Patent Publication Number: US-2011047944-A1

Title: Horseback riding assembly

Description:
FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     The present invention relates to riding assistance devices for saddle assemblies to be used for horseback riding and the like. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART 
     Equestrian sports continue to be popular among a growing number of people including young children, including those with physical and/or mental challenges. Even among able bodied and minded riders, there is awareness that horses can be, at times, unpredictable. Thus, horseback riders can sometimes have a fear of climbing into a saddle with relatively little to reach for in the event of wanting greater security in maintaining balance in the saddle. When a rider feels unbalanced or insecure in the saddle, a rider has had to resort to grabbing hold of the mane, a neck strap or the reins or a part of the saddle none of which provide any great degree of stability. The use of any of these options can also lead to the horse reacting to a perceived signal from the rider which causes the rider to further lose control of their mount. 
     It would be desirable to provide a novel approach to address this issue. 
     SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
     In one of its embodiments, the present invention provides a horseback riding assembly comprising a saddle, the saddle including a body arranged about a central axis. The body has a proximal region to be adjacent a neck region of a horse. The body includes a pair of lateral portions extending outwardly from the central axis, each of the lateral portions having an inner panel portion providing an inner surface region for engaging a corresponding back region of the horse. An outer panel portion provides an outer surface for receiving a corresponding thigh region of a horseback rider. The body includes an access path between the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion. An assistance bar unit includes a gripping bar portion arranged to be oriented transverse to the central axis and adjacent the proximal region. The gripping bar portion has a pair of opposed end regions and a pair of support portions, each extending from a corresponding end region. The support portions are arranged to be located on opposite sides of the central axis and being formed to be insertable along the access path and between the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion and to complementary therewith. 
     In some embodiments, the inner panel portion includes a saddle pad member and the outer panel portion includes an outer saddle flap. 
     In some embodiments, each support portion including a longitudinal brace portion, each longitudinal brace portion having a flattened profile with a pair of opposed surfaces which are generally symmetrically aligned with a longitudinal brace axis. 
     In some embodiments, each support portion includes a longitudinal brace portion, with a flattened profile and a pair of substantially planar opposed surfaces which are generally symmetrically aligned with a longitudinal brace axis. 
     In some embodiments, the longitudinal brace portion has a flattened profile with a pair of substantially planar opposed surfaces. The opposed surfaces may be arranged to be inclined toward the central axis. 
     Some embodiments further comprise a pair of strut portions, each being inclined between and joining the gripping bar portion with the corresponding support portion. 
     In some embodiments, the gripping bar portion, the support portion and the strut portions are integrally formed of a single tubular blank, though other configurations may also be utilized. 
     Some embodiments, further comprise a cover layer extending along the gripping bar portion and at least part of each strut portion and/or the support portion. The cover layer may be provided, for example, as a resilient material, such as a polymer and/or rubber material. 
     Some embodiments further comprise at least one fastener for removably securing each support portion with the inner panel portion and/or the outer panel portion. 
     In an alternative embodiment, there is provided a horseback riding assembly comprising a horse having a neck region and a back region having a left hand side and a right hand side. A saddle is positioned on the horse. The saddle includes a body symmetrically arranged about a central axis. The body has a proximal region to be adjacent the neck region. The body includes a left hand lateral portion and a right hand lateral portion extending outwardly from the central axis. Each of the lateral portions has an inner panel portion providing an inner surface region engaging the corresponding back region, and an outer panel portion providing an outer surface for receiving a corresponding thigh region of a horseback rider. The body includes an access path between the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion. An assistance unit includes a gripping bar portion oriented transverse to the central axis and adjacent the proximal region. The gripping portion has a pair of opposed end region. The assistance bar unit further includes a pair of support portions, each extending from a corresponding end region. The support portions are located on opposite sides of the central axis and located within the access path in an operative orientation complementary with the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion. 
