Going Elk hunting...sorta...

[Railguner]

Flying out with my father on the 6th. I booked him a Elk hunt for his 80th birthday. Gonna hump by butt around with him for a week and see if we can put the SMACKDOWN on a big bull.

The shitty part is that I have a hole that developed yesterday in my Silicone Suspension Sleeve for my Right Below Knee prosthesis and friggin Kaiser is draggin their feet on getting it replaced. I want a new one before we leave because I dont want any problems to arise out in the field. That would suck!

Anyway, good luck guys to whaterver plans you have this year for your hunting adventures. I will post up some pics when I get back. Best of luck to ya.....RG

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[Sierra_Dave]

Hey RG,

If you&#39;re riding horseback, I recall there is a strap for the saddle that helps alot of people stay in place. It&#39;s not a problem staying put going uphill as much as downhill. Best to figure that out before. I doubt your outfitter has that gear. FWIW.

Good luck to you and your Dad. Sounds like a great time ahead.
Dave

[Railguner]

Dave, thanks. I appreciate it. I never even thought about it. I&#39;ve never really ran into any real issue with my leg...so this may be something new to me. Gonna have to look around and see what options I have. Thanks...RG

[Sierra_Dave]

Hey RG,

Here in Auburn we have the Tevis Cup and Western States 100 mile endurance Horse races. From Lake Tahoe to Auburn over some really tuff terrain. 2-3 thousand foot steep elevation changes are the norm. So there are alot of saddle modifications that people with one or two legs do, in order to stay put. It just makes good sense.

In a regular western saddle it&#39;s easy to add a strap to keep you in. Here is a site with some information. I prefer the quick release stirrups for all types of riding, so that if you fall off, you don&#39;t get dragged. I would use a similar quick release on any strap over your lap or around your waist.

http://www.waramps.ca/nac/horseback_legs.html

A lot of saddles have a gullet channel in the tree that is a good place for stringing a rope/strap. The Horn of the saddle sits on top of the front fork of the tree which forms two ridges on either side. The ridges are referred to as the gullet. If the gullet has an opening on each side, this channel can serve as a place to run a rope/strap.

I like these types of saddles because I can hang stuff here and grab the channel to saddle-up. Your outfitter should know his saddles and if he doesn&#39;t have such a saddle, he could find or borrow one. They are popular.

I would say that your 80 year old Dad might need some help here too. I would laso keep the time in the saddle way down. If you haven&#39;t rode a horse in a while, it leave you too sore to walk if rides are over 2-3 hours...maybe 1-2. With frequent stops and getting out of the saddle.
Still it sounds like a great trip!
HTH,
Dave