“Nanny state” “Elf and safety” and other sneers abound. They say, “Killjoys will take away all the fun”! But when Alton Towers maimed two girls and two men in 2015, ticket sales went down. Losing legs isn’t fun, and nobody thinks it is.
A genuine risk of life changing injury doesn’t add to the fun. The thought of life changing injury adds to the fun, but only when, in your heart, you believe the Health and Safety experts have made everything look lethal, while being safe.
This video shows what happens when the pony bolts, and you are in the vehicle, the worst nightmare for any carriage driver.
Not much of a bolt, I admit, but who cares. The vehicle, with you in your wheelchair, has stopped. Nothing is happening. Nobody has been hurt. You are safe. You have time and to spare to work out what to do next.
It first appeared on my Saddlechariot with Henry. You can tell it is old film as I still think hitting ponies is acceptable, and a good idea. Sorry, Henry.
The Instant Pony Release System on the iBex of 2019 is vastly improved, but since 2005, all the vehicles I invented, built and sold have had an Emergency Stop Control as required under EU law and under PUWER 1998. I discuss PUWER and the European Law in detail HERE.
The first essential is to be able to disconnect the vehicle from a bolting pony or horse.
We have done that with the Emergency Stop Control.
Then the automatic brakes bring the vehicle to a controlled stop, vital when exploring hilly ground.
The only problem left is a loose pony.
Under PUWER 1998, I can relax as livestock aren't included in the Act. But from every other point of view, the loose pony is my problem.
But firstly, is a loose pony a problem?
This video shows a loose pony. Can you see a problem?
They go to look at them in the New Forest, they look at Shetland ponies on Shetland.
The pony is a placid, herd living herbivore. Dogs are direct descendants of wolves, man eating, pack hunting, highly evolved and efficient killers, yet we have dogs lolling all over the sofas, carpets and our beds. So why worry about ponies?
To respond intelligently to a panicked bolting pony, we need to understand what it is looking for.
It wants an open space with nothing.... no vehicles that predators can hide behind, absolutely nothing that predators can hide behind, and no people because people might turn into predators. And for choice, some nice short lush grass that nothing can hide behind, but which will be nice to eat.
A loose pony heads for open space, without people, without property, that isn't a tarmac road. What more could you want? Letting it go is the perfect answer.
If you have problems catching your pony, that isn't a safety issue. But there is a simple answer that will make your pony safer, and allow you to let it go without worrying.
Don't hit it with whips, don't kick it, definitely don't kick it with spurs, don't tie its mouth shut round a lump of metal, and guess what? It might come back to you.
This video shows Obama working, or at least that's what he thinks he is doing.