rider Archives - Conversations through the middle

Out riding a couple of weeks ago John and I were met by a 4×4 pulling a livestock trailer, one of those closed-in trailers with open slats along each side. My horse just doesn’t like them and started to mess around. I wasn’t worried and put my leg on to get him past, but he wouldn’t go. The friend I was riding with moved her mare in front and we all went through fine.

I was completely shocked when the driver of the 4×4 – who admittedly had turned off his engine to avoid frightening the horses further – shouted to me ‘they shouldn’t be on the road, they are too dangerous’.

Now I’ve heard that some people believe such guff but I’ve never come across anyone like that before. Call me naive but I always thought, and still think, that people are pleased to see horses and riders; they’re a reminder of a more peaceful time when life was lived at a slower pace and folk were not so stressed out and materialistic, when things other than possessions mattered.

The road we were riding along is not busy with traffic, it is close to Dedham village, it is rural. Our horses are educated and mature. John is not a youngster, shying away from the slightest object or noise, he is a school master in every sense of the word.

The livestock vehicle was noisy with metal jangling and creaking, and quite frankly it scared him. Obviously. If the driver had stopped earlier we might well have passed without problem, but he didn’t. At no time did we present a danger to anybody.

Why do drivers think they own the roads? What represents the biggest danger – a horse quietly walking, enjoying a country hack or a large, heavy 4×4 towing a trailer, which was frankly going too fast? I know which one I would rather run into.

In my day-to-day role as a freelance writer I’m often contacted by PRs who have new products to promote or services to try, and yes, I do take them up on their offers from time to time, usually when I’m writing relevant features. It hasn’t happened to me in my capacity as a horse lover and equestrian blogger, sadly… until now.

I have recently been sent a product for dogs (dogs and horses often go together and I’m no exception, see the cute photos of Spice), which has an unusual purpose – to keep those brown pee spots off your green lawn.

It’s a rock that sits in the dog’s drinking water, and the minerals it contains are supposed to neutralise the effects of urine. It’s harmless to your pet but it just stops your grass going brown and patchy.

Our dog is a tiny creature and has an equally tiny water bowl, so I’ve bought him a big one to try it out (it’s so big he could probably bathe in it). It will be a while before I see results, good or otherwise, but I’ll let you know how I get on.

Now I just need a friendly PR to send me samples of their spring/summer clothing ranges for horse and rider…

Horses and cars – king of the road?

A bit of commercialism here…