Says creator of Breakaway Stirrups Michael J. McCoy,

"Breakaway Stirrups" by STI Corporation

The Breakaway Stirrup is designed to “breakaway” from the saddle when the rider is in danger of getting “hung up” in their stirrup- to prevent dragging!

How Did Breakaway Stirrups Come To Be?

Says creator of Breakaway Stirrups Michael J. McCoy, After being in the cattle business all of my life and rodeoing professionally for sixteen years, I've experienced and witnessed a few horse wrecks. I only got dragged once, but I saw a man get drug to death. But it didn't really sink in until my kids started riding. My oldest boy, Willy, had size 11 shoes when he was about 10. So I made all of our kids split their boots down the back like a bronc rider. But that still wasn't enough, I figured more had to be done. The idea of a breakaway stirrup finally did come to me, and I know it was a blessing from above. Our number one goal at S.T.I. is to prevent draggings, whether we sell stirrups or not. In my opinion, most of the modern riding community has forgotten about the dangers of getting dragged, or just aren't aware of the risks.

Is It True That Draggings Have Always Been A Potential Problem?
Yes. Draggings have plagued horseback riders since the invention of the stirrup. Dragging prevention began with the use of riding boots. These boots had a defined heel to prevent a rider's foot from slipping through the stirrup.They also had an open top so if a rider got hung up, their boot might slip off before they got drug too long. This boot became known as the cowboy boot, and today it's become a popular icon in our society of the American west, however, we've forgotten the purpose for which they were created. Many modern versions of the cowboy boot have a less defined heel, and some have laces, making it impossible for that boot to slip off in a dragging situation. Speaking of the American west, who can forget the gun toting cowboys etched in time by greats like Charlie Russell. It's a common misconception that these working cowboys wore six guns because they were all gunslingers. The six gun emerged in the west as a tool of the working cowboys, so that in the event of a dragging, they could shoot their horse before they got drug to death.
Is It True That Breakaway Stirrups Can Actually Help Prevent Non-Dragging Head Injuries?
Yes! Many of the really bad buck offs that result in head injuries come from temporary stirrup hang ups. The person didn't necessarily get dragged, but got hung up long enough to get spun around and have their bodies swung under the horse, exposing the body to the horse's hind legs. When a person gets bucked off hard, but gets out of the stirrups clean, they will generally land hard but probably not on their head., and most likely be able to walk away. If they do get spun around in the stirrup, that's generally where riders land on their head, or get exposed to the hind legs, and get hurt the worst. Breakaway Stirrups can help prevent a head injury due to a temporary ‘hang up’ in the stirrups.

So How To The Breakaway Stirrups Actually Work When I Am Riding?

S.T.I.'s safety breakaway stirrup is designed to "breakaway" from the saddle when the rider is in danger of getting "hung up" n their stirrup, and being dragged by their horse. As a rider falls to the ground, their bottom drops below their heel and their toe will come up, this will rotate the stirrup around the stirrup leather, releasing the mechanism.

1) The release mechanism is a precision-engineered safety device, designed to release itself from the stirrup leather when it reaches a 72° backward angle, or a 45° forward angle. The forward angle can be activated if a rider falls off the horse or gets thrown and hangs their foot up in the stirrup. The backward angle is generally activated when a horse falls and a rider's foot goes through the stirrup. Whether your foot is all the way through or if your toe is wedged in the stirrup, the stirrup will break away.

2) These angles of release were scientifically predetermined to be reached only in a dragging situation. In a normal riding situation, a rider's stirrup won't generally rotate more than 5°. But even if you're spurring a horse from their shoulder to their hip, with your toes out and down, your stirrups won't rotate much more than 35°. For the mechanism to release, the rider has to be in a dragging position, or in the process of falling off.