[drivingpairs] biiig truck, green horses
- From: Stephanie Sher <ssher@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: drivingpairs <drivingpairs@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 30 Aug 2003 16:10:06 -0400
Today I took my moderately green pair, Flygill and Mosa, out for a nice quiet
drive. The temperature was wonderful and the horses were enjoying themselves.
After a couple of miles we had turned around and were coming back down a long
but not too steep hill. A big big truck pulling a long, empty trailer came
over
the hill behind us going quite fast. Jen, on the road side, waved her whip and
yelled at the driver to slow down, which he did with a big swoosh of air
brakes.
Well Flygill lost it. he was scrambling and banging against the pole with
his
eyes rolling. I brought them down to a walk and we got over on the edge of the
road - two wheels on the pavement and two on the grass verge. I kept the
horses
walking along and waved the truck to come on. He came on past and I thought we
were home free. But when the trailer came abreast of us and was banging and
jumping into the air, Flea (on the truck side) went nuts. He reared, he
bucked,
he plunged. Gradually Mosa also sped up and there wasn't a thing I could do
about it. Now we are at full gallop. I had the brake on, but only partly
because I was trying not to lock the wheels. We had a couple of truly
hair-raising moments as the carriage tilted as I edged it back on the road, but
we didn't tip over and now we are hurtling past the truck at the gallop. My
only plan was to stay straight and stay on the road. when the driver saw what
was happening, he pulled off the road and turned off his engine, bless his
heart. Once we got out of sight I was able to slow the horses by actually
sawing on the reins - only the second time in my life I have ever done that -
never while driving. I actually wouldn't have thought of it, I was taking and
releasing, but Jen told me to try sawing gently. I got the horses back to the
trot, but could hear the truck starting up again behind us. Wildly I looked
for
a spot where we could get off the road, and when a nice field came up I turned
in, drove the horses up a ways and we both jumped down and got a hold of them.
The truck drove on by and tooted his horn (a nice man, but reeeeeally
clueless).
We drove on home, having to get off the road and get down to hold the horses
one other time when a large truck came by that I would have expected Flea to
absolutely ignore on a better day.
So questions: Should I switch sides with the pair to put Mosa on the inside?
Since they were riding horses first, might they do better without blinkers?
Should I have halted the horses to let the truck go by instead of letting them
walk (I thought it might make them calmer to be able to move). Once we were in
full gallop was there something different I should have done? Both horse
ignore
trucks when ridden, and both have seen many trucks when driven either single or
in the pair and never worried beyond raising their head.
Stephanie
Blasted Rock Farm
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