Stirrup Covers, and Girths.

[RoyalRain42]

I am curious about stirrup leather covers? I have seen them online, but honestly i have maybe seen one or two people with them out in the field. They look like they would be nice to have, but are the really? Do they work well? Practical in general? I cant find a whole lot of info on them.

Second of all, girths. I use a Wintec AP for my endurance saddle, and i realized a week ago how run down my current girth is. Just a simple centaur brand fuzzy one. So it will need replaced probably in the next month or so. When i look about on riding warehouse, it seems a lot of endurance girths are tailored to dressage style set ups. I could easily just get another cheap fuzzy girth, but some quality would be nice in general. Are there some longer more endurance style girths? Suggestions would be nice!

Thank you all!

[Garythesquirrel]

I have these covered stirrups that I use sometimes in the winter:

http://www.ridingwarehouse.com/E-Z_R…ge-ERTNSN.html

The pros: They’re warm in the winter and keep my feet dry. If I want to ride in sneakers I can do so safely (think I did this one or two times) .

Cons: I find them too heavy on longer rides. Moving my leg or foot requires more effort (that makes me sound really lazy!) and on rides longer than a couple of hours I found myself just dropping my stirrups.

I do like them for shorter trail rides in the winter but have to admit I haven’t used them in 2 years.

Of my two main saddles one has short billets and one has long. I love mohair girths and these are the ones I use:

http://www.ridingwarehouse.com/Still…e-SWCMCDG.html

http://www.ridingwarehouse.com/Still…ge-SCCMEG.html

I have one of each for both horses and have had them for years. I love them!

ETA: Okay, I need to pay better attention. I read the OP as stirrup covers not stirrup leather covers!

So, I do have stirrup leather covers also. I wouldn’t ride without them. They’re very comfortable and they protect my saddle from rubs.

[gothedistance]

@RoyalRain42

I am curious about stirrup leather covers? I have seen them online, but honestly i have maybe seen one or two people with them out in the field. They look like they would be nice to have, but are the really? Do they work well? Practical in general? I cant find a whole lot of info on them.

I have wool fleece covers on my stirrup leathers. They protect the saddle from the inevitable leather-against-leather “rubs” of hard usage, and protect your inside leg from rubs as well. I’ve had unprotected leathers gouge channels in my saddles, but with a sheepskin tube over the leathers, that chaffing and wearing stopped.

What I used was that sheepskin cut and sewn into tubes to cover halters. The pieces fit a stirrup leather perfectly, and are fairly cheap to buy. Mine are brown sheepskin, so you wouldn’t see them unless I was out of the saddle and you were up close.

Are they worth having? Yes. Do they help protect your saddle/legs? Absolutely yes. Comfortable to use in all weather? You bet. Inexpensive to buy and replace when worn out (which will take years)? Yup. Will allow you to ride in shorts without abrasion to your legs which a naked leather against a naked leg will inflict almost immediately? Yes again.

I highly recommend them for every saddle.

Hope that helps.