How I Clean & Condition My Tack

Alright. Let's talk about it...

Remember in my post HERE, I promised to start taking better care of my tack? Well, it's happening. Seriously. Do you believe me?

A week or so ago, I was at The Horse Expo here in Pomona, CA, and I came across a booth called Rodeo Drive Conchos in their vendor buildings. (Which are VERY dangerous, might I add)

The booth looked like this:

Blurry photo courtesy of their Facebook Page

So, it's hard to see from the photo above, but basically it's a booth with a back wall full of blank tack - headstalls, breast collars, etc. (Some tooled, some not, but all very different styles to choose from) As well as spur leathers, stirrups, keychains, necklaces, dog collars - you name it.

Here's how it works. You pick out your tack, then bring it to the front where they have trays and trays of different color combinations of conchos, all different sizes, shapes, and finishes.  Here, you can play with and design your very own custom tack...yeah, like Build-a-Bear...SO FUN!  My friend and I sat there for what seemed like an hour, switching different conchos out, playing with different buckles, etc. If you're worried about pricing, the girl who was helping us stayed right with us, and updated my order totals every time I added or removed a concho - very nice.

Once I settled on 2 headstalls and a breast collar, she immediately went to work attaching all the conchos - punching holes, tightening them up, she remembered everything I wanted, exactly where I wanted it.  Here's how they all came out:

I shouldn't quit my day job.

OOOHHH AAAHHH!

Oh, that misty morning light! LOL

Nothing too crazy blingy, but bits here and there. Yes, their items were a bit on the higher side ($$), but it has been literally FOREVER since I bought myself some higher quality tack. Something I really fell in love with. NOW, to take care of it. (Ugh)

A few days ago on my Facebook, I asked you all what your favorite leather cleaner/conditioner was...well, here's mine.

Simple, to the point, Effax Leder-Balsam. Available HERE from Amazon, if you're interested. It has consistently great reviews across the board, and contains ingredients like Lanolin, Beeswax, and Avocado Oil (OH WOW! Things I can pronounce!) to help protect and restore your leather.  Funny, the only thing you can't pronounce is the name of the product! HA! I joke, I love you Leder-BLAAAH.

Alright, now that all the players are introduced, let's get into it...here's my cleaning & conditioning routine, step by step!

Step 1: Get all your stuff!  Not shown, but optional - Q-tips & a brown paper grocery bag. I'll tell you later.

Effax Leder-Balsam, rags/towels, tack sponges, and a flathead screwdriver.

Step 2: OK, if this was NOT brand new tack, here's where I'd wipe everything down with a good amount of water, to clean out all the dust out of all of the nooks and crannies so that we have a good starting point, BUT, since this is brand new, I didn't do it today...no pictures. You can handle it. (Let it dry.)

I'd then use a leather CLEANER, to remove any other sweat, hair, dirt, etc that has found its way onto your tack. Wipe off thoroughly, theeeeen....

Step 3: Today I'll start off on this tack by removing all the metal pieces that I can...That means any and all conchos, brackets, etc. This tack is all put together by chicago screws, so easy peasy. Set them all aside, ain't nobody got time to clean oil out of those conchos, if it accidentally gets in there!

Yeah I'm in my pajamas, sue me!

All the purdy conchos...

Step 4: Goop up your tack sponges! This leather didn't bleed, so for this entire job, I was able to use only one sponge - good deal!

Mmmm gooooop.

Whenever I have new tack, I condition it twice before it ever sees a horse. (Well, ok, after fitting it of course) New leather tends to be thirsty, as it has never been oil before, so I seriously apply this stuff. Sometimes leaving a bit of residue left on there, in hopes it will soak it up eventually!

Something I definitely wanted to mention about the conditioner I was raving about...it WILL darken leather a bit. Not a lot, but a bit. I like darker leather anyways, so this has never bothered me, but here's an example of the shade darker that it gets...

Top - Before
Bottom - After
1 application

See? Not bad, but I don't need death threats that I didn't mention this. Anyways...continue with this process of applying the conditioner EVERYWHERE. The good thing is, if you buy actual TACK sponges, they compress to very small, making it easy to cram them everywhere to make sure the conditioner is spread throughout everything.

Step 5: Once everything is coated, I stick it all in a brown paper grocery bag, and shove it in my closet for a couple days. This allows all the goop to be absorbed, and not affected too much by environment, being in that bag. Once it has sat, I pull everything out, and do all the steps over again...one more coat. I know! But your tack will thank me.

As if you didn't know what leather in a bag looked like.

As you work through each piece, I GENTLY bend and flex my leather, working it into the cracks. This will help soften that leather over time too. Hooray!

