When coats are waived...

[Silverbridge]

In our climate (tucson, phoenix shows) it’s standard by far that we warm up in shirtsleeves.

Then if we have any sort of posse at all, or significant other, or even our trainers, they will carry our coats out to the warmup ring. They hand them over at the same time as the horse’s boots are pulled, and the mic is removed, and a last minute wipe, etc. Ninety percent of the people probably do it that way if they want to wear a coat even though they’re waived.

When I’ve shown in CA, which has been two years in a row, in April, I’ve been able to put on my coat at the barn and then mount up and ride out to the warmup ring wearing it.

It feels weird and out of place to be that ready already, when you’re used to horse shows in AZ heat.

[kkmrad94]

If coats are waived and you wear a polo what color do you normally wear? I have a white shirt but my breeches are also white.

[2tempe]

If I wear just a shirt, it is Navy with smidge of white piping. I do have a thing about hating belts and things tucked in, so rare that this option is chosen.

Usually wear my white short sleeved show shirt and a very lightweight vest. Tidy and takes care of my above mentioned “issue”. :yes:

[rothmpp]

[QUOTE=kkmrad94;8785007]
If coats are waived and you wear a polo what color do you normally wear? I have a white shirt but my breeches are also white.[/QUOTE]

So long as it is solid color you should be fine.

The show I was at last weekend waived coats every day and I saw a variety of colors in shirts. I would only recommend that it be somewhat form fitting, regardless of your size - one woman I know wears a super baggy shirt when coats are waived because in her words “no one needs to see my lumps” I think it actually accentuates some of the “lumps” because the shirt flopped all over the place through the whole ride. Actually made her look more sloppy in my opinion.

[MysticOakRanch]

[QUOTE=Silverbridge;8784977]
In our climate (tucson, phoenix shows) it’s standard by far that we warm up in shirtsleeves.

Then if we have any sort of posse at all, or significant other, or even our trainers, they will carry our coats out to the warmup ring. They hand them over at the same time as the horse’s boots are pulled, and the mic is removed, and a last minute wipe, etc. Ninety percent of the people probably do it that way if they want to wear a coat even though they’re waived.

When I’ve shown in CA, which has been two years in a row, in April, I’ve been able to put on my coat at the barn and then mount up and ride out to the warmup ring wearing it.

It feels weird and out of place to be that ready already, when you’re used to horse shows in AZ heat.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, in California a month later, we are doing the same thing At the “big” shows, I throw my jacket on last minute - it has hung over many a fence or tree, waiting for the last minute grab. Most of the rest of the time, I wear a lightweight vest - I like the look, and for those who worry about middle age middles (ahem, yes, that would be me), it really hides the bulge AND breaks up the white. I have an older Arista vest, quilted but minimum lining, and that is my go-to.

Last weekend, we showed in 105 heat, bleah. It is a few degrees cooler then AZ, but not a lot cooler. And yes, most show in shirtsleeves. I see more and more light colors - pinks, blues, etc that are really kind of pretty.

BTW, I have been eyeing that Arista show vest for about a year now - it looks lovely in the pictures! But hard to justify $200 for a… VEST…

[walktrot]

We took some kids to Lendon’s Dressage Festival several years ago at HITS in NY. It was in July, got very hot and humid on Saturday. They started out waiving coats, but then went so far as to ban them after several riders went to the emergency room with heat stroke. Made sense under the circumstances.

[dotneko]

Neat shirt in a conservative color. Why do people feel the need to find out exactly where the ‘conservative’ line is, though? Teal? Turquoise? Hot Pink? Why cant they just stick to pastels or black or navy?
Your ring steward will thank you.

[joiedevie99]

[QUOTE=kkmrad94;8785007]
If coats are waived and you wear a polo what color do you normally wear? I have a white shirt but my breeches are also white.[/QUOTE]

I have an assortment of greys - from medium to charcoal - from Old Navy.

