AU715032B2 - Safety stirrup - Google Patents

Description

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 -1- SAFETY STIRRUP This invention relates to horse riding stirrups and is particularly concerned with safety stirrups which prevent the rider's foot from being caught in the stirrup in the event of the inadvertent dismounting of the rider such as being thrown from the horse.

Known types of stirrups generally include a Dshaped metal structure with a slot located in the centre of the arcuate portion of the D to enable the stirrup to be attached to a stirrup strap. In use, the rider's foot is inserted into the stirrup such that a base portion defined by an inner surface of the upright of the D of the stirrup locates against the sole of the rider's foot and the arcuate portion of the stirrup locates against the top of the rider's foot. In this way the rider's foot is held in place and is not easily dislodged from the stirrup when the gait of the horse increases.

A disadvantage of existing stirrups is that in the event of the rider falling from the saddle, one of the rider's feet can become caught in the stirrup. This is particularly the case when a rider is thrown from the horse, the swiftness of which does not allow the rider to extract a foot caught in a stirrup. Catching of a foot in a stirrup can cause serious injury to the rider since the rider may be dragged along beside the horse.

Safety stirrups have previously been devised to overcome some of these problems. One form of safety stirrup includes a frangible or weakened portion of the stirrup located adjacent to the stirrup strap attachment slot. In use, this frangible portion is designed to break away if the rider's foot is caught in the stirrup when the rider is thrown from the saddle.

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 2 This frangible stirrup is satisfactory in that the rider is saved from further injury which may be caused by being dragged along the ground. However, the rider cannot easily remount, since the saddle now has only one operable stirrup and the rider may be thrown from the saddle again should the horse increase its gait. Hence the rider should replace the broken frangible stirrup before continuing, which may be inconvenient or impossible.

Also, the frangible stirrup often does not prevent the rider from suffering leg injuries. Hence, they are only of limited benefit for novice or disabled riders.

A further disadvantage of these stirrups is that they are more bulky than conventional stirrups in the region of attachment to the stirrup strap and this increased bulk often causes wear to the rider's clothing.

An alternative form of safety stirrups is disclosed in Australian Patent Application No. 62109/90.

In this stirrup, the foot is held in a restraint which is pivotally mounted on an inverted U-shaped mounting means.

The restraint is pivoted out of the normal position and separates if the rider is thrown from the horse, the separation of the restraint releases the foot from the restraint. A disadvantage of this type of stirrup is that the foot may still be retained within the U-shaped mounting means even when the restraint is pivoted out of the normal position and separates.

Another form of safety stirrup is disclosed in International Patent Application No. PCT/AU95/00332. In this stirrup the foot is held in a restraint means which is pivotally mounted between two extremities of an inverted Ushaped mounting means. If the rider is thrown from the horse, the restraint means pivots out of the normal position, one of the pivotal mountings releases from the mounting member and the restraint means separates, thus WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 3 releasing the foot from both the restraint and the inverted U-shaped mounting means. One of the disadvantages of the type of stirrup is that the restraint means can be pushed out of the normal position by the movement and pressure exerted on the stirrup by hard riding. For example, professional riders such as jockeys, mountain cattlemen, rodeo riders and the like exert enormous pressure on stirrups as they pull up a horse or lean back to resist being thrown over the horse's head. The strong pressure of the rider forcing a foot hard into the stirrup can cause stirrups of the prior art to suddenly release the foot, unbalancing the rider and potentially causing the rider to fall from the horse.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a stirrup which alleviates or overcomes the disadvantages of existing stirrups. It is a further object of the present invention to provide a stirrup which alleviates the problem of unexpected or undesirable release of stirrups during hard riding or manoeuvring of a horse.