Back in the bag it goes for another couple days.

Step 6: After what seems like months of waiting, I pull everything out of the bags, and use Q-tips to get any leftover goop out of the punched holes, big cracks, and crevices of the tooling. Handy! Here's a classy picture:

DUH.

If your tack is still a bit goopy, because you went overboard, you can always wipe it all down with the cloths or rags you have....also good for shining and polishing the leather afterwards too. Buff it with the cloth to get these results.

AAAAND you're done! Just go ahead and reassemble everything and haul it to the barn, praying it never gets dirty again.

Just beautiful.

Interested in further information about Rodeo Drive Conchos? Visit their website, where you can see all of their tack, or contact them here, and they can send you a full color, actual size, catalog! Super handy - I grabbed one from their booth when I was there, and will definitely hang onto it.

Happy Cleaning!

The Horse Junkie

**NOT SPONSORED. ALL OPINIONS ARE MY OWN, AND ALL TACK & CONCHOS WERE PURCHASED WITH MY OWN MONEY.**

The Top 10 Most Awkward Places I've found SHAVINGS!

I follow a LOT of horse companies/groups/whatevers on Facebook...It's almost impossible not to.

One of these pages that I follow is simply called, "The Horse." Creative! Today, they posted a link to their own blog, to an entry entitled The Top 10 Goofy Places I've Found Bits Of Hay. LOL! I could relate to ALL of them, seriously, except my issue is not with hay...but with those DARN shavings! Who's with me??

Just looking at this is giving me anxiety.

Image Source: www.dodgegrain.biz 

Our barn, for some reason, tends to switch shaving companies, or qualities, or something just about every time they order new shavings. Why? Who knows, but we are constantly noticing differences in the stalls.  Some shavings are dustier than others (like, a nice coating on everything on the premises), sometimes the manager must want to save money, because we end up with small wood CHUNKS in our shavings, and sometimes they appear pretty normal. Go figure.

That being said, I figured I should contribute a little bit today, and share with you.....

The Top 10 Most Awkward Places I've Found SHAVINGS

1. My Bra - I have to start out with this one, because it is for SURE the most awkward. Nothing says "I'm a crazy horse lady!!" quite like a bra full of shavings. Bonus points if they stick to your boob when you take your bra off.

2. My Hair - On a day that I either haven't been to the barn yet, or don't plan on going to the barn. To take it a step further, when someone else points it out to you.

3. Clean Laundry - The keyword here is CLEAN. And of course, by this point, the shavings are practically woven into the fabric of whatever just came out of the dryer. Nice.

4. My Car - Of course, this was expected. Doesn't make it any less super embarrassing to pull up to the car wash and have the guys gasp at the amount of sheer crap is in your car.  Time to bust out the ShopVac!

5. My Helmet, Gloves, & Breeches - I don't always wear a helmet, but when I do, it's inevitably covered in shavings. No, no, just the inside...the outside would be too easy to clean.

For winters here in California, I just go every year and buy a cheap pair of your typical Target gloves. I'll tell you WHAT. That material is like a magnet for shavings...It eventually gets to the point where you just surrender, and live with the fact that you will ride in shaving-covered gloves for a few months. Then throw those suckers away. Chances are, they're unraveling anyways.

No matter how skin-tight your breeches are (I ride in Kerrits tights), you WILL go to take them off and find at least one shaving in them. One little...bitty...jerk.

6. My Face - Rio eats his food (EVERY TIME) by pulling it all out of his hanging food bin, and throwing it around his stall. Then he goes back and hunts for each piece, and eats them one by one off the floor.  This is fantastic, until he pops his head out of his stall and wipes his mouth all over my face when I lean in for a kiss. Go Rio! You just don't ever feel clean again after that happens during your visit to the barn.

7. Various Barn Animals - We have a resident cat - who I'm told is there to hunt mice, but I have YET to see him work a day in his life.  He tends to stay fairly clean, even in the muddy months, except for random shavings caught in his tail and belly. Those bastards.  Also included - visiting dogs!

We don't have sheep or goats at our barn...this might be why.

8. Sink Drain - What's the first thing you do when you come home and get settled after a visit to the barn? You wash your hands (at least, I hope) if you aren't jumping in the shower. Well. Eventually I have to clean out that drain of the hair and whatever else...ANNNND shavings.

9. My Frappuccino - We have a Starbucks nearby, and sometimes we'll run over there before we ride. You know, to make sure we're good and fat for our only exercise.  I ALWAYS put my cup either on top of my tack box, or supplement container...or somewhere. Just never on the floor in my horse's stall, lol.  Somehow, the condensation on my cup always screws me. Always.

