What’s in Your Tack Box? Life hacks: dressage edition

By Natalie DeFee Mendik

TREASURE CHEST: Tack trunks and tack rooms store the items and products we rely on to care for our , ride better, and impress the judges DUSTYPERIN.COM

38 October 2018 • USDF Connection re zip ties the one thing you couldn’t possibly Cavalor Ice Clay poultice. “It makes the legs tight, has great set up at a show without? What about those consistency, and doesn’t test [positive]; it’s legal [for adminis- boot socks that stay in place and dry all day tration before and during competitions],” Ebeling says. long? From favorite products to quirky ideas, Lotions, Potions, and Wipes dressage professionals from all walks of the industry share Atheir go-to equipment hacks that could very well make your It’s not just cows that need a little TLC. “I use Bag Balm and riding life just a easier, too. every day on every horse,” says Ana Gilmour, an FEI-level Competition-Ready rider and USDF-certified instructor through Fourth Level from Auburn, California. “I use it around the lips; I like to Say goodbye to green slobber in the show ring with Sabine give the horses a little extra protection—sometimes they get Schut-Kery’s tack-up tip: Rinse the horse’s mouth with wa- a little dryness on the cheeks. I think if I were a horse, I’d ter in a large dental syringe just before you put on the bri- like something around my bit. Of course I use it for my lips, dle. By removing any hay residue in the back of the horse’s too,” she says with a laugh. mouth, you won’t be forced to wipe away precious foam be- Simple baby-care products work great for grown-ups cause it’s green before you head down center line, explains and horses, too. Says Koffler-Stanfield: “I love baby wipes. Schut-Kery, of Thousand Oaks, California, who with San- You can use them for everything, from wiping the horse to ceo helped Team USA win gold at the 2015 Pan American cleaning up a spill to wiping your face. Whatever you need, Games and the 2018 Nations Cup. they do the job. They are good to always have in your kit.” For keeping those show whites pristine, US Equestrian Various ointments in the Ebelings’ tack trunk include: “S” dressage judge and Grand Prix-level competitor Kari Aquaphor for scratches (pastern dermatitis), as well as McClain turns to a gift that’s both practical and pretty. abrasions and nicks. “It keeps the skin from cracking and “I have a beautiful horse-fabric cover-up skirt a student bleeding,” says Ebeling. made years ago that easily goes on and off with Velcro and Calmoseptine ointment—which the Ebelings learned keeps my breeches gleaming white while looking stylish,” about from a client who was a nurse—for sores as says McClain, who operates Miari , a breeding and well as for “ sores” on the rider’s part. “It will heal you training facility in Olympia, Washington. “I get compli- overnight,” Ebeling says. ments on it at every show.” Effol Mouth Butter before every ride. And at those hot summer competitions, McClain rec- DIY’s Finest ommends coconut water to rehydrate and keep electro- lytes on board, as well as the Cool Medics cooling vest to Knit mitts handmade by a friend have a multi-purpose stay comfortable and avoid overheating. function in Melissa Creswick’s grooming kit. “A bit bigger Every dressage competitor dreads the eleventh-hour bro- than hand-sized, they are small enough to fit in a pocket, ken boot zipper at a show. “We usually show when it’s hot but big enough to wipe down a horse,” explains Creswick, a in the summer, and our legs swell. I know so many people US Equestrian “S” dressage judge and USDF gold medalist whose zippers have broken at a show,” says Grand Prix-level from Clovis, California. “The texture picks up dirt while still rider and FEI-level USDF-certified instructor Reese Koffler- being soft enough for wiping the horse’s face. Dry mitts can Stanfield, who owns and operates Maple Crest Farm in also wipe your boots just before going into the ring.” Georgetown, Kentucky. Her solution: black electrical tape. “[Equestrian equipment] is so expensive,” says US (Another dressage life hack worth stealing: To account Equestrian “r” dressage judge and USDF silver medalist for any last-minute mishaps, Koffler-Stanfield adds an extra Robin Birk, who operates Timber Ridge Equestrian Center five to ten minutes to her show tacking-up time.) in Ruffs Dale, Pennsylvania. “When I judge, I hear people “We do a lot of traveling. What’s important for us is that say, ‘Well, I don’t have a ring at home.’ At the same time, I we’re prepared,” says Amy Ebeling, who together with her see riders, particularly at the lower levels, having trouble husband, Olympian Jan Ebeling, oversees The Acres, the riding correct corners. I just made a new dressage ring out family’s dressage business in Moorpark, California. “One of five-gallon buckets from Walmart. It looks great. That’s thing we always keep with us is Platinum Performance a ring anybody could afford. Even if you don’t have enough Bio-Sponge. If a horse has loose stool, we give one tube space for a whole ring, set up one end so you can learn how and generally it’s over.” to ride through the corner.” Also on hand to keep the Ebelings’ horses at their best is Birk constructed her arena perimeter and letters with

USDF Connection • October 2018 39 white PVC plumbing pipes from Lowe’s, which she fit across the tops of the buckets, having traced the outline of the pipes onto the buckets and cut slots with a jig saw. Borrowed from Here and There

