I would hotly contest the judges decision as, per my understanding, you are not allowed to ride in BLACK stirrups in eq classes under the new rule. Which excludes all variations of gray, orange, silver, zebra striped, whatever… The rule pertains ONLY to the color black. Sounds like the judge unfairly misinterpreted the rule change.
I would love to see someone do big eq in zebra stirrups. I would vote for them.
I have seen zebra duct tape… Maybe I could wrap some around my stirrups and show… BM might kill me though.
Call USEF for a clarification if you will be showing rated shows and classes next time out. The stirrup manufacturer may have consulted USEF and been advised they were legal.
The judge of this unrated class is not required to even have a card if the whole show was unrated. May not have understood the rule or even read the whole thing. I’d probably just go to silver fillis for Eq just to be safe though. Easy enough to swap the irons for other classes
How can RR say these grey stirrups are legal when the new rule states SILVER? Last I checked grey isn’t silver ! And for my Canadian peeps, we have this rule here as well for all medal and eq classes 
[QUOTE=eclipse;7460432]
How can RR say these grey stirrups are legal when the new rule states SILVER? Last I checked grey isn’t silver ! And for my Canadian peeps, we have this rule here as well for all medal and eq classes :)[/QUOTE]
But the new rule doesn’t state silver.
The rule is as follows:
The use of stirrups that have entirely black branches is not permitted in any Equitation class. The use of stirrups which have entirely black branches will automatically result in elimination.
BOD 1/19/13 Effective 12/1/13. EC 6/17/13 Effective 12/1/13.
Ergo, according to that, anything other than black is technically legal and should not result automatically in elimination.
Oh sorry, ours in Canada actually states only silver coloured stirrups so I just assumed USEF stated the same as our rule is new this year!
[QUOTE=NinjaPony02;7459665]
I am curious about this too. Doesn’t royal riders advertise that the gray color stirrups are legal for these classes? If I was disqualified for something that was legal I would probably say something at the show. We have people at our barn who have the gray rr’s and they have been fine in the eq. Let us know![/QUOTE]
Just FYI - USEF does not endorse products. This comes up all the time with supplements that claim to be legal. In this case I tend to think the company is right based on the wording of the rule - but you should never assume that something is legal because it says it is.
[QUOTE=kenyarider;7459394]
I recognize the rationale behind this rule change but please judges if you can’t see when a rider has lost a stirrup then they should get the benefit of bad eyesight or carelessness on your part. Next they will want to have instant replay on rounds so they can get every mistake. This is my opinion only and I am way too old to do equitation. As old as I am I can see when someone loses a stirrup and I have to watch the Finals on live feed. Good grief.[/QUOTE]
It’s not about losing a stirrup. The judges can’t see the how the rider’s foot is set in the stirrup when a rider is using black stirrups and wearing black boots, therefore it makes it difficult to judge both over fences and on the flat.
From the title of the post, I thought this was going to be about some new division opening up for older riders. 
[QUOTE=teal tea;7461687]
From the title of the post, I thought this was going to be about some new division opening up for older riders. :D[/QUOTE]You mean Silver Stirrup instead of Rusty Stirrup? A back gate person proposed that at a show I attended a few years ago.
Hello everyone, OP here. A few clarifications and a few answers to the questions…
The whole show was ‘AA,’ the division was un-rated. (It was my first show with my new horse so we stuck with the Pre-Adults, I normally ride in the Adults.)
The first day, the judge had no problem with my stirrups and pinned me accordingly in the eq classes. It was the judge on the second day that had the issue. She radioed over to the in gate after my O/F round. My trainer tried to fight it, but no luck.
The stirrups are NOT as silver as they are in the picture. They are actually quite dark gray, but I read the rule change like many of you… they weren’t black so they should be okay.
Dover made the statement about them being okay for eq, not necessarily the company. You can see this claim on their website and in their magazine. But, they had no problem taking them back, even after 2 months of use.
What I came to learn, is that even if they are technically “legal” and 9 out of 10 judges won’t have a problem with them, it’s just not worth it to take that chance! I went ahead and purchased the MDC Hunter Classic Stirrups. I’m on vacation so I haven’t had a chance to ride in them yet, but hoping for good results!
[QUOTE=sweetpea;7459736]
equiwing stirrups
http://www.amazon.com/Equi-Wing-Aluminum-Stirrup-Irons/dp/B002HWMY1W[/QUOTE]
Do you find them heavy? I like the Jins but the price on these for my second saddle is tempting if they are as light as the Jins.
I am also a big fan of the MDC hunter classic stirrups. If you order from Smartpak, you could always try them out and return them if you don’t like 'em!
A little off topic, but what is it about stirrups being lightweight that people like?
I want to try some of the stirrups with the slightly wider footbed, but I’m not sure I’ll like them being lightweight. It kinda seems like it would be hard to get your stirrup back if you lost it.
[QUOTE=BK6756;7472846]
A little off topic, but what is it about stirrups being lightweight that people like?
I want to try some of the stirrups with the slightly wider footbed, but I’m not sure I’ll like them being lightweight. It kinda seems like it would be hard to get your stirrup back if you lost it.[/QUOTE]
I have found lightweight wide-tread stirrups to provide immense relief for my knee and ankle (and associated soft tissue) issues. I don’t know if it’s the weight or the tread, but they’ve made a huge difference over typical fillis irons and the Sprenger flex stirrups. I have never had an issue with picking them back up- although since mine came with a cheesegrater-style bed, I also don’t lose them frequently.
[QUOTE=BK6756;7472846]
A little off topic, but what is it about stirrups being lightweight that people like?
I want to try some of the stirrups with the slightly wider footbed, but I’m not sure I’ll like them being lightweight. It kinda seems like it would be hard to get your stirrup back if you lost it.[/QUOTE]
I’m with you. I ordered those black stirrup pads that you can wrap around your fillis iron for this very reason. Will let you know if they seem to be a good compromise once I ride in them a few times. I have ridden in the Royal Riders and wasn’t sold…
the equiwing for me are perfect weight
Little bit more than the black lightweight and not as heavy as regular stainless steel. It comes with toe pads my grater ones wore out fast so I switch in the rubber ones that come with them.
I spray-painted my black stirrups silver. Worked perfectly.
[QUOTE=Peggy;7462057]
You mean Silver Stirrup instead of Rusty Stirrup? A back gate person proposed that at a show I attended a few years ago.[/QUOTE]
Remember the old Jack Benny classes? I wonder how many younger riders even know who Jack Benny is, much less know about those classes.