[MysticOakRanch]

[QUOTE=dotneko;8785875]
Neat shirt in a conservative color. Why do people feel the need to find out exactly where the ‘conservative’ line is, though? Teal? Turquoise? Hot Pink? Why cant they just stick to pastels or black or navy?
Your ring steward will thank you.[/QUOTE]

Not all people can wear pastels, and black is HOT. Not all horses look good in pastels. I agree, hot pink, flaming red, day-glow orange, probably not the right choice. But I’ve seen some lovely forest green, dark wine, deep plum, and those colors are gorgeous! I guess I don’t get why we have to exclude colors - we know there are no patterns allowed (which gets ride of the crazy orange and green plaid), but why not just allow solid colors? Yes, I know what the rules say, but this is one of those areas where the rules could just be - easier…

[Shagyas_Rock]

[QUOTE=BigMama1;8781832]
No tank tops or sleeveless shirts. A crisp collar or hunter style choker looks tidy. That being said, I NEVER go in the show ring without a jacket, even though our summer temps are often in the 90s with tons of humidity to boot.

I am lumpy and jiggly and bigger than I should be and it all just looks WAY better covered with a coat ;-)[/QUOTE]

If I did that, I can guarantee I’d have heatstroke, faint and fall off. My internal thermostat doesn’t work any more. I get overheated fast - like a faulty radiator in the Sahara. No way can I wear my coat when it’s that hot. And I have an awesome one, custom made to be light weight and airy (I can feel the breeze blow through it.) Can’t even wear that when it’s mid afternoon with heat indexes in the high 90s or triple digits.

[right_horse_at_the_right_time]

Had a lengthy discussion with the TD when I was ring stewarding recently.

From her perspective, and we looked through the rule book together, no need for a conservative color. Shirts CAN have patterns. She viewed decorations as blingy decals, etc. But she was ok with patterns, even wild ones, and says the rules prohibit neither patterns in shirts nor fun color.

[Silverbridge]

@dotneko;8785875

Why do people feel the need to find out exactly where the ‘conservative’ line is, though? Teal? Turquoise? Hot Pink? Why cant they just stick to pastels or black or navy?

For some people, just knowing that if wearing those bright colors pisses off the curmudgeonly conservative divas, that may be reason enough. Combine that with the fact that they look good on you or paired with your horse, and it’s a win/win.

[AZ_TD]

[QUOTE=right horse at the right time;8786085]
Had a lengthy discussion with the TD when I was ring stewarding recently.

From her perspective, and we looked through the rule book together, no need for a conservative color. Shirts CAN have patterns. She viewed decorations as blingy decals, etc. But she was ok with, and says the rules do not prohibit, neither patterns in shirts nor fun color.[/QUOTE]

Yes, shirts can be any color and pattern. I rather like different colored shirts, hate the white on white look.

[right_horse_at_the_right_time]

[QUOTE=AZ TD;8786422]
Yes, shirts can be any color and pattern. I rather like different colored shirts, hate the white on white look.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the official clarification!

[atr]

I’m sad not to wear my lovely show coat, which does give me a more elegant line, but not sad enough to wear it when it’s 96 degrees in the shade…

I wear light beige breeches anyway, so a tucked-in white short sleeved shirt with a black belt is neat and tidy and totally within the rules, and doesn’t make me look like I am riding in my underwear.

A lot of people around here wear a cooling vest also.

I do like the line of that Arista vest, but I keep balking at the price, and the stupid bit decoration on the back. The really lovely one was the Pikeur, which I haven’t seen around recently, but that was stupid expensive.

[atr]

So is the Arista vest much cooler than a jacket, enquiring minds wish to know?

[Magicboy]

I bought a mans dark gray vest and had it tailored to fit me…looks good and is cool but more flattering than just a polo.

[Covergirl15]

Most people here just wear their show shirts (white with a zip up collar), though several have the Arista vests (and I think I may need one as well when baby is ready to show (; ) I love the look of the vests and they are super flattering.