Not doing our cause any good...be careful out there!!
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news ... -0nn56svtw
"Two men have been arrested after an event rider was crushed under her horse and suffered life-changing injuries.
Anna Tomson, 41, has been sedated and on a ventilator in hospital for more than a week after she was thrown from her saddle when her horse was allegedly startled by five off-road vehicles on a bridleway.
Her horse, Berry, landed on top of her, causing “serious and life-changing injuries” that were treated by an air ambulance team before she was taken to hospital, Thames Valley police said.
Sarah Peters, who has raised more than £10,000 to help towards caring for Ms Tomson and Berry over the next 12 months, said last night that her friend had undergone surgery to add plates to two badly broken ribs. “She is in ICU and stable . . . the doctors will try to reduce sedation again tomorrow and see how she is when she starts waking up,” she added.
Ms Tomson, an amateur rider, has competed in events since 2002, according to the British Eventing website.
She was trotting her horse in a wooded area in College Woods, off Deadman’s Lane in Goring Heath, near the Oxfordshire-Berkshire border on May 17 when the off-road motorbikes spooked Berry, it is alleged. Police arrested a 22-year-old man from Woodley, Berkshire, on suspicion of causing serious injuries by driving and driving a vehicle while unfit through drugs. Another 22-year-old man from Earley, Berkshire, was arrested on suspicion of driving a vehicle while over the prescribed limit for drugs and possession of class B drugs.
Five off-road motorcycles and a Ford Transit van have been seized. Both men have been released under investigation. The horse was uninjured.
Hundreds of wellwishers have pledged more than £10,000 towards a £30,000 fundraising target to help Ms Tomson’s recovery. Ms Peters wrote: “Anna is a vibrant human being who unfortunately had a tragic accident that will change her life for the foreseeable future due to no fault of her own.
“I know we are all struggling in these times of Covid but if you could help and support her. I know this would mean the world to her and help her recover knowing she had people who care and love her and wish to support her.
“I will be giving Anna her livery for free and caring for her horse Berry until she is at a point in her life where she is able to return to normality.”
PC Chris Weatherley, of Thames Valley police, said: “We are looking to establish if the bikes that rode past the horse caused it to bolt.
“We also need to establish if the bikes were using the bridleway or footpaths, which would be a public place, or whether they went deeper into the woods, which would have been more private.
“The injured woman was treated at the scene by the air ambulance medical professionals, but was transported to hospital by land ambulance. She remains in hospital at this time in a serious but stable condition.”"