10. Your Horse's Wiener - I'm gonna say it - it had to be said. I saved it for last to be as tactful as possible (and so that would be the one to stick in your mind! HA!).  Nothing more bonding for you and your horse than for you to respectfully clean his peepee of the shavings. Teamwork!


What are some hilariously strange places you've found shavings?

Happy Trails!

The Horse Junkie

Riding as Exercise - It's POSSIBLE!

Hi, Hi. I'm here and alive and well.

So it's time for my bi-annual update! I kid, I'm just horrible at updating regularly.  We know this by now because I think I introduce each entry the same way.

Recently, my riding buddies and I have been on the subject of riding as exercise.  I know most all of us have come across some non-horse person that says, "What?? You just sit up there...You can't tell me that riding is a sport/exercise!"  Once I'm over my feelings of 'I-wanna-reach-over-and-choke-you', I usually defend myself by saying something unintelligible about "posting the trot, or hanging on for dear life, or you try it! You try it!" Pishaaw.

Lately on our rides, we've been tracking our distance, MPH (So fun), riding time etc. through an app called Runtastic.  There's either a free version, or you can pay for the full "Pro" app for $4.99. (Read: I am a sucker) Although mostly difficult for us to remember to turn on at the beginning of our ride (#FAIL), this app is super handy for tracking ALL sorts of data as you ride, but more importantly, is set up for HORSE RIDING. Yes. How cool. Go download it! (Sponsor me?)  At the end of your ride, it also tells you how many calories you burned during your ride.  Calories...wait - me, or the horse???

A recent ride of mine. Yes, 26mph, my horse is fast! :)

After a major brain fart, we deduced that this must be OUR calories, because a horse is much larger and therefore would burn MUCH more than 400 or so calories during a strenuous mountain trail ride (that would surely kill me if I attempted to do it sans horse).  Does that make sense, anyone with an education?  Of course, because we're big blabbers, us girls, we got on the topic of how many calories do we burn each day we come to the barn?  This of course, the question, because it determines how crappy we'll be able to eat & drink - guilt free - following a trip to the barn. Hey, I didn't say I was training for the Olympics, here.

So this app tells us one thing, but how about the interwebs? ...Since everything on the internet is true.

Google and The Ultimate Horse Site tells me the following:

Calories Burned in Horse Activities

Whoever thinks horse riding and care isn't excercise never owned a horse! Between the shoveling and the grooming and the training, you're burning up a lot of calories-- for example, riding at a trot burns more calories than a brisk walk!

Horse Activities - Calories burned per hour:

ACTIVITY:	For 130 lb person:	For 155 lb person:	For 190 lb person:
Shoveling	354 cal/hr	422 cal/hr	518 cal/hr
General Horse Riding:	236 cal/hr	281 cal/hr	345 cal/hr
Riding horse at the walk:	148 cal/hr	176 cal/hr	216 cal/hr
Riding horse at the trot:	384 cal/hr	457 cal/hr	561 cal/hr
Riding horse at a gallop:	472 cal/hr	563 cal/hr	690 cal/hr
Horse Grooming	354 cal/hr	422 cal/hr	518 cal/hr
Baling hay/cleaning barn:	472 cal/hr	563 cal/hr	690 cal/hr
Shoveling Grain	325 cal/hr	387 cal/hr	474 cal/hr
Fencing	354 cal/hr	422 cal/hr	518 cal/hr
Polo	472 cal/hr	563 cal/hr	690 cal/hr
Hiking, cross country (if your horse is hard to catch...)	354 cal/hr	422 cal/hr	518 cal/hr
Brisk walking 4 MPH	236 cal/hr	281 cal/hr	345 cal/hr
Walking, carrying 15 lb load:	207 cal/hr	246 cal/hr	302 cal/hr

Burns more calories than a brisk walk??? NOW we're talking - says the girl who hates exercising, and loves her ponies.  Now, granted, you have to use your noggin, because you WON'T be trotting or galloping for an entire hour straight, but this IS a good ballpark for gauging your ride overall. Which is handy, because it's about how I calculate my calorie intake.  You know, "Well, I didn't LICK the bag after I ate all the chips, so that saved me 100 calories or so." It works, try it! Best diet ever - take that, Dr. OZ!

So I guess, if you have a dinosaur flip phone still, or don't usually bring your phone along on rides (UMM, you should), you can always go home and use your stone tablet and chisel to calculate your approximate calories burned on your ride. How COOL, Brianne! Thanks for sharing. AND, as an added bonus, next time someone tries to talk smack about riding not being a "SPORT," pull this up on your phone, hand it to them, say BOOYAH!, and walk away. But don't forget to come back and get your phone. You'll need it for Runtastic, afterall.  Am I bitter?

