Western saddle = dangerous

[bantamamba]

lol, well, maybe as far as I am concerned!

Gosh I am such a freaking clutz sometimes. Now I know why I prefer English. Nothing on that thing which can gore me, haha.

Long story short, I was in a typical Western, which I am not usually. I went to dismount. It had been a long, hot morning, and I was all sweaty (my excuse). My right hand slipped on the synthetic material as I was swinging my leg over. At that precise moment, my left toe fell out of the stirrup, having not been centered properly. I come down -hard- on the saddle horn, but manage to control the rest of my descent and do not think much of my now feintly sore middle.

Three hours later, as I undress I notice the dark black/purple and angry red bruise right below my sternum, about the size of a 50c piece. Now this morning, it has grown to about tennis ball size, and my entire midsection feels like a shiphold of swarthy jubilant vikings held a riverdancing contest upon it all the night long. Talk about ow! I can't laugh or cough or nothin'.

That darn saddle is going to murder me one of these days.

Two portraits of The Colonel for good measure, so this vent!post is not a complete waste of time:

 

[Crazyland]

haha to funny. I bet it hurt though.

 

[michickenwrangler]

This is why we endurance riders have the sense to ride in saddles without horns

Seriously, going up steep hills the horn will get you. The only thing you need a horn for is roping cattle yet for some reason people persist in putting them on saddles.

When I was about 13 or so, I went horseback riding at Mackinac Island. I was riding English at the time and very used to that style. After the ride, I went to dismount. I leaned forward before bringing my right leg back and over and hooked my shirt on the horn. I dangled there for a minute before one of the guys at the livery stable rushed over to lift me up so we could unhook my shirt from the horn. Very embarrassing.

 

[Ema]

LOL...well its kinda funny but only because I know how you feel as I learned to ride I fell off the darn ting soo many time. I am short and trying to get ont he horse...ahahahaha what a funny sight. I am glad you are ok though. the bruise from experience will go away in a week and half...lol...that is how long the tennis size bruise I got on my upper thigh from getting ...(yes I am saying getting instead of alling or slipping...lol...) off my hose took to to away. It was nasty looking :-/

 

[PitterPaws]

Ouch! I'm sorry for your pain, hope you get better quick!

Well I would like to add my funny story: I had finally got my new horse! I was going for a ride, western, and when I would tack up my horse she would suck up air right before I would cinch her up. Well since she was my first horse I was unaware of all the "Tricks" horses can pull, so I hoped on and started to ride and the darned saddle would slip down the side of my mare and I would end up in the dirt! and I swear she would just stand there with this look of total pleasure, like she was grinnin from ear to ear! that happened a couple of times till I finally wised up and figured out what she was doing. She was a Great horse but she loved to pull her tricks on me!

 

[Slinkytoys]

Try jumping in a Western saddle. Good thing I was really really skinny at the time....and could keep my fanny in the saddle.

Slinky

 

[IcarusSomnio]

Quote:
Ohhh man...I had one of those experiences once!

Trainer: Try going over that jump, you gotta sit like -blablablablabla-
Fence: 1 inch off ground
Me: -approaches at trot-
Horse: -hops lightly over fence-
Me: -nearly falls off horse, just barely misses a horn in the ol' midsection-


Fence: 1
Me: 0
Horse: -sigh- Why does she even try?

I don't even dare putting an English saddle on my guys. I would be in the dirt SO fast, it would be a new world record. I keep a dog collar around the swell of the saddle, it's helpful when the goin' gets rough and you just gotta ride it out. The horn is awful helpful when mounting and dismounting though

 

[bantamamba]

lol, I see I am not alone in my horned saddle misadventures...

My mother is very cautious around Westerns as she is convinced those horns can eviscerate people. Which I am not discounting now, ha.

We have an Abetta endurance saddle which is very lovely and horn-less.

I do have an AP Collegiate sitting around, but it sadly does not fit any of the horses I ride. Can't seem to get rid of the dang thing either.

Also I've always been slightly in awe of anyone who dares to jump in a Western...lol that is not something I would willingly attempt in a million years!

 

[Campine Lover]

I am, always was, and always will be, an English rider. I rode a western horse I was hoping to buy at a local ranch once and was so suprised at how differant, how easy, it was. Western Saddles are HUGE! And yes, they do hurt! English saddles, in my opinion, are way better! (I am an Eventer in the horse world) I love The Colonel ! Here is my Quarter Horse Tobiano, LJ. I have had him for almost 9 years. I was a child who never got past the "Pony Fever" stage when I was 4. Here are the stages of Eventing:

Dressage

Show Jumping

and Cross Country

Then, goofing around after!

 

[High Roost Ranch]

Ha ha, OUCH! Try hooking your belt over a barrel saddle horn coming out of the first turn when the horse slightly lost his footing, and having yourself literally "tied" to the saddle and totally out of position until you finally say the heck with it and reach down and unhook your buckle as your coming into the 3rd barrel. Thank gosh I was on a good horse and not a nut job. I'm virtually a 100% western rider, but I can attest to those saddle horns being dangerous. I still have a scar on my chest that I got at 7 yrs old when the pony I was riding flipped over backwards and the horn (metal at that time) got me square in the chest. I'm 45 now and still remember that clear as day how it happened, in slow motion.