Katie Foster Jumps Again

I have ridden almost all of my life and have always considered falling as “one of those” hazards. Unfortunately two years ago I had a rather large fall. Thankfully I was fairly uninjured physically but the fall made me completely loose my nerve as a result of the “what if” potential of the fall. I have four horses (and a pony) at home and at the worst point of my fears I could hardly even hack down the road - let alone hunt. I frequently put my feet out of my stirrups when the horses played about to ensure I could not get trapped in them if a horse fell (!). It was absolutely terrible.

By chance I came across the Barnes Buckle at a show and decided to give them a try. Although it has been a long “road to recovery”, without any doubt the Barnes Buckles have revolutionised my approach to getting back on board. From the outset they removed that awful fear of getting caught up if the worst happened and has allowed a more confident approach to riding.

I am now back hunting, having started jumping (albeit small things) again. My Barnes Buckles are an invaluable part of my tack and I would not ride without them. If I were to ride anyone else’s horse, the first thing I would do is add the buckles to my stirrups !

The buckles have infact now become a talking point as everyone is interested to know what they are and what they do. Finally despite a variety of ungainly positions (!) the buckles have never come unclipped which was my biggest reservation when I bought them.

I have enclosed two pictures of me hunting - one jumping on New Year’s Day and the other at the closing meet before the ban.

A heartfelt thanks for your design – please know that they mean even more than just safety to me. They have allowed me to carry on my lifelong passion.

Katie Foster

INVENTOR’S BUCKLE SAVES MEGAN

I would like to thank Maurice Barnes for his invention, the Barnes Buckle, which saved my daughter from serious injury.

We were riding home into a field when the gate through which we were passing began to swing shut. Megan’s pony made a dash for the closing gate, which also had barbed wire on it. Megan’s boot somehow became stuck in the wire and the only thing that I could think of was to knock her backwards so that she would fall before really injuring herself. The Barnes Buckle worked a treat and flicked straight off as she fell backwards, saving Megan from being dragged through the gate and certain injury.

My wife, Debbie was dragged once as a child and says that if it happens to you, you never forget the experience. She has always insisted that Megan’s riding gear should include the buckle, because once it is in place it is always there and anyone can use the saddle.

Megan is now at another livery yard with some twenty horses and she is the only one that uses the buckle. If only people would realise the dangers in being dragged they would certainly fit it on their saddles.