American Equus Hunter "Escape" Safety Stirrups

A safety stirrup with a spring-activated release arm, cut in the traditional Fillis silhouette for the hunter ring. Sold as a pair.

This is the Escape mechanism in a shape a hunter judge expects. A movable arm on the outside branch is held closed by a spring and opens under the pressure of a foot pushing outward, which is what a dragged foot does. The footbed is the slim version rather than the wide one, which keeps the iron looking traditional from the rail, and it carries the same ramp-in design and the same interchangeable traction pin system that grips the sole rather than relying on a rubber tread. The body is 6061 T6 billet aluminum, hand polished, with a stated lateral crush strength of 3,000 lb per square inch.

Read this before your first ride in them.

American Equus instructs that the stirrups be mounted with the movable safety arm facing outward, never toward the horse's body, so the foot can press the arm open in an emergency. They also ask that the mechanism be checked before each ride: clean, free of debris and properly lubricated. A safety stirrup hung backwards is not a safety stirrup, and this is not marked on the iron itself.

Specifications:

• Escape safety release: spring-activated opening mechanism with a movable release arm
• Traditional Fillis shape
• 6061 T6 aircraft billet aluminum, machined from solid
• Stated lateral crush strength 3,000 lb per square inch
• Slim footbed with ramp-in design
• Interchangeable traction pin system
• Hand polished
• Weight 343 g each
• Dimensions 4.5 in W x 2.0 in D x 6.0 in H
• Stirrup color: Illusion Black or Show Chrome
• Traction pin style: Apex pointed top, or Stud flat top, both silver
• Sold as a pair

Two choices to make at the selector:

Color. Show Chrome is the mirror finish and the conventional choice for a hunter ring. Illusion Black is the darkened finish, which reads quieter against a black boot. Pin style. The Apex pin has a pointed top and bites harder into a sole. The Stud pin has a flat top and is the gentler of the two on boot leather. Both are silver, and the pins are interchangeable later, so this is not a permanent decision.

What sets this one apart:

This iron releases the foot: a movable arm on the outside branch, held closed by a spring, opens when a foot presses outward against it. It carries that mechanism inside a traditional Fillis silhouette with a slim footbed, 2.0 inches deep, so it reads as a conventional iron from the rail. It is 6061 T6 billet aluminum at 343 grams each, with a stated lateral crush strength of 3,000 lb per square inch.

Why it is here:

A release mechanism inside a traditional Fillis silhouette. The footbed is the slim one, so the iron reads as conventional from the rail while the arm still opens under outward pressure.