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A group horseback ride ended with injuries Aug. 15 when a cyclist startled the group’s horses on Paseo Cesar Chavez, leading to a woman being thrown off and hospitalized.
Nancy Freshour, one of the six riders in the group, said the incident underscores a gap in trail safety education. Despite ongoing efforts by local equestrian groups to advocate for signage and public awareness, she said, incidents like this show the need for comprehensive trail etiquette education for both cyclists and horseback riders.
“It’s a bad scene, but we’re hoping something good can come out of this in terms of education and awareness and signage,†Freshour said.
At about 10 a.m. Aug. 15, six riders — including the owners, some employees and friends of Loving Thunder Therapeutic Riding — left the facility on Paseo Cesar Chavez and headed south.
According to witness statements in a police report, the riders were traveling in a single-file line alongside the road when a bicyclist sped past them, spooking one rider’s horse.
The horse reared up, lost its footing, and threw the woman, who is co-owner of Loving Thunder, from her saddle, causing her to land on her back on the asphalt. She sustained five bruised ribs, one fractured rib and a bruise extending from her back down her right leg, Freshour said. She was taken to the trauma unit at the University of New Mexico Hospital for her injuries.
Freshour said she saw the cyclist turn around as he rode past, but he continued on his way without checking to see if anyone was hurt.
The responding officer did not note any applicable laws that may have been broken and ended the report’s narrative with “case closed.â€
However, Corrales Police Chief Vic Mangiacapra said in an email:
“Since traffic laws apply to bicyclists (section 66-3-702), if it were to be determined that the cyclist acted carelessly and heedlessly in willful or wanton disregard of the rights or safety of others and without due caution and circumspection and at a speed or in a manner so as to endanger or be likely to endanger any person or property then he could be charged with reckless driving … which is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $500 and 90 days in jail.”
Village safety
Freshour said even if the cyclist doesn’t face any legal consequences, the incident highlights a need for safety education.
“We, as horse people, need to make it a point, to go to the bicycle clubs and to do some one-on-one education to advise people what the rules are,†Freshour said. “We need to publicize the rules, they need to be published, they need it to be common knowledge in the village.â€
According to Freshour, Mike Raupp, co-founder of Loving Thunder, has been trying to install signs outlining rules, such as giving horses the right of way and ensuring bicyclists and pedestrians share the trails and roads. Despite Raupp’s offer to purchase, install and maintain the signs, she said the Village Council has not allowed them to do so.
Village Clerk Melanie Romero said she was unaware of when Raupp asked to install the signs, but she is currently working with the Equestrian Advisory Commission to identify locations for new signs.
Romero said that the Equestrian Advisory Commission would need to coordinate with the Public Works Department to install additional equestrian safety signs. She added council approval is not required, only approval from the Public Works Department. However, any signs on Corrales Road would need approval from the New Mexico Department of Transportation.
In his most recent “Mayor’s Message,†Mayor Jim Fahey included an article on how to pass horses if you are on a bicycle: welovecycling.com/wide/2021/05/19/how-to-pass-horses-on-a-bicycle/.