When it rains it pours (tack ho edition)

It feels like I got a heap of stuff around the same time. Which is pretty true and absolutely awesome. My tack ho heart is happy. It’s like Christmas in the middle of July…….or end of June, but close enough lol. Most of it is coincidence that it all arrived at the same time, and one was an actual buy recently. Tack ho win, right?! So, shall we get on with it? Because things!

As you guys know, I received my Cambox Isi3 last week. So far, it’s been a lot of fun to mess around with. New gadgets are always fun for me to play with and figure out new things, but after working on the helmet cam for about 30 or so minutes (this included interruptions at work since I took it to work with me lol) it was…..really simple. I was done figuring it out. It was really quite easy. Then of course, it just took a while to REMEMBER what every button activated and how long I had to hold the button down for to activate those different things. Still, pretty simple. (The video is sped up so hopefully it’s not too boring with us just walking lol)

I’m loving being able to test things out on my phone and download the videos straight to my phone. It’s not really a needed feature for me personally, so perhaps the 2 would’ve been fine for me. What I really love is the 720p at 60 fps. Higher than the 2 and better video quality. Which I prefer. So there we go. I DEFINITELY have to get a bigger SD card tho if I want more/longer videos. I got three 3 minute videos, and that took up about all of the space on the 16gb SD card it came with. But, since I’m not doing anything really NEEDING video footage at the moment, it can wait.

The only thing that is a little disappointing about it for now is that my Ovation helmet’s brim is too small to fit the whole Velcro sticky thing on it. It hangs off a little bit, but not in any danger of the camera coming off. It still works, but since my brim also sort of points down, the camera doesn’t quite get any horizon for right now. Which is all fixable. I’ve been going back and forth between the new EQ3 MIPS helmet and the IRH navy helmet I tried a while ago that fit my head perfectly. But omg no more things for right now. That’ll either be a Black Friday purchase or a helmet awareness purchase. Now I at least also know to compare the brims to make sure my Cambox will fit haha.

Second, if you follow my Instagram, you’ll know that I received my Lund Saddlery pledge items.

I had only pledged reins for the Kickstarter in December 2017, but due to orders being late they threw in a freebie which was absolutely amazing of them to do (one of the reasons they’re one of my fav companies now – their customer service is top notch!). One of the options was a 5pt breastplate, and I chose that one since I’ve been wanting to try that out and see not only how it would fit Amber, but also how it would work with all of our stuff – especially now since her jump saddle is a little big for her and needs help staying forward. I am absolutely in love with it so far. I am super stoked about this deal haha. Also just realized I don’t have a close-up of the reins, but I will do a review of the tack for sure once I’ve had it/used it for a longer period of time.

But the tack pieces made it to me on Monday! I was very excited to see how it fit and how it looked on the horses. I think I had way too much fun trying that 5 point on Amber. I even put it on Whisper and she was not pleased with me haha. But just with all of Lund’s other products, it’s beautifully made and the leather is top-notch Sedgewick. Plus, it looks good on both girls. If I can pad up my jump saddle enough the breastplate will be perfect to help it stay forward but also just to have it for funsies as Amber and I start riding on our outside walks. Ohhh maybe I can try it on Liam whenever I next have a lesson….

And third, there was a bigger reason I cleaned up the tack room other than it needed it: I did a thing (yes another one)(and tack ho’ed hard)(and this is why I can’t buy another helmet).

Yup, that’s what you think it is. It’s a dressage saddle. I was not going to buy a saddle for a while – like months a while. I had no plans as of yet to make the purchase. I’ve been going back and forth with what I want for Amber, even considering other brands and getting a full custom saddle because I worry a lot about how comfortable she is even though those are out of my budget. But I kept coming back to Prestige. I know the size and shape of their trees that fit Amber so I wouldn’t have so much guesswork as I would with another brand. Plus, Prestige trees are adjustable, and I need that as Amber recovers and starts developing more muscle. So I kept an “update me when things are posted with this tag” on Facebook so I could see what people were selling and get a good idea of price ranges and the saddles that were out there. And this one came up. This saddle was a killer deal, too. I’ve realized that most killer deals I find are when I’m not looking, and sure enough, this one popped up.

So I hemmed and I hawed even though the deal was spectacular. I really wasn’t planning on buying a dressage saddle yet. For a long time, I was still thinking I’d grab new because the price for Prestige was pretty reasonable and I’d get all the specs Amber and I needed and wanted. This saddle was the absolute opposite –  an older model, used but definitely well-loved. I liked everything about it. It really looked perfect. I contacted my friend who knows a lot about the saddles as she owns Prestige jump and dressage saddles too, and asked her what she thought. She couldn’t find anything wrong with it either.

It’s going to sound super weird, but I dunno I just felt like this saddle called to me. The lady was really nice and I could really tell she loved the saddle and was disappointed to be selling it. She took absolutely immaculate care of it. (I contacted her after putting it on Amber and sitting in it and telling her I also loved it. She seemed very relieved) Also, the more I thought about it, the more I thought that maybe this would be a good purchase. Amber is showing A LOT of improvement despite being a bit ouchie only the past few days. Her jump saddle doesn’t fit her anymore, and I haven’t wanted to get it adjusted smaller yet – I’m holding out on her being sound and fitter before starting jumping and it might fit again after that time. I’m okay with riding in my western saddle, but I still want to do English. I’ve been really missing it. And when Amber does start progressing further, I want to start with dressage. I want to start with that strength training. Even though I’m dedicated to rehabbing Amber slowly and methodically, she’s been healing consistently well, and I have had to start going outside the box to help her continue to improve.

Also, she knows the difference between her western and English tack, that smart girl. I want her to know that English is forward, and I want to help her stay forward to continue using that hind leg. So, I pulled the trigger. It is black, and I was hoping for brown, but I’m not upset by it. My PS of Sweden bridle is such a dark brown that it really all looks the same from farther away (although that Lund Bridle is AWFULLY tempting. Maybe Christmas present to me? lol). I’ll hopefully have a fitter out soon to have it looked at and make sure it fits her as well as I think it does. I mean, I shoved my hand down the channel and it seemed to flow along her back in every spot – no half pad even needed.

So far, I’ve only had a few rides in it, and it didn’t move on her back at ALL and the girth wasn’t even as tight as it could be. I’m mildly freaking out about adjusting things for this unexpected expense, but I’m also excited too. I mean who wouldn’t be – it’s a new saddle right? haha. But I think it’ll be good for the both of us and thankfully, my jump pads work well for now. Also, this may be a dressage saddle, but holy crap I haven’t realized how deep of a heartgirth this mare has. I don’t think she’ll ever be below a size 28″ in girths no matter how much weight she loses lol.

What do you guys think? How do you like it on Amber? Does she look like a proper dressage horse now? Probably not LOL. How about a proper event horse? Or maybe jumper since all I have are the open front boots? lol