     In another alternative embodiment, there is provided a method of horseback riding, comprising:
         providing a horse with a neck region and a back region having a left hand side and a right hand side,       

     providing a saddle with a body arranged about a central axis, a proximal region to be adjacent the neck region, the body including a left hand lateral portion and a right hand lateral portion extending outwardly from the central axis, each of the lateral portions having an inner panel portion providing an inner surface region engaging the corresponding back region, and an outer panel portion providing an outer surface for receiving a corresponding thigh region of a horseback rider, the body including an access path between the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion,
         providing an assistance bar unit with a gripping bar portion having a pair of opposed end regions and a pair of anchor portions, each extending from a corresponding end region,   installing the saddle on the horse;   locating the support portions on opposite sides of the central axis and within the access path in an operative orientation complementary with the inner panel portion and the outer panel portion.       

     In another alternative embodiment, there is provided a riding assistance device for use with a horseback riding saddle of the type including a body arranged about a central axis, the body having a proximal region to be adjacent a neck region of a horse, the body including a pair of lateral portions extending outwardly from the central axis, each of the lateral portions having an inner panel portion providing an inner surface region for engaging a corresponding back region of the horse and an outer panel portion providing an outer surface for receiving a corresponding thigh region of a horseback rider. The safety device comprises a gripping bar portion arranged to be oriented transverse to the central axis and adjacent the proximal region. The gripping bar portion has a pair of opposed end regions and a pair of support portions, each extending from a corresponding end region. The support portions are arranged to be located on opposite sides of the central axis and being formed to be removably inserted to the saddle adjacent one or more of the on each side of the central axis. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Several preferred embodiments of the present invention will be provided, by way of examples only, with reference to the appended drawings, wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a side view of a saddle assembly on a horse; 
         FIG. 2  is a plan view of the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is perspective view of the assembly of  FIG. 1  in another orientation; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view taken on line  4 - 4  of  FIG. 2 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an assistance unit used in the assembly of  FIG. 1 ; and 
         FIGS. 6   a ,  6   b  and  6   c  are side, plan and end views, respectively, of the assistance unit of  FIG. 5 . 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     It should be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of “including,” “comprising,” or “having” and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless limited otherwise, the terms “connected,” “coupled,” and “mounted,” and variations thereof herein are used broadly and encompass direct and indirect connections, couplings, and mountings. In addition, the terms “connected” and “coupled” and variations thereof are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings. Furthermore, and as described in subsequent paragraphs, the specific mechanical configurations illustrated in the drawings are intended to exemplify embodiments of the invention. However, other alternative mechanical configurations are possible which are considered to be within the teachings of the instant disclosure. Furthermore, unless otherwise indicated, the term “or” is to be considered inclusive. 
     Referring to the figures, there is provided a horseback riding assembly  10  including a saddle  12  for mounting on a horse  14 . The saddle  12  has a body  16  with an outer surface  16   a  arranged about a central axis  20  ( FIG. 2 ) with a front end or proximal region  22  provided by a pommel  16   b  to be adjacent a neck region of the horse  14  and a rear end provided by a cantle  16   c.    
     Extending outwardly from the body  16  is a pair of lateral portions  24 ,  26 . Each has an inner panel portion  28  providing an inner surface region for engaging a corresponding back region of the horse  14  and an outer panel portion  30  providing an outer surface for receiving a corresponding thigh region of a horseback rider. The saddle includes one or more girth straps shown in an operative position at  32 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , an assistance bar unit  34  is removably inserted along an access path  33  between the inner panel portion  28  and the outer panel portion  30 . The assistance bar unit  34  includes a gripping bar portion  36  with a pair of opposed end regions  38  ( FIG. 5 ) which are joined to a support portion  40 . The gripping bar portion  36  is arranged to be oriented transverse to the central axis  20  and adjacent the proximal region  22 , or the front end of the saddle, thus within easy reach of a horse back rider. 
     The support portions  40  are arranged to be located on opposite sides of the central axis  20  and are formed to be insertable along the access path  33  ( FIG. 3 ) and thus between the inner panel portion  28  and the outer panel portion  30  and to be complementary therewith. 
     In this example, the inner panel portion  28  includes a saddle pad member  42  with a knee roll  42   a  and the outer panel portion  30  includes an outer saddle flap  44 . 
