English stirrup preferences?

I ride in the plain old stainless steel ones and found them quite comfy until I was spoiled and rode in a pair of the jointed ones. I immediately ran out to buy them for all my saddles!

As for the heel I believe they help somehow and that is why alot of hunter riders use them. If you have the money and want a GREAT pair of irons invest in these.

http://www.greenhawk.com/cgi-local/SoftCart.exe/sc...

or

http://www.mdccorporation.us/products/stirrups/ind...

The above links REALLY help with knee, hip and back pain. The sprenger's especially help keep the heel low.

Personal preference, I don't care for the jointed stirrups. I use MDC stirrups which allows you to make adjustments to different degrees of rotation, and I find this much more comfortable. The jointed models seem unstable with the rocking motion. I think they are of no value related to heel position as heel position is really about weight distribution and balance, and not so much the physical position of your foot/heel. To attempt to artificially induce proper position would be useless without proper feel, timing and balance.

My favourite stirrups are the offset ones. The hole in the top is set to the side a little which in turn helps to keep your toes in. I rode for 10 years in the regular kind though with instruction and am glad for it though as I don't then need to rely on the stirrups to do the work for me...

the jointed ones do help your heel go down but when you dont use them your heel doesnt go down because you are use to having the stirrups do it for you. If i were you i would use regular stirrups and get use to stretching your heels down becuase it will help you in the future.

I just recived jointed stirrups for christmas. I absolutely love them I am not really sure about helping keep your heels down but i know they have helped me with my knee pain while jumping! I hope this helps !

I don't honestly feel the difference with jointed stirrups vs. non-jointed ones. I have a feeling it's like a placebo effect.

i really like the ones that can flex, i got those when i bought my saddle and then a year later i rode in someone elses saddle and they had regular stirrups and my feet felt like there was no freedom or anything. the flexy kinds felt like they helped by heels go down better. though they are much more expensive then regular irons but if you have the money i would definitely buy the flexible kind.

Traditional stirrups. Jointed stirrups distract me because I end up worried that I might have not secured them well enough and they might detatch and spook the crap out of my horse...

Traditional stirrups are the way to go, they're legal in EVERY show. :D

I honestly do not care! It is not good to have your heels jammed right down as this causes tension.