Horse Show Days

One of the most important things for a show is to stay organized. Especially if you're going to a show at a different barn. Make sure everything is labeled so you don't lose it. If you are worried someone will steal something, put it somewhere with a lock so no one can steal it. Bathe the horse at least 1 day before the show. If you bathe them the day of the show, their natural oils in their skin won't be able to come back to make them shiny. Get their body, muzzle, bridle path, mane, and fetlocks clipped so they look nice and neat. On show day, or the day before, braid their mane and tail. If you braid them the day before the show, put a sleeve on it so it doesn't get destroyed if they rub on them. In some shows, you won't have to braid. On the day of the show, brush them so they are really clean. Spray some showsheen if you like to make them extra shiny. Don't spray any on the saddle area or your saddle will slip. Make sure to paint their hooves as well. Before you show, make sure your tack is all clean. It's a good idea to clean and oil it the day before the show. Store them in a place where they won't get too dirty. If they do use something to clean them off like Lexol saddle cleaner/conditioner wipes. It cleans off the dirt and conditions at the same time. The clothes you wear will depend on what type of show you do. For hunters/dressage you have to be more fancy and for jumpers you can be less fancy. Ask your trainer or a tack shop and they will help you with clothes. You have to wear your helmet with all your hair inside so get a hairnet. It will keep your hair from going everywhere in the helmet and it will be easier to get your hair in the helmet. If you are going to a show at a different barn, you need a lot more things. There are checklists online (like the one below) to help you remember all the things you need to bring. It would be a good idea to have a tack trunk or some kind of box to put your things in to stay organized. You can put locks on them so your stuff stays safe. It is always a good idea to bring money/checks to shows just in case.

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Buying a new horse

Choosing the right horse to buy can be hard. It takes a lot of time and effort. When you look for a horse, make sure to visit the place before you actually buy it. Make sure that the place is tidy and not a complete mess. The horses should be living in a fairly clean environment. The horses should be in good condition and looking healthy. Before you buy it you should take it to the vet so they can check the horse out and make sure it's a happy and healthy horse and give it the shots and medicine it needs. The vet check ups are usually around $500. Know what you are going to use the horse for. Are you going to have it for fun? Or jumping? Showing? Make sure the horse is able to do what you want it to do or you can train it. If you want to be able to ride it, set up a test ride to see if you like the horse and if the horse has good manners. Also have some back up plans just in case the horse doesn't work out and make sure you have a plan for where to keep the horse. Remember, finding the right horse can be very easy or very difficult. Some people look for the right horse for years. I was very lucky when I found my horse. He visited my barn and I bought him within a few weeks that he was there.

Horseback riding not a sport...

One of my biggest pet peeves is when people say horseback riding isn't a sport. I'm sure that all equestrians would agree with me. When people say that to me I go on a rant and it can get ugly. I will explain some reasons why horseback riding is a sport. Horseback riding requires all the muscles in your body. We use our legs to post out of the saddle (its when you stand up and sit down in beat of the horse's legs while trotting). We use our arms to control the horse and use our backs to 2 point over the jumps. We stretch before we ride just like football players or baseball players. Just like any other sport, we have to train. We train for competitions. Football players play games, we compete. Like a lot of sports, we have to wear a helmet. If we fall off, our heads could be crushed by the horses hooves or get hit by the ground. Falling off is the most dangerous part of horseback riding. You could get caught in the stirrups and get dragged, hit the jump, or get trampled by a 1,000 pound animal. Equestrians jump over 5 feet in the Olympics and in training. Try doing that on an animal with its own mind going almost 20 mph controlled by just your legs, a piece of metal and some leather. Imagine falling out of a car going 20 mph and getting your leg or arm run over by a wheel of another car. It would hurt wouldn't it. That would be like if you fall off and the horse tramples you. Lastly, if it wasn't a sport, why would it be in the Olympics? The opinions of others on this subject are sometimes puzzling. Please tell me your honest opinions and why you think your opinion is correct. Also, please look at the pics I have provided.

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How to measure a horse

Do you want to know how to measure your horse? Here's how. First I'm going to tell you some information about the measurement of horses. Horses are measured in units called hands. Each hand is 4 inches. You may also see it as hh. My horse is 15.3 hands high. This means he is around 5 feet 3 inches tall. To measure your horse, grab any thing t0 measure the horse with. Put the ruler on the ground and stop at the top of the withers (the bump at the bottom of their neck). Add up the inches. Every 4 inches is 1 hand. Once you have the total inches, calculate. Any measurement below 14.2 hh is considered a pony. 14.2 hh and above is a horse.

Types of horseback riding

In the equestrian sport, there are different disciplines. A few of them are show jumping, cross country jumping, dressage, barrel racing, racing and many more. There are 2 types of riding. English and western. English is jumping, cross country and dressage. Western is barrel racing and stuff you would see at a rodeo. Show jumping is where there is a course and you have to get the fastest time and the least amount of faults. Faults are when you knock a rail off of the jump. Cross country is solid jumps that don't fall down if you knock them. You have to go as  fast as you can but the course is really long and isn't in an arena. It's pretty much like an endurance run with jumps. I ride English so I don't know much about Western riding disciplines but I do know about barrel racing. Barrel racing is where there are 3 barrels set up in a large triangle shape. You have to go a certain way around them and as fast as you can without knocking them over.