According to the present invention there is provided a safety stirrup comprising: an inverted U-shaped mounting member having means located in the arcuate portion of the U to enable a stirrup strap to be attached thereto: a foot support pivotally mounted between the extremities of the mounting member when the stirrup is in normal use, wherein the foot support comprises a tread having an extension projecting upwardly from each end of the tread, and a foot upper restraining portion comprising two arms which co-operate together to form a looped configuration extending from the extensions formed on the tread, each said arm being pivotal outwardly from its adjacent support extension: and WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 4 restriction means acting between the foot upper restraining portion and the inverted U-shaped mounting member to restrict the movement of the foot upper restraining portion to the direction which is opposite to the direction in which the foot is inserted: wherein said foot support is releasable from said pivotal mounting at one extremity of said mounting member after pivoting of said foot support from the normal in use arrangement and the other extremity of said mounting member is pivotal outwardly, and wherein said pivoting of the foot support from the normal in use arrangement enables the arms of the foot upper restraining portion to pivot outwardly and/or said foot support to release from said one extremity of said mounting member. In general, the foot upper restraining portion will remain in a plane within the Ushaped mounting member due to interference fit. However, the foot support may optionally include a co-operating engagement means between the foot upper restraining portion and the inverted U-shaped mounting member to retain the foot upper restraining portion in a plane within the inverted U-shaped mounting member when the stirrup is in said normal use and to thereby prevent the arms of the foot upper restraining portion from pivoting outwards.

The term "normal use" is used in the preceding paragraph and hereafter to denote the configuration of the stirrup when a rider is mounted on a horse to which the stirrup is fitted with the rider's foot positioned in the stirrup.

The pivotal mounting of the foot support to the mounting member may be achieved by any convenient means, but is typically by way of shafts or pins. Preferably, the pins or shafts extend from, or are received by, the extensions projecting from the tread.

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 5 In the case of the pivotal mounting of the foot support which is releasable from one extremity of the mounting member, the pivot typically comprises a pin projecting from the foot support which is received by an aperture in the mounting member. To effect release from the mounting member, the pin can be provided with flattened portions which on rotation of the foot support, allow the pin to pass through a slot in the mounting member between the aperture and the edge of the mounting member. To aid release of the pin, the walls of the slot preferably flare outwardly away from the aperture. The angle between the slot walls is typically about 450.

In a preferred embodiment, the pin described in the preceding paragraph has a head which prevents excessive spreading of the extremities of the mounting member when the pin is located in the aperture in the mounting member.

Advantageously, the head stands slightly away from the adjacent surface of the mounting member to provide a gap therebetween when the pin is located in the aperture.

Depending on the nature of the co-operating engagement means between the foot upper restraining portion and the mounting member, the aforementioned gap can facilitate disengagement of the foot upper restraining portion and the mounting member by allowing spreading of the extremities of the mounting member.

In preferred embodiments where the pivotal mounting of the foot support to an extremity of the mounting member includes a pin having a head, a recess is typically provided in the mounting member around the aperture therein, which recess can receive the head of the pin when the pin is located in the aperture. The bulk of the head advantageously lies within the recess resulting in the mounting member having a substantially smooth outer surface.

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 6 In the case of the pivotal mounting of the foot support to the other extremity of the mounting member, the mounting preferably comprises a screw which passes from the exterior of the stirrup through the U-shaped mounting member to be threadingly engaged by the foot support. The screw is typically contained within a dual diameter cavity in the mounting member with the screw having an enlarged head which recesses into the wider diameter cavity. The screw threaded portion of the screw is suitably formed on a narrower diameter section at the end of the screw.

The foot upper restraining portion is preferably arcuate in shape and the arms preferably cooperate in a male/female arrangement. This typically comprises an integrally formed pin extending from the tip of one of the arms of the foot upper restraining portion which is accommodated in a complementary shaped recess formed in the tip of the other of said arms.

The co-operating engagement means is preferably a projection formed on each arm of the foot upper restraining portion, adjacent to the pivotal connection with the support extension, and an aligned socket formed in the inwardly facing arms of the inverted U-shaped mounting member. The projection is suitably maintained within the socket to thereby prevent pivotal rotation of the foot upper restraining means from the plane of the mounting member during normal use, by spring-biasing the sides of the mounting member against the restraining means. The projections could equally well be formed on the inwardly facing sides of the mounting member with corresponding sockets formed in the foot upper restraining portion.

The pivot between a restraining portion arm and adjacent projecting extension, and the other extremity of the mounting member and the remainder of the mounting WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 7 member, typically comprises interdigitating elements through which a pin is passed. The interdigitated elements help to maintain the integrity of the stirrup when in the normal in use arrangement.

