Speak to me of wide footbed/grippy stirrups!

[Belmont]

After deciding to completely revamp my riding and my body, I am ditching my Sprenger Bow Balance stirrups. Though, I have sworn by them for so long, I have decided that my knees/ankles still feel bad after long hard rides no matter the stirrup. I would also like to have a more stable leg feel, and I HATE how my foot slips constantly when my boots are a little wet .

Cheese grater stirrups? Wide footbed? Are Jin’s the way to go? I love my regular Compositi’s for colorful fun, but they aren’t a wide foot bed. What is the advantage of wide foot vs regular?

So many decisions…

[greysfordays]

I think this is like saddles…totally a personal thing. For me, I have very big feet (size 11, yuck) and when I came back to riding after a long break, I thought the wider foot bed MDC stirrups would be perfect for me. I’ve been riding in them for about 9 months and had been kind of shocked how hard it is to keep my heel down. That was something I was really good at previously.

I had a lesson with an assistant trainer I don’t usually ride with and she suggested going back to the narrower stirrup. Tried the jointed ones which were already a huge improvement but actually just went back to a plain old Fillis style and I am thrilled.

But again, I think so many factors go into how a stirrup feels. The more you can try different styles, the better I think!

[Brutus614]

I have the MDC Hunter Classic – not jointed, but they have a larger footbed and instead of cheese grater, think the bottom of a meat tenderizer for the material/feel of the footbed.

I’ve found the wider footbed relieves pain in my ankles and knees, as well as some in my lower back. I’ve never had trouble with these feeling slippery, even if my shoes are caked in mud.

[VA_Hunter_Aside]

I agree about the wider stirrup footbeds making it harder to keep your heels down. For comfort I absolutely LOVE and swear by those wrap around foot pads that you zip tie around your stirrup. Dover has them HERE, and they are well worth the money. You wouldn’t think they’d make that much difference in your comfort but they really do.

[Lusoluv]

I love the Compositi wide stirrups for jumping. Have no problem keeping my heel down and feel like I have a wider base of support. Like the lightweight stirrup too.

[Inclined]

Yes, Compositi has wide footbeds: http://www.victorycanter.com/Compositi-Reflex-3D-Swivel-Action-Wide-Track-Stirrups-465137.html?gclid=CJvsvP7Iw8QCFeXm7AodjAEArA .

[Happyhooves]

Kiddo (a guy) with a wide foot uses the MDC wide footbed for jumpers for the grip, but would like regular plain filis irons but with a grippy footbed for equitation. Can’t find cheese graters in larger than 4 3/4 and I’ve been looking. Is there anywhere to get a 5" filis with a grippier cheese grater-type footbed? The 4 3/4 are easy to find, but haven’t found a grippy footbed in a 5" anywhere. Do they have to be custom or something?

[Jumper_girl221]

[QUOTE=VA_Hunter_Aside;8071502]
I agree about the wider stirrup footbeds making it harder to keep your heels down. For comfort I absolutely LOVE and swear by those wrap around foot pads that you zip tie around your stirrup. Dover has them HERE, and they are well worth the money. You wouldn’t think they’d make that much difference in your comfort but they really do.[/QUOTE]
I have those and adore them. Used to have cheese graters but tried those and fell in love.

I don’t like bendy stirrups, made me feel like my foot was about to slide out of the stirrup and I had a hellavua time getting my leg to sit still (a struggle in normal stirrups). .

[Jo]

[QUOTE=VA_Hunter_Aside;8071502]
I agree about the wider stirrup footbeds making it harder to keep your heels down. For comfort I absolutely LOVE and swear by those wrap around foot pads that you zip tie around your stirrup. Dover has them HERE, and they are well worth the money. You wouldn’t think they’d make that much difference in your comfort but they really do.[/QUOTE]

I will never have a saddle without these again. I’ve tried a variety of stirrup setups and this with my cheap knock off jointed stirrups are what I prefer.

[cheerio280]

I hate rubber pads for anything. Same with the non-slip sandpaper pads- completely useless for me. I’ve used cheese grater pads, but if they don’t fit just right then they move a bit and the metal-on-metal feeling drives me nuts. I currently have the super comfort pads on my dressage saddle and like them, but they haven’t been life-changing for me. I did recently get a pair of the wide-track Compositi and really like them so far, but I’ve only had a few rides in them yet so take that with a grain of salt.

The best grip that I have ever found are the Pro Jump pads. They are metal, but instead of graters they have a pyramid-type texture. They screw on to your irons and are super stable with great grip. I did look around online and couldn’t find them for sale anywhere though, so I’m not sure what’s going on with that.

[Kato]

I recommend you borrow some from a friend because I think it’s such a personal choice. It will help you decided what you like. That’s what I did at first.

I LOVE my wide footbed cheese graters (Royal Riders), they are the black light-weight ones. And I don’t have any issues getting my heels down. Some of the “cheese graters” are a lot sharper than others. I hate the really sharp ones, you can hurt yourself on those!

[doublesstable]

Totally agree with try before you buy and that it’s such a personal preference… and also agree with some of those cheese grater inserts can be too sharp.

I tried the Jin stirrups thinking I would love them since I love my Royal Riders with the wider foot bed and I didn’t like them at all.

I borrowed a saddle which had the jointed stirrups on and I can’t get my heels down with those…

I rode in regular filis irons for many years with no problems. Over the years developed knee pain. Rode in a friends trail saddle that had those really wide stirrups and loved them. Then rode in my trainers Royal Riders and really liked them too. Tried to go back to the regular filis irons and they killed my knees.

Sticking to my Royal Riders

[Belmont]

Unfortunately, no one I know has the wide footbed irons. I’m surrounded by Sprengers. I am going to Dover this weekend for a tent sale, so I will see what I can physically put my hands on.

[evelynthemare]

i also was tired of my feet slipping with a little wet. i had herm sprengers but also was tired of the flexible irons. i got these: http://www.doversaddlery.com/equiwing-wide-track-irons/p/X1-0764/

and i really love them. i have been using the cheese grater irons (but it comes with pads also) and i feel very stable and secure when jumping. the wide beds also make my knees hurt less. they’re awesome. also much cheaper than the royal riders and essentially the same things.

[Appsolute]

Like the poster above, I LOVE my Equiwing aluminium wide track stirrups with cheese grater pads!

I don’t have knee / ankle problems, but I used to get numb toes, and my old rubber fillis pads were slippery.

I CAN’T “slip” from the cheese graters. I don’t get numb toes any more. I can ride for hours on end in these and be comfortable.

I found mine new, in a box for $10 at tack sale - don’t hate me.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

Love love love my Loenzini stirrups. I don’t have issues keeping my heel down in them…you just need to make sure you do not have too much of your foot in them. I keep the stirrups easily…and love their feel and weight much more than the super light composite stirrups…plus the colors are fun.

http://www.amirashop.co.uk/acatalog/Lorenzini---Jumping-Stirrups-AE677501.html#SID=20

BUT they are expensive…

[IPEsq]

I’ve got OCD in my “hock”, and I love love love my Jin stirrups. I have much less ankle pain when riding than I did in my old Fillis style irons.

[aabradley82]

MDC has a trial program. If you give them a call, you will speak with Martin Cohen, owner & stirrup designer, directly. Very helpful and very polite. He will send you as many of his stirrups as you care to try. I had a very lovely experience with him and his company.