HORSE TA ES
Safety, Comfort Are the Basis for Special Riding Clothes, Part I
by Candice C. Dunnigan

Several summers ago, my husband and I encountered a couple bicycling on Crooked Tree Road while we were taking a morning hack on our horses. The man complimented us on our animals, then he looked up at my husband, who was in his hard hat, boots, breeches, and gloves. He said to him, "That looks like fun, except for the dippy clothes." Just the other day, my husband reminded me of that encounter, and it was he who suggested I write about the functionality of riding attire.

Perhaps many people, like the gentleman we met on Crooked Tree, have never bothered to understand why riders wear what they wear, assuming the velvet cap and breeches are all about status and show. By and large, all riding clothes originally were designed for comfort and protection. There is a difference between the styles of Western range riding wear and traditional, but durability and function still adhere for both.

Most riding gear for men and women is based on attire developed from the hunt and cavalry fields. This evolved over a long period, and led to the design of an entire outfit that would give protection from wet, cold, sun, and the many knocks experienced when one rides and travels at speed across country on the back of a fast-moving horse.

Regardless of origins, if you work with or ride horses of any kind, safety and common sense should be the keynotes. However placid an animal may seem, there's always an element of danger, and horses are big, strong animals with a born sense of flight or fight. Care needs to be taken, even for the mundane, when it comes to horses. This forms the basis for the development of riding apparel.

Perhaps the most important aspect of riding clothes is footwear. Amisplaced hoof on a big toe can do a great deal of damage to the human foot. Steel-toed work shoes make much sense, and are the common footwear of choice for most farriers. Rubber boots are sensible for mucking out and getting horses in and out of pastures and barnyards. The higher the boot, the better, if you're dealing with mud. When riding in an English saddle, long leather boots are traditional. They keep the feet and lower legs dry, as well as afford protection from painful encounters with brambles, low brush, limbs, grasses, fixed objects, water, and gateposts. The high boot with a leather cover protects the calves, shins, and ankles, as well as toes. Rubber long boots are a good, inexpensive alternative, but they can be hotter in the summer and very cold in winter. Insulated tall boots now have been developed, making riding in extreme cold much more comfortable.

Another boot is called a jodhpur boot, or a paddock boot, worn with a half-chap over it. They cover the leg from the knee to the ankle. This combination tends to be much cooler in warm weather, and when the half-chap is removed, the rider still has decent footwear to do chores in. These days even paddock and jodhpur boots and half-chaps can be found in synthetic material that works well. In the long run, after much hard and repeated use, I still prefer good leather, and I know that it holds up better.

Perhaps one of the bestknown pieces of riding apparel for the Western rider is the cowboy boot. This is a mid-calf boot made from durable leather, made to be worn, ridden, and worked in. The toe is pointed with a hard cap, the sole thick, and the heel sizable. The reason for having a heel in riding boots is that they were designed to prevent the foot from sliding through the stirrup, or being caught in it during a fall. A person should always wear safe footwear when mounted.

The most vulnerable part of a rider is his head. It is truly irresponsible to handle, lunge, and long line a young horse without a protective hard hat securely fastened with a chin strap. It is plainly negligent to ride without a hard hat that fits, and one that is fastened under the chin so it stays on. Never should it be worn back off your head like a poke bonnet. The traditional hunt cap was designed to offer some type of protection for the rider's head, from overhead branches or a fall. The United States Equestrian Federation has now set up standards for all helmets sold. A great majority of western riders still balk at this safety issue, however, all sanctioned endurance meets and game classes, including flag races, in high school equestrian teams must now adhere to wearing a protective hat, whether the rider rides English or bareback. Here on Mackinac, one of the key rules of our youth summer riding program dictates the wearing of helmets when mounted. This was a tough rule to enforce at first, but now, like the education of seat belts in early driver's training programs, it has become the norm.

Next week I will include information on those silly-looking riding pants, as well as proper competition clothing. In the meanwhile, if you're hoping to take a ride today on one of Mackinac's finest rental steeds down at the stable, wear a sensible shoe. If you don't like the looks of the protective riding hats the stables offer, bring along your bike helmet, and wear it for the ride. Believe me, the horse won't think you look stupid. It's okay to look dippy.

Candice Dunnigan is an active member of the American Equestrian Association, the Waterloo Hunt, and the Mackinac Horsemen's Association. Seasonally she resides at Easterly Cottage.