty accident when a "nutter" was spooked by a cyclist. I have no problems with riders but some round here are specatcularly irresponsible.

well how else can you traffic proof them?

I'm lucky that mine are completely unglazed by anything on the roads, even the occasional idiot who zooms past very close, but they were not born like that, they had to keep doing road work and surviving everything to be as laid back as they are now (on the road anyway)

unFAZED ffs

If you think the road is no place for unpredictable animals, then by your logic no horse should set foot on a public highway of any kind .

The roads where I ride are very quiet, single track country lanes. I would never ride a young or spooky horse on a main road (would try to avoid on a traffic-proof school master too), but to suggest that I keep off the country lanes is ridiculous. And for many people, the only places to ride are on the roads. Perhaps you should be educating the idiotic cyclists who seem to love sneaking up on horses as quietly as possible.

To be honest I don't really care how you "traffic proof" them but you shouldn't be putting ohter road users at risk. Walk them on a leading rein? Disclaimer - I know nothing to speak of about horses.
In this case the cyclist was an elderly man coming towards the horse on the other side of the road at quite a slow speed- hardly "sneaking up!". And presumably if a cyclist rang their bell you'd accuse them of scaring the horse!
It's not the first near-accident I've seen. A friend saw a horse rear up and come down on the bonnet of the stationary car in front.

There isn't always a choice about riding on a road - you usually have to ride on at least a bit of road to reach a bridlepath. The bridlepath may also cross other roads. Sometimes busy ones!

When I rode, I always tried to keep to quiet roads, and if educating a youngster, go out with a steadier companion to help keep the younger animal calm.

I agree that people should ride responsibly and be polite, but not that they should keep off the roads. The worst menaces on the roads are usually other drivers...

Country lanes are the worst, I refuse to ride on them any more after too many speeding drivers treating them like race tracks. In more built-up areas I find cars stick to the speed limit (which is a lot slower anyway) and as long as you are wearing plenty of hi-viz they are aware of you earlier. Less blind bends as well.

I'm very happy if a cyclist just shouts a cheery "Hi, bike coming past" to give a bit of warning rather than just appearing silently out of nowhere. Unfortunately it isn't simoly a case of avoiding them by keeping off the roads as the Downs and bridleways (and I suspect everywhere else) are covered in mountain bikers with a mission to go everywhere as fast as possible.

the roads and green lanes are for everyone like it or not, I think it is rare for cyclists or pedestrians or horses and riders/carriage drivers to be the ones putting others at risk

Most bikes who pass me ring the bell or shout.

I also always thank considerate drivers. I tend to ignore the ones who slow down, wind their window down and speak to me (generally to say get on the pavement which btw is against the highway code!!)

My horse isnt the greatest on the roads, but she's safer than a lot. Hacking in winter is the only way shed get ridden unless I hired a school every day. In fact this summer the fields have been virtually in rideable on!! I think ive ridden in it three times and last night left it as it was cutting up :(

I find this very annoying. I pay road tax the same as everyone else. Why should I have to express my gratitude to each and every passing driver for showing consideration to me and my equine that they should naturally show to everyone who uses the highway!
I do generally say thank you, but in the event of a passing vehicle that mkes my pony uncomfortable, I'd rather give her my full attention.
We live in a fairly high traffic rural area, and have had serious incidents with drivers who show little regard for road safety. My pedestrian friend had to literally throw heself under the wheels of a huge tractor, towing a massive rattling plough, to get him to even slow down slightly for a gaggle of lead rein Shetlands. DD has twice had her stirrup clipped by morons driving too close. DS was practically unseated by an elderly lady, on a very quiet back road, because although I smiled and signalled to her, we didn't get out of her way fast enough, causing her to sound her horn directly behind two under sevens on lead rein.
Horses have every right to be on the highway, just like a car, bike, bus or pedestrian.

Sorry, big rant! this really gets my goat.

