I have been forwarded the original story. It
is VERY sad. It DOES point up some very important things:
Horse riding can be more than dangerous to horse
and rider.
No horse is bombproof.
Steep slope and trails are WAY more dangerous than
regular trails.
Something needs to be figured out so the horse
hears the bikes.
I normally live in TX. Have done a good
amount of riding over the past MANY yrs. HOWEVER, riding in S CAL canyons
was SCARRY AS H**LL. My horse was green and did not want to be left behind
the other horse but there were places there was NO choice. That was not
fun. Guess those in CA get used to it. However, those type of
trails, not matter how exciting they may be to ride, have, IHMO, greater risks
than 'average' trails. Then to add the 'wheel' vehicles of several
varieties must be a horrendous challenge. Riding on an 18 inch trail
that goes straight up and straight down without any other challenges was more
than an ordinary challenge. One spook and 'it is over' for you or
your horse or both.
Wonder if something simple attached to
the bikes, like the jingle bells we attached to our horses during
hunting season, would help, ie some sort of noise the horse would hear
before a sudden confrontation. Perhaps bells on the horses and something
on the bikes to alert everyone. Surely if the groups had some meetings
something could be agreed on.
It could have been just as disasterous for the bike
rider if he had fallen down that steep sloop.
