A Hertfordshire woman who says she was thrown from her horse when a group of cyclists came round the corner on a gravel track has called for people on bikes to ride responsibly and look out for horse riders.
The Herts Advertiser reports that Carolyn Tuck, aged 62, was riding her horse on a bridleway at Bricket Wood, near St Albans, when six cyclists, in her words, “came around the blind corner at 20mph.”
She said her 20-year-old horse, Chino, was struck by one of the cyclists, causing it to bolt, which resulted in her being thrown out of the saddle.
“They nearly killed me,” she said. “They came around this bend and crashed into me and my horse. My horse chucked me over the hedge and left me for dead.
“They carried on, and one bloke couldn’t get past. My friends all bolted off and disappeared on the horizon, and I was staggering down the hill – semi-conscious – and this guy is saying ‘Can I get past you?’.
“They came around the blind corner at 20mph, on gravel and didn’t even anticipate that something could be coming around the corner. It could’ve been a post office van, a child … anything. But they hit me on my horse.”
She said that some cyclists, such as the ones she encountered, “just don’t care,” but acknowledged, “most cyclists are fairly good and kind,” adding, “I don’t want to punish good cyclists, I just want them to be aware to not treat horses like they are machines.”
In 2018, the British Horse Society and Cycling UK partnered on a video showing cyclists how to pass horses safely, and published a leaflet containing guidance on the issue.
The collaboration was launched after footage emerged on social media of a competitor descending at speed during the bike leg of the Windsor Triathlon striking a horse as he undertook the animal and its rider.
At the time the video was launched, Duncan Dollimore, head of campaigns at Cycling UK, said: “Every time a cyclist encounters a horse, there are three brains involved: the cyclist’s, the rider’s and the horse’s.
“Many people aren’t familiar with horses, and there can be confusion on what they should do when overtaking on a bike.
“Cyclists may already know to pass wide and slow when it’s safe to do so – but they could still startle the horse unless the horse and rider are made aware of your presence.
“Generally, if a cyclist startles a horse, it is due to simple lack of awareness that a horse needs more time to react, which is why Cycling UK is pleased to be helping the BHS promote the consideration and courtesy message of ’Be nice, say hi’.”
Alan Hiscox, director of safety at the BHS, commented: “We’re thrilled to be collaborating with Cycling UK as both groups are vulnerable road users and will benefit from working together to share the roads.
“We are encouraging riders to respond positively to cyclists who pass with consideration and reciprocate their courtesy.
“Horses are flight animals and may react to anything they are unsure of. By promoting the ‘Be nice, say hi’ message, we hope more cyclists will appreciate the potential risk they pose.”
He added: “If all road users are considerate and mindful of one another we can reduce the number of incidents between horses, cyclists and vehicles.”
-1024x680.jpg "“Clear anti-cyclist bias”: Lawsuit filed against Toronto police after cop doored cyclist… before ticketing rider over incident")
53 thoughts on “Woman thrown from horse after bike rider struck it calls for cyclists to ride responsibly”
Thye should have taken more
They should have taken more care although 20 mph seems a bit high unless it was downhill.
Don’t think a post office van should be on a bridleway though.
The bridleway was apparently
The bridleway was apparently running along a gravel track – it’s quite possible that that would be an access track to houses, that a postal worker would drive up to make their deliveries.
I wonder what the protocol is
I wonder what the protocol is for a van? Normally on blind bends you would sound the horn, but that could make things worse.
So having actually clicked
So having actually clicked through to the source article, it transpires that it wasn’t (necessarily) a bridleway, nor was it a gravel track – excellent work at garbling things by road.cc there.
She says she has encountered poor behaviour by cyclists on bridleways, but not that this incident happened on one.
She also says that they came round the corner ‘on gravel’, but I think by that she meant loose bits of tarmac, given the picture of the bend in question, which is a badly-maintained stretch of single lane tarmac lane.
So the people on cycles were
So the people on cycles were supposed to be going around that corner at 20mph? I can’t imagine wanting to go faster than 5mph on a road like that!
