Kilted Cowboy

[davedove]

Real cowboy boots bear very little resemblence to what people think of as cowboy boots. My grandfather was a cowboy in his younger days and he wore a type of lace up boots. Real cowboys spent as much or more time on foot as in the saddle except during the time driving cattle which was not a huge percentage of their time. Hollywood is full of it bovine byproduct.

This reminded me of a joke my uncle told me.

Why cowboys dress like they do:

They wear the wide brimmed hats to keep the sun out of their eyes.
They wear the bandana so they can cover their mouth and nose in a dust storm.
They wear the snap front shirts, so if a calf kicks out during a branding, it just unsnaps the shirt instead of ripping off buttons.
They wear chaps and jeans because they won't get torn up riding through the brush.
And they wear tennis shoes so people don't confuse them with truck drivers. (My uncle was a truck driver.)

[Southern Breeze]

Wearing packers with a kilt,something I never thought of doing.I have an old pair and putting the two together seems like wearing shorts and linemans boots.But I do wear kilts with work boots so whats the differance?

If theres three cowboys in a truck,which one is the smartest? The one in the middle.He doesn't have to drive or get out and open and close the gate.

[motorman4life]

Around here, people call those boots "ropers." I don't know if it is a common brand name or a slang term, but I have never heard of them by any other name. I usually remove the tassel part from the end of the tongue. Too fancy for me. Some guys leave them in and so do most all ladies. I guess it is preference.

[Yaish]

Yup, known as ropers around here too. Its still a 'cowboy boot' as pretty much all western style boots are known. (quick, whats a 'western' boot if you wear it in Georgia or North Carolina?)

Mine are the lower type, not the taller packer type in the first photo. It really goes go together pretty well, though of course color needs to be matched as in anything.

[KiltedCanuk]

Out here in redneckville we call thoes ropers as well... why where a proper boot when ye just get it cut off by the paramedic during a rodeo when the roper comes off without needing a new pair?!

Personaly, I have been wearing proper boots since I was old enough tae remember, I have steeltoed CSA approved pairs fer work even. (and a CSA approved Cowboy hat Hardhat)


I both ride bulls in minor rodeo's (far tae expencive fer professional rodeos in time off work, and travel/entrance costs) and drive truck in the oilfield.

Don't often listen tae country music tho... rave ftw!

[flyv65]

Here ropers are a slip-on, fairly low heel and low rise (they're *real* comfy, and what I wear day to day for work). Anything with laces gets called a packer, little tassels or not.

Bryan...I thought the name ropers started as a Justin boot model...

[MacConnachie]

Sorta related here, although more appropriate in the Music section, is the Canadian band:

www.cowboyceltic.com

One of my all-time favourite bands!

Cheers,

Todd

When they played here several years ago, beneath her cowgirl style skirt Denise wore the most fetching pair of tights in a Royal Stuart tartan! She told me after the show that she found them in some shop in Scotland, when the band had been playing a recent tour, there. The show was great, and I particularly enjoyed some of the tunes they performed which I had not heard on either CD.

[MacConnachie]

In a similar vein as "what is a kilt", I would have to say that neither of those pictured are "Cowboy Boots".

Adam

Sorry, Adam, but western big game hunting outfitters would beg to differ with you, there. I have several friends and a couple of relatives who swear by these -- not much chance they'll be sucked off your feet while leading a horse and a string of pack animals through a back-country mudhole.

There are many sorts of "Cowboy" boots, from packers to Western Wellingtons (not a bit like Wellies, to those fellows from the UK) to fancy boots in exotic leathers with heels of a configuration and height never meant to be on the feet of a cowpuncher, and more. I prefer my bullhide black Tony Lamas, but they are a bit rough on the feet for walking any distance.

And I've not yet ventured outside the house clad in kilt and cowboy boots, but it was a "mixed genre" look that I had to see on myself, for myself. Sorta like wearing a feather boa with either a kilt or boots, though. They really didn't go together very well. (For the record, I do not now nor have I ever owned or employed the use of a feather boa!)

[KiltedHuntsman]

Having worn western wear all my adult life, I can chime in with a few points:

-the tall, cut back heel serves two purposes, one, it helps keep your foot from slipping through the typical western saddle stirrup. Second, the slanted heel makes it easier to rock back on your heels and dig the heel edges into the ground for traction when pulling on a horse or cow while on foot. They also make you walk like a cowboy (the ground shakes as you stomp across the landscape). You can also rock back onto your heels and walk through puddles like you're wearing little stilts. Can't do that with straight sided block heels.

If you're wearing sneakers on horseback, and your foot falls through the stirrup, and you slide off the horse, you're in extreme danger. The horse may bolt, and you won't be able to get your foot out of the stirrup, and you'll be dragged till the saddle girth breaks, or the horse gets tired. And you'll be severely injured or dead from being dragged a mile or so. English style saddles hold the stirrup leathers on with a backwards facing "L" hook that allows the stirrup leather to slide off if you get dragged.

- the pointed toe makes it easy to get your foot into the stirrup. Think spear tip into a funnel. A rounded or blunt toe tends to swat the stirrup away if you don't get the boot lined up perfectly with the stirrup opening.

The tall, wide, dipped top, stitched upper part of the boot does several things. First, protection for the leg, second, the stitching keeps the upper stiff so it will stand up on its own, and not sag/flop down. This, combined with the dipped top, allows your leg to move back and forth inside the upper, forcing air to pump in and out of the boot upper for cooling purposes. This is useful in the hot southwestern climate the boots were typically worn in. English riding boots don't allow this kind of air circulation. They're better suited to colder climates.

The classic cowboy boot is meant for riding, and working cattle from horseback, and some stock handling on foot. They're not meant for mud, either. Your horse handled walking through mud for you.

Modern day cowboys do most of their work in the stockyard, on foot. Classic cowboy boots are not well suited for that kind of work. Sneakers/workboots are much better. Classic cowboy boots are for old time cowboys and cubical cowboys like myself. We both do a lot of sitting.

Dress cowboy boots are a stylized version of the traditional boot. With lots of fancy stitching, designs, etc. Meant for show.

Packers are for riders that spend a lot of time walking, as in mule packers leading mule trains around, and occasionally riding in the saddle.

I would not wear Ropers in the saddle unless the saddle had breakaway stirrups.

All my riding is foxhunting, so I wear traditional English hunt clothes, with tall riding boots with low heels, and thus use an english saddle with breakaway stirrups.

[Archangel]

All my riding is foxhunting, so I wear traditional English hunt clothes, with tall riding boots with low heels, and thus use an english saddle with breakaway stirrups.

aaargh, foxhunters, (cross fingers and point)....