Someone asked, some time back, about handling romal reins when working. Here is a lovely picture by Mary Williams Hyde, taken at a recent branding, that shows how the romal is handled when roping. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=207708982712564&set=a.207488879401241.1073741849.101144880035642&type=3&theater
Hey, is that mecate/horse hair rope going up through the bosalita a complicated tie-down? The vaquero’s Chambon or DeGogue?
Not at, just a lead rope/ get down rope.
Beautiful picture.
The bosalito fiador is not attached to the bridle and is slipping back.:eek:
Correct, a “get down rope.” You can see the tail of it looping back up by the shoulder of the horse on the right side of the frame. A loop of the end of the rope is tucked up into the waistband of the chaps or armitas, so when the buckaroo/cowboy dismounts, s/he can easily lead or tie the horse without using the bridle reins and possibly causing the horse mouth discomfort. The loop is tucked up, so that if the rider is thrown, it will pull out, and the rider won’t get dragged, or if the rider is quick enough, can grab the rope and not lose the horse.
Not a fiador, only a get down rope to lead or tie the horse. They often slip back and cause no problem. As they are often made of horsehair, looping them over the top of the headstall, which will secure them behind the ears, can cause irritation on the poll of the horse.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=207488982734564&set=a.207488879401241.1073741849.101144880035642&type=3&theater In this photo you can see the tail of the get down rope looped up and kept in the waist of the rider’s armitas.
[QUOTE=BayRoan;7046582]
Not a fiador, only a get down rope to lead or tie the horse. They often slip back and cause no problem. As they are often made of horsehair, looping them over the top of the headstall, which will secure them behind the ears, can cause irritation on the poll of the horse.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, but if that hangs there without turning loose, it can bind the horse’s chin against it’s neck and cause a wreck.
Seen it happen.
I know, that kind of horse hair anything is very prickly, not made to be against a horse’s sensitive areas.
I’m not sure how that configuration is going to get bound up. Do you mean if the heel of the bosalito somehow gets back up in the loop of the rope around the neck? Not seeing the danger. This is common equipment in the Great Basin and PNW, and I haven’t seen it cause a wreck or get bound up in any way.
I have never, ever seen a get down rope cause any issues either. I don’t know how it could. The part around the neck can’t go very far back and the other end is never tied off hard to anything.
I use one sometimes on trail rides where I know I might have to get off and lead the horse, or just want something nicer.
My half-arab in his-
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/541633_244712278981849_289293290_n.jpg
Does anyone tie horses by the get-down rope? Is that bad boy a slip knot around the horse’s neck?
You don’t tie a horse by a hair rope if you value your gear. There are ways to tie up a hackamore to lead without pulling it off the nose, but still, you don’t tie by it.
That’s also not a bosalita, it’s an underbridle. You don’t give any mounted signals via an underbridle. The only reason the get down mecate is led up through it is to keep the horse facing up when working cattle off the ground.
And no, no danger of choking down the horse. If a horse is in this gear, it’s been working for years off a float in the rein. This is bridle horse gear.
[QUOTE=gaitedincali;7046721]
I have never, ever seen a get down rope cause any issues either. I don’t know how it could. The part around the neck can’t go very far back and the other end is never tied off hard to anything.
I use one sometimes on trail rides where I know I might have to get off and lead the horse, or just want something nicer.
My half-arab in his-
https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/541633_244712278981849_289293290_n.jpg[/QUOTE]
Another beautiful picture, thank you.
Typically, the get down rope is tied around the neck with a bowline or other non-slip knot, never a slip knot that would choke down on the horse.
…The bosalito fiador …
No fiador here. The get down rope slides freely through the base of the bosalita. So there’s nothing to ‘bind up against the horse’s chin and cause a wreck’- it would simply slip through the bosalita.
The get down rope is usually tied around the horse’s neck in a bowline knot, which will not tighten around the neck. So you could tie the horse with it, but as Aktill suggests, you would not want to use a horsehair rope to tie a horse. You would use it as a ‘lead rope’ to direct the horse if you are, say, squatting over a roped calf to doctor it, and you need the horse to move is body left or right, back or come forward. The horse should know to keep the rope tight so you don’t go for a bucking calf ride!
Most of these horses will hobble, instead of tying.
Some folks will use a treeline/yacht rope get down rope instead of horsehair, if they are tying their horses up.