     Each support portion  40  includes a longitudinal brace portion  48  ( FIG. 5 ) with a generally symmetrical and flattened profile. Each longitudinal brace portion  48  has a pair of opposed surfaces  50  which are generally symmetrically aligned with a longitudinal brace axis  52 . In this case, the opposed surfaces  50  are arranged to be inclined toward the longitudinal brace axis  52 . 
     The assistance bar unit  34  also includes a pair of strut portions  56 , each of which is inclined between and joining the gripping bar portion  36  with the corresponding longitudinal brace portion  48 . The gripping bar portion  36 , the longitudinal brace portions  48  and the strut portions  56  are, in this case, integrally formed of a single tubular blank 
     A cover layer  60  extends along the gripping bar portion  36  and at least part of each strut portion  56  and/or the longitudinal brace portion  48 . In this case, the cover layer  60  is a resilient material which may include a polymer and/or rubber material. 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , the assistance bar unit  34  is held in place, simply by the snug fit between the longitudinal brace portions  48  and the inner and outer panel portions  28 ,  30 . However, at least one fastener as shown in dashed lines at  61  may be provided, if desired, on each longitudinal brace portion  48  for removably securing the longitudinal brace portion  48  with the inner panel  28  portion and/or the outer panel portion  30 , as desired. Other removable fasteners may be utilized such as, for instance, hook and loop fasteners such as those available under the trademark VELCRO. 
     Thus, the riding assembly  10  may be used as follows. With an able bodied horse at hand, the saddle  12  is first placed on the horse&#39;s back and oriented as shown in  FIG. 1 . The assistance bar unit  34  is then installed along the access path  33  between the saddle pad  42  and the outer saddle flap  44  until it is fully in place to provide the gripping bar sufficient support. This support becomes operable when the rider climbs into the saddle since the rider&#39;s weight is thus brought to bear against the outer saddle flap and thus pressing the latter against the longitudinal brace portions  48 . Thus, in this example, the assistance bar unit may simply be kept in place by its insertion under the saddle flap and the weight of the rider keeping it secure. 
     It is, of course, desirable that the longitudinal brace portions be positioned relative to the body  16  and the corresponding outer saddle flap  44  and the saddle pad  42  to minimize discomfort to the rider. This should be further minimized by the relative thickness of the outer saddle flap  44  that will tend to follow a more gradual contour over the profile of the longitudinal brace portion  48 . In addition, the saddle pad  42  may also relatively thick to enable it to allow the corresponding longitudinal brace portion to “seat” therein, to reduce the effect to it projects upwardly beyond the contour of the outer surface  16   a  of the body  16 . In this position, the gripping bar portion extends well above the outer surfaced  16   a , thus providing a reasonably stable handle should the rider need additional support therefrom. 
     The assistance bar unit  34  may be provided with different operative heights “H” as shown in  FIG. 5  to provide a range of assistance bar units  34  to accommodate the needs of different riders. If desired, the strut portions  56  may be made adjustable to provide different heights “H” in a single assistance bar unit, for example by way of telescoping portions provided in each strut portion  56 , as represented schematically by the dashed separation lines  62 . 
     While the assistance bar unit  34  is engagable with and between the inner and outer panel portions, the assistance bar unit may also be provided as a riding assistance device which is attachable or adjacent to other locations on the saddle to provide the gripping bar portion in a similar location. In addition, the gripping bar portion may also be arranged to be provided across the rear end of the saddle, should that be useful in some instances, or for that matter in tandem at both the front and rear regions of the saddle. Still further, the assistance bar unit may be integrally formed with a saddle during its manufacture. 
     Thus, in one example, the horseback riding assembly provides an alternative to the imbalanced or insecure rider by allowing the rider to insert a handle bar like device when saddling up under the saddle flaps, for example as illustrated in  FIGS. 1 to 6   c . Thus, in one example, a handle bar like device may be kept in place by inserting each of a pair of flat end portions under a corresponding saddle flap enabling the weight of the rider to keep the device firmly in place during the ride. The device has a central portion which is curved outwards and over the front of the saddle providing a raised handle bar which is secure and does not interfere with the horse&#39;s actions, while providing the rider with greater stability. 
     While the present invention has been described for what are presently considered the preferred embodiments, the invention is not so limited. To the contrary, the invention is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims. The scope of the following claims is to be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent structures and functions.