Cool (literally) XC boots

[CookiePony]

I need boots that will keep the front of the cannon bone cool (as many of you know, Taco has a scar there that needs some TLC).

I am looking at the N.E.W. Maximum performance, the N.E.W. Airoflow Sport Boots, and the Tri-Zone boots. Is there one that is better than the other, do you think?

Dalmars look great, but how the heck could I get some here by next week?

TIA :D

[tangledweb]

Dalmars look great, but how the heck could I get some here by next week?

http://www.hastilowusa.com/shop/index.php?action=category&id=12

[CookiePony]

http://www.hastilowusa.com/shop/index.php?action=category&id=12

Oh my goodness-- I knew I could count on you guys. Now, are the Dalmars my best option, do you think?

[Blugal]

FWIW, I bought a pair of Dalmar racing boots last week. I'm a very hard customer to convince, considering that I tend to ride TBs who have sensitive skin. I am quite excited to try them. If your horse is a TB I would recommend going with the racing boots as opposed to the Eventing ones - that is what the sales rep recommended to me as well; he said the racing ones were specifically designed for TBs and their sensitivities! I really like the feel of the material used - it's light and doesn't feel like it will cause sweating like some of the other faux-neoprene rubbery stuff you find on boots.

I was worried about dirt getting in the air vents, and he showed me a comparison study done with other boots showing the Dalmars having the lowest rating (i.e. least amt) for "grit" as they termed it.

Lastly I was worried about the tendon guard rubbing the leg or otherwise interfering - again the rep showed me some of the research they'd done (specifically designing to help horses recover from injuries).

Good luck!

[frugalannie]

I was at a clininc with Nick Turner (BHS fellow, advanced eventer and selector for the British Team) and asked about heat build up and boots.

He recommended Saber (perhaps Sabre) boots, as they are preferred across the pond. I have NO idea how to get them, but I'm pretty sure that some COTH genius will find them via the net.

[RunForIt]

I was at a clininc with Nick Turner (BHS fellow, advanced eventer and selector for the British Team) and asked about heat build up and boots.

He recommended Saber (perhaps Sabre) boots, as they are preferred across the pond. I have NO idea how to get them, but I'm pretty sure that some COTH genius will find them via the net.

my suggestion then: get Nick Turner's contact info! :cool:

And to CP - GO TACO!!!!!! May-Daze must be a GO! CALL ME!!!!!! :cool: :D :cool:

[Blugal]

The Sabre boots (http://www.derbyhouse.co.uk/prodshow.asp?id=71&cat=2&scats=52,23)

As they say they're neoprene-lined leather, for a TB, I wouldn't touch them with a 20-foot pole. My experience with neoprene is that it really heats up the legs.

[frugalannie]

Thanks, Blugal..I acually agree. I still use the old fashioned Ulster boots which don't seem to build up so much heat. Maybe those are wrong, too?

[Blugal]

I used to use a set of Ulsters as well - agree they didn't build up so much heat. I stopped using them when my coach said she'd seen too many micro "boot bows" from the straps - basically the narrow straps weren't distributing the pressure enough. I think that was partly a problem of the buckles on those - you had to do them up fairly snugly otherwise the boots just slid down.

Between then and now I've had a hard time finding anything I'm happy with - lots of problems with boots: neoprene heats, seams which rub, tendon guards which rub, boots that fall off, boots that are great until they get wet, Porters which are OK unless they get a little sand insde (a la long-format roads and tracks)... which is why I really hope these Dalmars are good!

[NeverTime]

Those Dalmar boots look really cool. (literally! :D) I'm curious how hard the tendon guard is. My horse has a decent-sized old bow in front, and I wonder if that would ruin the way they fit? Or is the tendon guard material pliable enough to shape around the bow (and around the matching splints on the insides of both fronts :rolleyes:)?

[luise]

I have the open front Tri-zone vented boots. They are great! They really do work. I would consider getting the XC version--they are very well made and quite nice. Maybe that would work for you? They are more of a hard shell with vents, not soft like the Dalmar boots.

