I have the equifit compression/ cooling boots but they didn’t stay as cold in a cooler at a show as they do in the freezer. Special pony is extra special at shows and prefers to be tacked in his stall, so won’t stand in a groom stall and definitely won’t stand in a bucket. Also doesn’t like cords of any kind.
Any suggestions on how to best use the equifit cooling boots at shows or a better leg/ hock cooling product when there is no freezer available?
Thanks!
For $300-$400 you can get a small portable freezer that you can plug in. Alternatively, you can buy the ice boots that have pockets for real ice - and just grab a few bags at the nearest gas station each morning.
A Yeti or similar cooler will work also.
A yeti would do a fabulous job! Thanks for the suggestion!
Put in some additional ice in the cooler along with the wraps. And be sure Special Pony’s legs are wet to get the best cooling action.
I use these boots for the front and an icehorse machine for the back- and work out of a cooler a LOT for shows, clinics, lessons when I am away from the barn. I have just a regular cooler but put a solid layer of ice cubes in the bottom and then put the boots in a large plastic bag (because I don’t necessarily want the Velcro on the back getting soaked if the ice starts to melt) and then cover the equifit boots in ice cubes too. Plus, if I have any bottled water I’ll be drinking I throw it in there too. I’ve never had an issue with the boots not being super cold doing it this way and I was showing and lessoning in 100+ degree heat last year a lot. I just made sure to put the cooler in the shade when possible!
I paid under $200 for my portable freezer on Amazon. It weighs 35 pounds though.
Use some cold water wraps. Cotton standing wraps really wet with ice water and simply wrap.
Thanks all - I did have them in a large cooler with layers top and bottom of ice for 3-4 hours but maybe it wasn’t long enough. There was no way to freeze them over night before putting them in the cooler in the morning. I’ll try leaving them on ice each night as well.
CFFarm - the idea of just soaking standing wraps in ice water is so simple it’s brilliant!
This is the problem, the boots weren’t frozen enough before you put them in, they won’t freeze IN the cooler, its just not consistent enough. Then you put just wet cold boots on and the legs will warm them up fairly fast. Try to put them in a freezer at least 12 hours before, then transfer them to a cooler.
I have a cooler that I can plug into my truck. I only plug it in when the truck is running, never open the cooler until the boots are needed. Tried it for the first time this weekend and they were ice ice cold still at 230 in the afternoon when it was super hot out, but I left the cooler in the shade as best as I could. Really happy about it!
Unfortunately at multi-day shows, there’s no way to freeze them overnight aside form keeping them on ice the whole time in a cooler…
Well, unless the ice itself is much colder than freezing temp - nothing will freeze (thermodynamics says so)… so, if you must refreeze things - you may be able to get dry ice at some gas stations (for freezing fish) or get a bunch before you leave. Dry ice, ice, than the boots.
caveats: dry ice temp will cause burns- so be mindful of the temp of the boots.
do not store dry ice in an enclosed room. It turns into gaseous CO2 - in an enclosed space, the CO2 concentration can get dangerously high w/ enough dry ice sublimating…
Just an idea…
You for sure need to keep them cold overnight. If it’s an away show I always make sure I get a room with a fridge/freezer (you can generally stuff ice packs in there) or just stop at a gas station and buy more ice.
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