Straps that attach to saddle front to help hands be steady

[KarinUS]

surely they would put your hands in a wrong position, ie motorbike hands, too low and too close together?
id be warey about using one on mine because of that. knowing me id carry my hands too low!!
i cant use a neck strap either due to the fact that the lowness feels alien to me!!!

I used to use one but not the way Scarlett describes it. You can't hold on with both hands or you will set your hands all wrong and be unable to follow the horse's movement at gaits where the head/neck moves (walk and canter). It may work at trot, where the head stays steady.
When I felt I needed to use the canter strap, I would hold on to it with one hand and gather the reins in the other hand so I could stady myself but still follow the horse's movement rather than have that off-and-on contact.
The strap made me feel more secure but it wasn't very good for position. As ponylover pointed out it seemed to make me lean over too much so it wouldn't be my tool of chocie to help somebody improve their riding form.
If your hands are really that bad, perhaps you could use the elastic thingies called 'soft corrections'. I got mine from Dressage Unlimited and use them for cross-ties but I think people also ride in them.
That way you won't have to feel guilty about hurting Skeeterling and still can practice on proper form.

 

[galadriel]

In some instances this kind of tool can be good for teaching steady hands. You don't *grab* it; you use it as a basis to determine if your hands are moving. One useful way is to extend your pinky finger and just rest it on the strap. That way your hands aren't stiff, they're not forced out of position, but you are able to determine when your hands are unsteady and make corrections.

In such cases a real grab strap is useful, because it's thick and stable, where a flash strap etc is thin and better rally just for grabbing on.

 

[Scarlett 001]

I don't believe I ever said I used it at the walk and canter (would make no sense to say that since I haven't done that). I use it at trot. Actually, a book I have has a section on how to hold the reins and a grab strap at the same time (kind of how Galadriel explained). I use the strap intermittently while I ride at the moment - more as a learning tool - it is great to use as a check and to test how wobbly your hands are - I don't just grab the strap with my whole hand and ride this way at any gait (I used the word grab somewhat casually in the initial post, being more interested in what these things were called and not worrying about conveying how I was using them! ).

My hands are not that bad really. But Skeets demands a very steady contact (good for him!), and he has a *very* bouncy trot to ride - and this strap did help me notice that my hands were moving - he is already framing up much better with less nose poking. Kind of curious about one thing though, I don't understand why the strap would make one fall forwards - if one is balanced in the saddle, would the hands being positioned near the strap really throw one off balance that much - this is not happening for me. Generally, my dressage instructor likes hands reasonably low, so positioning them near the strap is not that different (although I suppose the distance between hands might be too close). I am not using the strap to balance (which perhaps might cause one to tip forward), but rather to position my hands. Anyway, could be that I am just not understanding something...

 

[galadriel]

I think if you actually held the strap, that would pull you forward. But using it to check yourself, rather than as a handle, shouldn't pull you too far out of position.

 

[Scarlett 001]

Ok, thanks for clearing that up. That makes sense to me now.

Interesting that all I wanted to find out was the name of these things (I thought it would be the shortest thread ever!), and this has turned out to be quite an interesting thread.

 

[KarinUS]

I don't believe I ever said I used it at the walk and canter (would make no sense to say that since I haven't done that). I use it at trot. Actually, a book I have has a section on how to hold the reins and a grab strap at the same time (kind of how Galadriel explained). I use the strap intermittently while I ride at the moment - more as a learning tool - it is great to use as a check and to test how wobbly your hands are - I don't just grab the strap with my whole hand and ride this way at any gait (I used the word grab somewhat casually in the initial post, being more interested in what these things were called and not worrying about conveying how I was using them! ).

I don't think I said you did. I just thought it would be worthwhile to point out it's potential pitfalls... I will try to only reply to the actual question posted rather than try and add unsolicited info in the future. Around here we call it a 'canter strap'. At least for the thing we use. Your thing may be something entirely different. The canter strap is rather short and stays about level with the pommel so if all you used it was to touch your pinkies too, you could just touch the pommel?
Maybe you are using a different thing?

 

[Scarlett 001]

I don't think I said you did. I just thought it would be worthwhile to point out it's potential pitfalls... I will try to only reply to the actual question posted rather than try and add unsolicited info in the future. Around here we call it a 'canter strap'. At least for the thing we use. Your thing may be something entirely different. The canter strap is rather short and stays about level with the pommel so if all you used it was to touch your pinkies too, you could just touch the pommel?
Maybe you are using a different thing?

Ah, confusion on my part re your wording in your post! You said in the first sentence that you did not use it the way I did, and then in next few sentences talked about not to hold on to it at canter etc. - I thought those two thoughts were connected and that you thought I used it at canter and were referring to me!

Your point re issues using it at canter is well made, so please continue to post your thoughts! I just read your post differently than you meant it to be read. Sorry about that.

I think we are using the same thing. I find the strap easier to use than touching the pommel as the saddle I was using at the time was cutback etc. At first instructor tried to get me to touch the saddle pad sticking through the pommel, or some mane, but for some reason that did not work for me...