Maybe not as low as 5,mph but
Maybe not as low as 5,mph but maybe not as high as 20. We don’t know how fast she was going and I doubt she can judge speeds precisely.
Seems very plausible that some Muppets came round the corner too fast and not expecting anyone there. Don’t we see this often with cars and vans ?
Still be interested to know
Still be interested to know what she would have done if this post office van came round the corner.
fenix wrote:
I think a lot of people who don’t regularly ride a bike have that problem. “He was riding at 40mph!” was a quote from a recent news story, IIRC. Non-riders think every cyclist is travelling “far too fast” and they just make up a number to go with it…
hirsute wrote:
I feel her story is genuine, and whereas it is possible, easy in fact, to do a Perry Mason on it I don’t think it’s necessary. I’d take it at face value that she had a thoroughly unpleasant experience with a bunch of idiots – she says herself that it’s not typical, but none the less she’s been badly shaken up.
I’d take it more at face
I’d take it more at face value if I could follow what was described after the cyclists hit the horse bit.
If you were thrown from a
If you were thrown from your horse which then bolted after being hit by cyclist/s I don’t suppose your account would be exactly coherent.
no maybe not, but if I was a
no maybe not, but if I was a journalist interviewing someone for a piece in the paper and writing an article about what had happened to them, Id probably have made it sound alot more coherent than that. but thats just me.
cyclist hits horse, horse throws rider, its not exactly a complex story
She was with other horses
She was with other horses (and riders), not just her. All the horses bolted when she was hit with only hers throwing her off then running home. She followed after it down the lane again and a totally unrelated cyclist to the original ones came down the road and asked if he could get past as she was on the very narrow path.
I have taken some liberties like it was another cyclist as for her to recover, and get back up the path would have been 5 mins minimum. I won’t mention why if her friends were there and all of there horses were also spooked, why there is no corraborated testimony though.
Sounds like the cyclists were
Sounds like the cyclists were being twats and Henrietta lost her hockey stick somewhere. She’s right that cyclists should take care around horses (in fact we should treat horses the same way we would like drivers to treat us) but Henrietta seems to be exaggerating just a little.
Yes, hard to say what exactly
Yes, hard to say what exactly happened from that account, but it does seem strange that they couldn’t get past after she’d been thrown over a hedge and left for dead? That said I’m always very careful around horses knowing how unpredictable and dangerous they can be.
I read that as the horse
I read that as the horse leaving her for dead. Moral of the story: never trust a horse.
chrisos wrote:
They’re evil – with their swishy tails and their clippety-cloppety hooves…
yes – far more distracting
yes – far more distracting than a noisy freehub.
Don’t underestimate the power
Don’t underestimate the power of the local “journalists” to mangle the story.
Her story doesn’t seem to add
Her story doesn’t seem to add up, I’m struggling to come to a conclusion on which bits are true and which seem like pure embellishment that contradicts the narrative.
“Carolyn added that gaggles
“Carolyn added that gaggles of cyclists – sometimes in groups of up to 30 people – come to the area where she keeps her horses at all hours, including at 2am.
During these small hours, cyclists have been seen climbing fences and wading through knee-deep floodwater with their bikes.”
Who is up at 2am to check all this ?
Her by the sounds of it.
Her by the sounds of it.
She said: “They come to see me catch my horses in, and they feed them; I’ve had one horse go into hospital because it was fed a sandwich.”
So apparently they are coming from a really nice place surrounded by nice countryside to watch her run around a field and to unintentionally poison her horses.
Did she bang her head in the
Did she bang her head in the cyclist/horse incident?
I have found that horse’s
I have found that horses really dislike the sound of a noisy freewheel which can be difficult to avoid when you are travelling slowly.
