Using specialist stirrups to improve position

[nelle]

Like many riders on NR I struggle to maintain a secure leg position - heels up, not relaxing my knees etc etc.

A recent magazine article tested various different stirrups and some claimed to improve position either by helping to maintain a heels down position or by relieving tension.

Unfortunately the ones which scored highly by the panel were the most expensive - Sprenger System 4 Stirrups sounded very impressive and claimed to "soften the impact on the rider's cartilage and ligaments, while relieving tension in the hips, knees, ankles and calves" but are £90 per pair. I quite liked the sound of the Mountain Horse SCS3 Quick Release stirrups with a backward incline on the tread to help with the heels down position, but they were £58!

So my question is has anyone tried these stirrups or any other makes and do they improve your position or is there no other way around it than to practise, practise, practise!

[domane]

Read that too!! :p

I have just invested in a pair of spring-stirrups....sadly not the Sprenger ones but they definintely help to absorb the bounce when I rise to the trot. I got mine on that famous auction website, you can get them from Derby House for £25 plus postage too, I believe.. My feet don't move around so much in them either.

[Skib]

Sprenger System 4 Stirrups sounded very impressive and claimed to "soften the impact on the rider's cartilage and ligaments, while relieving tension in the hips, knees, ankles and calves" but are £90 per pair.

I use these for hacking. They are safety stirrups but dont fix your leg in the correct position. Indeed for those of us whose legs wont fit the textbook picture or have previously broken ankles they may make it easier to ride with one's heel higher than one's toe - i.e. not perfect.

I also bought the cheaper spring stirrups in a larger size, thinking them identical. They feel just the same when one rides. I have since been told they are not. The cheaper ones flex in one direction only. Up and down. The Sprengers I am told flex sideways as well.
To be honest, in my lessons i dont take my own stirrups and once I am on the horse, I dont think twice about whether I have Sprenger stirrups or not. So though they may be good for my joints, I am not sure that the change my riding.
I would never buy stirrups that grip onto my boots.

[eml]

My daughter will only ride with her sprengers having had bad shin splints from too much running as a teenager. They are an absolute godsend to her as she schools about four horses a day

I am puzzled Skib how they are 'safety stirrups' however. Like all stirrups the leg position they help you attain is only as good as the fit of the saddle to the rider and the placement of the bars (oh and of course the riders basic technique!)

Edited to add I had some sucess with slanted inserts with riders with stiff ankles/hips as a training aid but wouldn't recommend their continual use.

[No_Angel]

i had a cheapo pair of sprenger like stirrups, hated them, made my ankles hurt like hell. I now have a pair of hm harbourne stirrups and they are great.
angled slightly to help keep heels down, wide tread to disperse pressure and angled top to stop stirrup leather rubbing your leg.

[Fruit Loop]

I bought a pair of the William Funnel stirrups (off ebay for about £25 including p&p) which are meant to work like the Sprenger ones. My insructor recommended them as the are meant to relieve tension in the joints... so far I haven't had any aches in my ankle on long hacks so I think they must be working.

Am a bit worried about the safety though because my old stirrups had that rubber band on the side. Having said that I fell off tonight and didn't get my feet caught in them.

[Bay Mare]

I prefer the wide tread stirrups that Heather Moffatt recommends. They hang at 90 degrees to 'regular' stirrups and are very secure. I find it really strange riding in anything else. Although they can't possibly help my position (only correct training can do that!) they certainly don't 'encourage' my toes to turn out which I felt that 'regular' stirrups did. I love 'em ... can't you tell :)

[Sarah-B]

Another vote here for Heather Moffett's Wide Tread Stirrups - they are fab!!

I suffered from really painful ankles (I have tendonitis) but having switched to these I can hack for ages with no pain at all.

They are also very secure, the wide tread makes it harder to lose the stirrup and if you do lose on because they hang the "right" way round it's easier to find your stirrup again.

The cost £49.99 but are worth every penny.

[Skib]

eml,
I believe they are safety stirrups as the plate is hinged and if you fall off with your boot in the stirrup it doesnt get wedged. Your body weight tips the plate down and releases the boot. So the same effect as bent leg stirrups.

I thought that was why they are used by so many show jumpers. because there was an accident in which a well known rider got dragged?

I did do some experiments with my boots and the Sprengers when I first had them and I could not wedge the boot in. I dont suggest Emma stresses her stirrups by trying this, but I am pretty sure it is so.

And i would be worried if it were not the case. My boot once stuck in the RS stirrup which was too small when I was bucked off. And after that I insisted on hacking in my own safety stirrups.

[eml]

I think the essence of safety is a stirrup that fits, ie not too wide so whole foot slips through or too narrow that boot jams as I have seen it do in Peacocks that are too narrow. Daughter assures me that the continental translation of the sprengers is 'safety stirrup' but neither of us can see why they should be any safer than a well fitting normal stirrup.

Untimately safety is a stirrup from which your foot is released and a leather that parts from the stirrup bar easily.

Personally I have never seen a rider trapped by a stirrup of any type and that is down to checking the size.

[Skib]

eml, you have a perfect school. And check for every rider.

But thanks for reassuring me.
For purposes of this board, I believe safety stirrups means a stirrup that will release your foot from the horse - if the stirrup bar on the saddle does that, that is fine. You can use conventional stirrups.
But on many RS saddles it doesnt. Hence buckles that release the stirrup leather, or stirrups that release one's foot.

That is why I have in the past posted pics of the various types. And joined threads discussing the pros and cons.

My view is that, the less competent the rider, the more necessary they are. I am not neurotic about HAVING to use them. I have my lessons in conventional stirrups.
But whereas you eml , as an experienced rider, say you are reluctant to ride certain horses, and keep safe that way, I as a newish rider I know I might fall off any horse, and focus on external gear like body protectors and stirrups.

Of course they are no substitute for good riding. But they reduce my fear of falling - so my nervous nelliness is settled. I actually ride better in my Sprenger stirrups because I dont worry and fuss if my knee comes up and my foot slips in the transition to canter.
With experienced riders, the foot NEVER slips.

But being a snob, I do feel reassured that my teacher (who told me to buy them) and your daughter and many top riders whose pics are in Horse and Hound use these same stirrups. It makes me feel grown up and I like it that the yard staff admire my tack.

[Bertie]

I have the MH SCS3 stirrups and boots and love them, they are great in helping avoid that duck feet thing that I can do alot!!:p :D

They have the rubber side so your foot won't get caught if you fall and your feet lock in the treads without really locking so you feel secure and free at the same time. I use them with and without the matching boots. I love love love mine :D

[nelle]

Thanks for your comments everyone:)

I have the MH SCS3 stirrups and boots and love them, they are great in helping avoid that duck feet thing that I can do alot!!:p :D

They have the rubber side so your foot won't get caught if you fall and your feet lock in the treads without really locking so you feel secure and free at the same time. I use them with and without the matching boots. I love love love mine :D

I think these stirrups will be on my Christmas pressie list this year! Are they as effective with any old riding boots.

[Bertie]

Nelle - I use them with my MH SCS3 boots and my cheap decathlon boots and they work great with both pairs, obviously better with the right boots but still work well with normal ones :)