Nineteen -year-old Rachel Dowling narrowly cheated death when her horse Roland was hit by a car near Pontypridd, South Wales.
Rachel and her sister Adele, 11 were riding their horses along a country lane. A car ran into the back of Roland, throwing both horse and rider onto the bonnet. Rachel suffered head and arm injuries, and Roland sustained a broken leg and had to be put down.
Rachel¨s father Terry Dowling said that the horse took the brunt of the impact and probably saved his daughter¨s life.
“There are over 100 horses in this area and we are surrounded by narrow lanes, which cars regularly drive along at 60mph. We only have one bridleway so horse and riders are forced to go out on the road, and there are no signs to warn drivers of their presence.”
