Could innovation in the design of horse boots for cross country make eventing safer and reduce rotational falls at jumps?
The FEI Eventing Forum and National Safety Officers Seminar 2023, which took place at Haras de Jardy in France from January 20th – 23rd covered many areas of Risk Management safety
Data provided showed that in 2022 the sport had recorded the lowest number of rotational falls at FEI level since reporting had started, but there is still plenty of work to be done
Throughout the Forum, the delegates discussed a number of technology and design related innovations to increase safety and one of these was in the area of cross country boot design.
Robert Lemieux survives a possible rotational fall - but note the drag of the bandaging/boot
Robert Lemieux, a former professional event rider, British National Champion and Olympian, and now owner of LeMieux Products has drawn on his personal experience, along with the research of MIM founder Mats Björnetun, to design a boot they hope will decrease the possibility of rotational falls on cross country
When a horse jumps a fence, it is an action of a ‘controlled rotation’, which is then stopped by both its front legs landing on the ground. If the horse’s legs make contact with the fence, the centre of gravity is affected and the horses front end is slowed down. At this point a very low friction angle of impact on a fixed fence can result in a full rotation.
Scientific research by MIM found that a contributing factor to rotational falls was the presence of the 10-15mm upper lip on all traditional cross-country boots.
A revolutionary new front profile, conceived by MIM, addresses the issue of the upper “lip” and drag points by removing any excess materials in the main contact area
The shape of the cut out in the boots is designed so that the force from an obstacle is distributed gradually down the front of the leg, which reduces the risk of the leg getting left behind after contact with a fence.
When the lip is removed, the angle of friction at the point of contact with a fixed fence is reduced and the risk of rotational fall is minimised.
The hope is that the “V” Concept Cross Country Boot will offer improvements in cross country safety, however marginal, but “Marginal gains collectively make for a safer sport” says Robert Lemieux (watch the Session 3 presentation here, starting at 01:18:57)
