Here’s a great resource on sharing trails with horses, mountain bikers, and hikers: “What a Horse Sees!” – a short film illustrating safe ways of passing horse and rider on the trail.
From Everett Lewis, a Washington Backcountry Horseman, comes this wonderful video that is just as applicable to those of us riding the horses as the bikers and hikers that also want to learn how to be safe around equines.
Everett has distilled the myriad of “what should happen” items into three easy to remember steps that we can share with the growing number of people on the trail. The life you save my be your own.
- STOP – Horses spook easily, and may perceive movement, especially quiet movement, as a predator — and bolt.
- TALK – Human speech is reassuring and comforting for the horse. Continue to talk until the horse has passed.
- MOVE DOWN – to the low side of the trail. If horse gets spooked, you don’t want it going off the steep side or horse and rider can be injured.
Enjoy the video that Everett produced to help educate hikers and bikers, as well as horsemen on how to share the trails together.