Getting on my high horse

[Paul L Muller]

I am faced with a situation I have never had to deal with before and thought that there might be a clever tip I have not thought of before. Seriously, Is there a trick to make mounting a tall horse easier? plm

[CompanyWag]

Re: Getting on my high horse

I have the same problem...short legs on the rider mounting a horse 16-2 hands = shorter stirrups hanging higher in the air. Long-legged riders with longer stirrups certainly have an advantage. If I have a choice, I mount on the uphill side of him. But I don't always get that choice. Aside from standing on stumps, convenient boulders etc., I haven't heard any period "tricks". I just do a lot of leg stretching before riding so I'm limber enough to get my toe in that stirrup hanging higher than my waistline.

My latest horse has much shorter legs making mounting much easier for both of us.

[Paul L Muller]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Amen ; I do find it difficult to carry around my own stump or doulder. Coi will be the first event for my new mount and I ,and it promises to be a bit embaressing when time to get mounted. Other than that ,he's a truly wonderful horse. plm

[Ken Knopp]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Aw shucks Paul. Don't fret over it all too much....we know you...you have so much more to be embarrassed about than mounting your high horse.

Personally, I was never too much worried about climbing a tall horse....it was in the involuntary dismounting from one that always worried me. The higher the horse the farther you are from the ground (and the older I get the more it hurts fits in here too). Here are some tips....

Find two friends with shorter horses and work your way up.

Where I come from.....Its just physics so, start with something higher and work your way down. Its easier.

However, the most important rule I ever learned about mounting a high horse...

was to start with a smaller one. It just makes sense.


Paul, just "funin ya" I look forward to seeing/hearing your talk on shoeing and lamenitis this weekend.

Ken R KNopp

[10thKyScout]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Well the best way to help is to stretch. Start off with using a normal dinning room chair or coffee table, and work your way up to something higher like the kitchen table itself. You could do the runners stretch, but that will not help in balance. The second thing is when your foot is in the sturip, rest your bent knee on the horse, this way you can avoid the horse moving and knocking you off balance. I use to get a cramp once I was in the saddle and stretching on a high table eased the hamstrings in my legs. If your lucky and have the horses living at your home. I like to stretch by placing one foot on a high round pen cross bars or drop the tail gate on my truck and stretch there one foot on the ground, the other on the tail gate (make sure you stretch boths legs like this). It takes one thing we all hate and thats time. But once your limber you will not have any more mounting problems. Hope this helps.
Jeff Thompson

[Paul L Muller]

Re: Getting on my high horse

That sounds like good advise and I like the tailgate idea. Ullysses (Sam) and I have been working on him standing while mounting .That we can fix, the rest will be a ...stretch... :) plm

[Mark Choate]

Re: Getting on my high horse

"A horse that is too tall?" Never heard of such a thing, ha.

Glad you are bringing him this weekend, Paul. I am sure Ronnie Tucker will have some tidbits that will help you.

All of the suggestions are good ones. One thing I notice many folks doing when they mount is standing a bit too far off of the horse's side. When mounting, stand totally perpendicular to the horse and within six inches of him. This way, your mounting move is straight up and over and not so much an "arching" angle. I have seen many stand a full arms length away and "lunge" forward. This takes a lot more leg-strength and height to pull off. It is compounded when mounting a tall horse.

Just an idea.

Mark

[Hank Trent]

Re: Getting on my high horse

If there's any trick, I'd say it's to lengthen the stirrup leather before mounting, mount, then shorten it again when you're in the saddle. This is a quick-and-easy operation on English saddles, but gets more difficult depending on how wide and stiff your stirrup leathers are, whether they have fenders, etc.

Hank Trent
hanktrent@gmail.com

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Hallo!

I am not aware of encountering it in any manuals or letters.. but if I may...

I am 5' 10", (and it does make a difference how long one's legs are and how high to the chest on can raise a knee..) so I have used three methods for mounting in descending order of "embarrassment" on a 17 and a 17.5 horse:

1. A cupped hand up from a pard when no one is looking. :)
2. a nearby log or better yet boulder

and

3. twisiting the stirrup forward, facing the rear of the horse, spring setting my left foot in the stirrup, and at the same time grabbing the front of the pommel... and pull-up-twist swinging my right leg up and over.

I am of the historical opinion that CW cavalrymen on their smaller mounts had less of a problem, unless "scaled" down for shorter, lighter men and too small of men just encountered a similar problem. ;) :)

Curt
Shoulda jined the cavalry Mess

[Mark Choate]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Hank and Curt,

While your suggestions are noble and would help if on an afternoon ride through the countryside, they will not work for a cavalryman whose life will depend on being able to get into the saddle and on the move as quickly as possible. When a unit was at its most effective, it would be dismounted and pouring a galling fire with rifled weapons (often) into a ponderous infantry column and then remount and get out of range. This cannot happen if you have to look for a log or a stump or a buddies hand, etc.

This would have been an easy fix for an officer as he would have simply ordered the trooper to swap mounts with a "leggier" pard or to exchange the mount in some other fashion. If he could not get in and out of the saddle, he was worthless to his command. Granted, this presents Paul (and others) challenges today because of the cost of horses. However the same thing happens when folks approach us with horses that are colored incorrectly, etc. They may be gentle, sweet and fetch the morning paper, but they won't work in this hobby. I feel that we can come up with some good pointers for Paul at the Camp of Instruction next weekend.

One other thing, Curt on grabbing the pommel. That will cause the saddle to spin and a much more secure pull can be attained by grabbing the main just in front of the pommel. It won't give......

Hope this helps,
Mark

[Paul L Muller]

Re: Getting on my high horse

You all may recall a popular photo of Gen. Grant standing next to a truly tall mount. I always wondered if that was his horse, as it had the officers saddle shad under the saddle. Can you picture someone legging up the General? plm

[CompanyWag]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Grant was certainly a skilled horseman, and Cincinnati looks tall next to the General at the withers...but being a general officer he may have been afforded the comfort of a mounting block or stool...or the cupped hand of an aid. On the other hand, the stirrup hangs near the general's waist putting it within reach of a limber fellow especially if he stands on his toes.

[Curt Schmidt]

Re: Getting on my high horse

Hallo!

I guess we are back to the athletic and nimble spread leg vault from behind over the rump and into the saddle.

:) :)

Just a-funnn', just a-funnin'...

I do believe it is more a matter that we are older, heavier, and less "active," often using taller and wider mounts. (I know my knee no long makes it up to my chest...)

I am curious now, and will have to dig out my 1830's and 1840's equestrian riding manuals and have a look.

Curt

[malachi]

Re: Getting on my high horse

We sometimes teach our walking horses to park out, but I guess this would be a no no for cav huh? For most of us, dropping about thirty pounds would do the trick.