why can't you ride in wellies?

mandwhy

mandwhy

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I've always been told not to ride in wellies, but these days as my horse lives out I can't bare to wear my nice boots and chaps in ankle deep mud (picking the elastic stirrup bit from under your heel covered in mud and scraping it off...eeeeeuwww).

So why is it not meant to be right? Is it just the treads and stirrup safety? The wellies I have had most recently have soles more like a country boot and you're allowed to ride in them, so just wondering what the problem is!

I also don't get flappy welly tops as my calves tend to fit just right bless their ample girth. They do sometimes snag under the saddle flap but I've had that with riding boots before.
 
I was always told it was because the heel on a wellie isn't high or strong enough to stop the foot slipping through the stirrups.
 
i was told it was the grip on the bottom as its quite prominent so would get stuck in the stirrup if you fell off, the heel isnt big enough and the width being too wide for most stirrups... who knows! i bought muck boots that you can ride in so i dont have to worry about it anymore :o
 
I only ever ride in wellies (except at shows & stuff). Im too lazy to bother changing them! I used to ride in Hunters, but now have Le Chameau's. Never had any problems :)
 
I couldn't be doing with changing my footwear to get on my horse, for one thing I'd have to do it outside the gate to avoid mud, and my wellies would have to go in the hedge! Would probably find slugs in them when I get back :-O

I was going to get some ariat wellies but I hear they're not that good, my last cheapies are like a piece of swiss cheese after 2 months, luckily found some in the parents garage that are going strong and have a surprisingly good riding style sole!
 
The heel on my le chameaus is bigger than my riding boots.

However, the one thing I would say is make sure that your stirrups are wide enough to accommodate a welly as they tend to be wider than a riding boot
 
I ride in Hunter wellies, it wasn't until recently that my daughter noticed and told me it was dangerous (but she does it too) the thing is I can't fit my feet and 2 pairs of socks into my riding boots, so she tells me to ensure the bar of the stirrup is on the ball of the foot at all times to minimise the risk.
 
I remember when I started riding 15 years ago my dad proudly bought me a pair of hunter wellies, only to be told wellies weren't allowed. They were a lot of money for us in them days but hey I grew out of them and gave them to my mum.... They're still in the garage! Maybe I could auction them off to any of the 'old hunters only' connoisseurs?

I am very sad and look at le chameau online all the time hoping an immense bargain will happen. They are probably my most coveted item while all my friends post mulberry handbags on facebook :-)
 
I always thought it was because the upper foot part is soft rather than strong like leather boots so your foot can slip through, same with muckers but I do ride in wellies
 
It's a safety issue. Ordinary wellies with deep treads and semi rigid soles are at risk of getting caught in the stirrups if you fall off and you could get dragged. However, there are lots of waterproof riding boots and inexpensive rubber riding boots on the market so there really is no need to risk your life.

People think it would never happen to them, but I know a lady that it did happen to and she was very lucky to live, albeit unable to ride again.
 
mulledwhine said:
Get them, I am on my second pair ( first pair died after 15 years) :) they are great, hope my new pair last as long :)
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Ditto. Do it do it do it! I got a fab bargain on my 2nd pair a couple of years ago. They were about £90 from Robbies of all places. They are tote amazeballs!
 
That is a bargain poppy :)

However unless you are blessed with uber skinny calves and like to wear welly socks, I would go for the unisex ones.

OH got me the ladies ones, great fit with skinny jeans and normal socks but a tad snug with anything more :) the unisex ones feel big around my ankles but more comfy :)
 
I used to ride in wellies all the time through pure laziness. Who wants to be changing boots in winter when it's cold? Who wants to get their nice riding boots covered in mud?
I then fell off a friend's cob, got my foot stuck in the left stirrup which then spooked the mare and dragged me round their make shift school. Frightening stuff. I won't ever ride in wellies/muck boots again.
 
Haha thanks PA, bringing them under 100 quid makes it seem a little more reasonable! I did try on some muckboots (the riding ones) the other week and was pleasantly surprised (I didn't like the look of them before) so am a little tempted by those.... Oh Tammytoo you are alerting the safety freak in me that I now need to buy special 'riding wellies', can't stand pull on rubber boots, had the same pair for years and only stopped using them last year when the lining became mush!
 
Eek mileaminute that sounds scary, but why does it happen? Is it because the foot/sole is more bendy or just because the tread is more 'rugged' and the heel is less deep? My jod boots have a reinforced proper riding sole but they are really neat in shape so not sure if my foot couldn't go through anyway. I suppose that is stirrup size related, my feet are quite big!
 
I always used to ride in wellies as a kid, then as got more safety concious didn't. Last time I rode in wellies, I got chucked off, flew straight over the mares ears with wellies still attached to my legs..... so much for holding you in!! prefer riding in proper boots tbh and hunters, but wellies.......not all that keen, wrong length for a start so won't be doing that again in a hurry
 
cindydog said:
Oh Lord, I ride in mine all the time.
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So do I because when i was hacking if I had to get off it was often too muddy etc to have jodphur boots on. I liked the little 3/4 boots but they did sometimes catch the saddle flap. In summer i would put Jodphur boots on only if ground was bone dry. I did use safety stirups(so never worried) and I think it was also in case the foot got stuck in the traditional irons ie heel and treads etc.
 
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