How does the safety mechanism work?

Jessica Marin Updated by Jessica Marin

The Ophena A features our patent-pending 360° Double Safety Release Technology.

This technology allows the sidebar (Twister™) to release your feet at two independent points and in any direction. It thereby solves common flaws of other types of safety stirrups and offers in particular these three advantages:

  1. Direction of pressure: Depending on how exactly you fall, your foot may be pushing to the side, backwards, or even forwards against the sidebar. Many release mechanisms are designed to open when a certain force is applied in a certain direction (usually 90° to the side). If, for instance, you fall in a way so that your foot pulls backwards, that mechanism may simply not open. That's where our 360° Double Safety Release Technology is superior and brings a higher level of safety, because the Twister™ can release in any direction.
  2. Placement of pressure: Most safety stirrups have a release mechanisms that is not only dependent on the direction of your fall, but also on where exactly your foot applies pressure on the mechanism during the fall. Some mechanisms may open easier when your foot pushes against the top, others when your foot pushes against the bottom (Law of the Lever). Our Double Safety Release relies much less on where exactly your foot applies the pressure.
  3. Single safety vs double safety: Lastly, the twister can release at two independent points. One of them would be enough to allow your foot to escape, but usually both points will release. This has a huge safety advantage, because it adds a second safety feature, where other safety stirrups offer only one.

To summarise:

Release Mechanism relies on...

Other safety stirrups

Ophena A

...direction of pressure

A lot (often only one direction works)

Barely (360° release technology)

...placement of pressure

Substantial (law of the lever)

Barely.

...amount of safety releases

One point (e.g. one spring, one screw etc.)

Two points (double safety release)

All of the above possibilities are largely out of your control. You simply cannot "fall as you are supposed to". That's why we designed our safety stirrups with the above advantages.

And this is how it looks when the Twister releases:

How did we do?

Can I test the stirrups before purchase?

Are these stirrups shock-absorbant?

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