It has UPF 50 technology and a wicking and cooling fabric with antimicrobial treatment to keep the shirt fresh between washes. It also has underarm mesh to help with airflow. The material is similar to the Kastel Denmark shirts with a “pocked” material, but the mesh is not as fine.
It fits true to size, and I’ve been riding in it on the hottest of days when even a long sleeve sun shirt feels stifling.
Oh So has decided this year that he can’t simply be bothered to wear a fly mask, so I’ve been trying a couple of different brands hoping to find one that will stay on.
I thought for sure the Rambo Plus Fly Mask would be “the one,” but alas, he got it off too! Maybe it’s because he knows he looks so silly in it? Either way, I still like the mask, no matter how dorky it makes him look. You’d think the raised eye area would alleviate any irritation around his eyes and ensure he wouldn’t try to rub it off, but nope! But I still like that it doesn’t sit so close to his eyes. With other fly masks I’m concerned about trapping dirt so close to his eyes when he rolls in mud and it crusts on.
I recently tested some fungal and anti-bacterial products for COTH’s Untacked magazine!
Oh So actually had a pretty good winter skin-wise, despite living in a horrible paddock of mud. Now he’s starting to get a few knicks and scrapes being in a bigger field, so some of these products have come in handy!
Here’s a few items that have become staple items in my tack trunk.
A lot of blogs I read have monthly posts about products they’ve been enjoying, so I thought I’d try it out! I am definitely a product junkie, both horse and human, so I’m going to try to feature a few items here each month and do quick, mini reviews.
When I passed by a tack store trailer at the Adequan West Coast Dressage Festival this winter, I paused to take a look at a rack of colorful ROMFH breeches. I think I owned a tan pair back in the day, but it’s been awhile since I’ve bought anything from the brand.
I got super inspired by the bright colors, but realized that most of them were the brands’ pricier models. But as I was searching online I came across the more affordable Champion breeches.
They come in more conservative colors, and I’d been looking for a new pair of schooling breeches that I could wear to lessons and not offend my trainers, so the slate blue called me name. They’re $129, which for the quality I think is a very good deal. I do love the lower priced SmartPak Piper breeches, but I’ve been wearing through the crotch/upper thighs on those pretty quickly with certain colors, which is super disappointing.
The Champion breeches are mid-rise, so they don’t require a belt like the Pipers do, and the material is thin enough for summer riding, and also seems to be stain, dirt and water resistant. After I give Oh So a bath or brush him when he’s muddy, the water dries quickly on the breeches and the dirt wipes off.
They have side pockets, which takes some getting used to since I usually put my phone in the back pockets of my Pipers, but overall, I really love them and would like to get a tan pair for showing.
It’s my favorite time of year; light- and mid-weight jacket season! I’m not sure what it is, but I can’t resist a deal on a good barn jacket. I don’t love wearing long, heavy jackets when riding, even though I love my Mountain Horse heavy winter jacket and my Kerrits midweight one.
I just feel a bit restricted and bulky when wearing a winter jacket on top of other layers, so if I’m doing any kind of riding other than hacking I tend to ditch the jacket anyways when I get warmed up, even on the coldest of days.
My go-to for riding is a long sleeve top or fleece with a light or midweight jacket on top, so I’ve gathered quite the collection over the years.
Please excuse the unflattering angle as I tried to take this photo solo!
On paper, the Weatherbeeta Kool Coat is a great idea, but sadly for me, the execution didn’t quite work.
I have an older version of what’s now known as the Kool Coat, but it has an attached neck that’s a bit short on Oh So, so I decided to try the updated version.
The reason I bought it originally was because I was looking for something halfway between a light sheet and a fly sheet to keep my horses clean after baths on warmish days but not cause them to sweat.
These days with Oh So living out, I was looking for those same features but to help keep him from bleaching too.
The new version definitely fits that bill, with the top half providing 90% UV protection by way of 270g polyester fabric that doesn’t seem very breathable and a bottom half of mesh to keep your horse cool.
I was late to the party on the custom ear bonnet trend, but I finally bought one for Oh So this spring in our cross-country colors. I can’t say it’s something I needed for showing, but it does spice up our simple black and white dressage outfit and makes us look cool on cross-country! I’m not huge of glitter, so I went with a shimmery white thread on the red trim.
Before I won a trip to the Longines Wellington Masters last year, I’d never won anything in my life!
Then one day this winter I randomly entered a contest again on Practical Horseman’s Facebook for a Shires blanket, and I won!
I’ve never tried a Shires brand blanket, having always been loyal to Weatherbeeta and Rambo’s various brands.
I was sent the Stormbreaker Lite Sheet in black/tan with a standard neck. It features 1200 denier waterproof material with shoulder gussets, adjustable chest clips, a wither relief pad, cross belly straps and cross leg straps.
Front view of the light sheet.
I’ll admit I’ve gotten so used to the single tail strap on my Amigo blankets that cross leg straps were mildly annoying, but they’re certainly something I’m used to from Weatherbeeta blankets.
The front chest straps were a nice touch. I tend to adjust those on the buckle end to get the right fit and then only use the snaps end for quick on and off.
I only tried the blanket on Oh So, who’s a 78″, and it fit true to size. The shoulder gussets aren’t a necessity for him since he’s very narrow-chested, but they certainly didn’t hurt.
Since I got this late in the season, I was only able to test it out a few times in the pouring rain, and he was dry underneath after spending all day outside. I can’t speak to the wear and tear yet, but with about a month’s use it still looks good.
I also received a nice jersey cooler in my prize pack. I tend to use half fleece, half mesh coolers during the winter, spring and fall because Oh So runs hot, so I think Thomas will be using this the majority of the time.
It’s also came in black/tan, but is available in navy. It’s quite simple, with cross belly straps, a tail cord and a simple buckle front chest closure.
The outer jersey alter is quite smooth, so nothing stuck to it, and the underside was fleece to keep him warm. It was quite smart, and I think I’ll be using this a lot for trailering.
It comes in sixes 69″-84″ and retails for $62.99, making it a good value for a smart looking cooler.
I recently got the chance to try a bunch of pre-tied stock ties for the Chronicle’sUntacked magazine.
I’ve been really inspired to look into custom things for me and my horses since spending so much time at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival and watching all of the dressage queens sparkle and shine, so searching for companies that did stock ties was a lot of fun.
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