A teenager who was dragged along the road and left unconscious after a speeding driver spooked her horse is calling for a change in attitudes.
Charlotte Wilson was hacking her part-bred thoroughbred mare Savanna on 6 July and was almost home when the driver rounded the bend and saw them, too late to stop.
“He’d have gone into the back of us so his only option was to keep going,” she told H&H.
“He almost brushed my stirrup, and scared the life out of my pony. She reared and I came off, and my foot got twisted in the stirrup, so I got dragged for about 10 metres.
“I was left unconscious in the road. I don’t know how long I was there for.”
Charlotte, who is almost 17, is still suffering with a painful shoulder and has been told not to ride for another week. Although she escaped without any broken bones, she suffered a “bashed and bruised” head, concussion, a cut face and other bruising. Savanna was unhurt.
“The ambulance didn’t come for two hours,” Charlotte said. “I don’t know why, in this weather, but I had a light jacket on, and of course my hat and boots, and as they didn’t want to move me till the ambulance got there, so it was a bit hot!”
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Charlotte would like to see action taken to reduce the number of such incidents, although she acknowledges it is a “big job”.
“The driver just drove off,” she said. “He didn’t slow down at all and I’m sure he saw me fall. Then on my Facebook post, I’ve had trolls saying I’m psychologically damaging horses by riding on the roads, and one said he wished I’d get cancer.
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“I’m not saying all riders are always the best people, but we all need to work together to make the roads safer for everyone.
“Drivers might not like horses and that’s fine, but they don’t want one to land on their windscreens, just like we don’t want ourselves or our horses killed or injured.
“Maybe how to pass horses should be part of the driving test? Drivers need to respect them, just as we need to respect drivers and other road users, and do our best to keep everyone safe.”
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
