https://www.americanfarriers.com/articles/7954-shoeing-for-the-21st-century-deu
Very informative.
I thought that link might be an interesting change of “pace” for the readers here. One of the things I love about stb racing is the vast knowledge, skill & artistry involved in shoeing and rigging to develop a fine gait, at speed, without (much) interference. (Note: As you know, I am a tb racing enthusiast, too.)
There is much very interesting there, but I think his closing paragraph is maybe the most important one:
—Balance Still The Key
There is no question that the floor work done by the farrier is the most important part of shoeing. Different types of shoes may come and go, but the fundamental mechanics of foot balance are still critical for soundness and performance.
The foot surrounds the coffin bone, and the coffin bone is the skeletal base of the entire horse. The stress of any deviation from good balance in a racehorse is multiplied many times over with each stride taken at race speed.
I believe that no horse can compete at his or her personal best on the track without the basic and proper hoof balance that is required with every shoeing of the horse. All shoeing applications are secondary to that basic principle.
- See more at: https://www.americanfarriers.com/articles/7954-shoeing-for-the-21st-century-deu#sthash.iHaTGktF.dpuf"—
The master farrier I learned to shoe under repeated that, many times a day, every horse and he was right.
^^^ Absolutely.
Oh my goodness, I didn’t realize you did farriery. You rock, Bluey!
[QUOTE=beaujolais;8770414]
^^^ Absolutely.
Oh my goodness, I didn’t realize you did farriery. You rock, Bluey![/QUOTE]
Not really, just spent 9 months five days a week in the evenings in the blacksmith shop of our riding school, helping the master farrier.
He kept all military mounted police horses shod in the mornings, all well over 100 horses in our school in the evenings.
I was going to run my own riding school eventually and many places didn’t have a blacksmith close, so I had to learn to do the basics for my own horses.
We didn’t have keg shoes then, we made our own shoes and some of our tools out of bar steel, so we had to learn forge work also.
I had my own school, kept my horses well shod, later also shod horses for others, but never was a real farrier and all that was many decades ago.
I know enough to know I don’t know hardly anything, compared with a real farrier, that is under a horse, many a day, day after day, that is all they do, for years on end.
^^^ Well, still superb, absolutely! :encouragement:
Great article.
Yeah not bad. Is an aspect of the trade that has changed a lot in the last 25 years or so. The influence of the Swedes in the sport has left it’s mark with a lot more European ways of doing things now. Is worlds different than the old Care and Training of the Trotter and Pacer book.