The restriction means may comprise one or more, preferably two, projections which extend from the U-shaped mounting member or one or more arms of the foot upper restraining portion. Where the restriction means projects from the side of the U-shaped mounting member, it may engage against the foot upper restraining portion when the stirrup is in normal use. The restriction means will suitably overlap the foot upper restraining portion to thereby prevent pivoting of the restraining portion through the plane of the mounting member. That is, pivoting can only occur in one direction. A similar result may be achieved by one or more, preferably two, restriction means comprising projections extending from the foot upper restraining portion which projections engage the mounting member.

During use of the stirrup a foot must be placed in the stirrup from a particular side for the release mechanism to operate. In general those riders who ride sufficiently hard to require a stirrup which releases only in one particular direction, will be professional or expert riders who are sufficiently knowledgeable and experienced to place their stirrups in the correct orientation for the release mechanism to operate if they are thrown from the horse.

The means for locating the stirrup strap in the mounting member can be a conventional arrangement such as a slot through which the strap is threaded a bar around which the strap wraps, or a known toggle-type connection. The slot on bar arrangements are preferred.

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 8 Suitably, the tread of the foot support is in the form of a case plate or slotted plate which is oriented in a generally horizontal plane in use. Preferably the extensions formed on the tread are walls which are integrally formed with the ends of the tread.

The invention will now be further described with reference to the following drawings in which, Figure 1 is an elevational view in partial section of a safety stirrup in its normal in use configuration and constructed in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the stirrup of Figure 1 depicting a foot releasing configuration.

Figure 3 is an elevational view in partial section of another safety stirrup according to the invention in normal in use configuration.

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing detail of a portion of the stirrup depicted in Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a perspective view and two side views of another safety stirrup according to the present invention in normal use configuration.

Figures 6, 7 and 8 are perspective views of three other safety stirrups according to the present invention in normal use configuration.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2 in which like numbered parts indicate the same features, the safety stirrup 10 comprises an inverted U-shaped mounting member 11 with a foot support 12 provided between the extremities thereof. A slot 13 is located in the arcuate portion of WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 9 mounting member 11 for attachment of a stirrup strap (not illustrated) in a known manner.

Foot support 12 consists of a tread 14 having projecting extensions 15a and 15b, and arms 16a and 16b together constituting the foot upper restraining portion of the foot support. Arms 16a and 16b can interlock by virtue of pin 17 at the end of one arm which is received by a recess 18 in the end of the other arm (not shown in Figure Arms 16a and 16b are pivotally connected to projecting extensions 15a and 15b via roll pins 19a and 19b.

The foot support 12 can pivot between the extremities of mounting member 11 by means of screw 20 and pin 21. Screw 20 has an enlarged collar portion 22 which can rotate in an aperture in mounting member 11. The threaded portion 23 of the screw retains the screw in projecting extension 15b of the foot support. The mounting member extremity is retained by head 20a of screw 20. A gap is provided between the underside of head 20a and the adjacent surface of mounting member 11 to allow slight outward movement of the extremity of the member during pivoting of foot support 12 out of the normal in use position.

On the other side of the foot support, pin 21, which extends from projecting extension 15a, is located in aperture 24 when the stirrup is in normal use. Pin 21 has flattened sides, one of which is shown at 25 of Figure 2.

The mounting member extremity having aperture 24 also has a slot extending between the aperture and the edge of the mounting member. The slot can be seen more clearly in Figure 2 and an angled face of the slot is indicated at 26.

The mounting member extremity opposite the extremity having aperture 24 is pivotable with respect to the rest of the mounting member. The pivotable portion 27 WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 10 of mounting member 11 is connected to the mounting member via pin 28.

The flattened portions of pin 21 in conjunction with pivotal portion 27 of mounting member 11, allow the pin to be released from aperture 24 when the pin is sufficiently rotated to align the flattened portions with the slot in the mounting member extremity.

Co-operative engagement means are provided between arms 16a and 16b of foot support 12 and the mounting member 11 to retain the foot support in a plane within the mounting member when the stirrup is in normal use. Such means comprises dimple projections 29a and 29b on each of the arms and sockets 30a and 30b formed in the mounting member. In normal use, the dimple projections 29a and 29b are retained within the sockets 30a and 30b by virtue of the mounting member being spring biased against the arms 16a and 16b of the foot support 12.