[Blugal]

The tendon guard is a carbon-fibre... not pliable at all. It isn't the full length of the boot, though - I was very specific when I talked to the rep about possible interference when the horse's legs were tucked up for jumping. He assured me they'd done research on how the tendons and ligaments moved during the phases of the jump and how the boot would interact with them. (That said, I took his word on it.)

I have my set in front of me. The tendon guard is just over 6' long, with an inch of pliable boot above it and 1.5 inches below it. Roughly the "diameter" of the tendon guard (from outside edge to outside edge) is 2 (and a bit) inches - but it's more like a quater or a third of a tube, if that makes sense. Not a full semi-circle. So I guess it would either fit or not fit - probably no way of knowing without trying them on? Sorry I'm not more help than that!

As for the splints, I don't think it would be too much of a problem - especially if they fit into one of the slots where the air cooling is ;) The boot is fairly malleable BUT it only has one large closing strap (same with the Eventer version) - so you couldn't adjust the top vs. the bottom for splints.

[IFG]

FWIW, I love my NEW lightweight competition boots. I don't love the Maximum Performance boots quite so well. The inside of my NEWs is this weird foam. It dries really quickly which is great if you want to use the same boots for stadium following XC.

[RunForIt]

so, analyze the Woof boot...so nice to have service! :cool: I want to make sure CP gets the very best for my beloved Taco; Rasta will follow suit! :D

[NeverTime]

Thanks!

[Blugal]

Which Woofs specifically?

My experience with the "orignal" Woofs (http://www.smartpakequine.com/ProductClass.aspx?productClassId=6197) was not too good - the neoprene gets hot and the seams rub, plus the neoprene gets saturated in water jumps. However they were fine on non-TBs for general schooling and hacking.

The new rubbery-feeling "closed cell neoprene" (http://www.aivly.com/product_93203.htm) boots feel awful to me - I can only imagine them grabbing the horse's skin and rubbing the heck out of it. Also they feel like they would wear "hot" - as it does feel quite rubbery.

[scubed]

I've had the Dalmars for several years, have done 20-30 events with them. They are still in great shape, really easy to get on, don't absorb water, super on my TB with not great skin and on muttly pony who has sweet itch issues in the summer. I really like them. I bought a pair of the N.E.W. air flows, but they don't have the hard guards in them, so I prefer the dalmars

[jn4jenny]

Um, good luck getting Hastilow to even get something in the MAIL within a week, let alone get it TO you. My friends and I order our Neue Schule bits from them (because they're the only US distributor), and let's just say their service has been...slow and uncommunicative. We eventually get what we want, but it takes a LONG time. I get the impression that the woman who runs it is frequently out at shows and her non-horsey hubby is left holding down the fort.

[bornfreenowexpensive]

FWIW, I bought a pair of Dalmar racing boots last week.


LOL...great minds think a like. I ordered mine a few weeks ago....same ones.

[CookiePony]

I left a message for Hastilow USA/ AllEnglishTack.com earlier today and they called back this evening. I explained that I need them for next weekend. The person (Annette) said that she herself would take some Dalmars to the post office tomorrow morning! I settled on the racing boots, even for behind, and she seemed to think they would work on TB hind legs. I hope they do!

Thanks COTHers. :cool:

P.S. RFI- yes, MayDaze is a go!

[annikak]

yippee!!

[RunForIt]

I left a message for Hastilow USA/ AllEnglishTack.com earlier today and they called back this evening. I explained that I need them for next weekend. The person (Annette) said that she herself would take some Dalmars to the post office tomorrow morning! I settled on the racing boots, even for behind, and she seemed to think they would work on TB hind legs. I hope they do!

Thanks COTHers. :cool:

P.S. RFI- yes, MayDaze is a go!

ok, GREAT NEWS!!!! STILL CALL ME! What size boots did you order for front and back? I haven't even looked at the damn boots yet...just got my (hopefully) last order of Ulcergard for the "weaning" phase of Rasta's so far (knocking furiously on wood) ulcer treament. He's trotting 3 x 3 minute sets with 2 minutes walk with no arguing - we even did a tiny bit of canter last evening cause he felt so relaxed...(Arlo "helped" me not do more cantering...) :lol: :D :cool: We have a (flatwork only) clinic with Emma Winter the end of this month, then clinic with Becky Holder the end of June - would hope to have some decent boots for both....can't seem to find the damned money tree!