Why should I have to express my gratitude to each and every passing driver for showing consideration to me and my equine that they should naturally show to everyone who uses the highway
why shouldn't you though?
sadly that kind of attitude perpetuates the myth of the snobby horse rider, and doesn't improve relations between road users.
As you say, some car drivers are terrible with horses....why not show some courtesy/friendliness to the good ones?
BTW where I live the lanes are really narrow, and I feel a similar sense of outrage when I do a rally stop into a turning place, or an expert 50 metre reverse, for someone coming towards me, and they just drive on without cracking a smile or giving a nod.

mind you it does depend where you live, if you are riding on a busy road then having to acknowledge everyone could get tedious.

I do generally say thank you. Unless I'm otherwise engaged. However, I see it as a courtesy. Not something that I am obliged to do. According to the highway code, drivers are obliged to show consideration to all other road users, horses included.

yeh some car drivers are fuckers I know, I just see it from both sides....

So do I. I drive too. I just get annoyed when riders are expected to be grateful for being allowed on the roads.

there is definitely a thing, a mentality? about anything other than a car travelling at exactly 'the right' speed using the road - have even seen people get cross at tractors (what do they expect in Suffolk, home of the tractor boys? how do they think their food appears in the shops and on their plates, magic?) for being too slow. was almost hit by someone overtaking one on a blind bend last week, for all his haste and bravado he looked much more frightened than I felt when he realised he was about to collide head on with another car.

this thread has cursed me!

I have a ride that involves 1 1/2hrs of road work (or 45mins each way), it's worth it because when you get there: really big wide swooping grassy tracks (really wide, you could get six abreast for much of it) that go on and on and on for ages. There are even some imaginary jumps, or obstacles visible only to the brown horse that you have to fly over without warning.

But have only ever ridden there and back with the pony, not with other horses. It must have just been too exciting? Anyway, if anyone was delayed by a black (it was just the sweat) horse covered in foam dancing sideways up a road in Suffolk today I APOLOGISE.

I have had some near misses riding round here, it's much busier than our previous area, but I have nowhere else to ride. It's all on C roads so I don't think it should be any great surprise to drivers to meet not just riders, but cyclists, walkers & dogs as well but half the time they seem gobsmacked that someone else is using the road.

I always wave if possible, smile or nod or mouth "thank you" to everyone, even the ones that don't slow down so that they have no excuse to blame riders for being rude. As a driver I have been known (to the deep embarrassment of my children) to stop and say to a rider who hasn't acknowledged my slowing down "please say thank you if a car slows down, it gives the rest of us a bad name if you don't".

Devon - my horse was fine on the roads until we got hit by a car last year - now he shakes every time one goes past him faster than about 10 miles an hour, and I have to dive for a gateway whenever possible. Most drivers are fine, but I had a corker recently (in the village, not in open country) - she slammed the brakes on (was on her phone and hadn't seen me, and I had nowhere to hide), skidded then wound down the window and told me to "F Off" before I'd even opened my mouth....

Not all car drivers are bad, not all horse riders are bad but from both sides they give the good ones a bad name.

What does annoy me (and I told a couple of girls off for this) is riding on the road and texting or chatting on the phone. Sane principle as driving IMO you are not fully aware of what is going around you or able to react as fast.

All nice cars today!!

We always nod and say thank you loudly if we are unable to take hands off reins. As a previous poster noted, it's the cyclists who are far worse - SO RUDE!!

Some riders I have seen wear Hi Viz jackets with Thank You for passing slow and wide (and yes I can read them before I'm on the horses tail before anyone says they're useless).

But to the young lady riding a very dark bay, with dark jodhs, black boots and a dark jacket. And who took her skitty horse on a very busy back road in Reindeer Antlers on his bridle- and he protested his dislike-

just be grateful I'm an ex-rider so I sat patiently in my car while you booted and whipped your horse to the side (I think she'd have done better to remove the head gear, and bought a Hi Viz) and learned some manners.
Most drivers wouldn't have waited for you .
And no, she didn't say thank You

I keep meaning to get some hi-viz tabards made up for when we take ds out on the lead-rein with Disabled rider, please be patient, although I have to say most people are really good when they see a child being led.