Let me know if you end up downloading and using the app (two very different things, I've found). I think it's worth a try!

Happy Trails!
The Horse Junkie

Happy Thanksgiving!!

...to those of you in the States!

Every year at this time, I try to look inward and thinkabout the things I have, and what I’m thankful for (I know, how mushy and emo)because I feel super blessed to be where I’m at in my life.  Sometimes I, as I’m sure all of us do fromtime to time, get so buried in our daily schedules and running here and thereand doing this and that, that we miss out on coming up for air to look back atwhat we’ve done, who we have in our lives, and what makes up our own lives.  I find myself constantly getting lost in theflow of life, and losing chunks of time all at once!! (How fast did this yeargo, amIright?) Lol…So, without further adieu, please let me share with you a fewthings I am thankful for…

Truth. Sometimes, it hurts.

Photo Credit: www.pinterest.com

First of all, what immediately comes to mind probably mostlybecause of this blog, is that I have three AMAZING horses, who give me moreeach day than I could ever give them back over a lifetime.  They are my support system, my joy, mychildren, my wallet cleaners, my stinky, fluffy, nippy dreams come true.

I have a family who loves me unconditionally, puts up withall my get-rich-quick ideas (Side note: I’m not rich), listens to my storiesabout the horses, and supports me no matter what.  Even with living on the other side of thecountry, they manage to always be there for me, and don’t ever let me losemyself.

I have a solid group of friends, barn friends, and coworkerswho are my second family, always there to listen to me, guide me, offer advice,let me rant, support my silly ideas, look out for me, and share both the joysand sorrows in my life.  I know that Ican reach out to them at any time for anything, and they will come through (andhave, many times).

I have a job, while tough and challenging at times (read:most of the time), has allowed me to HAVE horses in the first place, and to bemore or less financially stable day to day. This job has taught me more about myself, and has taught me so manyskills that honestly affect some HUGE aspects of my life.

I have great lesson kids (and their families), who let meunplug for a few hours each weekend and reconnect with my own inner kid, whilesharing a common interest and love with them, hopefully inspiring them andtheir futures too.  They make what I doworth it, every time.

I have a car that helps me get from place to place daily,and 80% of the time does not let me down…Although it is material, I place a lotof faith and trust that this car will help my life continue on, and it does!

And last but not least, I am thankful for the Internet. Itsounds silly, but think about it.  Without it, I wouldn’t be able to keep in great contact withmy family, friends, OR meet any of you readers. Some of my greatest friends and acquaintances I have met or reconnectedwith over the Internet. I feel super attached to you guys, and I couldn’timagine living in a pre-Internet world! Thank you, THANK YOU for taking time out of your busy days to read myblog posts or my Facebook, or check my Instagram. Most of you readers don’teven know me in the “real world,” and trust me, not a day goes by that I don’tthink about you guys, and feel completely and utterly blessed and loved thatyou give me a piece of your time to read these, or ask me about my horses or mylife, or tag me to share something with me, or whatever it may be. YOU INSPIREME.

What are some things that you’re thankful for, as we preparefor the Thanksgiving holiday? No matter what stage of life you’re in, or whatyou have, there are ALWAYS things to be thankful for…Happy Turkey Day!

PS. Last mushy post for a WHILE! Whew, that was exhausting. :)

Disclaimer…yeah, disclaimer: Please don’t look at any ofthis as me bragging – it’s NOT intended that way. I know I am very lucky, but Iwork very hard for what I have!! XO

Rainy Day & A Ride!

Yesterday was literally the most PERFECT weather to ride in.

It has been raining the last 2 days or so, and for California people, this is quite the shocking change of pace.  For some reason, when it rains around here, people forget how to drive, go into hibernation, and complain on Facebook.  I, on the other hand, LOVE the rain, and look forward to it on a forecast!

I spent most of the rainy Saturday at the barn, of course.  I teach a lesson/horse camp every Saturday, and I cannot cancel on that poor kid, no matter what! J  Once my day was over, I blanketed all the babies, fed them their supplements, and let them have the rest of the day off. I was going to ride with Erin, but as soon as we got around to tacking up, DOWNPOUR. Fun!