[CookiePony]

The good news is that HastilowUSA/ allenglishtack was very fast and a beautiful pair of Dalmars got here Tuesday...
The bad news is that they are not quite big enough for his hind legs.

I think I will be doing some shopping at MayDaze-- perhaps some NEWs, or even porters/ Saratogas.

[purplnurpl]

good grief.
I guess I live on more of a budget than most. lol.

How bout some normal open fronts?
Shoot, for N and BN I usually don't use boots--or maybe just some open fronts for tendon protection.

http://www.legacytack.com/pc/10359/HBOOT/Roma+Open+Front+Jumping+Boots.html

dudes, don't forget if you use my coupon code you can get 5 bucks off at Legacy Tack.

For Boos I always used these:
http://www.legacytack.com/pc/10142/HBOOT/Roma+Molded+Hind+Boots.html

but he has a scar and jank on one of his front legs and I finally 'bit the bullet and spent my BIG bucks (lol)' and bought porters. He needs two different sized front boots otherwise.

[Raison d'etre]

So I bought CookiePony's boots at May-daze (thanks!!!). I had them on the front and my woofs on the back. A little experiment. Just wanted to report that when I went to hose Sebastian off (took us about 5 minutes to get back to the barn after XC), his hind legs were really hot. His front legs, though, weren't noticably warm at all. There was a really noticeable difference in temperature between the front and hind legs. I'm very excited about them.

[CookiePony]

Hey, cool! (pun intended :cool: ) I'm glad it all worked out.

And yes, I was the geek who was running Novice in porters and saratogas. But Taco's leg stayed happy! Thanks QHeventer for your expert advice. :)

[Bobthehorse]

So I bought CookiePony's boots at May-daze (thanks!!!). I had them on the front and my woofs on the back. A little experiment. Just wanted to report that when I went to hose Sebastian off (took us about 5 minutes to get back to the barn after XC), his hind legs were really hot. His front legs, though, weren't noticably warm at all. There was a really noticeable difference in temperature between the front and hind legs. I'm very excited about them.

What was on the front?

[CookiePony]

What was on the front?

http://www.hastilowusa.com/shop/index.php?action=item&id=205&prevaction=category&previd=12&prevstart=0

[Agruner]

I LOVE my Dalmars! They don't hold water, are lightweight and fit my horse well. I tried the Tri-Zone boots, but they kept sliding down my horses leg, seemed bulky and I couldn't get them lined up right.

[wildlifer]

The NEW Airoflows XC boots I got recently leave the whole leg nice and dry even on a hot humid day. Thumbs up on them from me!

[HappyRiding]

I used to LOVE my dalmar eventers and tried to get everyone to buy them but after what they did last week I threw them away with out a second thought! And yes, I imported them so i paid alot extra on them! I came off cross country with the back boots rotated so that the carbon plates were on the inside/outside squeezing my horse's legs. I very rapidly pulled them off the find cuts all over her legs. She has hind socks so i could tell the skin was very pink and sensitive. On top of rotating they slid down and rubbed her pasterns really badly and the air vents or maybe something else had tiny rocks come in(maybe what caused the scratches?) into the boot. I always vet wrap my boots and i also check for rotation and sliding before every ride and these were on tight. I thought about my horse hitting a jump but after thinking over each jump on course and knowing my horse's jump style I knew she hadn't touched a fence. The front boots twisted alittle and had some of the same rocks but I tossed them too just because I was so sick of them. My friend also had the same experience with the front boots that I had with my back boots. I've used them on three horses and have never had this problem(only thing close was when one horse got its leg caught in a bush that pulled it down and then minimal rotation on the horse that rubbed the inside of his legs when he trotted) so it could have been a temporary thing but you couldn't get me to touch any dalmar product again with a ten foot pole! I'm going with ecogolds now, thank you very much.