My life generally involves 2 things, work and driving, if Im not doing one Im doing the other. For as long as Ive been able to drive Ive regularly clocked up more miles a week than a travelling salesman. Earlier this week I did over 2000 miles in 3 days - although that was a bit out of the ordinary it still wasnt extraordinary. Driving all these miles you get to see some interesting sights on the roads and countless bad drivers. However it also allows me to see cyclists, ramblers and the worst of the worst...horse riders! Now for years ever since I was little the old dear has drilled much useless information into me but one of the few bits that made sense was if youre on a busy road trot on and if youre holding up traffic get out of the way. In my advancing years that is something that has stuck with me. We frequently hear in the news or on facebook or through a friend of a friend of a friend that so and so got terrorised by a maniac car driverist or a lorryist or a tractor driver. Ive been on the receiving end of all of these aforementioned morons and have dealt with them in varying ways from swearing at them to getting the police involved - when I was very little mum put someones windscreen through with a metal topped whip in the name of maternal instinct. However tonight whilst carrying out my second most prolific past time, going home and meeting with the usual encumbrances of the jobsworth traffic officer looking for people doing 31 in a 30 and cyclists with more facial hair than that on their head I met 2 horse people. Wandering up the road at rush hour; and I use the term wandering in its loosest possible meaning, it was more of a death crawl, bypassing gateways and pull ins, clearly riding horses that god rode as a young boy. I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps they were novices having their first rides out on the road. However when they arrived at a pub with a massive car park that I have regularly parked a lorry in, and proceeded to meander on up the road without waving me past I started to get a tad irked. I got past quietly and slowly and waved politely and recieved...nothing! Not even a bloody smile! Fortunately I was tired and in a forgiving mood. But its people like these two unfortunate ladies that cause me trouble. As a horse rider I wanted to get out and shout at them for holding up the road never mind people that think horses are like cows but more useless. Im not arguing about our right to ride on the road 2 a breast and slow dangerous traffic or your right to be a happy hacker but what frustrates me is people causing a nuisance on the roads with no consideration for others whether you drive a tank or ride a hairy cob. And in reality its not these people on the sharp end of a tractor doing 60kmh whilst riding a 2yr old thats doing handstands or nosediving into a ditch. Thats my inaugural and accustomed moan out the way so now for a quick round up of whats what. Been and gone was a lovely ride and drive cob, as beautiful as it was talented she was a pleasant through goer. Big Lexi is going great guns, jumping and cantering as well as a big raw 3yr old could be expected to go she still holds favouritism for me. Little Lexi and Leo both had front trainers on yesterday, Leo has been learning what logs are and actually hides quite a bit of ability under his calm quiet exterior, little Lexi is still on roads but after the short while shes been in, hacking alone and in company and cantering on the grass is quite an achievement. Branwen has done me proud and gone and sold herself from the field before I even cast a leg over her again after her holiday, potentially too good to just be another of my hunters shes off to pastures new on Friday. And now we come on to Colin. Colin bred to be a posh, sharp stressage horse arrived on Sunday. My big cribbing, slightly emotional friend had a sweaty Monday morning as he found tack and the pen life threateningly terrifying...however after ten minutes we were doing a collected canter worthy of 8s (means more to you eventory dressage folk than me!) Me and my mate Colin ventured out on the roads first jerk this morning and overcame the catastrophic cows and the delinquent dogs never mind the tumultuous traffic and had a great jog round the lanes (didnt hold anyone up and trotted on!) And finally we come to Chloes pony lumpy. I have nothing to do with the ginger ninja anymore. She is Chloes baby. I started evening stables in the sunshine only to see lewis (who cant ride) trotting in hand on lumpy, in his shorts. All credit goes to young Chloe (Doris) who took lumpy on and converted her.
Posted on: Wed, 16 Jul 2014 20:06:06 +0000
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