Electronic Riding Device

[Peggy]

@RAyers I use Equilab mostly as a check after I’m done. Did I make roughly the same number of turns to the right as the left (unless I had a reason to emphasize one). Did I trot and canter for a reasonable amount of time? I’ll sometimes write down the trot and canter times and compare from week to week.

What I’ve learned is that I’m pretty good about keeping things even. I only use it about once a week, one of the times I don’t ride in a lesson.

I also used it during rehab (no, not that kind) to look at the total times, though I was timing with a watch for each set.

During the flat parts of lessons, the trainers set the timers on their phones for five minutes to make sure we do two five-minute trot periods.

I’m pretty sure Equilab fights with the timer on the iPhone as, when I’ve had both running, the timer didn’t work properly. But my analog wristwatch did.

[chestnutgelding]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I am looking into many different devices and it is always good to hear about others having positive things to say about these new products on the market. It is all relatively new but I think we will be seeing more and more in the coming years.

For the technology discussion…well…saying using technology makes you less of a “true” horseman is simply ridiculous. I am no stranger to horsemanship. I know my horses extremely well. I am usually able to spot an injury and pinpoint the cause just by watching my horses trot before a vet can figure it out. I have rehabbed many horses and using a device to help track that type of progress? Well, that would be incredible! This type of data is something that isn’t tracked in equines, isn’t that weird? As many have mentioned, human athletes use similar devices to improve their overall health and fitness. Having access to these tools can help us learn more about our horses. Our equine partners are also athletes, and we should treat them like proper athletes.

If you aren’t the technology type, that’s fine! If you don’t want to spend money on these devices, that’s fine too! But don’t knock something until you try it. Technology has improved with veterinary technology. Should I not get my horse’s injured leg ultra-sounded? At one point we didn’t have ultrasound machines. Technology isn’t going anywhere…so we can either embrace it and see what it has to offer, or ignore it. For me personally, I feel like this technology can make us better equestrians and elevate our training to the next level.

Thanks again for all the suggestions, keep em coming! I’ll make an update if I end up getting one and let everyone know how it works.