Restriction means 40a and 40b project inwardly from the sides of the U-shaped mounting member. Each restriction means overlaps part of the foot upper restraining portion of the foot support to prevent pivoting of the restraining portion through the plane of the mounting member.

In normal use, that is, with the stirrup arranged as depicted in Figure 1, the rider's foot is inserted through the stirrup (that is, the opposite side to that depicted in Figures 1 and 4) to a position where the sole of the foot rests on the tread 14 and the foot upper contacts the loop, the foot upper restraining portion of the foot support formed by the arms 16a and 16b. Pivoting of the foot support 12 is prevented during normal riding due to the downward pressure of the foot on the foot support and the spring biasing of the mounting member WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 11 against the arms of the foot support which ensures that the co-operative engagement means, viz the dimple projections 29a and 29b and sockets 30a and 30b, are maintained in close abutment.

During heavy riding or manoeuvring of the horse the downward and forward pressure exerted on the foot support would be sufficient to overcome the force of the spring biasing of the mounting member against the arms of the foot support, however the restriction means suitably overlap the foot upper restraining portion to thereby prevent pivoting of the restraining portion through the plane of the mounting member. That is restraining portion cannot pivot in the direction of the toe of the foot.

When the rider is thrown from the saddle, reorientation of the rider's foot from a substantially horizontal riding position to a downwardly inclined position causes a turning force to be exerted by the rider's foot against the foot support 12. This turning force is sufficient to overcome the spring biasing force retaining the dimple projections 29a and 29b in the sockets and 30b and the entire foot upper restraining means pivots out of the plane of the mounting member 11 towards the heel of the foot to a position such as indicated in Figure 2. Simultaneous with such pivoting, once the foot support arms have passed the sides of the mounting member 11, the force imposed by the foot causes the arms 16a, 16b to immediately pivot outwardly from each other about their pivot points and/or the foot support to be released from the mounting member extremity having aperture 24 with pivoting of portion 27. Consequently, the rider's foot is released from the stirrup.

In this manner, the rider's foot is prevented from being caught in the stirrup after inadvertent dismounting, thus reducing the possibility of injury to the WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 12 rider. Furthermore, the stirrup is such that it can readily be returned to its normal in use position by simply pivoting the two arms 16a, 16b together, repositioning pin 21 in aperture 24, and rotating the foot support back to the plane of the mounting member by mere hand manipulation.

This is possible since the spring biasing force exerted by the mounting portion can readily be overcome by simple hand exertion.

This is particularly important to enable the rider to immediately remount after being thrown from the saddle.

Referring now to Figure 3, there is shown safety stirrup 50 having U-shaped mounting member 51 comprising restriction means 40a and 40b, and foot support 52. With the exception of the pivot pin at the bottom left of the stirrup depicted in the figure, all other features of the stirrup are essentially the same as the stirrup depicted in Figures 1 and 2.

Pin 53 extends from projecting extension 54 of tread 55 of foot support 52 of Figure 3 like pin 21 of Figures 1 and 2. However, pin 53 has a head 56 which can be received by a recess 57 in the outward face of the extremity of mounting member 51. It can be appreciated from Figure 3 that a gap is allowed between the underside of head 56 and the bottom of recess 57 to permit some outward movement of the extremity of mounting member 51 when foot support 52 disengages therefrom.

Detail of how pin 53 can be retained by mounting member 51 and pivotally released therefrom is provided in Figure 4 where like items are identically numbered with respect to Figure 3. Portions of mounting member 51 and foot support 52 can be seen, the latter including portion of tread 55. Pin 53, which can be seen projecting from WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 13 projecting extension 54, has flattened, sides one of which indicated at 58. Recess 57 can be seen in the extremity of mounting member 51 shown in Figure 4 plus aperture 59.

Aperture 59 has a slot therein through which pin 53 can pass when sufficiently rotated to align the flattened sides with the slot. As in the Figures 1 and 2 stirrup, faces and 61 of the slot flare outwardly away from aperture 59 to facilitate disengagement of pin 53 from aperture 59 or fitting of the pin into the aperture.

