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Re: [RC] [RC] horses and bikes - Ranelle Rubin


Barbara,

A few weeks ago a friend and I were training on the Tevis trail above Michigan Bluff. There were tons of runners. I carry carrots, and when they stop, I hand them a piece of carrot to give my horse..If the bikers are friendly enough to stop and speak, I give them a piece of carrot too..My horse always wants to meet people on the trail in case they have carrots!


Ranelle Rubin
R.Rubin Consulting

raneller@xxxxxxx

916-663-4140 home office
916-718-2427 cellular
916-848-3662 fax




From: "Barbara McCrary" <bigcreekranch@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Moriah Nickerson" <moriah.nickerson@xxxxxxxxx>,<ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [RC] horses and bikes
Date: Fri, 25 May 2007 10:28:35 -0700

We are members of a Mounted Assistance Unit for state parks in CA. When we ride along our designated route, a single lane (just barely in some places) old truck road, we meet bicycles routinely. We also meet hordes of Boy Scouts with backpacks. The horses handle the bikes much better than the backpacks. So far, almost all bike riders have been unfailingly courteous to us by stopping and standing until we pass. We thank them for doing so, and so far, there have been no disasters. Rarely, we raise our hand as a "stop" request and that is usually met. Mutual courtesy is the keyword when sharing trails. As for the backpacks, by the time we met the third wave of Scouts, we stopped the horses in front of them, explained that horses consider people with backpacks to be very threatening, and offered to let them pet the horses. All ended well.

Barbara
  ----- Original Message -----
  From: Moriah Nickerson
  To: ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  Sent: Friday, May 25, 2007 9:40 AM
  Subject: Re: [RC] horses and bikes


I can understand the sentiment towards bikes, and while Ravens story and others are terrible, I just want to spin something positive for everyone. I have been riding for over 20 years, and my dad has been mountain biking for slightly less than that. When he first started riding, there was a huge "fight" over trails at our local park that resulted in horses and bikes being generally unfriendly towards each other. To try to soothe the situation we started a "campaign" of our own where we rode together-my on my "hot arabian show horse" and my dad on his outrageous down hill racing bike. It did seem to change a few attitudes, especially the bikers. They got to know my pony and could understand the troubles they were causing with their bikes. My dad runs many local races and is widely known in the mountain bike scene. He ALWAYS stresses how unpredictable and dangerous horses can be and anyone he meets, especially new riders, he impresses upon them that they should always get off their bike and talk softly to the horses and their riders to make sure no one gets hurt. He will even stop bikers when he has seen horses ahead and make sure they know what to do! :)
As reasonable as that is, many times the horseback riders refuse to even say "hello" when my dad has tried so hard to be friendly. Clearly a spooked horse/rider are not expected to exchange greetings, but I think, as horse riders, we should be especially appreciative of the bikers that do the RIGHT thing and at least say "thanks!" So, next time you see a biker do the wrong thing, let them know what the appropriate behavior is (if they are reasonable), and if you see them trying or doing the right thing, say THANK YOU!! We need to be responsible for creating a park environment that is friendly for all to use. A happy attitude is contagious, and aren't we all out there to have a good time?!?!?
enjoy the trails!
Moriah





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Replies
Re: [RC] horses and bikes, Barbara McCrary