Length
There are two basic methods of using stirrups. The stirrup itself is the same but the length of the stirrup leather is different.
- Long stirrups allow the rider to extend his legs fully while keeping his seat in the saddle. When riding in the long stirrup the rider has an excellent feel for the horse and excellent ability to communicate with the horse via the legs. When riding with long stirrups the rider is very stable in his seat. This provides a sturdy base for activities where the rider is at risk of being unseated, such as sword fighting or lancing. Long stirrups were thus the choice of medieval knights and is the choice for dressage riders today.
- Short stirrups require the riders to keep their knees bent. When riding in a short stirrup the rider has the ability to stand up in the stirrups and get his seat clear of the saddle, allowing him more mobility but at the cost of having less feel of the horse. It also provides them with more sercurity (due to leverage) should the horse trip or fall than a longer stirrup would. When riding with short stirrups the rider often adopts what is known as a forward seat. In the forward seat the rider can lean over the horse's own center of balance, his withers, inhibiting the horse's balance and athletic maneuverings as little as possible. Jockeys, eventers, and show jumping riders therefore use this type of stirrup. The horsemen of Central Asia, such as the Mongols, also used this type of stirrup as it allowed them to rise up and fire their bows from greater height.
Types of English-style stirrups
There have been many improvements on the usual stirrup design, mostly to increase its safety. One of the most dangerous problems with the stirrup is the fact that the rider can get his boot stuck in it in the event of a fall, which would result in him being dragged. Other modern stirrup designs have added hinges, supposedly to help the rider flex his ankle and get his weight into his heels.
- Standard iron: The most common stirrup iron, consisting of a tread, with two branches, and an eye at the top for the leather to run through.
- Australian Simplex/Bent-leg Stirrups: Safety stirrups on which the outside branch is bent, rather than straight, to help the foot to release in the event of a fall.
- Peacock Safety Stirrups: The outer branch of these stirrups are composed of a strong, thick rubber band and a leather loop, which will detach with sufficient pressure. However, there are several problems with these stirrups, such as the fact that the rubber band eventually wears thin and may inexpectedly break (and so the rider must check it regularily), and the tread of the stirrup is only supported by the inside stirrup bar, and so it is strained and the tread starts to bend.
- Side-saddle stirrups: usually have a slightly larger eye.
- Precision stirrups: have joints in the branches of the stirrups to allow for them to flex. These are especially good for riders with joint pain. Others are adjustable at the eye, allowing the leather to go through the eye perpendicular to the stirrup itself, which supposedly helps reduce strain.
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