It can be appreciated that recess 57 is open on the side corresponding to the slot in aperture 59 to permit release of head 56 from the recess.

It can be also appreciated from Figures 2 and 4 that tread 14 of the stirrup shown in the former figure includes three cross-pieces whereas tread 55 of the Figure 4 stirrup includes two cross-pieces.

Referring to Figure 5(a) the safety stirrup comprises an inverted U-shaped mounting member 62 with a foot support 64 between the extremities thereof. A slot is located in the arcuate portion of the mounting member 62 for attachment of a stirrup strap. The foot support comprises projecting extensions 66a(and 66b, not shown), and arms 68a and 68b which interlock by virtue of a pin (not shown) at the end of one arm which is received in the end of the other arm. The ends of the arms are pressed together by virtue of the tight fit of the two arms between the projecting extensions and within the plane of the Ushaped mounting member. The arms 68a and 68b are pivotally connected to projecting extensions 66a and 66b by pins 69a and 69b.

An L-shaped restriction means 70 projects outwards from one arm 68b and fits at least partially into a recess 71 on the outer side of the extremity of the U- WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 14 shaped mounting member.

Figure 5(b) is a view along AA' showing one side of the stirrup including an extremity of the mounting member 62, retained by pin 69b. Figure 5(c) is a view along A'A showing the other side of the stirrup including the other extremity of the mounting member 62 and its pivotal attachment to an extremity of the foot support.

Figure 6 shows a jockey stirrup according to the present invention. The stirrup is attached to the mounting member by a saddle strap passed through the opening 84.

The foot support 72 consists of a tread 74 which curves upwards to provide two projecting extensions 75a and and arms 76a and 76b which interlock at point 77. Arms 76a and 76b are pivotally connected to the projecting extensions 75a and 75b. The foot support 72 is pivotally connected by a pin 79 to one extremity of the mounting member 80. The other extremity of the mounting member comprises a recess which is adapted to receive a pin 82 (not shown) which terminates in an enlarged head 82'. In normal use, two restraining means 84a and 84b on the mounting member are located in recesses in each of the two arms 76a and 76b. In use, a jockey inserts his foot into the stirrup in the direction B'B, exerting force against the foot upper restraining means and during hard riding, pressing the arms 76a and 76b against the restraining means 84a and 84b. Should the jockey be dismounted during riding, with a foot remaining trapped in the stirrup, the foot upper restraining means will pivot in the direction B' (towards the ankle of the trapped foot) about pin 79 and 82. The foot upper restraining means disconnecting from the extremity of the mounting member at pin 82 and the two arms 76a and 76b will disconnect at 77, opening to release the jockey's foot.

Figure 7 depicts a safety stirrup which operates WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 15 in the same manner as the jockey stirrup depicted in Figure 6. The stirrup is larger and heavier in construction than the jockey stirrup and is used for applications other than flat racing such as rounding cattle and other farm related work. The mounting member 86 is still generally U-shaped, but unlike the jockey stirrup, the saddle strap which attaches the stirrup to the saddle, passes around the barshaped top 87 of the mounting member rather than through a recess in the mounting member. However, variations on the conformation of the mounting member having such a recess for the saddle strap could be used.

Figure 8 depicts a safety stirrup of a type which is similar to the stirrup of Figure 7 but of different design. Notably the safety stirrup of Figure 7 has a flatter, broader tread 89 than the safety stirrup of Figure 6.

While the foregoing describes preferred embodiments of the invention, various modifications can be included without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Claims (23)

1. A safety stirrup comprising: an inverted U-shaped mounting member having means located in the arcuate portion of the U to enable a stirrup strap to be attached thereto; a foot support pivotally mounted between the extremities of the mounting member when the stirrup is in normal use, wherein the foot support comprises a tread having an extension projecting upwardly from each end of the tread, and a foot upper restraining portion comprising two arms which co-operate together to form a looped configuration extending from the extensions formed on the tread, each said arm being pivotal outwardly from its adjacent support extension; and restriction means acting between the foot upper restraining portion and the inverted U-shaped mounting member to restrict the movement of the foot upper restraining portion to the direction which is opposite to the direction in which the foot is inserted: wherein said foot support is releasable from said pivotal mounting at one extremity of said mounting member after pivoting of said foot support from the normal in use arrangement and the other extremity of said mounting member is pivotal outwardly, and wherein said pivoting of the foot support from the normal in use arrangement enables the arms of the foot upper restraining portion to pivot outwardly and/or said foot support to release from said one extremity of said mounting member.

