Saturday, March 13, 2010

Saturday encore ~ How to tie a quick-release knot

A funny thing happened after I posted this entry in June 2008 - people who googled "how to tie a quick-release knot" started to visit the 7MSN. And 18,221 people have watched this knot-tying tutorial on YouTube. Or maybe one person watched it 18,000 times trying to get it right. Whatever. It's one of my favorite videos, and it's certainly my favorite knot. Go grab a lead rope and practice it with me.

Having horses means expanding your knot repertoire beyond the one you put in your shoes. You may want to tie your horse to groom him or to saddle him; if you travel with your horse, you may need to tie him to the trailer; at some point on a long trail ride, you may need to tie him to a tree so you can ... well, you know.

Knowing how to tie a quick-release knot will keep you and your horse out of all kinds of trouble. Like the kind of trouble you might get into when you rob a bank. You want to use a secure knot, so that when you come a-runnin’ out of the bank your horse is still there, yet you want to be able to untie it really fast so the sheriff won’t catch you. So come with me as I demonstrate how to tie my all-time favorite quick-release knot, “The Bank Robber Knot.”



Now go grab a lead rope and the back of a chair so you can watch this video and practice with me. The secret to knot-tying success is to practice it, over and over and over again.

(In case the FBI is monitoring this blog, no banks were robbed in the making of this video.)

11 comments:

  1. Isn't that amazing how many hits you got on your video, although if that was only one person that watched it 18,000 times, I do believe that person had better get a life!

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  2. Great video! (Knots are cool, anyways!)

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  3. OMG, that's frikken 30 minutes of my life I'll never get back. I'm so dyslexic — BUT — I finally did it and no chairs were harmed in the process.

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  4. I'm sending this on to my horsie friends who can't tie a slip knot to save themselves! My version is a little different, but I'm going to practice yours today. Thanks for the video!

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  5. my Dad taught me this slip knot or quick release knot when I was very young. We used it for most every knot around the farm. when we bagged corn to take to the feed store to be ground into feed we used this quick knot to close the bags and then it was a snap to open the bags again.

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  6. Thanks, you're right quick release knots are the only way to go. We use them for everything. Haven't tried robbing a bank yet though, I'm sure it would come in handy if the time ever comes.

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  7. Well dang! I never would've spent that year in Folsom if I'd know about this knot!

    But then I also wouldn't have been there for Johnny Cash's live performance so I guess it evens out.

    Thanks for the bank robbers knot tip!

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  8. You could show that to me 100 timees, and STILL wouldn't get it....lol! But, it is a GREAT GREAT Knot....! Thanks for sharing this, my dear.

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  9. YouTube has a life of it's own! Great video Linda.

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  10. That's different to the way I was taught to do a QR Knot but probably better because my horse watched me do it ONCE and after that would take himself off back to the stable when he got bored waiting for me to bring his tack/grooming kit. Haha.

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