Re: Minor wreck, but awesome damage to saddle

On Dec 1, 3:03=A0pm, "Emily Brooks" <sun...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
> "Hunter Hampton" <airstreamingy...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>
> news:ouf8j4dlnj18pvg84osogeolv61ngq0ohl@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> > On Mon, 1 Dec 2008 09:41:12 -0800 (PST), JZMiller
> > <dressaget...@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
> >> That's
> >>a =A0tough one, but I have seen leathers and stirrups ripped off
Englis=
h
> >>saddles, and flaps torn beyond repair.
>
> > Yabut, English stirrups are made to come off...... they just slip off.
>
> > Hunter
>
> That's the theory anyway but it has never, ever happened to me yet. I
nev=
er
> close the little latch things and my AP saddle just has curved stirrup
ba=
rs.
> I can't even slip a stirrup leather onto either saddle with the saddle
of=
f
> the horse!
>
> Emily

Years ago, I was on a fairly wild trail ride (pitch dark, through
woods that made it seem even darker than pitch) where my leather was
snatched right off my saddle by a tree branch we were careening by.

This was on Dusty's very first trail ride after I moved him to a new
barn. It was supposed to be a short -1/2 to 1 hour trail ride, that
ended up being closer to 3 hours long. The other person on the ride,
the barn owner, was riding a new-to-her Belgian who had only ever been
used to drag logs, prior to this trail ride.

When I yelled "I lost my stirrup!" trying to get her to stop (so Dusty
would stop panicking) she yelled back "Just pick it back up with your
foot!"  It took me a few attempts to get her to understand that as far
as that stirrup was concerned, Elvis had left the building.

This was my first inkling that this barn owner was just a bit loopy.

Susan
Dusty (who grew to love trail rides, even with the insane french woman
leading them)