For horses that need a warm-up on the lunge before heading to the show ring, Creswick recommends a D-ring attach- ment borrowed from the jumping world. Using side with snaps on each end and “ dees” attached to the billets, you can lunge and then mount without compli- cated tack changes. SOFT SHINE: Groom Holly Gorman uses a mitt to give “While lungeing, snap each end of the to the Goerklintgaards Dublet a final polish before the dressage horse inspection at the FEI World Equestrian Games Tryon 2018 bit and to the billet; the equipment is correct—on the bil- lets, the side reins are in the right place,” Creswick says. Editors’ Choices “You can then take the lunge line and side reins off in quick order, put them in a bag in the warm-up arena, and be off ou’ve already met USDF Connection edito- without ever having to compromise your saddle by loosen- rial advisor Melissa Creswick in this article ing the girth; the D-rings don’t show.” and learned about some of her favorite “tack Y A new item in Gilmour’s arsenal is her own . hacks.” What’s in other editors’ tack boxes? hoof tester “If a horse is looking a little ouchy, it helps if you can nar- Editorial advisor and US Equestrian “S” dressage row it down to figure out if it’s the feet or not.Y ou can then judge Margaret Freeman, of Tryon, North Carolina, start soaking; this can save you time and money,” she says. can’t live without her Ultimate Hoof Pick. “Everyone is happy when it turns out to be just an abscess.” “It is ridiculously expensive compared to other Tasty Treats hoof picks,” Freeman says, “and worth every penny because it is so easy to hold and because it can pry Sugar cubes have a place in Kathy Simard’s training rou- out really packed-in dirt and ice.” tine. She explains that while she doesn’t give sugar cubes to young horses in order to avoid developing bad habits, she USDF Connection editor Jennifer Bryant and USDF does find them quite useful for horses farther along in their vice president Lisa Gorretta both are self-described tack junkies who had a hard time narrowing their training, such as when introducing back, flying chang- lists of must-haves. Two items that have made es, half-steps, or a new sequence. Bryant’s horse life easier this year are Effax Leather “I don’t just give out treats; the horses have to earn it,” Cream Soap and the Roma Stretch Bug Eye Saver says Simard, a USDF Instructor/Trainer Program faculty with Ears fly mask. member, Fourth Level USDF-certified instructor, and USDF silver medalist from Littleton, Colorado. Not really a soap, the Effax product is a creamy Stretches are part of daily life for horses at The Acres, conditioner that soaks into clean leather and leaves notes Amy Ebeling, whose treat of choice for encouraging a deep luster and just the right amount of “feel” to give a bit of grip under your seat or in your hand, the horse to reach into the stretch is the Platinum Perfor- Bryant says. mance Platinum Bar EQ.

“My horse is a fly-mask Houdini who destroys or Tack-Store Favorites gets out of every other fly mask I’ve tried,” Bryant “I always use DSB boots [Dressage Sport Boots]: They last, the adds. “My instructor recommended the Roma Velcro is secure so they don’t come off, they come in fun colors, Stretch Bug Eye Saver with Ears, and I used it suc- and they wash well,” says Dawn White-O’Connor, an interna- cessfully all summer. Junior only managed to get it tional trainer and competitor who got her start as groom and off a handful of times, and even then the mask re- assistant to Steffen and Shannon Peters, including grooming mained undamaged. It washes well and is economi- cally priced, to boot.” for Steffen Peters at the 2012 London Olympics. “I especially

like the shiny patent boots; they wipe off and look great.” JENNIFER BRYANT

40 October 2018 • USDF Connection DIY DRESSAGE ARENA: Dressage judge Robin Birk constructed her dressage arena from PVC plumbing pipes and five-gallon buckets

People who work with horses spend a lot of time on “For the life of me, I can’t think of anything out of the their feet. USDF gold medalist Patience Prine-Carr, of ordinary that I have or use. Everything is very normal. My Glynnsong Farm in Castroville, California, counts on her horse is the only thing I can’t live without!” says interna- Blundstone boots, which she calls “the most comfortable tional competitor and former US Equestrian national dres- and durable boots I have ever worn. I walk a lot and am on sage youth coach Jeremy Steinberg, of Del Mar, California. my feet lungeing, tacking up, grooming, et cetera, so I need Regardless of which gizmos and brands are your par- something comfortable that lasts.” ticular favorites, you’ll surely agree: Our horses are the one Prine-Carr’s go-to bit for starting young horses and re- thing none of us can live without! s freshing older horses is the Herm. Sprenger KK line. She says her horses find the ergonomic mouthpiece comfort- able, while the metal alloy encourages salivation. Natalie DeFee Mendik is an award-winning journalist spe- Sentimental Favorites cializing in equine media. Her current favorite equipment hack is keeping a few large blue in her Some pros’ most valuable possessions are of the keepsake IKEA shopping bags trailer; they’re perfect for corralling and ferrying all the odds variety. and ends that get spread about when on the road. At compe- “I have an angel pin my mom gave me; I always wear it titions, she loves Goode Rider show shirts with frilly collars; on the lapel of my show jacket,” says Koffler-Stanfield.S he the technical fabric keeps you cool and the pretty neckline laughs: “I don’t like to ride faster than my angel can fly, so I negates the need for a tie and pin. Visit Natalie online at

COURTESY OF ROBIN BIRK bring my angel with me.” MendikMedia.com.

USDF Connection • October 2018 41