Dude, You're Like, so Totally Lame

Today was to be my first barn time in a whole week since I worked 8-12 hour days every day since Saturday when he refused to be caught and it was too muddy for me to chase him and all I did was clean stalls with a baby migraine - that day doesn't count as the kind of rejuvenating/recharging barn time I am in desperate need of.

So when I got out to the arena to ride, what do I find? I find a head-bobbing-lame-at-the-trot pony. Ugh. Thankfully my BO was there and helped me determine it was his left front. He was fine at the walk and didn't seem in any pain and was perfectly willing to trot even before I really asked him to. It was warm but not super warm, and since I was wearing gloves while grooming I didn't notice. It doesn't seem super serious so I hosed it and will check him in the morning. Dr. J. will be out at noon to check two other horses so I gave him a heads up that we'd like to be on the list, too. Unfortunately I have to be at work when he's there, of course.

Oh and this morning I got a text from the BM of THIS:

And for your entertainment the text thread the followed:

And no he wasn't sweating when I got to the barn, the BO wouldn't have actually let that happen, I was just being dramatic. Sadly it was no where near warm enough to make him sweat. It's a pretty easy fix, thankfully. He can wear his big coat for a day or two. That's the edge binding you're seeing around his neck. It's a closed-front blanket and he somehow ripped the front seam open and ripped the side out of the edge binding. And the "u" in the text was supposed to be an "I." I can type, really.

Sigh... I'll keep you posted.

Product Review - SHE System Gloves

If you're just joining us, you can read the pre-purchase post HERE.

I've been using the gloves for a few weeks now. It's been getting a little warmer, of course, but even on the coldest of days when Ohio was imitating Minnesota, they seemed to keep my hands as warm as anything ever has. I have not needed to use hand warmers.

Overall I consider them a good purchase, even though they were on the pricey side. There are some details I'd like to share:

• I've been layering them with Silk Glove Liners. The inner gloves are quite thin in the fingers to provide greater dexterity, but too thin for the coldest days.
• The glove fingers ARE too long and sometimes get in my way, but since they are not lined I may be able to alter them slightly. They're a S/M size and are supposed to fit the "shape of a woman's hand" but they are clearly speaking of a much heftier style of woman.
• Maneuvering the finger and thumb flaps took some getting used to and were rather frustrating in the first few days, but have become second nature.
• They have actually gotten TOO warm a few times but since the outer mitt is easy to slide off it's a quick fix.
• Somewhere between riding and cleaning stalls I developed a hefty blister on the pinky side of the first knuckle of my right ring finger. But since that's not where the rein is supposed to sit anyway, maybe it's a good reminder to start holding it right.
• They are WASHABLE!!! Hooray! I did have to email the company and ask for the washing instructions since they were absent from any of the tags, hang-tags, or box. Machine cold - air dry. Works great!
• The black suede-like fingers have dyed the glove liners black... not sure if they would have done the same to my fingers or not.
• On the coldest days I could actually RIDE with three fingers inside the mitts.
• The mitts eliminate ALL chance of dexterity for tacking, but I was able to clean stalls in them and use brushes.
• The over-mitts can be worn with ANY other glove, which will be nice for those days when you need to layer on and off constantly.
• I LOVE the magnets. Most gloves like this use velcro. The magnets do not hold shavings/hair like velcro can, and I only need to get the flaps close to their magnet and they pull themselves together on their own.

They seem to be sold out nearly everywhere, but perhaps by next fall they'll be back in stock at Cabelas.

WTFriday #3

In my hunting for saddles I have come across some eye catching things that I thought I'd share with you.

Kinda makes you want to see what it looks like under a blacklight, doesn't it?

That overlay is a bit thick to put on the jockey, don't you think? And they should probably put the pad on the right direction...

WHY oh WHY is everything patriotic so fugtastic? And do they think the pile of dirty laundry on the ugly 70's chair will help the sale?

I thought they had better taste in the olden days...

it seems I was wrong.

Then called this next one a "Modern Western Saddle"...

Thats.... lots green.

At this rate they really ought to make the pommel and seat zebra, too, or at least either hot pink or lime...

We over here we've got...

Saddle Search - Part II - Updated

Guess what's getting shipped off to Texas tomorrow....

:)

Though the Ebay fees, Papal fees, and increased shipping costs means I'm not getting as much of the purchase price as I'd like, I'm still getting MORE than I was trying to get for it locally. Everyone still wins. Time to go shopping for REALZ.

EDITED TO ADD:

I've shipped two saddles now and there are things that I didn't really consider before doing so. Here is how YOU can avoid what I've just done.... I still did very well on the sale, but comparing the Auction sale price to what I actually MADE is usually a shocking reality.

Ebay FEES: Ebay's fees are constantly going up. Check Ebay's "Final Value Fees" so you are prepared for what they'll charge you. It's a percentage, but there's a cap so currently anything that sells for over $500 will be $50.
Paypal FEES: Paypal is owned by Ebay now so it's highway robbery because they are really charging you twice. There really is no other option for a safe way to send/receive funds, so you suck it up. It's also on a percentage. AND instead of Ebay taking the listing fee and final value fee out of the purchase price itself, Paypal charges you a percentage based on the final value, THEN you have to pay Ebay fees. They certainly have developed a money maker.

Shipping FEES: A little research can tell you how much it will cost to ship. I thought $75 was reasonable and I assumed I'd have to pay a little more if it had to ship far.

• Measure the saddle - I ship horn down, just like you set the saddle if there is not a rack available. The smaller the box the cheaper it ships and the less the saddle jostles around the better.
• If you do not already possess a sturdy box of that size, call the shipper or another box supplier to see what they have. I decided on a 30x20x24 $14 box.
• Weigh the saddle - they say add 2-5 lbs for box/packing.
• Call the shippers and get a quote. You'll need the zip it's going to (pick whatever is furthest away from you), the weight, and the box dimensions.
• Protect the saddle: I removed the stirrups (not the fenders), wrapped the stirrups, mock billets, horn, and the tack in bubble wrap and tape. Encase the saddle in plastic just incase the box gets wet. Put a layer of bubble wrap in the bottom. Pack bubble wrap/air pillows/whatever you've got around the saddle so it stays in place as much as possible. It's the rocking and rubbing that causes damage.
• The final box weighed in at 48lbs. I estimated the saddle itself was about 40lbs using the scientific method of weighing myself then weighing myself holding the saddle and finding the difference. (I swore that thing was 50lbs, but apparently I'm jus a wuss and the 8 lbs difference between that and my training saddle matters a lot.)

All told, the difference between the final value fee and my actual "earnings" was 205.72. This is still nearly $300 more in "earnings" than I was trying to sell it for locally, so everybody wins, I just wish I had charged $100 for shipping, but sometimes numbers like that scare bidders away, so you never know.

I am still pleased and now I can move on to a new saddle!