Children's riding boots with steep toe cap

[Booboostwo]

Has anyone come across children's sizes (EU 32 which I think is UK 13) riding boots with steel toe caps? And a smooth sole so that they can actually slip out of a stirrup in the event of a fall? Google is not helping which is really odd. I am finding some in adult sizes but nothing for children which is really weird.

DD's riding school encourage them to do a lot of handling and leading and she's already been trodden on in lesson 3! (she's fine, she manged to scrunch her toes out of the way)

[beingchampion]

I think it will probably be better for your child to learn to keep her feet safe rather than to rely on steelies - I would think that they'll make riding difficult being wide and heave at the toe. Happy to be corrected though.

[Booboostwo]

I don't see how the two are mutually exclusive. She can both learn to take care and know that if she were to make a mistake she would be safe. Plenty of adults wear steel toe cap boots around horses for exactly this reason and plenty of adults have broken feet from being trodden on despite having been around horses for decades.

Steel caped toe boots for adults are slim and designed to be safe with stirrups, of course I would not put her in shoes that are too wide for the stirrups! They are a bit heaver than normal shoe but nothing that you can't get used to in a couple of sessions.

[britnay]

Mountain Horse do a Protective Junior Jodhpur Boot in size 32 with a steel toe cap.

[britnay]

www.horze.co.uk/kids-jodhpur-boots/mountain-horse-protective-jodhpur-junior/38321.html

[Booboostwo]

Thank you very much britnay, but unfortunately these are not suitable for riding in because of the sole. They must have smooth soles so that her foot can easily slip out of the stirrup if she falls off.

[Booboostwo]

I want something like this but size 31/32
www.amazon.co.uk/Tuffa-Spartan-Steeltoe-Jodphur-Boot/dp/B0074EQSJC/ref=pd_sbs_309_8?pf_rd_p=4fe8124b-f455-49bd-9e7d-c251837661fc&_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_wg=MkSEE&pf_rd_r=DJ1AMH6YHGYJV6P3ZVX3&pd_rd_i=B0074EQSJC&pd_rd_w=PqF49&refRID=DJ1AMH6YHGYJV6P3ZVX3&pd_rd_r=b88c6070-ffaa-4983-9be5-e2473f78872c&tag=mumsnet&ascsubtag=mnforum-21

[britnay]

The Mountain Horse ones are absolutely fine for riding in. They are a very good make. Very durable, so should get a lot of wear out of them.

Perhaps you should take her to a tack shop to try a few different ones on?

[Trewser]

I agree she's better off learning how to keep her feet out of the way or wearing steel toe caps when on the ground and non steel for riding. None of mine ever had metal toe caps to ride in, I doubt they'd be flexible enough to keep a good lower leg position.

[Bufferingkisses]

Be wary of steel toe caps. Yes they can help but, if the horse hits the edge by the foot, they can bend into the foot making an injury far worse than it would have been. That's why you don't find many of them. Children should definitely be learning about where to stand etc. Rising school horses are not likely to be bolshy like breaking youngsters or something where the benefits may out weigh the risks.

[Bufferingkisses]

*riding - sorry autobanana playing up!

[Booboostwo]

britnay by all means ride in the Mountain Horse ones if you like but they are not good enough for my DD or me for that matter. I've had two friends dragged by their leg when their foot got caught in the stirrup and it's a horrific accident. The first was unconscious in the field and it took us ages to find him after his horse returned to the yard alone and the second fell off and got dragged right in front of me - it was horrific. They were both lucky to escape without permanent injuries.

Trewster the RC has an odd approach: the DCs all groom the ponies, lead them from the stables to the indoor and walk them around in the indoor. This makes for some nice bonding time but increases the risks for inexperienced, child handlers. She's already been stood on by a pony who didn't do anything wrong, she just wasn't savvy enough around him as he was moving. I don't want her to learn through broken toes! The cap is just at the toe so the boot is as flexible as any other boot. I've ridden in steel cap and you just forget you are wearing them very quickly. They used to be standard when I started riding.

Bufferingkisses I can see what you mean but I suppose almost any piece of safety equipment can go wrong. These ponies are barefoot so it is unlikely that a sideways blow would bend the steel cap. As above, the pony wasn't bolshy, it just walked forward and stood on her because she didn't move sideways, it happens.

Anyway, it doesn't seem as if they exist for children so the whole point is moot.

