Lets face it. Horse people are crazy people. We do lots of things that don't make sense to non-horse people but it's ok, because we understand each other. But sometimes, there are things even horse people do that I can't quite get.
Lately, this issue has been crossing my mind a lot in response to certain horse "fads". I've been around/riding horses for the better part of my life so I've seen quite a few trends come and go. Some of them I happily take part in (all the blingy browbands!) but some I just don't understand. Lately, what has really been getting to me comes from my much beloved dressage world. And their double bridles. More specifically, their double bridles with big fat nosebands. And that fact that it does not seem that anyone makes a double bridle with a normal sized noseband anymore!
Today for example, I wake up to an email from Smartpak proclaiming a 40% off bridle sale. Well doesn't that sound wonderful? You see, I have a double bridle for Mollie (complete with fat ass noseband) but it's never really fit her no matter how I've tried to adjust it. So I'm always casually looking for a replacement. I went on the Smartpak website and there wasn't a double bridle to be found without the fat noseband.
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| Passier Libra |
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| Antares Double |
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| Schockemoehle Sports Brisbane |
What is with this?? I'll spare you from looking at more thumbnails but essentially, everywhere I look, double bridles have hugely fat nosebands. I suppose on gigantic warmbloods it isn't super offensive but I still find my eye being distracted by it. And all that leather is too much for a little Mollie-Wogs face.
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| Our current double. More bridle than face :( |
Is there anyone out there who likes this look/has a reason as to why it's so "in"? Any fads you don't quite get??
I agree. I prefer the thinner nosebands, it brings out more of the horse's features!
ReplyDeleteJust the style right now I guess. I bet if you searched specific tack sites instead of retailers you'd find more options.
ReplyDeleteI ride Western so my opinion may not be that worth it, but I don't really like the thicker nosebands either. I'm stuck with a thick noseband because my horse has to use a hack, but he has a big Quarter head so it looks somewhat okay, I guess. I prefer thinner so you focus on the horse, not just the bridle!
ReplyDeleteI hate that there are very few unpadded bridles now. I understand it makes suitcase headed horses look less suitcasey (and lets' face it my current ride has a giant head) but I'm more of a minimalist at heart.
ReplyDeleteNot a fan of the super thick nose bands at all.. Henry can handle a winder nose band nicely but I don't like too much clutter.
ReplyDeleteHere's a nice one:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.classicdressage.com/catalog/product.php?CI_ID=502