Hiatus and a Correction

The long hiatus was unanticipated, and I'm sorry if anyone was put-out by it. The only reason for it was that in spite of the slowing economy, business has blossomed for me - I'm currently riding/training 12 horses a week, teaching 15 hours of riding instruction, while helping to manage two different facilities, and taking 9 college units at night. I thank God that I have the ability to do what I do for a living, but it does rather limit my internet time. So again, I'm sorry if anyone was annoyed by a lack of posts.

Also, a correction to my first post regarding the Vetrolin Shine coat spray. The old label stated that the product did not contain any silicone. However, a friend of mine contacted the manufacturer and found out that the product now contains 15% silicone, a chance which was not reflected on the new label.

Pomona Equine Affaire Special Report Part 1

Event: Equine Affaire Horse Expo

Location: Los Angeles County Fairgrounds, Pomona, CA

Part 1: The Shopping

Rating: *** (3 of 5 stars)

I attended my first Equine Affaire five years ago, and I remember being nearly overwhelmed by the fantastic deals on essentials from wormers to trailers, as well as the plethora of new and innovative products. Since then, some years have been better than others, and this year I wasn't overly impressed by either prices or selection. The primary exception seemed to be the bridles. Good harness leather western headstalls and split reins were available all over the place, and I saw some very high quality dressage bridles I was afraid to look at the price tags on. The saddle selection was disappointing, however. I saw some nice Western show saddles, along with a limited number of Western trail and work saddles, but there were only two or three vendors at the entire show offering English saddles at all. Now, I did go on the final day of the event, but some asking around revealed that the selection hadn't been much better earlier in the week.

There weren't many booths offering horse wear (blankets, sheets, lycra hoods, etc), though Kensington had a large presence in one of the buildings and seemed to have plenty of sizes and options available (I very much like their products; look for an upcoming review on Kensington). Rider apparel was limited to a couple of vendors selling breeches and cute T-shirts, though Ariat had a huge boot sale going on, with last season's fashion boots going for 2 pairs for $100. And of course there were the usual peddlers of worthless "training gadgets" that made me cringe.

Nevertheless, I did find a couple of products that stood out to me, which I'm currently reviewing for later blog extries.

Coming Next, Equine Affaire Special Report Part 2: Expo clinics and demos

Rio Vista Color Enhancing Shampoos

MSRP: $9.75 for a 32 oz bottle

Rating: *** (3 out of 5)

Shampoos as a whole are generally homogeneous products, and while some are better than others - just about any shampoo will "do the job".

Aside from medicated shampoos, the one consistent niche for shampoos has traditionally been whitening shampoos - ones that can get those annoying green spots out of gray coats and white markings. Rio Vista has taken that desire one step further buy providing horse owners with a shampoo that brightens other coat colors.

The Rio Vista Color Enhancing Shampoos come in a number of shades for different coat colors: Hi-Ho Silver, Ravishing Red, Golden Palomino, Sorrel Chestnut, and Hi-Black Burgundy.

While I initially thought I'd like these shampoos and that they would work like the one I use for my color treated hair (using chemicals to enhance how the light hits the surface of the hair), that turned out not to be the case on either count. The Rio Vista shampoos have some sort of dye in them - a dye that stains your skin and clothes, the horse's white markings, and even light colored hooves. To the manufacturer's credit, the shampoos say on the bottle that they will stain skin and white markings, but on a horse with sizable leg markings its nearly impossible to prevent the shampoo from getting on the white areas during the course of a bath. Moreover, I was less than impressed with the outcome. The noticeable color enhancement to the horse's coat was both minimal and short lived (about 2 days).

In summary, this product line certainly has it's place, such as the day prior to a show or other event. But given the other factors it's just not all that practical or convenient for regular use.

Resources: horsetackreview.com

I'm reviewing another review site? You betcha! horsetackreview.com is a fantastic website, and one I refer to often when tack shopping.