Rainy day! See the horse on the end reaching for a drink? hehe

So, that left me with Sunday.  I had no real plans, so I knew I had most of the day to hang out and get things done around the barn.  I arrived and took everyone’s blanket off. Thanks to the End of the World, it was supposed to be in the 70s that day…Yes, the day after a rainstorm.  First up was Rio. He’s a fairly ‘clean’ horse, so after a quick brush off, I tacked up, and headed for the hills! (Quite literally)  He was a little hesitant to go out on his own…He will, but he is a very sociable horse, and loves to have a buddy. As soon as I got him out on the perimeter trail, though, he was fine, and we got into a working trot to warm up.

Rio runs a bit differently than most horses I’ve ridden. Normally, I’d walk in an extended walk to stretch out a horse, and then work them into a trot, but Rio has never required that. This horse has more stamina than I’ve ever seen. In fact, I’ve never felt him have a lazy day.  I ride with little to no leg at all. Mostly voice commands, or driving with my seat. He is SO much fun to ride, and picks up on the tiniest of cues.  Additionally, I will note, he has the most interesting pattern of gaits, and I will not ride him bareback! Not to say I couldn’t…He has more control than 80% of the horses I have ridden, but he’s a bit of a rocky road. Hee hee!

We crossed the bridge over the LA River, went through the tunnels under the 134 freeway, and around Martinez Arena, passing several rental riders as we went. It was kinda funny; as I kept hearing kids say, “That horse’s tail is EPIC!! SO COOL!!!” (Oh, remember when I said people drive like idiots when it rains? Exhibit A: There was a massive car accident right at the Martinez Arena intersection, where a girl my age plowed through a hydrant, and busted a water main). 

Cheeeeeeeese!

There’s a bit of the trail that curves around Martinez that is wonderfully flat, and a great place to pick up a nice canter. I asked Rio to lope out, and we went sailing past all the stopped cars…Best feeling ever.  Went through one last tunnel, and let him loose up the hill. This horse packs some POWER in his hind end, so it feels great to have that underneath you, but he is also conscious of his rider, and will not take off, as to let you fall behind the motion. He will usually pick up a bit, and then with a slight release of the reins, I confirm to him that he can move up and take off up the hill.  I keep my legs against his side to support him (And let’s be real, to hang on) but he does all the rest! J

He’s a pretty smart horse, so once we get up a mile or so up the trail, he bring me right over to the water fountain/trough thing the Parks Department has for both people and animals…sounds great, but it’s really not that bad LOL.  This time, he doesn’t opt to drink, and just lets us stand there and take in the views and fresh air.  A minute or so later, I ask him to move forward, and guide him down one of the 4-point trails.

Rio modeling the trough. Look at that view! *Pre-blue tail*

Now, don’t get me wrong, because I love a good, solid trail ride, but when you keep going over and over through the same 5 or so trails, you have to start getting creative.  Sometimes it’s working on leads around the curves of the trail, other times, it’s finding new ways to traverse the terrain…Rio is game for it all!  Finding deer trails, joggers’ paths, etc. It’s fun for me to see my horse thinking his way though an obstacle, or actually looking at the scenery surrounding him. I catch him all the time looking around, just as if he’s a person, checking out the sights. I wonder sometimes, if they miss the Kentucky surroundings…open pastures, greenery.  In any case, they get MUCH more attention out here with me, than they would out there!

We head all the way down the hill and back to the barn without much of a to-do…I brush him once more (He’s not sweaty AT ALL…remember that stamina thing?) and put him away…NEXT!

Next up, riding Bea for Erin.  Beatrix is a gorgeous Baroque style Friesian (AKA oinker), and Regina’s new BFF.  Seriously, they are joined at the hip!  Erin is gone for the day, and I jump at the chance to ride her mare, what a sweetie.

I tack her up in her stall, and just throw on a bareback pad and her bridle.  I hop on and out we go for a quick workout.  Bea has a bit of energy today, so she’s quick to pick up a nice working trot that actually feels like a solid driving trot underneath me.   It’s fun!  We do this about ¼ of the way around the perimeter trail, and then pick up a soft canter.  Riding Bea in place of Regina is fascinating. Interesting to see how, although alike in many other ways, their gaits are so different. Regina tends to be very linear and predictable with her stride. Bea is a bit dramatic when transitioning into her canter, and feels very…medieval…if that’s even a feeling.  Both horses are amazing, graceful, and fun to ride in their own ways.

BeaCam, creepy edition!

We make our way back to the barn (told you it would be quick!), and I untack her and let her stand in the crossties.  She, on the other hand, has managed to work up quite a sweat from our half hour outing, and I want to make sure she is completely cooled before I let her go back in her stall and eat her lunch.

By this time, I’m feeling the workout in my legs, and decide to give Regina and Hatchet the day off…Can you blame me??  They didn’t seem too upset.  I blanket everyone back up again, feed supplements, and head out. Good day at the barn! J