A HORSE rider has said she could have been killed after she claims a car driver purposefully sped up when passing her, causing her to be thrown into the road.

Zoe Ryan, 30, was hospitalised on Saturday after she was thrown from her horse while out riding in Severn Stoke in Upton upon Severn. She was knocked unconscious, suffered torn ligaments in her hands and a fractured collarbone during the incident.

She and her friend were out riding on the A38 on Saturday, February 6, at around 3pm when they were about to turn onto Madge Hill in Severn Stoke towards the Rose and Crown pub. Zoe said an eye witness was about to drive out of Madge Hill but was waiting for her and her friend to pass. They were both wearing a hi-vis and side by side.

She said: “The driver came around the corner and I turned to look and he intentionally sped up. I think he was trying to get in front of us so he didn’t have to wait because there were cars coming towards us, but as he came past he came so close I could have touched the car with my foot. As he went past he sped up, and my horse, which is only young and had never had that happened to her in her life, erupted and she was bucking and launching into the air, which the driver would have seen in his rear mirror because it happened immediately.”

Zoe, who works as an account manager for an IT company, claims the driver, who didn’t stop after the incident, exceeded the road’s 30mph speed limit when driving past.

Zoe’s horse, named Fug Bug, was spooked and threw her into the road. After hitting her head, Zoe was then knocked unconscious after the horse stamped on her.

“If I didn’t have a riding helmet on I would have been killed,” she said.

She was taken to Worcestershire Royal but suffered no internal injuries and is now recovering at home. Her horse was uninjured during the incident.

Zoe said: “Many drivers don’t think we are allowed to ride two abreast, which is side by side if you have a nervous rider, horse, or a young child - but we are and it’s in the highway code. The majority of drivers are amazing and I can’t fault them. They slow down, and we try and get out the way for them but this is definitely getting worse.

"I really don't think people understand how dangerous it is to drive close or fast past a horse."

Zoe said the car was silver and potentially a Vauxhall. Police attended and are investigating.

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