Users submit reviews of equipment they've actually bought, citing the brand and model, place of purchase, and cost; along with a summary of the buyer's experience and likes/dislikes. The site is popular enough that readers can often get multiple opinions on a single tack model, giving the discerning buyer a clearer view of possible purchases. And while it's best to take any review with a grain of salt and to visit a tack store or dealer to assess big-ticket items like saddles, horsetackreview.com can go a long way to helping buyers narrow down their search.

The site is broken down by category: English, Western, Horse Gear, and Barn & Stable - each with multiple sub-categories for the different disciplines and styles under each heading. In addition, horsetackreview.com is easy to navigate, and reviews are ordered alphabetically by brand, and then by model - which means you don't end up scrolling through page after page of search results like you would on Google.

My rating for this site: **** (5 out of 5 stars)

Book Review

Title: "Rick Lamb's Horse Smarts for the Busy Rider: Insights in Small Bites from The Horse Show Minute Radio Program"

Author: Rick Lamb

Publisher: The Lyons Press Publisher Website

MSRP: $16.96

Rating: **** (4 to 5 stars)


This book is a compilation of over three hundred quotes from a number of equestrian authorities - professional riders, trainers, and veterinarians, all with a brief introduction and commentary by Mr. Lamb.


"Horse Smarts for the Busy Rider," could be read in just an hour or so, but it's perfectly suited to be a kind of daily devotional. This book is filled with little pearls of equestrian wisdom and insight, and while reading it I found myself dog-earing pages and highlighting passages I found relevant or inspiring. The commentary however, wasn't consistent. Mr. Lamb simply paraphrased what the expert had to say just as often as he added to or explained it. Also, there were a number of entries that seemed somewhat redundant. In addition, the book was heavily geared towards the Natural Horsemanship crowd - many of the contributors quoted were NH clinicians - Parelli, Anderson, Lyons, Shrake and so on, which is unsurprising considering that Rick Lamb is a long-time advocate for the NH movement. And while I personally practice natural horsemanship philosophy and technique, I am also very much interested and in favor of the classical methods of riding and training and I would have liked to see more of that reflected in this book.

Overall, I really enjoyed, "Horse Smarts for the Busy Rider." The book had a lot to offer and was a fun, easy read. I would definitely recommend it for any rider's home library.

Online Store: Show Horse Supplies

For those readers looking for professional-level supplies for show horses, or for those readers who like to keep their recreational horses looking like they just stepped out of the ring, I'd like to introduce showhorsesupplies.com

Owners Jonathan and Julie are dedicated to providing customers with the highest level of quality and service possible. Their business is geared towards the the serious horseperson and competitor looking to buy brand-name barn supplies, supplements, tack, hand-crafted horsehair jewelry, and even fun animal-themed office supplies! Showhorsesupplies.com is also a mobile physical retail business, traveling with Jonathan and Julie as they attend APHA breed shows to promote their Paint Horse breeding and showing operation based in Arizona. You can check out the front page of showhorsesupplies.com for details on where Jonathan and Julie will be next.

Book Review

Title: "Horse Gaits, Balance and Movement: The natural mechanics of movement common to all breeds."

Author: Suan E. Harris

Publisher: HowellBook House Publisher Website

Rating: ***** (5 out of 5)

MSRP: $21.99

In her book, Harris does an outstanding job breaking down and explaining the movement of the horse within the context of classical riding principles, and with the aid of over 3000 illustrations.

The book begins with a brief discussion of why the reader - and all riders, should take the time to study equine gaits, balance and movement. The author then progresses to an anatomy lesson; describing what denotes good conformation along with conformational faults (a topic revisited in even greater depth further on in the book), and an explanation of equine skeletal and muscular systems at rest and in motion. From there the book goes on to illustrate the mechanics of the gaits, the effects of impulsion and engagement (or lack thereof) and what differentiates the overall qualities of a good gait from a poor one. Included are examples of good and bad transitions, the phases of a horse's jumping effort and a detailed study of rider influence on the horse's balance and gaits.

Overall this book is a must-have for any serious equestrian's library. The information is fantastic and the illustrations are clear and precise - enhancing even the most advanced reader's understanding of this vital material.