Per the title! What’s your omg why didn’t I use this sooner/ I can’t live without this piece of tack/ equipment. Mine is more so a category: plastic or soft rubber bits. For one horse it’s a Nathe, another was a Bomber Blue, the other loves leather so still working out her legal bit. Every one seems to like their “alternative” bits compared to metal.
Mostly inspired by my riding with just a sheepskin pad between horse and saddle and having the happiest, loosest back right out the gate vs after a long warm up on my senior. Why didn’t I do that sooner? So simple. Plus I love to add to my “keep an eye on it for Black Friday” list.
Not so much physical equipment, but mental. More game changing mentality. Stop trying to make a horse love something. They might be bred to jump to the nines, or to be a 6 figure winning reiner… but if they hate it, they hate it. Forcing them to do something they don’t like, whatever the reason, it changes attitudes, trainability, rideability etc.
If I had to pick a piece of physical equipment, it would be my Back on Track gear.
Good reins (and good is subjective - whatever fits comfortably in your hand that you have good connection with).
Seriously. I remember when I made the switch and I thought it was the dumbest thing in the world (on the recommendation of a trainer) and suddenly it was like my eyes had opened up. I switched from a traditional laced leather rein to a very thin rubber rein. It changed things for me overnight. I wasn’t throwing the reins away or letting them slide through my fingers, and I was also able to gather rein back more diplomatically.
Royal Rider cheese grader stirrups made the biggest difference for me! I’ve been using them since they came out initially and haven’t dreamed of switching back to regular irons.
It a like you’re my hyper mobile narrow twisted twin. (Though I’m just saying that about twist because for ME it was the narrow twist which changed my world.)
I have expensive saddles, but it’s not the price which matters. A $300 synthetic which fits horse and rider right can be life changing - feeling what it’s like to not be prevented from sitting correctly. In my case, it takes both a flat spot in the seat and a very narrow twist; thankfully my horses have been easier to fit!
Swiss stirrup clips. Do not Google that. They are safety clips for stirrups that allow use of normal stirrups. I originaly bought them for an absolute crackerjack/jack-in-the-box type of horse I was training after trying almost every other type of safety stirrup and becoming dissatisfied. I use them always and forever now.
Oh, I guess Waldhausen changed the name. They literally used to be called Swiss stirrup clips. Googling that led to all manner of non-PG things, none of which had anything to do with horses.
A big change for my horse was switching to a Micklem.
He always seemed unhappy in his bridle and that changed immediately, He is still not completely happy though, so then we switched from a NS with a lozenge to a KK single joint. He seems to prefer this.
But now I am wondering about these other bits like Bomber that have been mentioned.
I tried many high end bits with my mare (Turtle Tactio, the regular NS lozenge bit, HS NovoContact, various Fagers). Most recently the Fager Gustav seemed the most acceptable, but I did a clinic with Leslie Morse a few weeks ago and she recommended a rubber bit to me and another rider who had a horse that was fussy in the contact. I’d already had my eye on this Bombers, so I bought it, though Leslie was not really familiar with the new higher-end synthetic bits. My instructor worked with us in the Gustav two days after the clinic, and then she came back the next weekend and worked with us in the Bombers and she was totally astounded at the change. It’s not just the mouth, but she is looser through her entire body and starting to swing through her back and had just a little white lipstick at the end of the ride, which I have never seen on her before. I love that this bit is flexible in the middle but doesn’t have a poky joint like a Happy Mouth. This mare would take contact, but stay very stiff in a mullen or Myler-type mouthpiece, so some flex was still needed.
Not equipment but taking the time and money to have body work done on my tight shoulders enabled me to finally be able to hold them back - which made all the difference in my seat and for collection.
Yes! Just a regular sheepskin pad! I’ve been using my half pad (by itself, no baby or full pad under it) as a test before buying a lined full pad. The half pad brand is Hufglocken (no longer making their own line from what I can tell), but I’m eyeing the Stubben Streamline pads for when I get a lined full pad.