@MrSimonMills, put yourself
@MrSimonMills, put yourself in a high gear and turn the cranks as slowly as possible, therefore keeping the hub engaged. You’re welcome
I’ve found the biggest
I’ve found the biggest problem is that you have a rider sitting on a tonne of incredibly stupid and unpredictable animal they cannot control. I’ve seen horses shy when a jogger has passed them. If any vehicle behaved in such an unpredictable way it would be banned but apparently its OK for pensioners to be in control of one. Strange isn’t it!
spen wrote:
My flashing front light once spooked a horse which skittered across the road and into a ditch. Fortunately the rider was calm and skilled, didn’t fall off and managed to get the animal under control.
She was very nice about the incident and didn’t blame me, when I see a horse approaching now I cover my light with my hand just in case.
Yes, I was informed of this,
Yes, I was informed of this, quite nicely, by a horsist. I now turn them to constant or off depending on conditions.
I try and show respect to horse and rider, for them, but mostly for me, the horse is big, often a bit stupid, (it’s the breeding) and to me, terrifying.
The motor car cannot kick you, or move sideways…
Horses were here before bikes
Horses were here before bikes and before cars.
You’re basically the same as a motorist wanting bikes off the road as they wobble in the wind and meander round potholes.
Never had a problem with horses in 40 plus years of cycling.
mmm, I was once riding on a
mmm, I was once riding on a small lane in the countryside when, passing a gap in the hedge, the local hunt decided to join the lane without giving me any option. Before I knew it I was surrounded by a large number of very skittish, buzzed up horses fresh from galloping with the arseholes not on their behinds but sat on the saddles. I would say it was it was one of the most terrifying experiences of my cycling life. However, I often meet very nice and considerate horse riders so there is a balance of views to be had, a bit like cyclists.
I also always cover my light which runs in flash mode normally, riders seem to notice and appreciate that one is at least trying to help defuse any situation but sometimes the horses take off…and there ain’t a lot that can be done about it. It’s what they do.
fenix wrote:
But but but HORSES DON’T PAY ROAD TAX!
Well, they do leave a deposit
Well, at least they leave a deposit.
and the locals used to
and the locals used to collect for their gardens..
If I were jogging towards a
If I were jogging towards a horse, I would slow to a walk or even step aside until the horse passed.. just decency and common sense.
If you click through to the
If you click through to the link for the main story, there is an awful video of two horses and their riders being struck by a car travelling on the wrong side of the road as the driver was travelling too fast for the conditions. I decided to follow it up and it turns out it isn’t just cyclists that the Police treat like shit. He wasn’t prosecuted for it and only given a DAC.
https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/cambridge-news/witcham-horse-crash-driver-not-13134831
it isn’t just cyclists that
it isn’t just cyclists that the Police treat like shit
They really do hate work, don’t they? Pretty shocking video!
that they do.. from my days
that they do.. from my days in the job, I knew cops that would do a u-turn if they saw an accident ahead just to avoid the paperwork.
That was quite shocking
That was quite shocking
I’m pretty sure that if I’d
I’m pretty sure that if I’d hit a horse doing 20mph I’d would have come off my bike and suffered some kind of injury, odd that there’s no mention of that. There’s also no mention of where on the track she and her horse were, for all we can tell from the description the cyclist may have been keeping to the left while her and her chums were all over the track. It’s ani dictation of the poor standards of local journalism that her story was accepted without apparent question
The reporting in that Herts
The reporting in that Herts Advertiser story is bloody awful, and Road.cc doesn’t do much to make it better.
“Other horses traveling with Carolyn were freaked by the experience,” the former story says. Were there riders on the other horses or was she out leading a herd of horses? You can’t tell from the story.
She does say “my friends all bolted off and disappeared on the horizon, and I was staggering down the hill – semi-conscious….” Would those friends be the other horses or people on the other horses?
And if it were the latter, why in God’s name would they disappear over the horizon instead of staying around to help the poor old dear?
Meanwhile, what happened to the cyclist who hit this horse at 20 mph? It’s hard nearing impossible to believe he somehow collided with a horse at that speed, stayed upright and rode away.