[Trewser]

Buy her some stirrup cages if you are really concerned about being dragged?

[Trewser]

here's some

[Trewser]

(boots rather than stirrup cages!)

[PrayingandHoping]

Just an aside as someone who has sold steel toe capped riding boots (we used to stock equitector but they have now gone out of business I believe)

Make absolutely sure that the steel toe cap is a full cap (as in wraps around the whole foot including underneath) and not just over the top of the toe.

Some brands are the latter and have resulted in serious injury when the steel toe cap then slices into the foot.... you can imagine the injury. A broken toe from a normal boot would have been a better option

[Booboostwo]

Trewster she rides in stirrup cages already, I don't think any children should ride without stirrup cages. Thanks for the link but I really want boots with smooth soles for her.

Thanks Prayingand Hoping will keep that in mind. Equitector are still in business but don't do children's sizes.

[beingchampion]

I have only limited experience of (2) riding schools, but both teach children pony care rather than just jumping onboard, and nobody I know wears steel toe caps around horses, just being nosy, but roughly whereabouts/when did you learn to ride? Wondered if it is a regional/european/american or wherever thing?

[Booboostwo]

I learn to ride in Greece in the 1980s. There are indeed very different approaches to learning to ride. The French is get on an do it, so her first lesson was on her own, no lunge, no one walking next to her and she spent a lot of it in ‘trot’ - banging away in the saddle trying to get the trot.

Personally I like he German system of putting you on the lunge with no stirrups and no reins until you get your balance, and this can mean a couple of years. They also use schoolmasters for this, so you get the feel of the engaged hindquarters and the round back, right from the beginning. It must be a huge advantage to learn this way and I am sure it explains Germany’s equestrian dominance. I wish I had learnt this way, although I can imagine it would be boring for the child who wants to do things.

I can see why they emphasize handling, they are teaching the child that the pony is not a bicycle, but at that age, some kids in DCs group are 5yo, the Year DCs don’t manage to do a lot.

[BelindasGleeTeam]

I think a broken toe is far preferable to a sliced foot from crushed toe caps.

I have s pair of adult equitectors which I have to say I only use for gardening now (incident with garden fork made me wary!) as they're not hugely comfortable.

I'm pretty sure most people end up with the odd toe injury before they learn how to move round horses. Trying to stop every injury may not do her any favours long term.

[BelindasGleeTeam]

Always ride with peacock stirrups for rapid exit. They're absolutely essential in my mind. Easy and simple.

[Trewser]

Germany may be dominant, but the UK isn't bad! No child at our pony club has steel toe caps and the consensus last night was they cause more problems than they solve, which is why they don't exist. Noone uses stirrup cages either as emphasis is correctly fitting peacock stirrups and boots and chaps. Children on the lead rein are not going to get dragged. Bouncing up and down on a horse until you get trot sounds awful for the pony, although some of them are saints!

[Booboostwo]

Has anyone actually seen a toe cut off from a steel toe cap boot? Seems to be a myth, see here where a poster describes a Mythbusters episode exploring the idea:
www.theengineeringequestrian.com/steel-toe-boots-and-horses-yes-or-no-friend-or-foe/

Turns out the foot is more likely to be entirely flattened at much lower pressures needed for the steel cap to break.

As I have said already she’s not on the lead rein, they let them go straight away on their own. The first RC we tried used a 20x 40 indoor and the trotting was chaos because no one could control their pony. A child fell off and was briefly hanging off the stirrup before coming loose. We won’t be going back there. The second RC has a 20m diameter indoor so at least things are more contained.

I much prefer cage stirrups to peacock stirrups for children as they help with keeping the foot in the right position, which in turn helps with keeping the leg in the right position.

We should be moving to Germany soon so hopefully she’ll get some decent lessons there.

[Trewser]

No i don't think they'll cut your toe off but I think getting stepped on teaches you to keep your feet out of the way! Bones squish at that age anyway

[Trewser]

Yes it sounds chaotic!

[MoobaaMoobaa]

Christ I think I'd rather wait until you are in Germany for anymore riding lessons, then sit watching sacks of potatoes banging on a ponies back, and falling off.

I learnt on the end of a lunge, with no reins and stirrups, it is hard in trot and canter and makes you feel like you going to fly out the side door! I agree it is the best bases for learning balance and unity with a horse though.