2. A safety stirrup according to claim 1 which further comprises a co-operating engagement means between the foot upper restraining portion and the inverted U- shaped mounting member to retain the foot upper restraining portion in a plane within the inverted U-shaped mounting I WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 17 member when the stirrup is in said normal use and to thereby prevent the arms of the foot upper restraining portion from pivoting outwards.

3. A safety stirrup as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the restriction means comprises at least one projection, which extends from the side of the U shaped mounting member, inwardly thereof, and engages against an arm of the foot upper restraining portion when the stirrup is in normal use.

4. A safety stirrup as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the restriction means comprises at least one projection which extends from an arm of the foot upper restraining portion and engages the U-shaped mounting member when the stirrup is in normal use.

A safety stirrup as claimed in any of claims 2 to 4 wherein the co-operating engagement means is a projection formed on each arm of the foot upper restraining portion, adjacent to the pivotal connection with the support extension, and an aligned socket formed in the inwardly facing arms of the inverted U-shaped mounting member.

6. A safety stirrup according to claim 5, wherein said projection is maintained within the socket to thereby prevent pivotal rotation of the foot upper restraining means from the plane of the mounting member during normal use, by spring-biasing the sides of the mounting member against the restraining means.

7. A safety stirrup according to any of the preceding claims wherein said pivotal mounting of said foot support to said mounting member is by way of shafts or pins. WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 18

8. A safety stirrup according to claim 7, wherein said pins and shafts extend from, or are received by, said extensions projecting from said tread.

9. A safety stirrup according to any of the preceding claims wherein said pivotal mounting of the foot support which is releasable from one extremity of the mounting member comprises a pin projecting from said foot support which is received by an aperture in said mounting member.

Stirrup according to claim 9, wherein walls of said slot fare outwardly away from said aperture.

11. Stirrup according to claim 10, wherein the angle between said slot walls is about 450

12. Stirrup according to claim 8, wherein said pin has a head which prevents excessive spreading of the extremities of said mounting member when said pin is located in said aperture in said mounting member.

13. Stirrup according to claim 12, wherein said head is received by a recess formed in said mounting member.

14. Stirrup according to any of the preceding claims wherein said pivotal mounting of the foot support to the other extremity of the mounting member comprises a screw which passes from the exterior of said stirrup through said mounting member to be threadingly engaged by said foot support. Stirrup according to claim 14, wherein said screw is contained within a dual diameter cavity in said mounting member with said screw having an enlarged head which recesses into the wider diameter of said cavity.

WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 19

16. Stirrup according to any of the preceding claims wherein said upper restraining portion is arcuate in shape and wherein said arms co-operate in a male/female arrangement.

17. A safety stirrup according to claim 15 or 16 wherein said screw is contained within a dual diameter cavity in said mounting member with said screw having an enlarged head which recesses into the wider diameter of said cavity.

18. A safety stirrup according to any of the preceding claims wherein said upper restraining portion is arcuate in shape and wherein said arms co-operate in a male/female arrangement.

19. A safety stirrup according to claim 18, wherein said male/female arrangement comprises an integrally formed pin extending from a tip of one of said arms which is accommodated in a complementary-shaped recess formed in the tip of the other of said arms.

A safety stirrup according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said pivot between a restraining portion arm and adjacent projecting extension, and the other extremity of the mounting member and the remainder of the mounting member, comprises interdigitating elements through which a pin is passed.

21. A safety stirrup substantially as herein described with reference to the drawings.

22. A safety stirrup as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the foot support is a slotted plate. WO 97/49635 PCT/AU97/00398 20

23. A safety stirrup as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein the extensions formed on the foot support are walls which are integrally formed with the extremities of the foot support.