horses on the roads

I have the good fortune to ride both a bike and a horse, what I would say if if you just say something it will help, especially a call from behind, always helps, never had  trouble with cyclists when riding its always older drivers for some reason, and when I am riding a bike you just have a look at the horse and rider as you approach, a rider with a long rein and fag on the go is usually riding a safer horse, the rider who looks tense with a body protector is the one to be wary of ! The Bike is cheaper but the horse does have a mind of its own however small !

I think you did everything perfectly. 

I do feel sorry for the riders - that looks like a crap road to have to ride down. 

Early in lockdown, early in the morning on otherwise deserted country lanes, I saw a horse and rider approaching me from a distance. I slowed to a crawl, soft pedalling as I know some are not fans of a noisy freehub. When I was still a good 100 yards away, the horse reared up, so I stopped entirely. The rider dismounted and walked the horse back the way they had come. I gave them some time before carrying on on my way, and realised they had returned to the stables they had only just left, so I never got to talk to them. Like you, I was left wondering if there's anything I could have done better, so I contacted the stables later that day. Apparently it was the horse's first ride on the open roads, and the rider clearly didn't think it was worth continuing after that.    

I thought you did everything right.

Perhaps they did think you would crawl past them.

Waiting until there are no oncoming cars is definitely the right thing to do when passing horses since you never know if it might be a flighty young horse liable to prance out sideways. It's not unknown for an inexperienced horse to take fright at a darker patch of tarmac even, and insist on skirting crabwise around it. I suspect they stopped because they wanted you to get by asap - just as a cyclist gets nervous when a car hangs on their tail, even for the best of reasons. The noise is not necessarily a bad thing since the horse and rider will hear you coming - suddenly appearing unannounced is more likely to spook them. Just don't backfire on their tail!

If in doubt, stop, so I don't see you did anything wrong. 

As to why the riders stopped, it's because all horses are different, sometimes from one hour to the next, and as a rider you get to understand their body language and mood. I cycle a lot around your neck of the woods and there are loads of stables around with everyone from experienced riders to tourists out for a ride. As a cyclist coming up behind I slow right down and say hello from way back. Gives the rider time to get the horse under her and under control. Experienced riders will be very clear about what they want you to do - on an offroad descent yesterday an oncoming rider asked me to stop completely because it was a bit narrow and her horse needed plenty of room. Others might just need you to go past at normal cycling speed nice and wide. And as with all groups, some are just arseholes who think they own the road - I've had horse riders refuse to single out on forest roads and force me to pull in and stop even though I'm cycling at walking pace 

I've had a few horse riding lessons alongside my son and believe me, it's a pretty intimidating place to be, and seriously hard work. It's a bloody long way down from a horse big enough to carry an adult male. You have to be so careful with your inputs even on a horse that's relatively docile and used to lots of different riders. They're well-trained prey animals after all and it doesn't take much to spook one. 

From chatting to riders at stables we have a lot in common - it's drivers that are the main source of concern. Over here in the New Forest it's mainly locals rather than tourists that are threats to horses and riders. Tourists are too busy enjoying the novelty of seeing real live animals roaming free. Some riders have had bad experiences with cyclists and there was one fatality some years back attributed to a mountain biker on a track where cycling wasn't permitted. But overall when I've chatted to people at the stables the agenda is the same - do I wear hi vis, what position should I take on the roads, why do some drivers overtake on blind bends. Experienced horse riders are like experienced road cyclists - they understand the risks and know how to ride defensively, know where the high risk routes are, and resign themselves to the fact that at some point on a ride some idiot is going to endanger their life or that of their horse.

When I'm driving I've always tried to coast past on minimal throttle and keep noise to a minimum. Horses will plod along quite happily if nothing changes, it's sudden changes that can spook them. I'd imagine a sports exhaust is never going to be quiet, no matter how carefully you manage the clutch and revs.