The American Driving Society did a study back in the 80's and found that the most common cause
for accidents in the driving world were the beginning driver in the EZ entry carts.
These carts were originally designed to be used behind slow small ponies and as such function
fairly well. Unfortunately when hitched to a full size horse the dynamics change!
Because of the wide seat, which is as wide as the wheel base, narrow wheelbase, and high seat
they are very prone to tipping over!
For example, if a single driver is sitting in the seat, or a large adult and a small child,
and they are going around a corner at a good trot centrifugal force will tend to slide the
driver to the outside of the seat so they are then sitting over the tire and it then takes
very little to tip the cart over. Compounding this problem is the length of the shafts and
their high attachment point on the cart which gives the turning horse increase
"leverage" as his hind quarters hit the shaft, again contributing to the tipping of
the cart.
Another issue is the light weight materials that this cart is built out of. Once it tips over
it starts to bend and twist. There have been many horses and people injured in this type of
cart. The ADS highly recommends AGAINST the use of this style of cart for any purpose!
My carts are built with all the above in mind. My seat is 36 inches wide, still wide enough
for two adults to sit in comfortably, and my wheel base on the horse carts is 56 inches!
Even my mini carts have the seat sitting between the wheels, not over the top of small, undersize wheels.
While it is not
impossible to tip my carts over, it is much more difficult! Also my carts are built out of a
thicker wall large dia Steel Tube. My full size horse cart weighs in at about 135 pounds
versus the EZ entry vehicles 100 pounds. Weight is strength! Again, while my carts are not
"indestructible", they can take a tremendous amount of abuse and not get all
warped out of shape! Again, safer for the driver and the horse.
The Ez entry carts are designed primarily to be easy (cheap) to manufacture and ship.
All the materials and manufacturing processes, from the cheap vinyl seats that crack in
a season or two, to the plastic end caps on the shafts are selected for only one reason,
cost! The plain coil springs under the seat might as well not be there since they only aggravate
the bouncing motion of a trotting horse. The only time you can use the backrest is when
the horse is walking. At a trot it will pound your back unmercifully! Also as you go down
the road at a trot you can watch the shafts flex up and down! The seat, while adjustable
on the better models, usually is in the wrong position and the horse is carrying a lot of
weight on his back. Pick up one of these carts by the ends of the shafts and put two people
in the seat and see how much weight you are holding. This is what your horses back sees on
a very narrow area under the saddle. If it is more than about 20 or 30 pounds it is too much!
The wheels on many of these carts are also woefully undersized, especially on the mini carts.
My Pleasure Carts are designed like the Road Carts of a century ago, when the major means of wheeled
transportation was the two wheel cart. In those days a rough riding cart would not have been
tolerated! With these time proven principles in mind my cart is constructed with a separate
frame and basket. The basket makes contact with the cart in two places. At the front where
it pivots on the cross bar, and at the rear, under the seat, where it is suspended from a
leaf spring. This means that the ENTIRE basket, along with whoever is in it, is suspended
and moves as one unit. You do not get the "jack knife" effect of the EZ entry
carts where your feet are moving in one direction, your seat in another, and your back in
yet another! This makes for a much more comfortable ride. Still not "Caddilac - this
requires a totally different suspension on a two wheeler, and is the subject of another
discussion-" but much better than the EZ entry type vehicles.
My Easy Entry Carts are only available for miniature horses and small ponies. They also are designed quite differently than the common run of the mill EZ entry cart. The first and most abvious difference is that I use a 26 inch wheel on my mini carts. I do this because the larger the wheel the easier it is to pull, and the little guys need all the help they can get! The smaller the wheel the harder it is to pull across rough ground and the less "float" there is on soft surfaces. Also the larger the wheel the smoother the ride, which means less bouncing for the driver and less bouncing for the horse. This was one of the reasons that all the "old time" Road Carts had huge wheels. They were much easier riding accross the primitive roads that were available 100 years ago. Among the many other design features are the use of a custom made Variable Rate Spring and the incorporation of not only a movable axle for balance but the seat also is adjustable to further fine tune the balance of this cart and make for a smoother ride. To answer the first question that springs to mind, no, this cart does not ride as well as the Pleasure cart. However it is an improvement over the common EZ entry type cart and for those with a budget in mind it makes a very nice looking, safe, and affordable first cart.
Another feature built in to all Lignite carts is that the materials on my vehicles are selected for strength and long life. My seats use a premium grade of very dense foam rubber and are covered with a premium 42 oz. Snowmobile grade Vinyl with UV inhibitors and a cold crack rating of -40! My shafts have welded end caps, not rubber bumpers from the bottom of kitchen stools that can come off and expose a sharp edge just where you want it least. You can support my shaft on the horse carts from either end of the cart and, if you have good balance, jump up and down on my shaft and they will not bend! (try that trick on a EZ entry cart!) Remember those shafts are attempting to contain a 1000 pound plus horse who is much stronger and can in an instant generate 10 times the force that you can!
As you can see there is a great difference in the basic concepts behind both vehicles. Hopefully the above will be informative and help you make an educated decision in your purchase and allow you to enjoy driving your horse in comfort and safety for many years to come.
LIGNITE CARRIAGE CO.
N7047 Oriole Lane - Fredonia, Wisconsin - 53021
920-994-8165
lignite@dotnet.com
We reserve the right to change, improve or modify materials and/or designs based on customer input and ongoing research at any time. We regularly use our carts and work with our customers to give you the best vehicles possible.
Notice: Lignite Carriage Co. does not and will not at any time assume or accept any liabililty for any injury or accident involving any equipment sold or manufactured by Lignite Carriage Co. The purchaser(s) and/or user(s) of such equipment is presumed to be aware of the inherit risk involved in any Equine activities and as such assumes all risk in such activities as defined in section 895.481 (1)(e) of the Wisconsin Statutes.
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