A  75 year old man who sounded his horn and shouted at two riders on horseback was fined £250.00 and was given 8 penalty points by Forest of Dean magistrates, it is believed to be the first case of horse rage (not if you live in my neck of the woods it isn't, it seems to be the norm for cars to race past horses here lately)

The motorist was convicted of "Driving with out reasonable consideration for other road users", I bet if he had caused an accident or worse he wouldn't  have got much more.

Edited to say this was in The Times today and is probably in Times Online if you want to read more.

About time someone was done. I regularly pass horses on my way to/from work. It only takes a few seconds to slow right down and pass carefully.

ITS ABOUT TIME THE LAW STARTED TO COME DOWN ON PEOPLE LIKE THAT
AS A HORSE OWNER RIDER AND CARRIAGE DRIVER MYSELF

I HAVE HAD NUMEROUSE ACCOUNTS OF IDIOTS BEHIND BRAKING HARD AND SCREACHING TO A NEAR STAND STILL  THEN BLOW THEIR HORN THEN PASS LAUGHING

BUT WE STILL HAVE TO BE POLITE NOD AND SAY THANK YOU OR JUST IGNORE
AS THERE HAS BEEN CASES OF CAR DRIVERS ACTUALLY CURB CRAWLING AND BEEPING THEIR HORNS AND HURLING ABUSE
BUT YOU HAVE TO STAY CALM
I'M A LUCKY ONE MY HORSE IS UNSHAKEABLE
BUT THEY MAY COME A DAY WHEN HE ISN'T

I FEEL SO SORRY FOR RIDERS WHOS HORSES WHO MAYBE A LITTLE NERVOUSE AND PEEPS LIKE THAT CAN GET THEM KILLED

THUMBS UP TO THE COURTS HERES HOPING MORE THE LAW CONTINUES TO GET HARDER

MAZZA

I'm not a horse person but my driving instruct always told me to treat horses like cars when overtaking & always to ovvertake with caution. We have lots of riders & horses here & I hope most drivers treat them with respect, they do have right of way on the roads anyway

The yard I work in is right next to the main road to Carlisle from where I stay, we have fields across the road, we also have solar powered signs that we can switch on to warn drivers we are crossing the road with horses, as we have had one horse killed on the road already. All the staff wear hi visibility vests, horses are always brought in or out in daylight. The amount of Muppets I have seen who do not slow down and go tearing past is unbelievable. It's usually youngsters in their souped up cars or big wagon drivers who refuse to slow down. So I think it's about time that something was done to drivers who harrass horses and riders on the road.

Alli

Have to say my worst experience was with an RAC driver who told me to eff off when I asked him politely, using the correct hand signals, to slow down!

Whats the harm in allowing horses to pass /?

I was waiting patiently at one end of a blind tunnel, on my own, on Josh. This RAC van came tearing through, leaning on his horn the whole way through. As he emerged Josh was nervous so I asked him to slow down. He told me to eff off through his open window and flicked the v's up. Nice. I have to say that I used not-very-ladylike language in return ;) ;) He's the only one we've had round here though - everyone else slows down adn I thank everyone regardless, and raise my hand and waive.

Must admit i always lower my music and slow down

:(

Thing is, my horses are unruffled by traffic... but what you have to be aware of as cars are passing are hidden hazards - like pheasants jumping out of hedges and carrier bags etc. These are what can cause even the most well behaved horse to jump to the side a couple of feet and THATS when you have a problem if someone is too close to you :(

Chloe did you ever try to contact anyone (eg the RAC) about his appalling behaviour? I mean of all people an RAC man should be at least road aware and not charging through a blind tunnel leaning on his horn!

Lindsay
X

lol! hallie was totally traffic proof,but wasnt drain proof or scary leaf proof etc etc!!
actually sometimes people would go past her TOO slowley,the longer they took to go by the more chance of her doing something. V. wide & slowish  was the order of the day with her!!!!!!

We have a tricky railway bridge very near us (about 300 yards away). The road goes quite steeply over it (some vehicles ground at the top) and also bends slightly, so drivers' view over it is non-existent. If I had a pound for every driver that thinks blasting their horn as they approach it at 50mph in the middle of the road (which is barely two-lane, and in a 30mph zone) means the road will magically be clear on the other side, I'd be a squillionaire! We have very many horses around here, what with several livery stables as well as the Agricultural College which has a vast horse speciality, and it sends many of them skittering across the road ..