Winter Weather

Sorry for the no post yesterday, we had a snow day and I was out playing with the dog! This morning there is a half inch to inch thick sheet of ice under a dusting of snow, so not going anywhere today! Here are some non-tack pics to enjoy!

Belongs on a "Quarter Horse"

You know, one of those out in front of the grocery store you used to beg to ride? It certainly has no business on a real one with kids using it. This thing is HIDEOUS. Not only is it a scary synthetic with embroidered horses on it and dinky looking hardware, it has a little pointy metal horse head for a horn! Brilliant! Just the thing for a small child to injure themselves on.

Scary Pink Saddle of the Week

WTF? Oh my, this thing is awful. And according to the pic "NEW" and "HAND MADE". Wow. It really never ceases to amaze me the amount of this stuff that is available. The unending stream of Pepto-Bismol colored tack effortlessly keeps me in blog fodder. I can almost taste the Pepto in the back of my mouth. Yech. Gag.

I will never understand this.

There is this strange need in the horse world to have a nifty gadget to make our horses do what we want. Some piece of magic hardware to fix every training issue you can imagine. This item, the Mikmar Flexion Combination bit claims to fix all of your "headset" problems and improve collection and balance. Really? I was under the impression that you achieved collection through training and that you achieved a "headset" through collection. Silly me, I have been putting all that effort in for nothing! I could just go spend nearly $200 on this little gem and skip all of that! Genius!

Heck, I am not entirely sure I could figure out how to attach this contraption to my horse!

Giggle

Thought yall might enjoy this, it's my Dad trying out my saddle. He is so funny sometimes. But there is that quote "If the world were a logical place, men would ride sidesaddle."

Squee!

Look what I gots! A sidesaddle, I rode it for the first time yesterday, an hour and a half trail ride, it was so comfortable! I even hopped a little creek with it.

F*#k it Friday

Yes, it is indeed F - It Friday. I am so sick of drama, hell its not even MY drama. It only indirectly involves me.

So in honor of F - It Friday, I am posting just random pics of Tacky. You folks can snark, I am out for the weekend!

Scary Pink Saddle of the Week

Overall, not too bad really, still WAY too pink for me. Might be OK for a little girl. Hate the hearts though. And not only that, it looks rather cheaply made too.

Craigslist Catastrophe

A reader sent this to me. The person selling this wants $400! Really? I don't think you could PAY me that much to take it and burn it.

Sorry for the no posts the last couple of days. The drama llama has reared its head. Fun. Really.

Side Saddles

Today I want to discuss something different. I have gotten it into my little head that I want to learn to ride sidesaddle. In order to do this of course, I need said side saddle. Now, I can't afford at the moment to go out and spend a great deal of money on one (and for me right now a great deal is less than what most people consider a great deal), as much as I would LOVE to have a custom made one, that is just not feasible right now.






I know very little about this, and I am kind of fumbling along, looking as saddles online and trying to decide what to get. I have found the Riding Aside blog very helpful as well. I would love a restored antique or a custom saddle from Tattersalls or one of the Peruvian style ones (DROOL), but my budget can't accommodate that. I have looked at the Hilason side saddles, and they seem, from what little I can tell, to be fairly basic. I am looking for a starter saddle, but I don't want a piece of junk either. I can tell the eBay auction one is trash, the heads are all wrong and it looks cheap and poorly balanced. There are several antiques on eBay, but all of them need restoring and lack a leaping head. I want an English one to start with, if I stick with it I may get a western eventually.



Tattersalls' Huntseat Side Saddle, love this.


So, anyone out there have any suggestions? Any info on the Hilason brand saddles? My budget allows for a Hilason, but that's about the extent of it. Also, I need information on how to decide what size saddle to get, I am not terribly familiar with measuring a side saddle. I use an 18" English saddle if that is helpful. I have very long legs, especially from hip to knee. I am not petite either.

Proof that people actually buy this crap...

Here is the proof folks, this is a USED plaid saddle for sale. Someone actually purchased and used this thing and is now selling it. Makes you wonder why, besides the obvious, they are selling it. Does it not fit the horse, not fit them, or is it simply so hideous they cannot even approach their horse with it? I vote for the latter.

Scary Pink Saddle of the Week

Oh my, pink overload. Multiple shades of pink too, hot pink seat, reddish pink swells, purple-pink skirts and fenders. Not to mention the matching accessories. The silver spots are a nice touch too, don't you think?






Feeling better today, a good long soak in a hot tub helped me out a great deal, combine that with a Flexaril and a handful of Advil before bed, and I feel almost normal today.

Bugged out...

Wow, a butterfly print synthetic western saddle. Looks to be super high quality too. Nice.

Sorry for the lack of enthusiasm, my Fibro is STILL kicking my butt. It's sad when I can take 1000mg of Ibuprofen and it kind of takes the edge off, kind of. Unfortunately, I am a lightweight and any stronger painkillers make me too loopy to function.

Wow, craptacular...

Here is a craptacular saddle for you guys. It matches my craptacular state today. Sorry about the postless Friday, but I was having a major Fibro flare-up that is still bothering me today. I found this thing online somewhere, made in India (imagine that) and just had to share. Scary doesn't even begin to describe the quality (or lack thereof) and "retro" look of this thing.

Proper accessories make the outfit...

Yeah, they can make it perfectly hideous! ENGLISH bridles in blue, pink, and purple. Why? They look to be made of that lovely Indian made cardboard leather with the painted surface. The ones that feel like they will fall apart in your hands at any moment. Yuck. Now, I have seen some nice biothane tack in bright color marketed to endurance riders, and I can see the function there, it makes it a lot easier to see you in the woods or along the road. But, there is no excuse for these.

Scary Pink Saddle of the Week

This one is not TOO bad as far as Scary Pink Saddles go. However, the price is certainly frightening. Who on earth would pay that much to own something this, well, PINK? If it was just the seat (which I hope, considering the price, is genuine ostrich) it might not be bad. The other issue I have with this, is it is a SHOW saddle, not something I would purchase in anything but a good neutral color. You would be stuck showing in pink FOREVER. No matter the color of the horse. I also don't care for the silver spots on the pink border, it just seems a bit much.

Looking a bit green...

This one is almost painful to look at. The searing shade of lime green clashes so badly with the lovely deep chestnut color of the leather that it makes my eyes hurt. Then there is the fact that it is festooned in crosses. I will never understand the obsession with plastering your saddle with religious symbolism. If you MUST, why not one of the little saddle crosses, it says "I'm Christian," without slamming everyone in the face with neon green symbols of your chosen religion. I mean, if I were to go into the arena in a saddle covered in pentagrams, people would get a bit edgy, especially here in the South. The sad part is, were it not for the color of the fake ostrich skin and the crosses, it wouldn't be a bad looking saddle.

Start things off right...

To start off the new year, I present the first Tacky Tack of 2010. Thanks to an intrepid reader who sent the link to this spotted monstrosity. Now, I LIKE leopard print, a peek into my bedroom and my closet can confirm this. Leopard print shirts, bedding, candles, cowhide rug and fuzzy throw. It is, however done tastefully, as an accent print, not SOLID leopard print. Really. I also own NO tack that is leopard print, none. That being said, even I cannot find it in my heart to like this saddle set. It comes with a bridle and matching breastcollar too. It seems to be actually made from the same printed cowhide that my rug is made of, which I know from experience is slick and if rubbed the wrong way, very prickly.