And where in the bend where this supposedly happened is to be seen the stump in the second photo in the Advertiser story, the stump the horse reportedly bucked Carolyn over? Given that she supplied the photos of the accident scene, would not even a neophyte reporter ask this question?
One is left with little doubt Carolyn had an encounter with cyclists which upset her greatly, but it is impossible to tell what exactly happened in that encounter. Things could be exactly as she states them; they could also be largely exaggerated.
There was a time when it was the job of those in the news business to sort these sorts of things out. But now….
“‘They nearly killed me’: Rider left shaken after cyclists hit horse” does make for a grab-you headline even if, as it turns out, it was “a cyclist” that hit the horse, according to a rider who says cyclists also show up at 2 a.m. to feed her horses sandwiches.
“My horse chucked me over the
“My horse chucked me over the hedge and left me for dead.“
I do wonder if Ms Tuck has a tendancy to anthropomorphise her horse “friends”…
I do wonder if people have a
I do wonder if people have a tendency to trivialise her experience by focusing on everything besides the essential fact.
But do we know what the
But do we know what the essential fact is ?
It’s hard to work out the basic narrative from the stories.
let me help.. fast cyclists
let me help.. fast cyclists caused her horse to bolt.. got it?
I have no doubt she had an
I have no doubt she had an encounter with some cyclists that she found unpleasant; however, her story is so full of contradictions and statements like the above that I do find myself questioning her credibility.
Was she riding with any other humans, or leading a herd of horses?
Was she thrown over a tree stump or a hedge?
Was she still blocking the path after being thrown from her horse into a field? Or was it her horses blocking the path – after they had bolted?
Is the correct term for a group of cyclists a “gaggle”?
You just can’t help yourself,
You just can’t help yourself, can you? A less than satisfactory encounter with another road user led to the more vulnerable person being unseated. I’d call that more than “unpleasant”. But you’d rather question her reliability as a witness and ask puerile questions about “other humans” and “herds of horses”?
They are not puerile
They are not puerile questions; I am pointing out that from her account of the events it is very hard to understand what actually happened. And if we don’t know what actually happened then we can’t reach any meaningful conclusions about the event.
OnYerBike wrote:
All my friends are either people or household appliances…
I’m reading her version of
I’m reading her version of events and some of the other things she has apparently written and I do find myself raising a sceptical eyebrow and thinking “really?”
Regardless of how true this actual story is, there is an important underlying reminder about tolerance and care towards people riding horses, the horses themselves and livestock in general.
Any shared use path requires
Any shared use path requires cyclists to ride at a safe, reasonable speed, ie, slow; if you want to fly along with your cycling mates, stick to the road.
“She said that some cyclists,
“She said that some cyclists, such as the ones she encountered, “just don’t care,” but acknowledged, “most cyclists are fairly good and kind,” adding, “I don’t want to punish good cyclists, I just want them to be aware to not treat horses like they are machines.”
As with all people there’s good ones and bad ones. Nice to see whe’s not following the prevalent anti-cycling rhetoric of collective responsibilty.
The moment anyone claims and
The moment anyone claims and acussues cyclists of going at “FULL SPEED” and in the same breath, being specific at “20MPH,” you know their ‘STORY” is NOT entirely truthful and bears the hallmark of someone who may actually detest and hold discriminative views of groups she complains about. And to try and disguise that, she gives credit to ‘good’ ones, but then she still marks them down with other BIZARRE allegations.
I expect her other horsepower transport is in the form of 4×4 SUV – a Range Rover?
This maybe the root to her ‘unbelievable’ story >encountering cyclists as she churns up countryside in her SUV, perhaps.
If a cyclist hit a horse they
If a cyclist hit a horse they would very likely be injured. They would be thrown from their bike and I would be surprised if they weren’t kicked by the horse that is now acting in fear of what is attacking it. I don’t doubt she and her friends encountered some cyclists on the narrow lane, but I do doubt there was a collision and that all the cyclists and her friends scarpered leaving her in a hedge. Something smells suspiciously like a story to fuel the anti-cyclism.